hi all i have had the italeri tiger ( p ) elefant kit on the bench for awhile but due to some issue’s have not got to build it . i was in a local hobbyshop on sat and saw the dragon premium edition ferdinand kit with metal barrel and photoetch parts # dra 6317 and also the dragon premium edition kit elefant kit with photoetch parts # dra 6311 and was told these were more detailed than the italeri kit that i have . then at another hobbyshop i was told the tamiya elefant kit with stick on zimmerit was better than all the above ??? SO my ??? is never having worked with photoetch how hard is this and what tools will i need ( i do have other kits with photoetch ) i know i am not ready to do the putty zimmerit . so how much better is the tamiya kit ??? i could build both dragon kits for the tamiya $-90 price tag THANKS for pointing me in the right direction i have asked armor ??? b4 but due to the back have yet to build 1 THANKS
SORRY GUYS 1 MORE ??? FROM THE ABOVE POST how hard are the magic tracks to put together thanks
Tamiya’s basic kit is nice. The Tamiya-produced zimmerit stick on panels, in my opinion, are rather mediocre. PE requires files, tweezers, pliers, a hard surface to cut the PE off the fret and super glue. Magic tracks aren’t horrible.
Finally, there are many alternatives to buying retail price ($90) you know. Just saying.
Have a look at Hinksy’s build of the Dragon 6465 Elefant kit which looks nice to me. With Magic tracks I build them after I’ve completed the bottom hull of the tank as its much easier if you can get at them from all angles. Hope that helps
Phil
I’d probably opt for the pre-zimmed Elefant that Hinsky is working on, but that being said, I have the Ferdinand premium in the stash. It comes with plastic parts in case you don’t want to make PE fenders and the such. It’s price tag is pretty low, they can be purchased on ebay for around $30 with postage, but they aren’t common there.
For the magic tracks, I’ve recently made one long run and use the Testors glue that comes in the pink bottle with the brush and liberally slather the run, wait an hour, then form around the drive sprocket and idler. I’ll stuff some cotton or something else between the hull and the wheels to give a sag. Wait at least 24 hours and they should be rock solid. I leave one link undone, so I can take them off to paint.
I also agree with DML Elefant with the molded on Zimm,it has a decent amount of PE,a metal barrel,and DS tracks which work pretty nicely and help you avoid the magic tracks.It is a fairly straightforward build and as stated you can follow Hinksy’s build.
Regarding photo-etch…
You might want to invest in some magnifying glasses (a decent set can be had for around $20); especially if your eyes are getting as bad as mine. The parts on tanks and SP guns aren’t generally as small as for planes, but they still can be pretty small.
As for Magic tracks, they are more tedious than difficult IMHO.
Yup,
There’s plenty of Ferdinand/Elefant builds but as the guys have stated - the Dragon kit I’m working on now with the pre-moulded Zim is a great kit.
The PE is very straight forward and the replacement Aluminium barrel is a big improvement.
Imo the Tamiya option is waaay overpriced for what you get - that sticky Zim looks awful!
Let us know what you decide on!
Ben [t$t]
Yes, that sticky Tamiya zim is less detailed then even PE zimmerit. It looks almost toy-like.
HI ALL and THANKS for the info i have decided on the dragon kitS YES my wife said i can have enough fun money to put them both in lay away now my only worry is the photo etch but if i am gonna try the harder kits this is a must to learn i have a few other kits in the stash that i have put off because of the pe and the extra expense of the bender i guess it is what its called that i was told i need because of the length of the fenders i want to try ALLthe pe stuff ALSO i have posted about some armor ??? but i gotta tell you i am excited about these kits i have always liked the look of these THANKS and i will post pics of the kit i will do first and then will come all the ??? LOL