Checkpoint Charlie

You have to cut out the front of the lower hull. I have had some issues with the holder of the idler wheels, but this is maybe because the parts are made fore the DRAGON Kit.  

To attach the parts on the back you have to cut out a part of the backplate (approx. 1.2 cm / 0.7 cm)
For the round brackets on the bottom I just drilled two holes, so you don't need to measure.  

The dozer blade. I have to heat the parts to made them fit, but now they are movable.
Off the records: In German we call it „frickelig„ 

“I like to move it, move it
Ya like to move it!”

I used for the first time the Revell UV Fix It. A great invention.

Perfect Scale's instructions are very rudimentary. It would be nice to have the pictures available online and enlarge them.

 

I completed the upper hull, despite some small handlebars, tools ect. A lot of work.  

I am somewhat happy to be done with the conversion kit. Maybe it's my lack of experience with resin, but I found it to be very complicated. Especially determining what is a component and what is frame. 

Yesterday I finished the assembly. I nearly getting crazy when I tried to assemble this small PE handlebars. They all are ruined.
After that, Operation „Red Dawn“ started, using Tamiya Oxid-Red Primer.  

Take a break, have a dry aged Burger  

Today I assembled the tracks. They are clickable and this work very good and they are quite durable. On the negative side you have to cut and clean 154 parts from 5 sprues.
 

The basic color is AK Real Color RC 259 Olive Drab. I immediately add RC 024 Faded Drab to create a first weathering. The combination looks good. In this step I also painted the small parts like the hatches. Before I open my Feierabendbier, a layer of flat clear lacquer find its way on the tank.  

I used my Proxxon tool to give the wheels a used look. The color is Tamiyas Rubber Black.
Remark: The QuickWheel mask for the Dragon M48 pattern don‘t fit….  

After a nice weekend, a quick update:
The tank was treated with a wash ( AK Paneliner Green Camo) and then dry painted with the Tamiya Weathering sets.

The decals of the kit are very flexible ( single numbers ect.) and so I was able to reproduce everything relatively accurate (except for one marking. - The first one, who tell which one, wins a free membership on scalemates.com)  

The tracks are primed with Tamiya Rubber Black. I rubbed the metallic parts with "Ammo of Mig Gun metal" pigment. It is the first time that I work with it and I am thrilled. For the drive wheel I used "polished metal" from Ammo of Mig. My new silicone brushes from AK are perfect for application. Also for placing the decals were the things really good.  

In the evening mood I did some research on the loading.....

WHAT DO THEY TAKE WITH THEM ???? They drive from the barracks to Checkpoint Charlie and not to Moscow. In a pinch, you can get a currywurst/french fries in the pub NEXT to the tank. 

Today it’s TOOL TIME.
I added the tools, the cans and towing rope. The kit doesn’t contain any ropes, only the hooks. So I had to take some out of my spare part box.  

Also the luggage has been stored in the compartment above. (Tamiya an Black Dog parts) 

Done !
Finally, there was a very little road dust on the tank. Since the vehicles moved only in Berlin, the amount of dirt should have been very small.
On the dozer plate I added a few concrete scratches an soot on the exhaust.

And: Yes, my skills on figures are very poor…. 

It was an interesting but also very challenging project. I simply lack the experience with larger resin parts. The UV glue was worth its weight in gold, I think I would have gone crazy with the usual superglue.
I would like to emphasize the chains: Yes, it was incredibly exhausting to cut the parts from the frame, but the result is great. Especially during painting and assembly, they have not come loose again as with other manufacturers.