Kit Build/Review: Zvezda 1/72 King Tiger, Ausf. B

Enthused for all things Tiger Tank, by a combo of Bovington, and the book I just read/reviewed, I decided to make a start on my Zvezda snap-fit 1/72 King Tiger, Ausf. B. 

I want this tank to have zimmerit, as I'm modelling it on the King Tiger in the Bovington Tiger Collection. So I've gone and done what I did with the Fujimi Elefant I built ages ago, which is to use a very thin layer of white Milliput and the tip of a tiny flathead screwdriver, to mimic the anti-magnetic mine paste. And boy, is it hard work!

As you can see, no zimmerit on the Zvezda kit.

My DIY white Milliput zimmerit, on the appropriate surfaces.

I cleaned up the zimmerit, removing it from areas where it wouldn't be applied, and opening up various holes that the snap-fit kit requires. Now I'll have to exercise some restraint, and let the Milliput harden overnight.
----------

The next day...

More snooker on TV, and more modelmaking on the sofa. Not the best for posture or lighting. And easy to lose bits of kit down the sofa! Still, fun stuff! Further work in the King Tiger finds me guiding the turret to near completion, and getting the running gear in place.

Prepping parts for turret assembly.

Components ready for the rear of the tank.

The snap-fit wheels and tracks are very interesting. Well designed, overall, but still awkward to install, and requiring trimming. At least that's what I've found. I do this modelling lark for fun. And yet sometimes, as when I was putting the tracks together, I began to wonder if it wasn't actually a form of masochism!?

Very interesting snap-fit wheels and tracks.

Getting the running-gear ready to put in place.

I decided to put all the spare track on the turret. I did consider leaving some off, and making it more like the Bovington King Tiger. But after the hard work on the running gears, I just wanted to take it easy. The barrel is nice and cleanly moulded. I drilled out the muzzle brake. And at close of play, it's a kit of three main parts: upper hall, lower hull, and turret. And then there's a load of stuff to put on the vehicle. The fully in-the-round sculpted tools, etc, look fab.

Next step in turret assemblage.

The basic core elements: lower hull, upper hull, and turret.

State of the model at close of play.

I put the three major elements together. But they remain unglued. It's just nice to see the vehicle taking shape. Tomorrow I'll add the remainder of the parts. Then I'll undercoat it in Halfords grey, and perhaps even get a base coat of dunkelgelb on.

All the various doodads that go on the body.

Assembled and primed.

And the other side.

Some hours and a couple of Columbo episodes later, and I've also dunkelgelbed several models: two Elefant, the Radschlepper Ost, and the King Tiger. My aerosol of Tamiya dark yellow ran out, in fact. But I think I got everything adequately covered.

The colour looks a bit weird under the side lights.

Sort of lemony-green!?

Still, looking pretty good. 

Rear-view.

The King Tiger joins the ranks of ranks and other vehicles awaiting painting and decals. I think I might actually bite the bullet and try and do some painting tomorrow. It'd be nice to finish a couple of these recent builds.

Bovington Tigers, JagdTiger

Another fantastic machine. 

Bovington Tigers: Elefant, Sd.Kfz. 184

After lots of frustration with my dear little MX5, I got her MOT'd, serviced, and one or two faults repaired. And, finally, today I was able to drive down to Dorset, to the Bovington Tank Museum, and see their superb Tiger collection. 

I was particularly keen for several reasons: I love German WWII armour, and some of these particular Tiger variants are amongst my favourite tanks. I'm also currently building several Elefant/Ferdinand kits, as well. It's a pity they didn't have a SturmTiger. I learned today that they did try and get one from a German collection, but it didn't work out. All that they had of this vehicle was a barrel (I'll be addressing the other vehicles in another post).

I took loads of photos, particularly of the Elefant, and I've very quickly and roughly made a series of montages of some of the latter, to share here. Many of these images are cropped in the versions displayed in this post. I wanted as much ref as poss, as this particular tank goes back to the U.S. tomorrow! 

I'm sooo glad I made it to see these amazing tanks. I spent three hours looking at and photographing them, and chatting with staff. The staff were very friendly and helpful. I had a couple of interesting chats with David Willey, curator of the museum. I even got to see the collections own Tiger I, known as Tiger 131 (the very tank that was used in Fury), being worked on, and moved/driven off. More on this to come in another post.

I think I once heard such posts as this being referred to as Panzer Porn. Well, yes, these beauties turn me on. The phrase seems fitting!