Centurion #44 received

[neil pudney]

hello mick, i have just received my centurion and this is my first armortek tank build so i am sitting reading all the info i can get on the forum about how to best build one of these models. I have built up a fair knowledge of building plastic kits and air brush techniques in the past on both armour and aircraft, im no expert by any means but have always been happy with the end results, I sold a finished/weathered Panzer III tamiya tank on ebay for almost £100 some time ago so must be doing something right ! you learn something new every time you build something thats for sure and everyone has their own preferences and ways of doing things. I am going to make a start on mine soon, i have looked at whats to do and think i will tackle it almost the same as i do with plastic model kits building up sub assemblies then painting as i go along then a final weathering at the end. I had a plan in my head on what i wanted to do regarding the tracks but it wasn't until i had all of them on the workbench i realised just how much work there will be in just painting and weathering the tracks, let alone the rest of the tank. Im going to paint it with a mix of brush and airbrush and use a mix of model paints and military vehicle paint thats available in larger amounts than the usual model paint jars etc. I have some time off coming soon so will make a start then, my garage doesn't look as inviting as your workshop !
Best of luck with your build.

[mick whittingham]

Hi again, and thanks for the nice comments on my shop, I built it as a cinema a few years ago and just didnt use it as much as we thought. So the Minister for domestic finance told me to convert it to a workshop and who am I to argue?

I have a horizontal mill, vertical mill, two lathes, two pillar drills, tapping machine, shaping machine, surface grinder, two filing machines and a few other bits and bobs to boot. Quite a nice place to work and although Armortek produce beautiful kit parts I am capable of making/modifying any parts as necessary and I look forward to doing that.

The advice on builing/painting is very welcome and I look forward to sharing any information I develop during my efforts which may help other builders.

Has anyone tried Evostik liquid metal? It comes in a silicone sealant type tube and is advertised as equal in strength to welding on suitable metals! I am trialling it with scrap alluminium and initial results look good.

I have used it on the towing/lifting eyes on the rear of the Cent in addition to the bolts. see photo.

Off back to the shop for a while now,

Mick

[Robin Hinson]

Hello Mick,

Yes, I have used it on my KT for the main hull after all the preperation I loosen all the bolts and run it between all the joints. Very powerful adhearing qualities and very useful for making the hull water tight.

Rob

Lovely workshop and envious of all those machines. Ive got a file and drill

[sean kerambrun]

I thought I had a pretty well setup workshop... nothing compared you yours..


Keep the pics coming.. My centurion still has not arrived.. It is scheduled to be here by Thursday but according to UPS it is already in Melbourne..


Cheers

Sean

[mick whittingham]

Hi all,

just catching up with my mail so that's why there are lots of posts from me today.

I am progressing well and have dry fitted all the suspension, drive units, idlers and tracks and everything runs beautifully. I actually rolled the tank along the build table and it moved as smooth as silk.

Then I removed it all again to continue with other matters and get the hull ready to prime.

One thing I did find is that the spring units can be removed from the Horstmann bogeys without the need to remove the bump stops. By removing one swing arm pin the swing arm can drop low enough to allow the spring unit to be withdrawn completely, which in turn allows the swing arm to be lifted up over the bump stop and away.

On the subject of swing arm pins the manual shows them as having a slotted head to allow tightening of the rear lock nut. Mine are plain headed and I am toying with the idea or using a slitting saw on the horizontal mill to cut slots in them, they are hidden behind the road wheels in any event but a slot would aid construction. Any comments or views?

And finally.... The engine hatch covers. I have taken a different and slightly trickier path than shown in the manual; I installed all my hinge centres at one go using a 4mm silver steel rod to align them. The plan is that I can fit and remove the covers at will by using two silver steel pins instead of the multiple pins provided in the kit. It should aid painting etc. But its a considerable departure from the instructions and needs some fiddling to make sure alignment is bang on to allow long thru pins to be used. I will also drill and tap the end hinge centres for a grub screw to retain the hinge pins. More on this modification as it develops.

That's all for now, happy building, Mick

[mick whittingham]

Hi all,

I am still making steady progress with the build and enjoying every minute of it, even the filling and sanding which I usually hate on any project.

