Dragon USA Megaganza Part Three!

Guest User ·

Bronco has churned out another version of their sophisticated Horch kits, Dragon has a big pile of variants on their now classic base kits and last but not least is a closer look at the Dragon Patriot missile launcher kit!

Bronco 35209, Mittlerer Einheits PersonenKraftwagen(m.E.Pkw) Kfz12(Early Version) & 2.8cm sPzB41 On Larger Steel-Wheeled Carriage w/Trailer Sd.Ah.32/2

Dragon 6834, 10.5cm StuH.42 Ausf E/F

Dragon 6599, Flakpanzer T-34r

Dragon 6838, Su-76i

Dragon 6721, 5cm PaK 38 L/60 auf Fgst.P.Kpfw. II (Sf)

Dragon 3563, MIM-104F Patriot Surface-to-Air Missile (SAM)

Bench Wars Part 4: The results!

DavidDoyleBooks.com ·

In this highly anticipated final chapter of our world-famous blog, we bring you: THE RESULTS.

(crickets chirping...)

I managed to cover nearly the entire length of the bench, maximizing the surface. My lights were moved to the shelf above to clear my reach to the outlying modules.

BTW, final assembly was slightly tricky. Each of the modules is attached to the next with small magnets. These are inserted in holes drilled in various locations. The individual magnets are a tight fit and keeping the correct polarity throughout was difficult for me (I'm easily confused).

Once sorted though, it is an effective system for keeping all the different parts together. The resulting unit is pretty sturdy.

Here is a closer look at the center section:

I used my handy Dymo label maker to identify all the drawers. All the stuff I use the most is located within this section. The top tool holders are pretty cool. The one on the right contains my most frequently used items.

With the large number of drawers available I was able to put together some very useful groups. This is the blade drawer. Previously, these were scattered over several locations. Number 11 blades are in the front:

All my punch and die sets are now together for the first time:

Bits and collets:

Here is a closer look at the right-hand tool caddy. There is a little space n the front that is handy for my x-acto and glue applicator:

Here is one of two of the "on deck" storage units:

I filled up a lot of the space, but there are few areas left over. The corner drawer units are teeny, but so is most of my stuff:

There is still some room in this unit, on the left hand side. I'm not really sure what to put in that center divider...

I now consider myself highly organized! The system is already working quite well. I can quickly put items away and I have zero clutter on the bench. At the end of each session, the bench surface is easily cleared.

I am very pleased with the Hobby Zone product line—everything was very high quality The level of service was also quite good. We have used their paint organizers, too and will be adding to them soon.

Please do not hesitate to check out their site at http://www.hobbyzone.pl/en/

 

 

 

Black Dog Update!

Guest User ·

www.blackdog.cz

T48064, 1\48 Panzerkampfwagen II A\B\C accessories set for Tamiya    


T72098, 1\72 T 34\85 factory 122 model 1945 conversion set for Trumpeter  

 
T72099, 1\72 US M26 Pershing accessories set for Trumpeter      


T35171, 1\35 Opel Blitz 3.6-47 Omnibus accessories set for Roden  

  
T35172, 1\35 M 551 Sheridan Gulf War accessories set for Academy 


F32007, 1\32 German Fighter Pilot N°5 

      
F32008, 1\32 German Fighter Pilot N°6  


F32009, 1\32 German Fighter Pilots N°3 


D35081, 1\35 House corner (Europe WW II) base 


D35082, 1\35 Buddha statue base   


D72031 1\72 Street WWII base    

Dragon USA Megaganza Part Deux!

Guest User ·

www.dragonmodelsusa.com

Dragon 3553, M60 Patton

Lots of Cold War mavens have been looking forward to this one, including us!

It's got the earlier turret that looks a lot like an M48 turret, but is not. The kit includes the aluminum wheels with the strengthening ribs. All of the goodies we have seen in the more recent M48 kits are in here as well like the spotlight, dust cover and decent looking one-piece tracks. A slide molded 105mm gun barrel is in there too.

Dragon 3565

This kit contains parts to do either an M48A1 or an M48A2C. Just for review, the M48A1 had the flat engine deck while the M48A2 had the humped one that was passed down to the M48A3 and the M60 series.  The M48 A1 had five return rollers while the M48A2 had three. The M48A2 had an extra track-tensioning wheel that looked like a return roller between the rearmost road wheel and the drive sprocket while the A2C dispensed with this.

There is a bit of conversion work to be done to make it an M48A2C. The fenders need to be chopped and so does the T-shaped muzzle brake in order to replace it with theY-shaped one.

Markings for 3 Israeli M48A2C and one Jordanian M48A1 from the 1967 Six Day War are included.

Our M48 Patton book provided some good technical reference as the Israeli M48s did not have major modifications at this time. Sabinga Martin SMBK-18 is also a great reference for this one.

