Tamiya 1/16 RC Panther (resumed after a long hiatus)

[tr1ckey66]

Small update on the rear hull...

Not a lot to show but quite bit of work here.
I've managed to scratch build a passable rear convoy light (the older box type) from brass.

Here's the construction...


And a few pics of the finished thing...



I need to add the retaining clasps, screws and, later on, I'll fill the inside with translucent green resin.



Sorry about the out-of-focus shot but with failing light this was the best I could manage.

Here's a pic of the real thing for comparison...



I then set about finishing the workable jack mount (the jack can be removed) and finishing the actual jack by attaching the handle (this is a folding item).




I then finished soldering the blocks that are seen underneath the stowage bins into their correct positions (this is a bit vague in the Aber instructions).
Also, bolts have been added to the exhaust manifolds.



Finally a pic of the compete set up so far...



Seems a shame but the right hand stowage bin is gonna receive some severe damage (as per reference). I'm a little reluctant to do it but it will happen!!!
And that's it I'm afraid. I was going to finish the Zimm, but time (once again) has beaten me and I'm back to work, so the Panther will have to wait.

Chris (Boatman): I'm sorry I wanted to finish more but the soldering took an age - even managed to burn my thumb in my haste!

Cheers
Paul

 

[Ian M]

Did you hear that thud? It was the sound of my jaw hitting the floor. Great work on the PE.

 

[boatman]

Did you hear that thud? It was the sound of my jaw hitting the floor. Great work on the PE.

HI PAUL im sayin the same as Ian ITS GREAT WORK an as for damage how much damage is gonna happen as I see in one real pic at the rear bin on the right side is just dented
chris

 

[tr1ckey66]

Did you hear that thud? It was the sound of my jaw hitting the floor. Great work on the PE.

Thanks Ian for the kind words. If all goes well hopefully soon I should have a complete hull ready for the motors.
Cheers
Paul

 

[tr1ckey66]

HI PAUL im sayin the same as Ian ITS GREAT WORK an as for damage how much damage is gonna happen as I see in one real pic at the rear bin on the right side is just dented
chris

Hi Chris
The damage will be as the photo shown. If you take a close look, the bin has split on the left hand seam and the lid is missing, as well as the big dents. I think what I’ll do to replicate this is grind down the fold on the left hand side so that it’s very thin and then dent the bin to try and replicate the same damage. It probably won’t be exactly the same but I’ll get as close as I can. I’m at work now till Tuesday so work on the Panther will probably continue on Wednesday. Thanks again for the continued support, I’ll drop by on HMS Tiger whilst I’m at work to keep up with your progress.
Cheers
Paul

 

[tr1ckey66]

Slow progress...

Done a little bit more to the big Panther. I managed to grab a few hours for myself today and was able to finish the Zimmerit on the rear hull. To do this I had to secure all the photo etch (exhausts, bins etc) with metal pins into the plastic hull of the kit. By pinning the parts as well as gluing them I can ensure they won't drop off when this Panther starts moving.

Here's where I left off...



I also had time to attach the metal transmission covers (Schumo replacement items) to the front of the hull. I'm hoping that soon (now the hull sides are almost complete) that I can start pulling these parts together and I can show you a completed hull. I feel I'm close to that stage but can't commit to a time scale as life's other commitments keep interrupting. Here's the transmission housings...



I've got a week off at the end of January, hopefully I can really crack on with this build then.
That's it for now
Cheers
Paul

 

[boatman]

HI Paul its lookin great lets hope you can crack on with the build as im lookin forward to it roll on the end of jan
chris ps paul happy new yr

 

[tr1ckey66]

HI Paul its lookin great lets hope you can crack on with the build as im lookin forward to it roll on the end of jan
chris ps paul happy new yr

Cheers Chris and a very happy 2020 to you!

 

[Steven000]

Very nice Paul
Yes real life can be a real pain in our hobby! Cheers, Steven

 

[tr1ckey66]

Very nice Paul
Yes real life can be a real pain in our hobby! Cheers, Steven

Yeah, what’s all that about?!!!! Can’t everyone just leave us alone for an hour or so!
Only kiddin, I had a great Christmas with family and friends and it was great to see everyone. Trouble is I really wanted to crack on with the build too.
Happy new year Steven
Paul

 

[tr1ckey66]

Two steps forward and three back...

Finally I've got round to fitting the electronics. However, this did not come without some mishaps along the way.
First up the minor hiccups... Somehow, one of the links to the gun crutch chain has come loose and departed company. This isn't too much of a set back as I have spare links, it's just adding more build time to an already long build.



Second calamity. A couple of rivets from the front, left-hand fender have taken a leaf from the chain link's book and also made a run for it! This is slightly more problematic but not insurmountable...



Third hiccup (but fixed). Although I mounted the gearboxes with the utmost care I still managed to cross thread one of the mounting bolts. This was fixed by fitting a supporting nut inside the tank and thus straightening everything up.





And finally, to top all this off, I managed to break the super detailed Schumo antenna base. This was fixed by removing some of the detail rebuilding the base from plastic card and adding new bolts. I'm fairly happy with the result.



A pic of the complete lower hull...



Mishaps aside I feel progress has been made and the hull now has a belly full of electronics...



