New build.

[Glen Clark]

Ive bought a Pak 43 as a sort of practice build before i start my Tiger one build.I intend building the Pak 43 purely as a display so it will be finished in polished alloy and some parts Anodised.Its labour intensive because with having no paint to cover it up youve got to make a nice job.

At the moment I'me just working out the way to get the best finish,so easy bits first.I'me not sure how much ill have coloured untill i start to test fit the various parts together but it will become obvious to me.....I think.

A couple of pics to show the difference between the production finish snd the reworked finish.

Not finished by a long way but an idea of how the bits will end up.


Glen

[Armortek]

Looks very good Glen.

We often get asked how best to polish up the alumiunium and steel parts, how long it takes and how to post treat to prevent oxidisation.

It would be great if you could provide your first hand experiences and we can refer people to this post.

Kian.

[Glen Clark]

Ok Kian,Ill do my best.At the moment I'me using wetndry 240 wet on the heavy machining marks,then 600 wet,From then ill go down to 800/1000 both wet.Ill use rubbing compound then T cut on the final finish.Although I've got a bench polished but I'me in between sheds at the moment so can't mirror polish them.

Ill post up as I reach the various stages.Regarding the protection I would be tempted to go for Canuba wax then a Meguires quick detailed.But until I get to that stage I'm not too sure about that.

I'm just about to do the breech end of the barrel which I suspect will take a couple of days.Ill post a before and after Pics.

I'm new to working with small parts so any tips from others are most welcome.I'm hoping to talk my nephew into building the Pak 40 he's getting to the same finish.

[Phil Woollard]

Regarding oxidisation guy's you have around 15 mins to cover/seal the prepared metal and so prevent the aluminium oxide forming, I know this to my peril as my XKR had to go back for a re spray (at Jaguars expense) as the factory neglected to follow protocol prior to priming the ali bodywork!

I have a 25 pounder that has been prepped and clear coated ( not by me) that is showing evidence of this very phenomenon. Happy rubbing Glen

Regards Phil.

[Glen Clark]

I love the way Eric Ho's Pak 43 looks so ill go along the same lines.Ime not sure how much ill have anodised and how much ill leave polished alloy.

I think the secret to keeping it looking ok is staying on top of keeping it clean.The most dificult thing i have found to keep on top of cleaning it is my chopper.Its got Superbike priced components with cheap chinese moped quality an is a pain to keep looking good.The anodised parts will pretty much look after themselves but ill see how the alloy keeps.

Your not joking about keep rubbing Philbut the fun part is in building not the end product.




[attachment=0]IMG_20180207_49445.jpg[/attachmnt]the superbike priced/chinese quality chopper.


Glen

[Glen Clark]

I almost forgot I came across this popgun at Omaha beach in Normandy,ill be back there in July,for some reason i may find myself having a closer look at it this time.I will probably have a little look at the tiger they have hanging up on the floor....it would be dangerous not to

Glen.

[Glen Clark]

It's been a while since I last posted,ive been busy with new shed and gardening chores required to keep the wife happy.

Although the plan is still to polish and anodized the gun I've decided I need to mock up the gun so I can work out what needs anodising and what will just be polished/painted.

It goes together really nice once you get in the mindset,it takes a little time to switch from tabbing stuff for a chopper to tidying up 2.5mm threads and reaming out 3mm holes.

I had to remove the barrel slid setup because it's big and makes working on the chassis quite awkward.Ive deliberately left a cup in the picture to give an idea of size.

Glen.

[Glen Clark]

All in one bit now,then strip it for final finishing.For those that haven't seen one of these I've left the bike in the picture to give some idea of size.

Glen.

[Brian Ostlind]

Holy big guns!

[Glen Clark]

I'm actually in Normandy at the moment and although the pics are not particularly technical here are some anyway.

I hardly even noticed the Sherman.

Looking at going down to Falaise Gap tomorrow and I'll take a look at the Tiger which is hanging up in the floor at the side of the road.If possible I may scrape a but of rust from it and incorporate it in my exhaust paint when I build the Tiger.

I did find a heavy old piece of manmade metal on the easy red part of Omaha beach dont know what it is but it isn't natural for a beach so I suspect it's possibly 70 years old or more.

Glen

[Glen Clark]

Look at this beast I found parked at the side of the road....

Oh and there is an old tank parked up there as well.


Glen.

[Brian Ostlind]

Very cool.

[Glen Clark]

I put the gun to good use whilst on holiday.

Look in after the Hog.



Glen.

[Glen Clark]

As I am going for a bare metal/polished and anodized finish for my gun I was a bit worried about various bits that I originally intended to paint.Things like pivot pins and small steel brackets.

I've tried a process that sort of blues the finish to save painting the individual parts.It looks kind of ok to me,I'm not sure about the durability of the finish but it looks how I want it to look.

I like that it gives an untreated rough type of finish.I may look at gun bluing the armour and other plates and avoid paint if possible.


Glen

[Glen Clark]

It looks like I'll have to go back to plan A.For somebody with the patience of a Tasmanian devil this gun bluing isn't doing it for me.After 5 applications of the bluing solution it's still streaky and uneven. I've done exactly as the instructions say it is something beyond my pay grade/patience level.

Back to painting them gunmetal grey then.

l

You don't know until you try.
Glen.