Hi all.I’m building an AFV club M-10 TD,& when it came time to put the factory “rubber band” tracks,they were way too short.I can’t see where I erred,but regardless,I tried looking to purchase a Fruilmodel set.As far as I can tell,It’sthe only AFV they don’t make a set for.Doe’sanyone know who might make an AM set of T-49’s [ of any type] for this kit ?Thank you, keith R.
I’m far from an expert, but wouldn’t standard Sherman tracks work? Weren’t the chassis measurements the same?
MajMike,I’m pretty sure,& I probably should have added that in my post in the form of a question,before I buy a set o Shermie tracks. Thanks.
One of several bad habits I have is stating the obvious. Sherman tracks are the first thing I thought of when I saw your post. There’s several choices out there for those.
Good luck with your search.
I recently built AFV Club’s Achilles, so I feel your pain.
A few things.
First - be aware that Friuls WILL NOT fit the drive sprockets, so unless you swap those out you’re basically SOL. I’d have swapped, but one of mine got cemented in place thanks to an unfortunate solvent spill early in the build. Saving my Friuls for something else (Dragon M7 Priest, probably)
Second - The AFV Club tracks are weird. When I went to fit them the first time, they were at least 5 links too short. I ended up snapping one of them in two places trying to stretch it to fit. BUT…when I went back to fit them later, they seemed to fit just fine. Don’t know if maybe they got stretchier as the weather warmed up.
Third - since its an M10 I’m assuming you’ve got the flat block tracks (T51s I think?). If you’re worried about snapping them, or have snapped them, you can easily brace them with a piece of PE fret. Just hide it under a wheel or something and it’s impossible to notice. I hid mine up by one of the return rollers I think.
Best of luck with it…mine came out okay in the end (though the tracks were just one part of the frustrations I had with the kit)…I’m sure yours will, too:
Doogs,I followyour blog & liked your solution.But,like your initial problem,mine are just toolong for theP.E. fix.I might try putting them in really hot waterto see if they stretch enough.If not,then I’ll track down[no pun intende] some Sherman tracks as MajMike mentioned… Thakns,keith r.
Yeah, I can’t come up with a reason why mine stretched, save for the temps in the garage going from the 40s and 50s up into the 80s with high humidity. Ah, spring in Texas…
If I may comment on Fruilmodelismo Sherman tracks — the benefit of Fruils is that they show weightiness. This is spectacular for a Panther or a IS-2 tank or an T-55 MBT. However, I think Fruils are poor choices for most WW2 US stuff because Sherman suspensions were designed to have minimal slack in their track runs. Slack meant danger of thrown tracks so tankers kept them very taut.
Agreed on all counts.
Honestly for VVSS vehicles I prefer a good-fitting rubber band, or at least one that’s not almost an inch too short to do the job!
But Friuls do have another huge benefit, at least to me - they go together well and are workable and sturdy. And it’s easy to pull a link if you have one too many.
I just glanced at a review of Bronco’s workable tracks (they apparently fit the AFV Club sprockets pretty well, BTW), and they look like a nightmare of complexity next to the Friuls.
Squadron is out of stock,but these worked great for me on an Italeri M36B1.
http://www.squadron.com/NoStock.asp?item=AC35026
Maybe another seller has them on hand.
There are some on Ebay.
Roy,Your comments arealways appreciated.From my novice experience,I agree,but I am desparate.I think I just need a another set of the M-10 tracks to extend my own. P.S. I have amassed the stuff I need for my M-19 project/dream.But after thepix & advice you sent,I agree,it’snot for the faint of heart.With the warm weather upon us here in N.E. it is on hold for next winter. Much thanks, keith r.
At this point ,Doogs, they may be my only option.Thanks, keith r.
Thanks TD,I’m on it.keith r,