I’ve decided to keep a log of the time/progress of the 1/35 Dragon Leopold that I started work on this holiday weekend and thought I’d share it with you as I go along. I’m not really sure just how long it’s going to take for me to complete this but decided to begin taking a crack at it. This kit is a monster (finished length will be approximately 43") and it has over 700 pieces. Began work on this yesterday with the extended holiday weekend in mind. Next weekend starts the T34 build and I’ll likely alternate days on the weekends between it and the Leo. If anyone’s interested, we could start a pool on the total amout of effort this monster is going to take and see who gets the closest… [:D] I’m keeping detailed notes as I go along, have already found some errors/problems in the instructions and kit parts. I’ll also be posting pics of the progress as this is going to be a very unconventional build with painting/weathering happening at the same time that building is going on due to the enormous complexity of the various sections.
Day 1 Log: Sept. 4th, 2004.
The instructions have 15 steps, I completed Step 1 yesterday after almost 6 hours of work.
Errors found: 2
—Step 1A has the part pairings of G53/50 and G52/51 reversed in their placement on the undercarriage frame.
—1 of the undercarriage frames slightly warped [:(!] and will cause problems later on in Step 5 when joined up with undercarriage wheels and top.
Steps completed:
1A-1F
Total time: 5.5 hours.
Progress Pic:
Additional comments:
–Virtually every round or partially round piece as at least two connection points to the sprue. Lots of parts cleanup required to counter this.
Hello everyone, this is Bill’s wife Sharon Plunk. Bill wanted me to let you know that he was admitted to the hospital again last Sun. which was exactly 1 week ago. He asks that you pray for him as he goes through this time. He has been thinking a lot about you guys and wanted me to tell you what is going on cause you have a right to know. Thank you for already being his friend. He is in the hospital right now for seizures and the doctors say that he has a seizure disorder. Please keep him in your prayers and spread the word cause this is what he wanted me to do. I will keep you posted in a few days. Thank you.