Bench Wars Part 3

DavidDoyleBooks.com ·

Using the sheet shown in my previous post, I placed an order.

FYI, my bench top is 97 inches long and 25.75 inches deep (about 246 cm x 63 cm). I was shooting for a modular set up that was 95 by 19 inches (about 241 cm x 48 cm). This is where the sheet came in handy.

The HobbyZone site can be a tiny bit confusing. Although one can choose between Dollars, Euro or Zloty, all of the prices include VAT. This is only subtracted once the order is placed. For example, the OM03 Corner Drawer Module is listed at $32.57 on the site, but the actual cost is only $26.48. It's not the worst thing in the world, as the order ended up being much less than I thought.

Here is the final order:

Here is the box upon arrival:

 (I'll cover the paint stands in a subsequent blog)

Being composed of lots and lots of MDF, I was fearful that the shipping from Poland with be prohibitive. Miraculously, the nearly 75 pound box was just $138.86 to ship via UPS to the U.S.

As can be seen, the order was blocked out inside with cardboard tubing wrapped in bubble wrap. Pretty clever. The invoice was in a plastic sleeve and included some stickers and pencils:

There were a total of 24 boxes inside:

Each box is essentially a small kit, so I was in for a lot of construction! Here are the parts for one of the three-drawer units:

In the shot above, the drawer components can be seen, as well as the part for the "carcass" that contains them. The carcass parts are all slotted and notched. The small holes in the square parts to the left are for magnets, which attach the various units together (more on this later). The back of the unit is coated on the inside with sturdy vinyl sheeting, as are the drawer fronts and the dividers (the slotted parts).

Jeff pitched in to help and we were soon knee-deep in parts. We used Elmer's Carpenter's Wood Glue—the yellow stuff, for all assembly.

A hint from Jeff: the drawer fronts don't have a slot to lock them in place on the bottom. He used a lot of extra glue in this area and it had a kind of caulking effect, sealing the front firmly in place. Wood glue shrinks considerably once dry, so this doesn't have any effect on the handsome finish of the parts.

I should say that this is not necessary for the drawers to function properly. It simply adds strength to each part and helps keep small parts from finding their way under the drawer fronts once in use.

Here is another of the side pieces, this time for the corner drawer unit:

As suggested in the excellent instructions, we secured the units using masking tape while they dried:

During construction, we kept an bucket of water on the floor with several clean sponges in it. We used these to keep the excess glue under control and make sure everything remained neat and tidy.

Working together diligently, we were able to complete all 24 modules in one day. When working with wood glue, it's important to let it dry overnight for the best bond. Working with MDF is interesting, as the material will swell slightly when exposed to glue, then shrink back as it dries. This creates a very strong bond.

We left that night with all the units drying in various spots around the office.

Next: the results!

 

Dragon USA Photo Megaganza Part 1

Guest User ·

We just received a big box of samples from Dragon USA.

www.dragonmodelsusa.com

Let's kick things off with some small stuff.

Bronco has two new accessory sets that will come in handy for your next diorama:

Bronco AB3578, WWII German Rubber Raft comes with two rubber rafts.

Bronco AB3579, Universal Fuel Tank Trailer is the same thing they included in their recent A13 modified for German use and Morserzugmittel 35t, but now you can get just the trailer. It comes with a bunch of jerry cans and fuel barrels that are really nice and could be used for filling out a truck bed.

Next up are two 1:72 scale kits from Dragon. These look pretty easy and are probably good for an evening in front of the TV to keep your hands busy.

Dragon 7499, Sd.Kfz. 171 Panther A Early Production looks almost exactly like the classic 1:35 scale kit right down to the box art.

Dragon 7327, Churchill Mk. III Avre includes the welded turret and the spigot mortar that make this version distinctive. J

Jeff built one of the little Dragon Churchills a while back from start to finish, including weathering, in one afternoon.

Riich 35034, British Airborne Universal Carrier and Welbike is another variant of Riich's very sophisticated base kit. The Welbike is more complex than the Tamiya ones in their figure set. The Universal Carrier has a flat panel hull and link and length tracks. Some of the hull plates are also included as photo-etch parts for the detail mavens out there. Get out your Optivisor and tweezers, ladies!

We'll have more tomorrow when we take a look at some of the new Dragon kits!

Bench Wars Part 2

DavidDoyleBooks.com ·

Once on the HobbyZone website, there was plenty to look at. They offer a variety of organizational products. These are roughly divided into desktop storage and paint storage. The desktop stuff is most notably their "Modular Workshop System." This is a series of interlocking modules, each with some specific function.

Placed end to end, they are designed to cover the back side of your workbench and can be configured in almost infinite fashion. They can also be stacked to create multiple layers of storage.

The material is a medium density fiberboard that has been precision cut.

