Small Scale Military Headquarters

Im making a 1:18 Sturmtiger




I have no idea how to make this complicated barrel.
How and with what would I make it? I'd like it to be detailed, authentic, and movable. I do have a dremel on hand.


Any ideas?


thanks

You'd have to nail down the size, but I'd suggest standard plumbing PVC pipe.

well on the real thing the inside of the barrel had very noticable spiral grooves cut into it which will be very hard to duplicate. So you better decide just how detailed you want it to be satisfied before beginning. The barrel itself shouldn't be too hard, pvc pipe is probably your best bet and you can carefully drill all the tiny holes into the muzzle break at the front. The curvy mantlet will be tough. You may find some sort of plastic vitamin pill bottle has the right curves and is the right size.

The barrel fits into a ball and socket type joint in the front of the glacis plate. Not sure what is the right size but something like a ping pong ball or squash ball could be used there.

Allright thanks. I will use the PVC pipe/ ping pong ball idea. But what do I do for the base (socket)

Thanks

find a slightly larger ball and cut it in half and use it as the socket? Just an idea of the top of my head.

oh allright
thanks guys y'all are hella creative! I'll try this and see how it turns out. Time for some Home-Depot..


Ill have to find some ball and cut it into one-fourth or something, and then if that works out, from there, ill try to form a socket for it. The base will be hard as the shape is quite complicated..

The sturm-barrel moves just up and down or around like the brumbarr?

I appreciate the help guys thanks

Hey catman. Aferguson solution for the ball and socket joint sounds good. If you go shopping for one, pay special attention to the packaging as well. In some cases, you can almost think of the packaging itself as possible model pieces. Have a look at this pic

So basically, you have 7 usable parts. The 6 balls and the packaging itself. These are great because the packaging has been moulded to snuggly fit over each ball. So you can easily take one ball, and cut out a section of packaging which fits over the ball and know that you have two pieces which will work together perfectly.

Jay wrote:Hey catman. Aferguson solution for the ball and socket joint sounds good. If you go shopping for one, pay special attention to the packaging as well. In some cases, you can almost think of the packaging itself as possible model pieces. Have a look at this pic

So basically, you have 7 usable parts. The 6 balls and the packaging itself. These are great because the packaging has been moulded to snuggly fit over each ball. So you can easily take one ball, and cut out a section of packaging which fits over the ball and know that you have two pieces which will work together perfectly.

That is one of the most creative and imaginative things ive ever seen..
thanks Jay! i was planning on using a pingpong ball i have already but I guess Ill buy a new set for the packaging!

Man you guys are good


Would WM have PVC pipe? I have to go there for ink cartridges.. see if I can pick up all I need there..


BTW i'd post a pic but I cant find the USB cable..

Thanks

Mike

Hey catman i think someone beat you to the finish,but maybe you can get some more ideas for yours.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ULTIMATE-SOLDIER-1- ... dZViewItem

Yeah, as an example of what not to do.

shadow83 wrote:Hey catman i think someone beat you to the finish,but maybe you can get some more ideas for yours.
http://cgi.ebay.com/ULTIMATE-SOLDIER-1- ... dZViewItem

Waist of a perfectly good Tiger.

Mine looks quite similar, though not nearly as good, all the little slots and ducts were made of play-dough The hatch though, I used the same one(from the tiger) and put it in the same place. Mine really sucks compared to his but ive never done this before. The barrel does actaully look like the real one save the bottom/base. Also mine doesnt have the thing that hold the rocket or the hatch in the back. Overall IMO his a great model surpassing mine a thousand times. You'd think the same if you saw mine, which I am trying to post a pic of.


edit.....











The gaps you see are filled in with clear sealant so theyll be covered when its painted

That looks way too high, cut down about halfway

Catman, here's a link to a thread posted by one of the other members. He's pretty good, and you might be able to take something from it.

viewtopic.php?t=3712&highlight=

Good job on it. It is just to tall so cut it down some dude.Clay mite work better then play dough.

yes i know it sucks, and i cant cut it down, it took me two weeks just to get the pieces secured. like i said ive never done this before, and i dont have a lot of time/money/tools/materials. Im not retired, and I'm not a bank.

I am not saying it sucks dude. I wish I could spair a tank.

not bad for a toy Sturm, btw It's Not a STUG, bad ebay listing, and it looks like a house on tracks, and the hatch on the front is wrong and the gun is wrong...but it's a decent attempt..but not worth 100+ dollars(talking of the Tan? not panzergelb ebay tank) for a hack job...you can get master quality 1/35 kits for less than that, and in a B&W photoshoot with the right background you could convince they were more than mere models. But back to the point of the conversion.

To really get it down, you would need to get some 1/35 scale plans(There are out there) up them to 1/18 scale, then cut out Templates(IE they do this with R/C planes kits all the time) and start kit-bashing to get a realistic model.

There is a modeler tool called Green Stuff, it's a gap filler putty, that works wonders on seams and is strong.

Something else, Get Lead Foil..works great for everything from skirts to fenders to boxs, plus a hot iron can make realistic dents, penetration hits, and rolled damage.

and if you flaw something kit bashing..well make an excuse for the damage, AFVs did get damaged from just moving on the field, or cover in paint or equipment.

Yeah, as an example of what not to do

Yeah, kinda crude, but it could be worse, it could be a TUMOR....
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Mzqf0MdmOEc

catman wrote:yes i know it sucks, and i cant cut it down, it took me two weeks just to get the pieces secured. like i said ive never done this before, and i dont have a lot of time/money/tools/materials. Im not retired, and I'm not a bank.

Hey man, we all have to learn someplace don’t we. It might not be fantastic but your learning. You might want to try using sheet styrene (plastic) next time, or maybe you did. When you have some spare cash you can pick it up at your local hobby shop. You can try to get some side by side schematics and translate them to 1:18 then all you have to do is make a template, cut and glue. I know, sounds easer than it is. Just keep trying and you’ll get it. I know from experience that each time I build a model they just keep getting better. I’m to the point now that I’m actually not satisfied with work I did a year ago. Just try to pick up as much info from the veterans around here and you will do just fine.