Firefly 008 build

[John Wiggins]

Hi
The ecstasy ......... Then the agony!
UPS only delivered one box!

[John Wiggins]

I don't think the Firefly is going to fit onto my modeling bench.






Can't wait for the second box to arrive!

John

[John Wiggins]

Hi

The second box did arrive, thanks to Gill giving UPS a rocket!



All you 'cat' owners, out there, especially those slow, overweight Tigers, beware!
There will shortly be a Firefly with a sting in its tail..... all 17lbs of discarding sabot sting!

seriously, you my have gathered from my early posts, that i do not have many engineering skills or knowledge (under statement). So I need to ask some very basic questions.

My Firefly is going to built straight from the 'box'. With only minor additions. I dont posess the tools or the skills to do much more!

1st question:-

I had to buy a countersink to deepen the holes in the flanges, that attach the flanges to the dif case parts. On reading the instructions on the card, after i had completed the operation, it said i should have lubricated the countersink during the cutting opperation, ! What do you use to lubricate cutting tools on aluminium?



2nd question:-

I would like to radius the top edge of the bogies, to keep it looking like the original. Is there a simple way to do this? I have files, and a Dremel!



3rd question:-

In the instructions, for the construction of the bogies, it says 'Loctite can be used to retain the bushes'in the wheels. Having looked on the internet, there are a lot of Loctite products, which one would be most suitable?



4th question:-

What adhesive would you use to bond the tyres to the wheels?

My apologies if these questions seem trivial, i'm on a very steep learning curve!

To all those who send replies to my questions, my I thank you now!

To all those members of the forum who follow my build and smile, or frown, at my questions (or howl with laughter) there will be many opportunities to smile and or frown, during the coming months.

Regards to all
John Wiggins

[John Wiggins]

Hi

The build so far......



John

[michael hilton]

Hello John, I have been looking forward to your Firefly build.
There are plenty of Forum members who will provide loads of help.

These superb Armortek kits build 'out of the box', you may of course , make many changes, the more upgrades the longer it takes to build. I could not wait and spent one or two hours every day working on my Comet. Every moment is enjoyable.
Take your time.....and live the experience.

Lots of photographs John.....Goodnight and Good Luck.

Best wishes.....Mick

[chris fry]

hello john,
answer to your first question, i use rocol rtd liquid which is a metal cutting liquid, mainly used for cutting treads but you can use it on any metal cutting, just helps prolong the tool life, second answer, don't know if you have access to an air compressor as i use a right angle die grinder (whizzer) which has interchangeable sanding discs or a small belt sander, its much quicker than a dremel but if this all you have available that will be fine just some good quality grinding attachments is best advised, next answer i use loctite 603 which is a oil tolerable retaining compound, ideal for bearings on the wheels/idlers etc, just make sure the surfaces are clean when you put some on and give it time to cure, you don't need a lot just a light smear around the outer bearing then just push in to the wheel housing, and the last answer use loctite 480 on the tires, again make sure the surfaces are clean and a thin bead all the way around the wheel then slide the Tyre on wait to cure and its on for good, most of these items you can pick up cheap on eBay or any good motorist center and the air tolls tool-mart is good.
any other questions fire away.
have fun, Chris.
,

[Nick Farrugia]

HI John
i think thats all your questions answered , with the drilling or countersinking in alumlnium as long as its not prolonged use wd40 is enough on the tool every 2or 3 holes just make sure you degreese before painting if you tap any threds try to use a tapping past , it will be a lot better and smoother , take your time if you do any tapping . good luck with your build and most of all enjoy it
best regards ,,,,,,,,,,,nick

[John Grima]

Hi John, Your off to a nice start. These shermans build up pretty quickly so you will up on your feet hunting kitties before you know it. As for rounding off the bogie housings I will be doing the same thing, On my model I will be using my belt sander.

I also recommend adding a drop of CA or lock tight to the nuts on the tank's tracks. On my M4A3 the nuts would get loose while the tank was driving and the track would fall apart after driving around for a little while. After the addition of the CA to all of the track bolt nuts the problem was solved and I haven't broke track in 5 years straight.

[John Wiggins]

Hi
Thanks for all the replies to my post. It is much appreciated.

Chris, I have a compressor, I will be looking for a grinder, after Christmas. The 'boss' has allowed me to build
the Firefly in the extension, but it must be packed away over the Christmas period .

The last job before packing up, was to build one of the bogies. Lot of filing to get the slides to slide!
And I picked the one that the holes for the keeper had not been tapped! A quick dash to buy a tap wrench and tapps,
sorted! Hopefully the other 5 bogies will follow more easilly!

Thanks for the encouragement, i'm really enjoying the build. It reminds me of chassis bashing, when i made valved (tube) radios, many years ago, only 1/6th scale tanks are much larger.

Best regards
John Wiggins

[Robert E Morey]

John,
As many have already said; I use WD40 as a machining fluid. Make sure to clean the parts where WD40 is applied with Mineral Spirit or solvent before painting - WD40 will leave a residue that will inhibit paint adhesion. Loctite bearing retaining compound is best for the bushes. You can heat the parts and dissassemble the bushes should you need to. I use rubber cement on the tyres. It makes them removable should I ever need to service the wheels. Some folks prefer a super glue on the tyres. Its your preference. I use Loctite blue thread locker on the nuts on the tracks as John suggested, and no problems for me either with tracks.

Best regards on your build. I look forward to seeing another Sherman come together,
Bob

[John Wiggins]

Thanks Robert, I will be taking up the suggestion to lock the track bolts/nuts. Having started to link them together, i would hate for them to start to fall apart when the Firefly is running.

Another question :-

Should the suspension arm be a tight fit in the bogie frame, or do i need to file it down to allow it to move freely?




Regards
John

[John Fitzsimons]

A handy tool worth investing in is a black & decker belt file. B& Q have them. I get my spare belts on ebay. These can file about 20 tomes faster than a dremel. My dremel has suffered a lot during building my Tiger. One thing about the belt file. They have a dust collector. I think they draw filings into the motor and short out. I have burnt out five of them so far and they just keep giving me new ones. They even give me an updated receipt to extend the waranty. Know what you mean about the adhesives. I will add that I used permanent thread lock to fit the bearings to the gear axle.

As Michael says, take your time. You will pick up more skills as you go along.

Just remember if you want to hunt big cats you need to attack 5 to 1.

[John Wiggins]

Hi John

Thanks, they will be giving you shares in B&Q! I will take a look at the belt sander.

We can't have 5to1 in shermans, Mark does the opposite and makes 5 to 1 in Tigers

Merry Christmas

John Wiggins

[Adrian Harris]

The suspension are needs to be able to move freely, but not so much that it can twist in the bogie frame and start to rub on the wheels

It's probably best if you can take a little material from the rear face of the bogie frame, as there's more spare there than anywhere else. You might find the radius arms are also stiff, but easing the bogie frame should help them as well.

Adrian.

[michael hilton]

John.......it's Christmas Day......put the tank down.....