I bought a nifty power tool called a Fein Multi master which is a powerful sander cum vibro saw cum multipurpose kind of thing and the ease with which it sanded the body filler was amazing. Well worth a look if you have not seen one.

I have dry fitted just about every part now and I'm quite satisfied that everything fits as it should. I have stripped everything back to the bare hull and boxed all the sub-assemblies up ready to refit as required.

I've added a couple of photo's to show some detail of the build so far but I have taken dozens for my own reference. I can wait to get on with painting and other build considerations like motion etc.

Hope everyone is making their own progress and enjoying the build.

Regards,

mick

[mick whittingham]

Just another photo taken when I had fitted the turret and tracks etc. Looks good.

Mick

[paul&robinmargle]

Hi Mick,

Good to see the whole thing build up

I know they're only on temporarily, but the 'frame A's on the rear engine hatches are back to front - the cut-out faces the rear.
Also, how did you find fitting the steel W shaped part under the forward engine hatches, I cannot get them to push right up into the recess, they are too wide

Regards,

Robin

[Armortek]

Hello Robin

Just file the corners of EH0629 a little to remove the sharp edges and they fit easily into the vent hatches EH0626. Don't worry if the long edges are below the level of the bottom face, it does not matter.

Mark

[mick whittingham]

Hi Robin,

Mark is right about the W section vent plates, I just rounded the corners off enough to let them sit down into the vent hatches.

I have milled the Swing arm pins today and have attached a photo to show the slotted head, makes tightening easier.

I have made a start on the mudguards and "tin work" and am making some good progress.

More later Mick.

[mick whittingham]

I finally took the plunge and sheeted all my machine tools over so I could spray paint indoors today. I wanted to get some etch primer on the inside of the hull so I can move forward with the build a little and didn't want to wait for the weather to improve so I could paint outdoors.

A good mask and plenty of ventilation and all seems well, at least I didn't keel over from the fumes lol.

I used up a full spray tin of U Pol etch primer so want to look for non aerosol primer that I can thin and spray conventionally, anyone any knowledge of a supplier?

I also spent the morning at the lathe making some parts for the rear sprocket hubs; all photo's show some kind of locking nut arrangement engaging in the hub castellations. I turned a shaped centre piece and tapped it M5 to take a threaded bolt which screws into the output shaft of the gearbox (replacing the cap headed bolt in the kit). I then manufactured a locking bar and drilled and tapped this M3 to the centre piece. I am probably not describing it very well so I will take a snap and post it tomorrow. The result looks Ok to me.

Thats all for now as I have to do Family stuff now (they do get in the way don't they?)

Cheers,

Mick

[Dennis Jones]

Hi Mick,

I bought a litre of etch primer from local car paint supplier for about £11. Had to thin it but on advice from the supplier said I could ordinary celloluse thinners. Sprayed the whole of the Diamond T truck and trailer and most of the Tiger, would have cost quite a bit more to do it in Upol. If you are using full size spray gun (not airbrush) then no need to thin.

Dennis.

[mick whittingham]

Dennis,

thanks for the info, I will visit my nearest spray shop and ask around, I have air brushes and a mini standard spray gun so will be able to deal with it hopefully.

As regards the sprockets centre modification I have taken a snap and hope it explains better than I could.

I am going to draw up a lis of possible modifications/enhancements that could be done based on the photo book I have and then work my way through them slow and sure. I love the technical challenge of making parts and hope to do the job justice.

Regards, Mick

[mick whittingham]

Made some angled bushings to seat the securing nuts for the mantlet mount as they would have sat on an angled surface and not pulled up square.

Also dry fitted the exhaust and tool parts to the mudgaurds, all looks good and stripped off again ready to paint.

Finally I modified the periscope mount by drilling and tapping the upper unit to the base so that its free to rotate, I milled a slot on the lower part and pinned the upper to restrict the movement appropriately. An O ring oil seal and a smear of Kilopoise grease and it moves nicely side to side which I think looks good.

Regards, Mick

[paul&robinmargle]

Hi Mick,

The sprocket hub looks excellent, I'm trying to work out how to do it with the materials I have available - plastic and thin metal sheet I think I should make it removable, but then it has to be relatively robust.

Robin