I've been working on this for a bit but haven't posted anything on it. The Secret Santa got me the Tamiya U. S. Army 2 1/2 ton 6x6 Cargo Truck, kit # 218.
Started with the chassis and went with the winch option. Now, I just have to remember where I put it. . . or make one.
Nice engine, good fit. I chose not to do any painting on it as it is closed up.
The chassis has a moderate number of pieces, but they all fit extremely well. Like most companies, they have one exploded diagram for all the parts in the step and then lines drawn to the attach points. Sometimes those can be a bit confusing to an old man. But, dry fitting and looking more closely worked well. The parts all seem to have pretty solid attachment points.
Rear suspension.
Front drive train.
On the wheels. I like the way they did the attachment of the wheels with the soft plastic bushings.
The cab went together quite nicely. No fit issues.
The bed went together in no time - I think even with 17 or so parts. I set the cab and bed on the chassis for fun (i know...living on the edge)
Okay, thought I'd have a go at some shading, etc. That is a very, very weak area for me. If the louvred panel looks a bit wonky, It is. I dropped it and it went into the black hole. So, I made one from sheet styrene and .020" rod.
With the lights...
The bed was worked over . . . .
What's left? Well, a gloss coat, decals, painting the brake lights, finding the winch drum and gluing the pieces/parts in place.
