The first step before construction can commence is to decipher the infamous Dragon instructions.
Credit is due to them as they clearly break down the various differences and options for
each of the three variants at each build step, but I still double checked
that these were correctly picked out and made additional notes from the
David Byrden website. The instructions are as expected, ahem....extremely busy, but
TBH, apart from very few dubious and ambiguous placement of parts the
instructions are generaly pretty good. Having the three variant options on
many of the steps makes it look far worse than it actually is. I simply
highlighted the parts required wherever a choice appeared to
keep me on track. There are a few parts mis-labelled, but
these are mainly on mirrored parts and are easy to spot.
The
first few steps build up the running gear. The lower hull tub is a
one-piece affair to which you first add the front tow hook extensions,
torsion bars, wheels, and rear plate. To take advantage of the adjustable
torsion bar engineering you simply guide them through the hull and fix
them into the curved grooved slots in small fixings added to the opposite side. This system allows the
torsion bar axle ends to then compress and rebound as they would do on
the real vehicle.
Although the instructions are not completely clear,
the track pin return plates are to be positioned slightly differently if choosing the smaller idler wheels. If used they are to be fix angled down at the rear, which allowed them to operate more effectively. Apparently even the German engineers
took a while in figuring this out and adopt this simple fix 
David Byrden also points out that the smaller idler wheel was
introduced about a month before the thicker roof, so the larger idler is
unlikely to have been present on any vehicle straight from the factory. I
would recommend leaving the idler axle unfixed until the tracks are
added to allow for perfect track tension. There are two sets of middle and
outer wheels, with one set representing those fitted just to the final
version. Two sprocket face types are offered. The only difference is
that one has concave and one convex spokes.
Test fitting the inner and middle sets of road wheels.
Two lower hull rear plates are included with one having the different
fixings to accomodate the command tank variant.
Before adding any of the external fixings I decided to test fit the ATAK Zimmerit. Any location holes it
covered could then be marked and opened up. I figured any battle damage was also best added at this stage. One plastic and two types of
metal tow shackles and pins are offered. I understand the squarer shaped ones were
fitted to the final version. David Byrne points out two small amendments that can be addressed whilst at step 5. Firstly, the exhaust muffler top guard is supported on pins
(parts C3) and these are orientated incorrectly. These are easily
repositioned using his guide image below. I drilled new holes for added
strength but it would be just as easy to snip the location pips off the
pins and reposition them.
Secondly, the adapter plate that is positioned between the two
exhaust stacks sits on two small posts moulded to the rear hull plate.
They are apparently 1mm too long so reducing their size allows the plate
to sit as intended. The exhaust shields are offered in both plastic and
pre-formed photo-etch. Whatever medium you choose the shields were
actually mounted to small square spacers. This is a detail that
Dragon omitted with this kit. Many new kits including the Takom big box
kits do include them. Again, these are easy enough to scratchbuild out of plastic
card if going for 100% accuracy. The jack brackets are also offered in
both plastic and photo-etch.
I opted for the late/final gun tank rear plate option
How true it is I do not know but I have read that Dragon deliberately moulded the hull with a slight warp
in the hull tub. Allegedly it was to be a design feature intended to allow for a snug fit
with the hull roof and side plates. The rear plate is big enough and
strong enough to force the hull sides apart into the proper alignment, but at
the front it requires a little assistance to overcome the warp. Positioning a
length of sprue, wood, or brass etc, cut down to the necessary size,
will brace the lower hull to allow the perfect fitment of the roof plate
moulding.
Images from David Bryden's website illustrate this below.
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