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A Hetzer!

I decided to give the Hetzer a page of its own. It is still far from the others in its development but It is significant enough to be separated from the SturmTiger page where it previously was buried.

I've reworked the running gear, added tracks and sprockets from Nils Hermann. I cast a mantlet and mount in aluminium replacing the cleverly made papier-m�ch� and fiberglass original mount. In fact I cheated on the mount: I removed the original made a flange and reshaped it abit and used that as a pattern! For the mantlet I made a pattern from a old piece of redwood I found laying next to my fence. I had made several photos and measurements from the late Jacques Littlefield's collection Hetzer early last year when the visiting Per Sonnervik and I paid Jacques a visit. I'm going to work with the upper hull I have but I've not ruled out making a new one. This hull was made from 2.5mm aluminum sheet. It is formed pretty well but was originally just glued together with what appeared to be Stabalit. It has many inexplicable holes along the edges of the roof plate. Somehow I'd need to fill those. I have attempted to rivet the major plates together with some albeit not complete success; it is difficult to hold the plates together at the correct attitude and pound away at the rivets. I use aluminum electrical cable strands as rivet material. It still remains so many parts needing work but it a departure for me: a light tank destroyer.

I think one of the most intriguing aspects of this project is that to complete as I want to I will be more or less forced to make my own gearbox. Even it I had any one of the existing gas/glow engine compatible gearboxes they probably would not fit. A most interesting problem! So much for now. 03/11/2009

Below I've put in some photos showing the maingun and mantlet I've loosely set up on the hull. The mantlet needs more work but the worst is done. That worst bit was boring the .625" hole for the maingun tube. The maingun tube is actually a bar that I bored 3 or so inches into the front. It's all held together with tape( literally ) and propped up wiyj odd and ends so I could see what it will look like. So far I like it.

I'm considering a taking a break from all my building for a while. I'm getting burnt out. I've been fighting the worst cold for two weeks now, barely shows any signs of getting better. Not helping is the constant stress at work, stress form having to produce, produce, produce at an ever increasingly feverish rate. And the constant fear of not knowing when one will loose their job at the whim of some faceless upper manager. Further compounding it all is having seen my retirement funds dwindle by a horrific amount. I'm tired ofter and I know it is stress as my life isn't physically strenuous...I don't truly enjoy this hobby when I'm that off kilter. I want to lose myself in my beloved Baroque and Renaissance music for a while.... Jerry 04/02/2009

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