I think i may have solved it already and quite easily…
First i tried to hollow out the locating ring, hoping that the extra room to move would make the front plate tilt back to where i want it. It did help but was too little.
I cut off the pin that goes into the locating ring completely now and glued the other side, as well as the front plate where it touches the turret body. The barrel wont be able to be adjusted in elevation this way but since it is a static model i am not too concerned with that.
Letting the glue harden out completely overnight so i can remove the tape used for securing everything into place. Pics comin up![:)]
Thank you so much for your interest in my fiddling around[:)]
Lately i haven’t been modeling alot since the pre-holiday weeks are very busy at work… Combine that with a bit of a modelers block and an upcoming visit to the USA (6 blissful weeks!) and you might imagine that the Tiger has moved to the “to do later” list…[:$]
I will be returning to this lovely model but i am afraid that wont be until late february… My sincere apologies…
Nevertheless i expect to be online and lurking during my holiday so i will watch your progress with interest[y]
Mine will not be jumping to the front of my “to do” line up too often. I have too many builds in front that are “higher priority”. It is part of a Group Build at the local AMPS Chapter where we are building a batch of 1/35 Tigers (every conceivable variant) for entry in a local contest in 2013 so we have lots of time [whstl]. If you come to California during your visit to the USA Kermit, say hello. So far, I just have the basic hull built and need to begin work on the suspension next.
I am afraid my voyage will take me to Washington state… Vetteman is dying to meet me too LOL. Maybe one day ill head down south…
Looking forward to following your progress. Sounds like a fun group thing in your AMPS chapter! Wonder if theres such a thing in Wa. too… From the looks of it ill be setting up shop overthere in about a year.
Oh there is nothing wrong with Washington state…[^o)] except perhaps the weather…[;)][st][um] Bring your rain gear[whstl] If you do end up setting up shop in Washington and find the time to come south to warmer climes, I’m pretty sure I’ll be around to meet and greet. Yes the AMPS Tiger Group Build is pretty fun. A LOT of great guys doing some very nice builds, exchanging ideas, help, tips, etc. A couple of the guys building Dragon’s Tigers have found a flaw in instructions the hard way and brought it out in the open for those who have not reached that point yet- that sort of thing is great to see. I am really looking forward to seeing the completed tanks. I think we will have a battalions worth of Tigers when it’s all finished.
The big problem with the Dragon has something to do with the assembly sequence of the glacis plate and the front plate (driver/bow gunner) of the upper hull. I cannot be too specific because I am not building one and do not have a Dragon Tiger in my stash, but apparently those two need to be fitted to the hull and glued during the same step rather than in separate steps during construction. They will not fit properly if done as shown on the kit instruction sheet. A couple of our guys, who are excellent builders in my view, have encountered the same issue already and brought it to the attention of all the others.
Ok Kermit, any updates on your Tiger? Now that I have a few builds finished (and am due to start attending AMPS meetings again with my days off supposedly rotating to weekends off again) I have pulled out mine and resumed work. Tonite I began dry fitting the turret and with that mantlet alignment issue in mind I am approaching that in a different manner. I found that if I leave the mantlet seperate from the breech assembly, there is enough wiggle room to align it level horizontally.
Yes, it is still on my mind… haven’t updated in months due to the whole spectrum of reasons including momentary loss of guts but she has been sitting on my bench just two feet away from me all that time and i am not planning on shelving the Tiger. It has just been shoved around on my to do list…[:$]
Looking back i should have gone the way you have appearantly by not using the locating pins at all or even cutting them out. I still have an ever so slight misalignment but you really have to look closely.
Are you planning aftermarket goodies on yours too?
I am looking at some AM tracks, probably from AFV Club, as the tracks with the kit are later production with ice cleats. And maybe some PE engine deck grill screens. But no major AM add ons at this point.
It actually is not half bad. The biggest downfall of it today is there are much better Tiger kits on the market at around the same price. But when first released, it was an economic alternative to the Tamiya, Academy, and Dragon Tigers. Unfortunately, unless you are finding this kit secondhand today, that no longer holds true, as Italeri kits are, for the most part, way overpriced today.
I agree with your statement. There are way better tigers outthere today. In my case here however it was the only early Tiger my LHS had on stock and i must say that the base kit is ok enough and a good base for improvements. Hence the kitbashing and PE additions.
Italeri kits however are indeed way overpriced. One of the reasons i rarely build an italeri kit.
Yes, I picked mine up when it was a new release and the only “early” Tiger out there. At that time it was considerably less costly than it is now. And yes any additions will improve what is a good basic kit. Italeri kits were for many years a viable affordable alternative to Tamiya and Dragon, but once MRC snatched them up that went out the window. Nowadays they are mainly re issuing 20-30 year old kits, sometimes with a tweak of improvement, but usually not, for new mold pricing. Which is too bad, because on occasion they have done some really great stuff.
