M60A1 build

urumomo said:
As I would expect ,
the only place I've found spare sprockets , and it's only the sprocket not the hub , is on M88 recovery vehicles .
Pretty sure you'd need that thing to replace a damaged sprocket anyways . .. but I wasn't a tanker .

View attachment 94335
Click to expand...
Ya that makes sense alot of different versions of armored vehicles were based on the M60 both domestic and foreign, there are a few other parts to things I'm not sure of yet.

As for the recovery vehicle I've seen a a few different versions in action mostly operated by combat engineers they can preform a lot of different functions in the field I believe those sprockets are probably extremely heavy I'd imagine they need to be lifted into place.
 
basket trouble....
So on the back of the turret goes a very thin plastic wire basket that also comes with Mesh that you can cut and linthe basket with.

The construction is about 8 pieces 4 support L shaped beams with notchs for the basket to rest in and be supported and 3 pieces of this thin plastic wire like basket construction material.

Yesterday I began assembling it how ever the model cement would make the already fragile plastic extremely fragile and pieces would literally fall apart, so I switched to CA glue medium and used a tooth pick to apply small drops which lead to unfortunately the very springy plastic sticking were it shouldn't and causing more issues, I did my best to try and save it but some pieces were total losses.

The kit provide two jig parts ment to help hold the pieces properly spaced while assembling, I had to use these jigs as permanit support beams since two of the four were destroyed they are alittle wider then the originals but at least hold so resemblance of the oringal pieces..

At this point I'm not sure how I'm gonna proceed, I imagine these baskets get pretty banged up in the real life so prehapes I'll make it look dented up? Any suggestions
PXL_20221015_155802307.MP.jpgPXL_20221015_155748170.MP.jpgPXL_20221015_155759215.jpgPXL_20221015_155807351.jpg
 
urumomo said:
Just cover it up with gear ,
like that photo I posted showing the spare wheels , they have all their other gear up there

https://www.scalehobbyist.com/catag...&pg=1&ppp=48&sb=stocknumber_a&so=d&ct=1&sc=35

You can make a tarp to hang over the missing piece out of tissue and white glue .
Click to expand...
I like your thinking!
Ok so far here's a list of extra parts I've found this far, three extra road wheels, two sprockets, two extra head light guards, two extra I'm assuming Hub assembly's that go behind the sprockets, a large IR spot light, a white light spotlight that looks similar to the ones on the driver side door frame of a police cruiser, some sorta box assembly and a couple smaller parts that are similar to hatches or armor plates with handles or tie downs I'm not sure what they are and a bunch of pad eyes and tie downs.

I meant to take a picture but I had to pack my kit up for the day cause family time is for the weekends and I was only lucky enough to be able to get a few hours of building in this morning.
 
I assume Tamiya has just updated their original M60 kit and left a lot of the original parts in there since they are already part of the sprue and they're not going to re-tool just to delete parts to fit a different variant .

Scalemates shows the timeline of that kit with it's heritage in the Product Timeline --> https://www.scalemates.com/kits/tamiya-35157-m60a1--122346

That Tamiya gear set I linked to is pretty good deal for 10 bucks ,
Too bad they are currently out of this one but you might find it elsewhere --> https://www.scalehobbyist.com/catag...1&ppp=48&sb=stocknumber_a&so=d&e=0&ct=1&sc=35
 
Docbritofmf said:
Another build to keep me busy, I had my eye on this kit the last time I was in the shop but didn't have enough cash on hand.
View attachment 94283
I have seen reactive armor in person but even though I believed this tank still existed in some areas of the military when I served in Iraq I don't believe I ever saw one though all tanks look similar in sand yellow.

I started building the hull but I didn't take any pictures yet. If it's any thing like the chieftain the hull and all of its suspension components and road wheels are gonna be very time consuming.
Click to expand...
That is a fun kit to build, I enjoyed it after Desert Storm 1 book inspired me and then went on to build an Israeli Blazer. I don't know about use in Desert Storm 2 as the USMC was fielding Abrams by then.
Great start, I will watch your progress.

Aye'
John
 
urumomo said:
I assume Tamiya has just updated their original M60 kit and left a lot of the original parts in there since they are already part of the sprue and they're not going to re-tool just to delete parts to fit a different variant .