I was immediately attracted to this module:

There are three drawers in each one and the individual drawers have dividers.

This one was also intriguing:

I thought it would be just the ticket for all my files and pliers.

To create a full wrap-around effect, there are also these:

At first, I wasn't sure what to make of this one:

The bench seems a silly place to store finished models... Then I realized that this is intended to protect whatever you are currently working on. Genius! A safe place to tuck away my work before I go home at night.

One I had an idea of what I wanted, I came up with this sheet:

This helped me visualize the overall concept and also make changes to my design. It also helped on the next step: ordering.

New Visual History Series Books!

Guest User ·

www.ampersandpubco.com

Click on any cover to order your copies today!

Dragon Wagon is the second in a series of titles covering the U.S. Army’s Heavy Tank Transporters. The first volume covered the M25/M26 Pacific family of vehicles and trailers during their service in WWII and Korea. Part 2 picks up the story with the successor to the Pacific; the magnificent 10-ton M123 tractor. The unarmored M123 soldiered on through the 1950s and Vietnam while paired with the modernized M15A1 and M15A2 trailers from WWII. Also covered is the rare and unusual M746 tractor with service pictures from its brief career. Photo coverage includes lavish color shots of the M123 in Vietnam, as well during development and testing. Additional detail photos are provided of the M123A1C, M123E2 and M746.

The vehicle that was to become the Type 82 Kübelwagen had its roots in the development of the Volkswagen “People’s Car.” With war clouds gathering over Europe, the efforts of the Volkswagen facility were turned to the production of military vehicles. In January 1938 work began in earnest on the vehicle that would come to be popularly known as the Kübelwagen. The term Kübelwagen means “bucket car” and was actually applied to a variety of vehicles from a number of makers, but has come to be synonymous with the Volkswagen Type 82. Even under the skilled tutelage of Dr. Ferdinand Porsche, two years of work and testing were required before the Kübelwagen took its classic form. It was soon to become as ubiquitous as the U.S. Army’s Jeep and was also designed a produced as an amphibious car known as the Schwimmwagen.

As always, this Visual History title mixes rare and interesting archival imagery with photos of restored vehicles. Produced with the full and complete cooperation of the Kübel Korps, one of the world’s largest Kübelwagen-Schwimmwagen restoration groups, this title presents only the very finest restored examples. Early examples of the Kübelwagen are featured, as is a very rare 1945 model. No detail is left unrevealed, with interiors, multiple engine views and undercarriages. Additionally, the Schwimmwagen is covered in equally great detail.

From its introduction in 2007, the International Harvester Navistar MaxxPro evolved to meet the demands of U.S. military personnel in defeating the effects of improvised explosive devices on vehicles in the theaters of operation in Iraq and Afghanistan. By 2015, nearly 9,000 MaxxPro MRAP variants had been in service with 16 nations in addition to the United States.

Based on the sturdy and reliable line of International Harvester commercial trucks, the MaxxPro MRAP variants would grow to encompass the M1224; M1224A1; M1234; M1235 and the massive M1249 wrecker. Noted military vehicle experts John Adams-Graf and David Doyle tackle this subject like never before. Tracing the origins of the MaxxPro from its conception in 2006 and throughout its varied career in all combat theaters, this is a Visual History title like no other. Drawing on official documents and Defense Department imagery every facet of the vehicle’s development and deployment are covered. Each of the full-page color photographs is more stunning than the next. Arranged chronologically, the coverage depicts Iraq and Afghanistan zones, as well as training areas and finally the redeployment of the MaxxPro family in the hands of Iraqi and Afghani national troops. This coverage is also supplemented with detailed walk around images of the M1224 and M1249 wrecker. All in all, a title not to be missed by the modern vehicle enthusiast and an indispensable reference for anyone owning the Kinetic, Trumpeter, or Bronco scale model kits. I

MMiR Has Arrived!

Guest User ·

Give it a Sho’t!: The AFV Club IDF Sho’t Kal Gimel 1982

MVPA: Visiting a first class military vehicle event.

The Tamiya Mark IV: The One That Worked.

Iron Maiden: Takom’s manly new Mk.IV Female.

A Bridge Too Cool: Creating a different kind of diorama to display the AB 40 armored rail car.

Little Big Tank: The AFV Club Sturmtiger.

Freight Haul in the French Countryside: Des Kit’s Federal Tractor-Trailer combination.

Easy Rider: Tasca Zündapp KS 750 w/Sidecar in 1/24th scale.

Polish Lancer, Sherman IC Firefly: Making sense of the Tasca/Asuka kit.

T is for Trumpeter: Their T-72 is yet another winner.

Mini-Men: The usual peek at what’s new on thefigure front.

Model Citizen: WWI German Stormtrooper. The Jon Smith Modellbau figure with an Alpine head.