So that's at least three M3's out there, then. Better get cracking - can't leave all those boxes just standing there ........
The first job is, of course, to get rid of all those bits of packing (which Jill used to call "Angel poo"
). Then you can see what you've got - and there's a lot of it ! Those new machines at the factory are certainly paying off - there are parts, like the turret, floor pan, and sponson housing, that are now one piece where they would have been several in the 'old days'. So that's a good start.
I like to think of Armortek builds as a series of sub-assemblies, that all come together at the end. That way, if you hit 'the wall' you can switch to something else to recover your mojo. Fortunately, the M3 manual lends itself to that approach - I think the main assemblies are:
- running gear (bogies, sprockets, tracks)
- lower hull (including diff casing)
- upper hull (front, sides and rear)
- desired conversions (throughout the build)
There may also be the need to build around the electronics - it's going to be pretty tight in there, and Kian says (as I mentioned earlier) that the motors are best put in before the diff casing (Stage 3) goes on.
The floorpan and sides, with a 12v battery for scale
This means that you don't have to start at Stage 1 - in fact, I'm not going to. I'll probably leave the running gear until the end of the build as (a) it looks complicated, (b) I don't want to start compressing springs until I have to, and (c) given that there are tyres on the rollers I suspect it would be better to paint some bits first, and I'm using an unusual colour (yet to be ordered).
So, to start the ball rolling, I decided to start at Stage 4, with those long lines of rivets. I understand rivets, having build one (and a half) Mark IV's. But these are little ones, and very short, so they're glued and not hammered ! That saves an awful lot of time, but I can't help feeling slightly ..... disappointed (perhaps I'm a masochist
). Once the glue has dried, I might use a punch to slightly mushroom the inner shank - I've seen rivets where the glue has vibrated loose - looks like a tank with acne
. But none of the rivets on the M3 are load-bearing, or downward-facing, so it's not a problem.
It's also therapeutic ! This could be a very quiet build - I did it all in an hour, sitting down, with good tunes playing in the background. Makes a nice change.
Stage 4 - always nice to see copper rivets
I think I'll tackle the diff casing (Stage 3) tomorrow. Then I can loose-bolt the whole lower hull together, and it'll start to look like something 3-dimensional.
All the best,
Chris
)
). The drawings suggest that the M3*10 hex bolts go on the inside of the flange, and the M3 nuts go on the outside. Examination of the Bovington and Duxford Grants, and all my pictures, show that it's the other way round - the nut should be on the inside. I also think that a 10mm bolt is a little too long, but I tried an 8mm bolt and it's too short. I don't think anyone makes a 9mm bolt, and I couldn't be bothered to file them all down, so I'm sticking with it. Colour me purist 
.