Scalemates shows the timeline of that kit with it's heritage in the Product Timeline --> https://www.scalemates.com/kits/tamiya-35157-m60a1--122346

That Tamiya gear set I linked to is pretty good deal for 10 bucks ,
Too bad they are currently out of this one but you might find it elsewhere --> https://www.scalehobbyist.com/catag...1&ppp=48&sb=stocknumber_a&so=d&e=0&ct=1&sc=35
Click to expand...
Ya looking at the kit time line it would seem there are parts from A2-A3 KITS that probably like you said remained on the spru threw out the history of the kit since the base model of the tank remained the same threw it's history while alot of exterior changes occured, it's probably easier for Tamiya to add or remove entire sprus of parts for each version depending on what's needed for the specific build version then to make brand new sprus each time
 
Updates so today I finished about 90 precent of the 3 main modules the hull the main turret and the mini turret, I dry fit most of the main pieces and so far they all fit pretty well I found a pretty large seam line on the main turret that I just couldn't get to close with glue that well so I filled it with some white putty and Mr Surface leveler 500 I'll have to resand it and paint it tomorrow.

I was able to finish and mount the night mare turret basket and tracksPXL_20221017_003820677.MP.jpgPXL_20221017_003824407.jpgPXL_20221017_002939224.jpgPXL_20221017_002936925.jpgPXL_20221016_205500819.PORTRAIT.jpg
The main gun barrel isn't put together yet as I'm still waiting for the turned brass barrel I purchased.
 
golgotha said:
That is a fun kit to build, I enjoyed it after Desert Storm 1 book inspired me and then went on to build an Israeli Blazer. I don't know about use in Desert Storm 2 as the USMC was fielding Abrams by then.
Great start, I will watch your progress.

Aye'
John
Click to expand...
I did a little research on this cause I was curious, from what I found out going into Desert Storm era the Marines used the M60 Main Battle tank as their primary Tank the army also had M60s that they second handed the Marines and the differences had to do with the amphibious aspect of the tanks, the Marines being amphibious had snorkels on their tanks that were eventually removed, the army did not. Early era tanks were green going into the desert and painted sand yellow in theater, another thing I found out was the Army M60s had a 6 shot mortar launcher and the Marines had a 8 shot mortar launcher.
Later on in the war when Abrams entered the theater the Marines also got them second hand from the Army and you would see similar differences
 
PXL_20221018_003604063.PORTRAIT.jpgPXL_20221018_003600271.PORTRAIT.jpgPXL_20221018_003553298.PORTRAIT.jpg
Final fitting mostly done with the main work, I applied the decals and put on most of the accessories, still got more work to complete and then some weathering.

Waiting for the main gun to arrive before I put any of the gun components on. I started some of the weathering with black wash but it's not coming out the way I want, and the water mark looking discoloration on the front fender, I have no idea what caused it but I've tried to cover it up with a fresh coat of paint unfortunately it keeps re emerging
 
When did the discoloration on the fender show up ?
It's from the wash ?
What was the wash ?
 
james-bond-007.gif
 
I have a lot of reference photos that I was able to pull off the web for this tank during desert storm With 3rd TNK Battalion, main stuff that shows how the tanks were configured gear placement and stuff like that but what I really need help with is finding any pictures that show close ups of the hull so I can see how weathering effected them, chipping and rusting specifically in desert camo..

I know from personal experience over in Iraq that in the early stages of the war US Troops had a lot of woodland camo but not a lot of desert camo, and this is because the military hadn't upgraded alot from it's service in Korea and vietnam. So when troops went to Iraq they started out with a lot of green gear and vehicles that they painted sand yellow so I imagine that the tanks would have been green first and painted desert camo either just prior to shipping out or in theater so the under coat maybe green in the weather?

Also in my experience The middle East is extremely dry and Dusty so things didn't rust significantly and if they were exposed during the rainy season or served near some of the few wet areas they only picked up light rust.


One thing everything did get was dusty no matter how hard we tried that sand and dust gets everywhere and sticks to everything and in every crack, green items given enough time will turn dusty sandy yellow from dust alone. I'm sure to this day if I search my old gear I will find dust and sand still in the pockets.

Anyways if anyone has any good reference photos to share I'd greatly appreciate it
 

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