Tamiya 1/35 Churchill Mk VII Tank

[SteveT]

I've now decided on my next disast.. uhm victim! I'm going to tackle the Tamiya 1/35th scale Churchill Tank.

Here is the box art and the contents.



Observations so far:- Well the tracks are rubber so that should be easier than individual sections I think, also there are figures with the kit, but there is no way I'm going to use those, they will go in my growing bits box. I believe this is one colour and not camo, which should be easier to paint (although I did buy some low adhesive masking tape after my last disaster)

Let's see how this goes shall we?

 

[Waspie]

Yah, way to go Steve. That's the way to do it!!

Don't forget, these guys on here are very knowledgable about armour so ask away. During my Chally build they were very helpful with pointers and. tips. Use them.

One of the tips I was given, it applies to all builds. Write notes on the instructions. Colours, what to omit or include. What to paint and when. I found that most helpful in putting the kits together.

 

[The Smythe Meister]

I've now decided on my next disast.. uhm victim! I'm going to tackle the Tamiya 1/35th scale Churchill Tank.

Here is the box art and the contents.

View attachment 503679View attachment 503680

Observations so far:- Well the tracks are rubber so that should be easier than individual sections I think, also there are figures with the kit, but there is no way I'm going to use those, they will go in my growing bits box. I believe this is one colour and not camo, which should be easier to paint (although I did buy some low adhesive masking tape after my last disaster)

Let's see how this goes shall we?

A wise choice that,a good solid kit,which will go together well with the typical ease of a Tamiya build
Enough detail to make it interesting for you, without so much that it'll put you off
The rubber band tracks,whilst much maligned by many modellers,can actually give a decent result given the right treatment
I will watch your progress with much interest mate.

 

[Steve-the-Duck]

Always up for a Churchill build. Any mark, any scale...
Even if I did sell off all my 1/35 kits and aftermarkets... Still got seven (and counting) 28mm to get to...

 

[Andy T]

I'll follow along too. As said, Tamiya make things nice and easy for you so this should go together well.

 

[papa 695]

Nice one Steve, the good thing about building tanks, is if your not that satisfied with it, you can just cover it up with mud.
Looking forward to seeing you build this.

 

[scottie3158]

Steve,
I will follow along you should have no problems with this kit typical Tamyia.

 

[Jakko]

Well the tracks are rubber so that should be easier than individual sections I think

Yep. Just join them as per the instructions and you should be fine. If you really want, you can get individual track links of two types from AFV Club, but if I’m honest, that would be pearls before the swine a little bit

I believe this is one colour and not camo, which should be easier to paint

Yes. It would almost certainly have been painted SCC 15 olive drab overall. Tamiya tells you to paint it XF-61, but that’s dark green, and it’s a very hard to eradicate misconception that British tanks were green in the Second World War. Until mid-1944 they were SCC 2 brown, after that they were a colour similar to American olive drab, but with a bit of a greener hue to it. The Churchill VII was produced from 1944, so I’m guessing most were painted SCC 15 at the factory, rather than the earlier SCC 2.

As for model paint, just using American olive drab (not olive green!) will be fine unless you’re a stickler for getting the colour “right”.

Let's see how this goes shall we?

It’s a Tamiya kit, so it will go together quite well I built this a good number of years ago, and don’t remember any particular issues with it. I’m sure you’ll manage

 

[Dave Ward]

I've made a couple of these, including the 'Crocodile', and the parts fit well, and most importantly it looks the part when finished! The 'rubber' tracks look good with careful assembly and painted. There are more complicated Churchill models, with individual track links & working suspension, but these 'refinements' just add to the work load, and price, for only little visual improvement! ( In my opinion ).
If you like this model, move onto the Tamiya Cromwell a very nice model..........
Dave

 

[SteveT]

Yep. Just join them as per the instructions and you should be fine. If you really want, you can get individual track links of two types from AFV Club, but if I’m honest, that would be pearls before the swine a little bit


Yes. It would almost certainly have been painted SCC 15 olive drab overall. Tamiya tells you to paint it XF-61, but that’s dark green, and it’s a very hard to eradicate misconception that British tanks were green in the Second World War. Until mid-1944 they were SCC 2 brown, after that they were a colour similar to American olive drab, but with a bit of a greener hue to it. The Churchill VII was produced from 1944, so I’m guessing most were painted SCC 15 at the factory, rather than the earlier SCC 2.