Unfortunately I'll have to remove the gearboxes once again to properly fit the transmission bearings. Holes need to be drilled into the aluminium hull to accommodate these.



Before I do that though I think I'll test the electronics and ensure the Panther's ready to go. The battery pack is on charge and once that's ready we'll see if this Big cat runs!



And that's it for now. Hopefully this thing will soon have some life breathed into it and I can start adding all that photo etch detail ready for my favourite part - painting!

Cheers
Paul

 

[boatman]

Two steps forward and three back...

Finally I've got round to fitting the electronics. However, this did not come without some mishaps along the way.
First up the minor hiccups... Somehow, one of the links to the gun crutch chain has come loose and departed company. This isn't too much of a set back as I have spare links, it's just adding more build time to an already long build.

View attachment 369074

Second calamity. A couple of rivets from the front, left-hand fender have taken a leaf from the chain link's book and also made a run for it! This is slightly more problematic but not insurmountable...

View attachment 369075

Third hiccup (but fixed). Although I mounted the gearboxes with the utmost care I still managed to cross thread one of the mounting bolts. This was fixed by fitting a supporting nut inside the tank and thus straightening everything up.

View attachment 369082

View attachment 369083

And finally, to top all this off, I managed to break the super detailed Schumo antenna base. This was fixed by removing some of the detail rebuilding the base from plastic card and adding new bolts. I'm fairly happy with the result.

View attachment 369084

A pic of the complete lower hull...

View attachment 369089

Mishaps aside I feel progress has been made and the hull now has a belly full of electronics...

View attachment 369085

Unfortunately I'll have to remove the gearboxes once again to properly fit the transmission bearings properly. Holes needed to be drilled into the aluminium hull to accommodate these.

View attachment 369086

Before I do that though I think I'll test the electronics and ensure the Panther's ready to go. The battery pack is on charge and once that's ready we'll see if this Big cat runs!

View attachment 369088

And that's it for now. Hopefully this thing will soon have some life breathed into it and I can start adding all that photo etch detail ready for my favourite part - painting!

Cheers
Paul

MISHAPS APART Paul great work im lookin forword to seein her go over the tank assult course an lovely to see all that lovely coulored wirein an gearboxs an motor i'll be bloomin glad when im that far on tigers electronics
chris

 

[tr1ckey66]

MISHAPS APART Paul great work im lookin forword to seein her go over the tank assult course an lovely to see all that lovely coulored wirein an gearboxs an motor i'll be bloomin glad when im that far on tigers electronics
chris

To be fair Chris the electronics for Tamiya tanks is fairly straight forward, simply follow the colour coding and it’s plug in and go. Your build has a bespoke wiring loom and some doubtless planning into what needs to be done. I guess you’ve done this before with a few previous builds but it’s still impressive to me!

Thanks for the continued support.
Paul

 

[Steve Jones]

Wow! What a project Paul. I learn so much from 1:12 and 1:16 builds with all the detailing you guys do. I will look on in admiration. Great stuff.

 

[JR]

Paul just found this sorry to say, impressive build. Will take a seat with Chris .

 

[boatman]

Paul just found this sorry to say, impressive build. Will take a seat with Chris .

HI John if youre takein a seat with me I hope you brought some bickkies like choclate hobnobs my fav lol

An paul ive been studyin your eletrics workins in your tank an it seems to me you only have one main drive motor or have you to fit another ? or does that gearbox work both tracks independenily ? so that the tracks can go opposite ways so the tank can turn. I ask this as I have built some a bit smaller tiger tamyia kits that were remote control an they had two main drive motors in them but just wondering as it looks like you had fun fittin it all togeather an does it all work an the sound systems ?
chris

 

[tr1ckey66]

HI John if youre takein a seat with me I hope you brought some bickkies like choclate hobnobs my fav lol

An paul ive been studyin your eletrics workins in your tank an it seems to me you only have one main drive motor or have you to fit another ? or does that gearbox work both tracks independenily ? so that the tracks can go opposite ways so the tank can turn. I ask this as I have built some a bit smaller tiger tamyia kits that were remote control an they had two main drive motors in them but just wondering as it looks like you had fun fittin it all togeather an does it all work an the sound systems ?
chris

Hi Chris
There are 2 motors, the left-hand motor is slightly behind and below the right-hand one in the picture. The motors are arranged so that they sort of slot together (making most of the available space). One motor drives the right hand drive sprocket the other the left both have their own gearbox.
The speaker is connected to the DMD control unit which controls the sounds - engine, gun, MG, turret-turning whir etc. I’ll give a demo when this is complete.
Cheers Paul

 

[tr1ckey66]

Hi Chris/John, thanks for dropping by. I’m glad you like the build so far and thanks for the support.
Cheers
Paul

 

[boatman]

HI Paul Sorry my mistake lookin an studyin at some earlyier pics I now see that other main drive motor its hid up beneath some wirein I dint notice it when I first looked so please ignore my question above
chris

 

[tr1ckey66]

HI Paul Sorry my mistake lookin an studyin at some earlyier pics I now see that other main drive motor its hid up beneath some wirein I dint notice it when I first looked so please ignore my question above
chris

No worries Chris
I’m working at the moment so there won’t be any progress for a while. I’m hopeful that at the end of this month the running gear will be finished and the lower hull can be seen running. I’ll try and post a video.
Cheers
Paul