COMPLETED AT LAST!!....Dragon 1/6 MG42 with tripod...

[spanner570]

Something a bit different boys!

This 160 odd piece 1/6th MG42 Dragon kit is very well engineered, with loads of detail and 'working bits'

The down side are the instructions. Apart from a split drawing of the rear angle adjuster, the rest of the kit instructions consist of blurred images of the built model, with arrows pointing to where the relevent bits go....This means dry fitting around six pieces at once, (including miniscule springs) to get the correct sequence for glueing and more to the point on this model where not to glue! Then trying to remember the correct way with all the bits loose in front of you.....

There are quite a few parts not used and some supposed to be, but for the life of me I couldn't see where, as the instructions forgot to mention them anyway!!...Follow that!

I tried to get the pictures in line a second time, but failed. So rather than go to embarrassment

of asking the mods to delete this thread a second time, I've gone for en-mass pictures.

O.K., the build:-

In sequence. The box art / The instructions ( note the only bit of 'exploded' diagram) / The tripod rear vertical angle adjuster thingy with collapsable hinges. / The rear telescopic sight and adjuster fixed to the top of the tripod cum gun rest. / The three main top parts. Note the calibrated horizontal gun slide on the left hand piece. Finally, the three components fixed together.

The finished thing is all hinge pins and goes up and down, side ways and folds flat! It is really complicated and I reckon a bit fiddly in the field and easily 'bent'!

That's it for now. Next comes the telescopic tripod legs, which are part brass tube and part plastic...and more bl***y diddy springs!

I hope you like this slight move from the norm.

Cheers,

Ron

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[Ian M]

Looking very good Ron. It really puts it into perspective in the photos of you holding it. It will look great when you have done your magic paint brush trick on it!

Ian M

 

[papa 695]

A nice start Ron

 

[mobear]

ooOOooo youve started the machine gun weoohoo

mobear

 

[Gern]

Lookin' good so far Ron. Beats me why the Germans should need something so complicated though. Just look at Arnie! He gets away with slinging a minigun from a canvas strap over his shoulder and shooting one handed! AND he hits everything he aims at!

Gern

PS Forgot to answer your question on your last Vietnam post. I've not got much going on at the moment. I'm struggling to get my airbrush working with either Vallejo or Citadel paints and I'm waiting for a PE tool from John. (He's kindly ordered one from the States for me. They're quick enough to send their military to any country in the world - as long as they can find someone to tell them where it is of course - but a simple thing like a parcel seems to be beyond them!)

 

[mossiepilot]

Nice start Ron.

Tony.

 

[yak face]

You found one then mucker! I know youve been looking for one of these since cosford , ive been keeping my eye out too. This looks like a tricky build ,especially with the not very helpful instructions! Looking great so far , its a very different type of kit isnt it? cant wait to see it progress , cheers tony

 

[spanner570]

Thanks for your posts boys.....

Dave, surely you don't think Arnie shooting up the town, whatever, was stage managed?...Here's me thinking it was for real!!!

Tony, it is tricky in as much as because the instructions show the thing built, there are parts that fit in parts that you can't see from the picture, so you have this rubic cube in front of you! It would be reasonably straight forward if the diagram was 'exploded' ....thanks for looking out for one mate, but Justine beat us all to it. bless her!

Cheers all,

Ron

 

[spanner570]

As it's raining...No, can't be! I've done a bit more on the tripod:-

The first picture shows the clever telescopic leg mechanism. You can just make out the diddy spring under the grey handle...Press the handle, the spring lifts the locating pin from the hole, move the inner leg to a new hole release the handle...presto!

Next the tripod components ready for assembly / The front leg and under spreader leg in place / The rear two tripod legs. Note the clever toothing in pic. 6, this allows angle adjustment of the rear legs. The big wing nut has a capsulated nut inside....

Picture eight shows well the left/right traverse bar. This has very nice calibrations moulded into the plastic.

The remaining pictures show the completed tripod. Note the 'spares' box, brackets for the rear legs when folded and the empty cases deflector. The whole thing needs a bit more tidying and the handle pins sorting before painting.

The real thing was quite a feat of engineering, but I question why so complicated, when the weapon could presumably be set up on it's own using the bipod legs?....A darn sight quicker too, me thinks.....

Over simplified thinking perhaps, but you know what I mean.

Next up will be the weapon itself. First look shows it's quite a straight forward construction. Lots of working bits mind!

Cheers,

Ron

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[Gern]

Thanks for your posts boys.....Dave, surely you don't think Arnie shooting up the town, whatever, was stage managed?...Here's me thinking it was for real!!!

Oh no. Nothing like that Ron. It was a documentary so no need for you to worry.

Gern

 

[stona]

That looks like fun Ron.

What an amazingly complicated piece of engineering just to lay a machine gun. It's very interesting,I'll be staying tuned.

Cheers

Steve

 

[mobear]

from the pictures it looks like the germans needed a mechanical degree to put this tripod up lol,on the plus side i`m loving this build,given me something else in mind to try my hand at in the future

mobear

 

[spanner570]

Thanks for the input boys.....

It certainly is a maze of bits and bobs. I had a look at the Maxim set up, and compared with the mg42 tripod, it looks very basic.....But sensible!

Cheers,

Ron

 

[spanner570]

Hi all, here is the finished and primed MG42......and sat on it's tripod.

Quite straight forward considering the loads of working bits. The cocking handle opens, closes and slides along the weapon on a return spring. The top hinges to reveal the breach and there is a mechanism that when opened slides out the replacable barrel.

The bipod folds and clicks under the weapon. Strange thing though, the weapon can't be placed on the tripod with the bipod snapped closed! Also when the MG is on the tripod, the trigger is tucked in meaning the gunner has to weave his hands through the tripod bits and bobs to get at it.....

The MG justs rests on the tripod and is not fixed in any way. This seems daft to me......I have a load of unmentioned bits still left, perhaps these are some sort of clip arrangement? I'll have to have a second look next week some time.

So here are some pictures of the finished MG42 sat on it's tripod....Next will be the two ammo drums, a spare barrel and the ammo belt, then the painting.

Cheers all,

Ron

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[papa 695]

Looking good Ron

 

[mobear]

fantastic looking build,now i`m salavating lol

mobear

 

[pneupack]

looking good, excellent work the detail is amazing. I think modelling is such a learning hobby you start to appreciate the work which goes into the real thing.

Robert

 

[Centurion3RTR]

Can't wait to see it all painted and weathered Ron, looking forward to it matey.

Have fun, John

 

[Polux]

I can't imagine painted and weathered too!!! Will be amazing, knowing your models Ron.

Cheers

 

[709thsoldat]

The gunner would not have to weave his hands through.

There was a hand lever on the left side of the horizontal traverse with linkage to the trigger, perhaps this was one of the pieces that was not in the instructions.

As for the reason to have bipod and Lafette, the lafette could be locked on to a specific vertical traverse (chest height for example) and you could simply rock the gun left to right and you would be able to decimate attacking Russian Hordes. It also allowed you to sit in a trench below ground level and operate the gun without exposing your head to enemy gunfire.

The bipod was designed to be used if you were "on the move" and needed to rattle off some rounds and change position.

I am a WWII German reenactor, so I know my ins and outs of this kind of stuff.

Hope this helps.

-Chris.