As for model paint, just using American olive drab (not olive green!) will be fine unless you’re a stickler for getting the colour “right”.


It’s a Tamiya kit, so it will go together quite well I built this a good number of years ago, and don’t remember any particular issues with it. I’m sure you’ll manage

Olive drab it is then! (which is good because I have that) Thank you.

 

[Gern]

You could do worse than having a look at this build of the one you're doing. It's meant for beginners, but there are still some useful tips - and it's not one of those build reviews which includes A/M parts that are twice the cost of the kit!

 

[SteveT]

You could do worse than having a look at this build of the one you're doing. It's meant for beginners, but there are still some useful tips - and it's not one of those build reviews which includes A/M parts that are twice the cost of the kit!

Ohhh! This seems ideal, thank you so much!

 

[Tim Marlow]

Good to see you getting back on the horse Steve……enjoy it. As the guys say, that’s a good choice.

 

[Scratchbuilder]

Good subject, and with little in the way of problems...
Wash the tracks in soapy water to get rid of any release agent, this helps with the painting of them..
Had a quick look through the instructions and can see no problems with assembly. You are given the option of the commanders hatch open or closed and the parts are privided for either. Test fit the turrt to hull connection as sometime the fit can be a bit tight, a run around the hole with some 240 wet n dry will take off the tightness...
As the others have said it is a good breaking in kit... AFV Club do Churchills and I can guarantee the air in all of our homes was blue when assembling their idea of the suspension for the first time, and we have all worked out our own way to tackle that problem.
As Jakko said, SCC 15 is the colour to use, and is also quoted in the Mike Starmer publications, which is basically the goto books for British armour colours.
Above all take your time, if you are not sure then ask, we can access the instructions from the Scalemates web site to help you along.
Looking forward to seeing this one as you build.
Mike.

 

[Jakko]

AFV Club do Churchills and I can guarantee the air in all of our homes was blue when assembling their idea of the suspension for the first time

Agreed — they’re the best Churchill kits you’re going to find, but they’re definitely not for the first-time modeller (Which goes for just about all AFV Club kits, by the way. Cut your teeth on brands like Tamiya and Italeri first.) Steve, if you want a comparison of the suspension between your kit and the AFV Club Churchills, look here — OK, that also covers building the suspension pushed in a little, but in short, it’s a difference of something like 40 parts per side between Tamiya and AFV Club Churchills, in the suspension alone

 

[Neil Merryweather]

Good to see you getting back on the horse Steve……enjoy it. As the guys say, that’s a good choice.

Ditto that Steve.
Remember this is a hobby not a professional exam, so cut yourself some slack, enjoy the process itself and allow yourself to make mistakes,as that's how we all learnt. By all means gain inspiration from stuff you see online but don't judge your own efforts by them.
And keep posting the results on here,it's THE most helpful and supportive environment.
Good luck
Enjoy
Neil

 

[langy71]

This Tamiya Churchill turns into a rather nice looking build when finished, it goes together easily and really does look the part when finished. I've gotta admit I'd never built a Churchill before and really enjoyed throwing this together,

My Churchill

 

[SteveT]

Agreed — they’re the best Churchill kits you’re going to find, but they’re definitely not for the first-time modeller (Which goes for just about all AFV Club kits, by the way. Cut your teeth on brands like Tamiya and Italeri first.) Steve, if you want a comparison of the suspension between your kit and the AFV Club Churchills, look here — OK, that also covers building the suspension pushed in a little, but in short, it’s a difference of something like 40 parts per side between Tamiya and AFV Club Churchills, in the suspension alone

Wow! that looks equally cool and frightning

 

[SteveT]

This Tamiya Churchill turns into a rather nice looking build when finished, it goes together easily and really does look the part when finished. I've gotta admit I'd never built a Churchill before and really enjoyed throwing this together,

My Churchill

That looks so nice and great work on the figures too!

 

[SteveT]

I spent so much time on the last kit looking at the sprues trying to figure which was which (my eyesight is not sharp)
so I figured I'd solve this by getting the dymo out and making some labels this time.

Cheating? maybe, but I don't care.