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Panzer 2 turret


johann morris

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On 12/21/2018 at 9:41 AM, mogmaner said:

Could the model track links be up scaled then 3d printed to form a casting pattern. 

With a single original track segment it could be scanned using photogrammetry - just like the torpedo motor I'm restoring - with the advantage it would be easy to make it a closed & therefore solid model. 

It would need work post-scan to add material to any worn sections, add material to the track pin bore and scale it to take into account the shrink factor when cooled, but the beauty of a 3D model is much can be tweaked and changed at very little cost and verified with a 3D print before committing.

More than happy to help on this one, if photogrammetry is of use?

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Evening all,

 

Simon,

Thanks for the offer when I get to that point and depending on which route I choose to go down if I need any photogrammetry I may take you up on the offer.

 

In my spare time I decided to get the tow hitch made,DSC05029.thumb.JPG.674a943c41f9f159e4a9e1826f22420f.JPG it's position has a bearing on the tie bar that runs along the rear of the chassis so it needed making sooner rather than later.

 

Jon

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Evening All, 

 

I hadn't considered that there was any interest in how I make the different components. My interest is in making the pieces, taking pictures and posting updates is not very high in my list of things to do but I will try and take more manufacturing pictures from now on. The towing hitch is fabricated from several pieces, the only picture that gives you a clue as to how it's made is this one, sorry.

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I have been making the idler wheel shaft housings, again no manufacturing pictures but they started life like this.

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At the rear of the tank, there are two flanges that protrude either side beyond the the chassis rear plate, these are where the idler wheel housings bolt on to the chassis.

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Because the chassis tended to flex in this area, the joint between the rear chassis plate and the flange tended to crack, the solution to this problem was the incorporation of a strengthening rod, my job for today.

I have drilled and tapped each end of the rod so that the centre attaching bolt goes through the idler wheel housing, through the chassis flanged and threads into the bar.

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Jon.

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Evening All,

To tension the tracks the idler shaft rotates in the idler wheel housing on an eccentric cam. Thus when the tracks need to be tightened, the cam is unlocked and the shaft rotated towards the rear of the vehicle. It is this cam that I am in the process of making. It would have been a forging or casting but my budget doesn't allow for such luxuries,  so I have to use what I can get. 

It's probably as clear as mud but bear with me, all will become clear in the end.

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Hello Heinz my dear friend,

Thank you for your message and kind words. The project is proceeding to schedule but the supply of what would be considered the ideal sized material is causing us some concern. It is testing our ingenuity, having to use what is available, rather than what would like to use. However I am confident that the alterations that we have made to the components will cope with the demands made upon them.

I have attached some pictures of the idler wheel housing and shaft, hopefully you can now appreciate how the rotation of the shaft will tighten the tracks. The unit is not yet complete as the shaft needs welding into it's eccentric end and the rotation lock needs to be manufactured.

My mind is already focusing on the next set of components, I fear many more sleepless nights ahead.

Johann

 

 

 

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Dear Heinz,

Once again thank you for your suggestions and observations. We have all but completed the idler wheel components, although we are unable to complete the final welding operation due to a quality issue with the idler wheel bearing retention nuts. We are currently awaiting a new supply of nuts that should be with us this week. Lubrication points have now been added to the relevant components. My concern regarding the idler shaft rotation locking mechanism has now been addressed after the receipt of new information.

We are now in a position where, I feel that we can start to plan and manufacture the suspension leaf springs.

Until we communicate again,

Johann

 

 

 

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The locking of the idler shaft is one of those things that has been bugging me. I know from the description in Panzer tracts that it consisted of a locking nut, accessed through the centre of the idler wheel and a ratchet system. I recently found the picture below that answered several questions but I am still unsure as to the design of the actual ratchet system used, so I have made a system that will work, although probably not as efficiently as the original.

 

Jon

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38 minutes ago, johann morris said:

Thanks for the link BRDM and yes I have read it before, unfortunately because our internet is so slow it locks my computer up, so most of the time I cant access it.

 

Jon

Right click on this  http://the.shadock.free.fr/Surviving_Panzer_II.pdf  and then select  'save link as' should download it permenantly to your computer.

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I have been playing with my nuts, so to speak. I made the thread on the end of the idler shaft to fit the nuts from a Land Rover stub axle, using a genuine land Rover nut, thinking that it would save me some time. I then ordered four nuts from a british parts supplier and only one would fit. So I ordered another ten, my thinking was that I would have the four that I needed and some spare for my land Rovers, these things are always worth having about. Only one of the ten would fit, either the original stub axle or my shaft. It's not worth sending them back, so I decided to clean the threads out. Trying to centralise the nuts in the four jaw chuck using a DTI on the thread is a no go, so I put the nut in the four jaw, threaded the shaft in as far as it would go, about 1 1/2 threads and then, with a centre in the other end of the shaft, I clocked the shaft. Lining the threads up with the threading tip was a bit of a fiddly job but the result is fourteen nuts that I can use.

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The other item that I have been doing is making the springs. Reconstituted Land Rover series springs, cut and drilled, it's been like giving birth but I have assembled one for a trial fitting. I will add some detail to the proceedings when I make the other nine.

I didn't take note, when I visited the tank museum, of the number of leaves in each spring, so DRDM driver very kindly made a visit to the museum and took some pictures for me. I have to say a big thank you to him for very kindly helping me out. What those pictures revealed, was that each spring has a different number of leaves. At present I am going to make each spring with thirteen leaves and then when the tank is at it's full weight I can adjust the number as necessary.

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Jon

 

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I take it it's a dragon 1/6, I keep meaning to get one and then buy some steel instead. According to the ausf F in the tank museum:

number 1 - 12 leaves

number 2 - 16 leaves

number 3 - 19 leaves

number 4 - 11 leaves

number 5 - 15 leaves.

I suppose number 3 is the centre of the tank so has the most weight to contend with.

Jon

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I have to admit that i only counted one spring i didn't think that they might all be different.

I actually have two Dragon Panzer IIs. I'm in no rush to finish them off at the moment while i try and sort my Car.

I'll see if i can dig out some links to photo studies of the various Panzer II Tanks. Lots of close up photographs. But for me, i'm studying the AUSF C & AUSF F as they are the RC models i intend to build.

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Referring to the number of leaves on the Pz2 suspensions, It is not impossible that the middle wheel stations have more but thinner leaves to give a softer ride but the end stations have fewer, thicker leaves to give more resistance to pitching which is always a problem for smaller tracked vehicles.

Being German it is quite possible that they are each optimized (ie. different) to get the best possible ride, regardless of production and maintenance complications. It is also possible that that particular vehicle has been repaired with a rather random selection of whatever versions of the springs were available at the time.

I would make them all the same ans see how it sits when complete.

David

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