I hope you all had some enjoyable holidays and spent a lot of time with the family and friends.
Maybe you even had some hobby time?
Yes, I did :)
But, after the completion of Hobbs, the funny dragon for my wife's Christmas present, the ATHENA didn't make it back onto my desk. I just couldn't muster the energy to continue with her.
But the hobby itch was back :)
So I decided to start something new.
For this I (and hopefully some future projects) I need some new, large (tank) road wheels and tracks.
In the past tried several road wheels and tracks, and while they worked for the ZEUS, HERCULES, and PONOS, I wasn't really satisfied.
Again, I used a soda cap as base and created the inside from plastic card.
It is a large road wheel *lol*
But I'm confident it will fit my purpose rather nicely.
So I decided I will build a mold and cast some more road wheels.
To make this work, I also need some new tracks. Probably not as fancy as the ones for the ZEUS or PONOS, but almost 2cm wide tracks.
So I cut the basic shape from plastic card.
Made sure they all fit together nicely.
Then I added some details.
In the meantime the silicone was cured and I could remove the road wheel.
Looks alright to me.
Final details for the tracks.
And another mold :)
So now that I had my basic items for a new tracked vehicle shaped out, I looked at the actual project.
The idea is an urban combat scene, with Imperial Guard fighting Orks in the streets of a Dencaran city.
Most likely it will be a kind of ambush setting at dusk (so lots of potential for cinematic and light effects).
None of the tanks I have created so far are really suited for urban combat.
Well, most tank fans will argue that no tank is suited for urban combat - Syria seems to prove this point on a daily basis.
But it is a good setting, and the image of a tank in the streets is quite strong. I still remember the scene of one of the Arnheim movies where a Tiger tank rumbles through the street.
With this said, you get the idea. I'm looking to build a special Urban Combat Vehicle.
With the Grozny lessons learned the Russians have designed such a special vehicle, the BMP-T - "Terminator" - http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BMPT
I also like the idea of the Israeli heavy APC Achzarit http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/IDF_Achzarit , based on captured T-55 tanks.
These two vehicles will be the base of my little tank.
I used the road wheel as a base for the plan.
And quickly cut the first pieces.
The hull is taking shape.
With fenders in place.
But ugh....
Not what I wanted :(
It is too narrow and too high.
I had the lessons from the HERCULES in mind when I built this one. The HERC is actually too squat, with the body itself being quite nice, but with the added width of the tracks, he became almost square. So I wanted to build this one slimmer.
But not that slim.
Oh well, back to the drawing board.
But that's a story for tomorrow :)
Stay tuned.
Cheers
Klaus
