Modelcraft Centurion III
A first look at the sprues, which are originally by Academy.
This kit was motorised in earlier versions
The green sprue is more like vinyl than styrene. Hope that won't cause any issues down the line.
Slow progress, so far, as it's all fill...
...sand...
...repeat.
The bottom part of the turret is in two halves and the top fits on like a cap. However, the top and paired bottom halves are not a very good match in terms of profile, so I had to deal with mismatches in various places. The worst was an overhang at the rear of the turret. Some brutal sanding was required there. The sides are a bit out, but the turret bins (which I can already tell are going to be a lousy fit) will cover most of that. The front corners above the smoke launchers needed attention too.
However, there is nothing that can't be corrected. The mantlet cover was also a poor fit and neede some plastic scraping away along the bottom and solid clamping. It will require a bit of filling too. Note the hinges for the commander's hatch cover. They are vinyl parts. The original kit was motorised, so some parts were designed to move. CA is required to fit them in place.
All but one of the suspension units fitted perfectly. The last one seem to be slightly bent and needed some solid clamping!
Fitting the longer turret bin was always going to be an issue. Firstly, you have to make sure it doesn't interfere with mounting the smoke discharger mounts. However, that's not how the part naturally wants to sit.
You can see the gap all the way along the top edge, but that can be filled later. I've had to scrape some plastic away around the bulge of the cupola as the bin needs to be mounted a little more to the rear than it naturally fits. The bin also seems to be twisted and rocks on opposite corners. I've gone with getting the front edge fitted in place correctly as it butts up against the smoke discharger mounts. Any issues at the back end can be dealt with later.
Part D22 is missing. Fortunately, it's a 1mm thick flat part with a bend in the middle, so it should be easy enough to fabricate by any half decent modeller. Anyone know one?
Bit of a gap to fill here!
The slot for the towing hook is a bit askew, but as the hole is too big anyway, it's no big deal.
A bit of a test fit.
The top and bottom parts of the hull were never designed to be a great fit as the batteries were inside the hull in the motorised version. A bit of creativity will be required.
The smoke dischargers have huge sink marks on the rear and they will be visible if you don't fill them.
Primed with Mr Surfacer.
It has now been given a black base coat and a first thin coat of the camo colour.
AFV Club's "clip-together" tracks. Calling them utter garbage is being nice. They don't build into a straight line and fall apart every time you move them. Destined for the bin!
The second coat of green is on & looking better.
Having finally shaken off a bad cold, I'm back at the bench. I have to say, I'm impressed by Modellers World Acrylic Doctor. Two coats of AK acrylic thinned with it and you have to look very close to see it's brush painted and not sprayed.
Works on the aluminium barrel just as well.
Clear coat and green shading are done.
I'll shade the mantlet cover once the green has cured fully.
The mantlet cover is shaded and the tools painted. Still no news on the tracks.
Comments
17 1 April, 13:02
Andy DallibarIt seems that all I build is Centurions lately. I don't touch the 1/35 stuff though, the kit you are using is new to me, it seems very basic. I'll be watching closely to see how you get on with it. What country/era are you doing?
6 April, 11:15
John HughesHi Andy, yes, it is a fairly basic kit, but that's due to the fact that it was originally a motorised Academy kit. That being said, the molding is nice and I think it has posibilities. As for country/era, I'll certainly be doing a UK version. The paint/decal instructions in the kit are all in Korean, which is not helping a bit. However, as my father worked on the prototype for the Mk.III, it might just get a basic green coat & no markings.
7 April, 13:21
John HughesAvoid AFV Club's workable tracks at all costs. They are the worst modelling product I've come across so far. Each link has 4 EP marks, so that's 864 to deal with for a full track set. They don't clip together very well and form a curve by the time you have a full run of 108 links per side. If you move the track, or actually try to pick it up, it falls apart. How the hell you are supposed to actually put them on the kit is beyond me. Don't waste your money on them. I'm replacing them with a Sanxin set of metal links with brass pins.
21 April, 13:11
gorbyLooks like you're managing to beat this kit into submission.
I'm curious to know why you chose this old kit to build rather than one of the other remarkable kits in your stash?
18 May, 15:17
John HughesHi Gorby. My Dad built part of the prototype before he was demobbed after the war. I've got the Tamiya 1:25 one too.
18 May, 16:03
John HughesWell, the Sanxin tracks came all the way from China and then Evri left them "at a secure location at your address", i.e. shoved through the bars of the entry gate between the two houses next to mine. Wonder where they are now? Another six week wait for a replacement set in the offing.
16 June, 18:38
