T34 engine trouble #8

More Bling!!

Now that the top and bottom hull pieces are joined, I added the details in pretty much the same order that they are called out, in the kit instructions. First step was adding the Part fenders. This is a first for me, so I was rather apprehensive and maybe overly cautious. The first attempt was using gator glue, but getting good adhesion along the entire length and holding the long fender in the correct position wasn’t easy. I had to remove the fender again, scrape down the glue residue and make a second attempt using superglue. This didn’t go much better … so more residue to scrape off. I remembered a tip from some years ago by Robin Nilsson, where he mentioned gluing a thin plastic strip to the etch part first, and then attaching it using regular cement. This worked really well and allowed me time to adjust the position, and still having good adhesion. Third times the charm!

The remaining parts were pretty straightforward. The stowage boxes were soldered and the smaller details added using gator glue. When the parts are placed, any excess glue that squeezes out can be easily cleaned away with a damp brush. This leaves a glossy finish on the surrounding surface, but this will disappear when painted. The machine gun was replaced with a sawn-off hypodermic needle, of similar size.

The kit exhausts were pretty much a solid affair, showing the age and quality of the base kit, so I drilled out the insides starting with a small diameter drill-bit and increasing the size each time after. This was done from both sides. I finished this off with a burr-bit in my Dremel. I really should have added some texture using Mr. Surfacer before placing the exhausts .. but this can be done later as well.

Handrails were added following the instructions and the plastic bits used for scale, using suitable metal thread. The shovels were replaced with etched parts and plastic rod. A holder for them was also fashioned from plastic profiles, based on the design offered in the etch set. Making this from plastic was easier, and also allowed the shovels to be placed and fixed easier. The towrope is from Aber (TC02L – 1.1mm). The moulded kit parts were drilled out and a length of the Aber rope glued into place.
All that’s left now is the square fuel drums that were common on this model and some of the usual stowage items.