Mark IV No. 35

[Steve Stuart]

I have a few spare bolts spare, so if you need some let me know and I can put them in the post.
Steve

[Chris Hall]

Daniel -

I've got some spares as well. I'll bring them along Saturday week so, at worst, we can pop some in 'for show'.

They're dead cheap on eBay, though - here's a sample listing:

http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/3mm-M3-A2-STA ... 33867da088

Saves troubling Gill (like I used to do ). I'm not sure about the nuts, though ....

All the best, and looking forward to meeting you,

Chris

[Daniel Scholefield]

Success! After a couple of abortive attempts to drill or grind the offending bolts off I stumbled upon the solution. Using my Dremel with a cut-off wheel I ground a slot into each bolt head and was able to use a screwdriver to remove them and maybe even re-use them. Still some cosmetic stuff to do and I am not sure I fixed the binding issue but I am back on course once more.

[Daniel Scholefield]

What a great day out at Tankmod!

After nine months of toil, frustration (and some blood) I was able to take the Mark IV on it's first official outing. It may not have been the prettiest or the best made but the sense of satisfaction when I ran it out was enormous. Yes it had the last laugh and ran out of juice halfway up the ramp into my car at the end but up until then it performed flawlessly (despite my bodging!).
Meeting all the other Mark IV owners was a great experience even though it did highlight the amount of extra work I think No.35 now deserves to take it to the next level. Some of it is simple like a darker paint scheme (it looked fine on it's own but in company it looks too pale).Some if it needs some research, like giving it an identity that is at least roughly historically accurate.
Then there are the 'improvements', the addition of rear armour, repositioning the unditching beam mounts, extending the beam rails, filling the spud box with 'stuff'. I am sure there are more but as someone to whom scratchbuilding does not come naturally to it's going to be a challenge going 'beyond the box', just hope I can do it without wrecking anything.

[Stephen White]

Says it all really, Daniel, the pain and the pleasure! I thought the sight of the four Mk IVs in front of the original Mk II was one of the most memorable images of the day. Good luck with the next stage - these models are never finished.









Thanks too for the term "beyond the box". I love it and will steal it for the next competition: "Out of the box, beyond the box and ... replace half the box" can be the new categories for the judges.

Keep us posted on progress, it'll be good to see.

All the best.

Stephen

[Chris Hall]

Daniel -

If I can do the scratchbuilding, anyone can, believe me . And the end result is worth all the pain. If you wend your way through Steve Stuart's thread you'll find his drawings and dimensions for the rear armour plates, which I plagiarised shamelessly (although I took the easy shortcuts). He and I now talk endlessly about rivet / bolt patterns, the length of unditching beams, and other sad stuff - you're welcome to join in !

And I'm totally with Stephen (and thanks for the extra pictures !) - the number and positioning of the Mark IV's was what I was there to see. No disrespect to any of the other builds, which were amazing, but I have a particular passion which was amply satisfied. Now we need more !

All the best,

Chris (an affirmed 'beyond the box' builder)

PS. As for "filling the spud box with stuff", who's going to be the first to scratchbuild some track spuds ?

[Steve Stuart]

My question is; does the Mark I have Spuds, if so Helen Lawson might be making them?
If not, we might have to have a try. As I have said I think before a feed from the smoker and some gently flashing red and amber LEDs in the spud box to simulate the contents catching fire is also required!
Regards
Steve

[Chris Hall]

Steve -

I'm not aware that the Mark I had spuds. I think they came in with the Mark II's, as Arras and Ypres 1917 were a lot boggier than the Somme in September 1916 ..... Accounts from tank crews suggest that they weren't much help, and were a complete pig to fit, so I suspect they were fitted in rest areas and left there ! I've also seen accounts of 1 spud per 4, 6 or 8 track plates.

Another delve into the library / archives .......

I have a friend with a spinning / casting machine so, if I can come up with a suitable template, I might be able to cast some up. They'd only be in white metal 'for show', though - definitely not for actual use !

Question: how many track spuds are equal to one unditching beam ?

All the best,

Chris

[Daniel Scholefield]

So after the Mark IV 'gathering' it was obvious that the khaki shade I had sprayed my Mark IV was too pale (I believe the term 'latte' was used). So after some thinking I broke out the masking tape and went for the full body re-spray...and I had promised myself the days of doing everything twice were over.

Still work to be done but I am happy with the result over what I started with.

[Chris Hall]

Looking nice - why should they all be nondescript brown ? Now all you need is an identity (it's not obligatory to base it on the Armortek number - it just seems to be a neat idea).

As for the 'beyond the box' stuff like extra rear armour and longer unditching rails, it's a matter of personal taste. Steve Stuart's thread is a masterclass on this. I like to think my efforts look OK, but they're really just a poor imitation. But you can cover a multitude of sins with a good paint job !

It's a lot easier to do such things during the build, though, rather than when it's substantially complete. So you might wish to leave yours as is, and say it's fresh out of Britain before the Tank Workshops got to work on it ! But, if you want to have a go at the extras I'd be glad to help - after all, I'll be doing it myself (again) soon ......

All the best,

Chris

[Daniel Scholefield]

Work has recommenced on #35 now it has got warm enough to work outside for long periods. Lots of little jobs like magnetising the top rail supports so they can be quick released for easy removal of the roof (shamelessly copying Steve Stuart's idea); chopping the exhaust short and a re-organising of the internals for a better layout.

I am mulling fitting a second smaller set of batteries as a 'get me home' reserve after the scare of running flat at the end of Tankmod but knowing nothing of electrics I am going to have to use a physical solution to switch between them...we'll see.

I am taking a stab at fabricating the rear armour although I may not fit it until I decide to disassemble the rear which I really can't face right now with all the grief the tracks gave me last year! I tensioned them up and that will do for now.

Thanks to Chris Hall #35 will have an identity, just got to make up some appropriate spray masks which should be interesting

One question I have though, I want to mount the unditching beam to the rear but am not sure how to do the mounting brackets on the rails. Can anyone who has done this already post a picture of how they did it? Thanks in advance.

[Daniel Scholefield]

First ever piece of metal fab completed, only took three attempts to get it right! (who knew how hard getting drilled holes to line up could be?)

The upper plate is made but I can't attach it without dismantling the back of the tank, something for later...much later.

Also added the first part of #35's identity. L9, Lightning III

Still got to figure out the mounts for the unditiching beam in its rearwards position at the back the spud box.

[Steve Stuart]

It is looking good! It is amazing how just a bit of lettering makes such a difference to the Tank, it gives it identity and personality?
I whole heartedly recommend 5BA dome headed unslotted nuts and bolts to allow parts of the Tank to be taken apart and then reattached, they are life savers, so it might not take so long to fit the upper rear armour after all.
All the best
Steve

[Daniel Scholefield]

And it has it's name

From the references I have the name markings look field applied so I copied the 'man with a brush' way of doing them.

Now to add mud and dirt

Onwards to Tankfest.

[Chris Hall]

I would originally have said the lettering was a bit small but, having found that original photo, I think it's spot-on. Can't beat historical research .... A name, and a history ! I'll leave it to you to summarise it, but 'Lightning III' is worth recording on this Forum.

Don't worry about adding 'weathering' - just running it around will do that naturally !

All the best,

Chris