My tank transporter fetish is way out of hand...

[JEFF]

Holey Moley. That things a looooong drink of water.

[JCON]

Looks good fella!!!

[Beekster]

Dec 28, 2017 18:27:24 GMT -6 JEFF said:

Holey Moley. That things a looooong drink of water.

Yeah...and it isn't the biggest of the bunch.   It's about 20.5 inches long; the MAZ-537G is three inches longer (I've got one built up to compare with).  I think that the Faun SLT-56 is about the same size as the Mack combo, and I think that the M1070 HET is longer.  I suspect the M911 C-HET/M747 combo is longer too, though all I have is a resin tractor for that one until the recently announced kits arrive.  The M19 seems rather puny by comparison, and even the M26 Dragon Wagon is just under an inch shorter.  None of these rigs is particularly suitable for on-road use except in the most open country.

[Beekster]

Time for an update on this one. It has been largely dormant the last couple of months while I sorted out my airbrush station. I've now got two brushes plumbed and ready to go, one for general area coverage and one for detail work and camouflage. That being the case, it's time for paint on the Big Mack:








Mocked up of course; the last spray session was only three hours ago. The color is Model Master FS 34096 enamel, a color now discontinued. I used up my only bottle getting it this far. There are a couple of local shops I can try to locate another bottle, otherwise it's an eBay thing. ever since Rust-Oleum bought the Testor's lines of paints a few years ago they have been methodically discontinuing most of the range. But I digress...these assemblies will cure for a few days before I start the camo. I also noticed this morning that the crank handle for the trailer landing gear has gone walkabout; I'll have to find it or fabricate a new one. The tractor wheels have been sealed with Dullcote so they are ready for weathering.

[BUCKY]

That looks fantastic, beekster!! Too bad that they had to discontinue all that paint!

[dogfish7 (R.I.P.)]

Looks like you may have to go to an alternative paint supplier.

[JCON]

www.hobbylinc.com/testors-model-master-dark-green-fs34096-1:2-oz-hobby-and-model-enamel-paint-2027
They still have it in stock fella for only $2.89 a bottle... better scarf some up!!!

[JCON]

I order from them all the time as the prices are good and they usually have a very good selection of kits and supplies as well!!! I've never had a problem with them!!! Joe

[Beekster]

Thanks, Joe, I'll check them out. I've got a couple of relatively local shops to check out on Friday; if I don't find any in stock I'll have to order online. I've already been doing that for the MM 2090 bottles, RLM 81 Braunviolett, of which I now have four on hand and seven more on the way...another one that's been discontinued. But since much of what I do is OD and nobody makes a really good WW2 OD out of the bottle, I mix my own. Oddly enough, the RLM 81 along with MM 2095 Panzer Dunkelgelb '43 creates a nice range of Olive Drab shades depending on the mix ratio.

[JCON]

Glad to have been of service...

[JEFF]

That looks great, Beeks.

[Steve Ski]

Beauty, looks good from here!

[JED]

Nice build but it looks huge now!!

[Beekster]

Feb 9, 2018 14:45:45 GMT -6 JED said:

Nice build but it looks huge now!!

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It is pretty big...longer by a bit than Tamiya's Dragon Wagon.  Whenever I get around to building my M1070 HET, though, that will be the biggest rig of the bunch.

[Beekster]

So, this one's been dormant for a while but is getting attention again. In between bouts of sanding & measuring to dial in the dimensions of the trailer for my M911 project, this one has been back on the paint bench. I'm working from this image of a Mack tractor pulling a similar lowboy in a parade:


And this is what my version looks like this morning:









The camouflage paint is all on, and the masking material that covered the rusty patches on the trailer has been scrubbed off. That was a real trial; I left the stippled rubber masking on way too long. You can see white spots where scrubbing took all the paint off, a missing bolt head or two, and a busted handle for one of the ramps. The missing and broken bits will be repaired shortly, and I will touch up the paint with sponged-on green and another shade or two of rust. The tractor suffered a broken end on the front bumper, but structural repairs are done and it will get the black touched up this morning. I'll likely finish the paint work tomorrow, then let it sit to cure for a week or so before shooting Glosscote on the cab where decals will be applied. This ancient project is actually going to turn out fairly decent, considering it's been percolating for the better part of nine years.

My colors are a wild guess based on the parade image and others of Chilean M51s in similar camouflage.  I have no specifics on color; during the 1990s when these rigs were in service camouflage was at the discretion of local commanders so it varied widely.  I know of one case where an M60 HMGS (modified M50 Sherman) up in desert county used a tin of Humbrol in a shade of brown as the basis for disruptive stripes painted on the gray-tan base of his vehicles.  I'm probably not right in my choices, but not too far wrong, either.

[JCON]

I like it a lot!!! Well done!!!

[BUCKY]

Nice way to wake up a sleeping shelf queen!!

[Beekster]

I think I may have stumbled onto something here. I mentioned how difficult it was to get the masking material off the trailer deck to expose the old rust. I scrubbed it with warm water, liquid hand soap, and a toothbrush pretty aggressively...as evidenced by the broken pieces. At one stage, I also used an old wire brush that is usually used to scrub embedded plastic gunk out of my small files. Looking closely at the trailer deck, it's easy to see the damage done to the paint surface: Abraded paint with a different sheen, scratches in several directions.






Now, I'm still going to do the sponge touch-up as planned but I think I'll go easy on that and just seal most of this in with Dullcote. I like the distressed effect here and think it looks reasonably realistic. The Dullcote may tone down some of the contrast seen here, diminishing the effect, but I'll have to see how it goes. I need a dead flat finish for my watercolor washes so a clearcoat will be applied to ensure that.

[JCON]

I'm liking that too!!!

[JED]

Amazing work,cammo and distressing looks spot on