My next wip is going to be the Dragon Panzer I Ausf A with interior (I love these early little Panzers).
I decided to get some MK tracks instead of Fruils with this one to keep costs down and they arrived this morning. I was a little surprised to see the amount of work involved!
I had no idea I’d be having to do cleanup! God they are small! I was expecting to see a plastic equivalent to Fruils but I was miles off.
Has anyone got any tips on using these. I have not used these before.
They are the ‘workable’ ones btw. I’m starting to think that I should have parted with the extra tenner and got Fruils! [:S]
I’ve worked with two sets of MK tracks, and stuck with Fruil, but only because I like the look. Personally, I did not have any problems with them. I had an older set for a Panther, that were the click-together style, and another that had the pins separately moulded. IIRC, it came with a jig and you just mounted the tracks to it, applied glue to pins and inserted on either side of the track jig, into the tracks.
What exactly are you having a problem with? Also, did the DML kit come with individual link tracks? I probably would have stuck with them myself.
Yeah, MK tracks have LOTS of teeny parts. Try building Sherman tracks- nine parts per link. Advice? well, follow the instructions, work slow, and dont use too much glue. A sharp blade is a must; if its too dull it will “pull” at the plastic, damaging it, and not slice it. When your done, the workable aspect gives you great sag, just as good as the Friuls. They also tend to fit MUCH better than Friuls do. So there are some definite advantages. Another side note- i never had success fitting them to the tank for a test fit, then taking them off, then painting, then putting them back on again. they are just way too fragile for that and will break apart in to many many pieces! I prefer to build them, place them on the road wheels, then slather thin glue (tamiya extra thin) over the tracks and wheels making the tracks, sprocket, idler, and return rollers one single piece. Theyre are easy to paint to if you have an airbrush and a steady hand with a brush. Good luck Hinsky! be sure to ask if you have any more trouble
How do they work? Is it like two individual pins per link? MK should have supplied a jig for assebly. Also, Dont try snipping off the pins and adding them like that: they’re meant to be glued into the links while still connected to the sprue, then you can remove the sprue. This makes handling them easy for anyone. And the MKs will look much better on the Panzer I because the relative crudeness of the friuls really shows when the links are that small.
I use MKs all the time and the key is just to be patient with them. The Pz I links have an advantage in that they will already have 1 pin molded in place on the links so you just slip on the next link and add the 2nd pin (be very careful with the glue, only touch it to the head and don’t use CA!) to secure the link and keep things workable. Since they are styrene, you can paint them just like you would ordinary kit plastic. You will have to do the necessary sprue attachment point clean-up and it is a tedious/repetitive task, no getting away from that I’m afraid.
The way I will typically approach track assembly for MKs is to remove the number of links I need per track run (always using 2-3 less than what the instructions call for to be safe), clean them up first, and then start the assembly. It’s a perfect job to do while watching mindless TV and it’s something that doesn’t have to be done all in one go…so an hour or 30 minutes here and there is perfect for tackling this type of effort vs. a single marathon session at the bench. As mentioned above, the tracks will be more fragile than Fruils so bear that in mind when you handle them during assembly and when fitting to the vehicle. [;)]
First off I didn’t get a jig - I get the impression that a jig is only supplied with certain track types?
For those who were wondering I like (prefer) to use workable tracks and thought that I’d give the MK’s a go. I was expecting ready to go links with plastic pins, like fruils but without the wire, the plastic pin doing the job of the wire.
The problem is you push fit one link to the next as they have a pin moulded in place on these already as Bil says. You then push the other guide horn in that been given a smear of cement. It’s all good until you go to pick them up - the pre moulded pins don’t hold properly so the track run that you’ve just assembled collapses in places. I’ve tried a very short run but I think I need to get my modelling head on and sit down properly to do these.
I’d imagine the bigger track links like the Panther or T34’s would be fine but these aren’t great. I’ll see how it goes when I get round to this part of the build but it’s a long way off yet-I’ve still got the JP to complete!
I’ll see how they go. Hopefully I’ll get them sorted, if not I’ll get Fruils.
MK sets that use the pre-molded pin approach don’t supply a jig because one isn’t needed. Sets that use 2 separate pins do include a jig.
Due to the small size of the links (and also the pins), the amount of surface area that the pins work with isn’t large to begin with. Rough handling will damage the pins and if you don’t insure that the added pin is completely seated into its hole, the links can also separate. They are designed to be fully workable for positioning but are fragile, so be sure to avoid putting unnecessary stress on the pins during assembly/handling and you should be ok. [;)]
