32X Panzer IV skirts fix....

[ostketten]

In a previous thread viewtopic.php?t=6646
there was some discussion about the turret and sideskirts on the new 32X Panzer IV's and how they seem to limit turret rotation on some peoples models. I've come up with at least a partial solution which seems to solve the problem somewhat on my particular example, and I see no reason why it would not work for anyone else who has noticed the problem on their model. The problem is clearance (or lack thereof) between the skirts and mounting brackets of both the turret and side skirts which impedes rotation of the turret. A fairly simple solution (for mine at least) was to remove a small bit of the mounting bracket on the side skirts at the points indicated in the pic below, this allows the side skirts and brackets to sit a bit lower, and provides a tiny bit extra clearance for the turret skirts. A sharp modeling knife of the "exacto" type is excellent for this purpose. Hope this little "fix" proves useful to anyone who has experienced this annoying problem on the Panzer IV.

[tmanthegreat]

Thanks for the tip!

On my 32x Panzer IVH, I removed the turret and then secured the side skirt mounts using a nail and hammer. I turned the nail over, covered the flat end with a couple layers of masking tape to provide some padding, and make a "mallet" of sorts. Then, I gently pounded the reverse end of the nail, and the flat end pushed the pegs into the holes so that they went in flush. There was no damage done to the tank and I didn't even need to glue the mountings! As with Ostketten's mod, creating that millimeter or so of clearance allowed the turret to rotate just fine

[ostketten]

I removed the turret and then secured the side skirt mounts using a nail and hammer...... Then, I gently pounded

The operative word here being GENTLY Nice work Tman, whatever it takes to get the job done, as the saying goes "more than one way to skin a cat"