Part 2: The Build

Generally, when you start an armor project, you'd begin with the road wheels, bogies, etc., and then move on to the lower hull. A lot like the cockpit on an airplane. However, since the instructions for the Interior PE set included with the Big Ed set are busy, and the DML instruction booklet is typically complex, I wanted to make sure I didn't miss anything. Therefore, I started this build with the interior, saving the wheels and such for later (especially since I have masks to demonstrate on them!). You'll see from the photos that the Interior set includes an accelerator, brake, and clutch pedals for the driver, along with several sidewall attachments.

A full throttle assembly is included for the transmission housing, along with a new cover for the driveshaft housing.

Additionally, there are tools, boxes, and overhead gauges, flooring, and even a small chain to attach to the driver's vision block!

The piece de resistance, however, are the ammunition racks. Two, eight-round shell racks are included, along with the required frameworks. They look intimidating, but with the proper tools, go together quite easily. For the task of rounding out the flat, individual shell holder sleeves, I used the Small Shoppe's "Bug" PE toolkit. It includes a series of graduated forms for making flat things round, and the racks were formed in one session. With some paint, steel wool roughing-up, and a touch of pastels, they perfectly look the part.

The Interior set included with the Big Ed for the Marder III includes some replacement parts for kit pieces, and some parts that simply aren't in the kit. Either way, the scale representation is far and away better than the kit parts, and the interior of the AFV is dressed up nicely. The next installment will cover the masking and painting of the road wheels, drive sprockets, return rollers, etc., using the Big Ed-supplied masks.

Information, images, and all other items placed electronically on this site are the intellectual property of IPMS/USA ®.