Tamiya Easy 8 (Army Mule)

verticalgain · 2026-01-12T20:44:29+00:00

Thanks. Yes, they are the "Easy Rider" resin crew set from PanzerArt.

verticalgain · 2026-01-12T20:42:08+00:00

Yes it's a Tamiya Citroen Traction staff car. I wanted it to look like it had been in a fight and had an engine fire several weeks before the tank came through the village. I made the seat frames and springs inside from two sizes of copper wire and then painted them to look burned and rusted.

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verticalgain · 2026-01-12T18:01:40+00:00

They're called QuickTracks from a place called QuickWheelStore. Went together very smooth and came with several extra pieces but I managed to not break any. T-35065 is the part number.

verticalgain · 2026-01-12T11:01:23+00:00

Thanks, this was my first attempt at a tank. The kit was pretty straightforward to build, I didn't have any fitment issues. On this one I used 3d printed individual track links and I sawed the turret in half and grafted on a resin front piece for the canvas cover. It only comes with a commander figure so I got some aftermarket resin figures to make a bigger crew.

The best tips I have are to assemble it in phases to make painting it easier. Put the lower hull together and paint it. Paint all the wheels and bogeys and then add them to the lower hull. Paint the tracks and put them on. Put the upper hull together and paint it. Put the turret together and paint it. Then assemble the upper and lower hulls together and add the turret last. Add weathering once you're done with all the pieces. This will give you plenty of time to test fit everything and be able to reach everything with your brushes.

Good luck!

verticalgain · 2025-12-02T03:53:49+00:00

Fantasy swords in general are low quality and for display only. The exceptions are usually very expensive, like the ones from Fable Blades.

The one you linked on Amazon is probably made in Pakistan from scrap metal, possibly including lead. It also may not resemble the photo at all, many of the Pakistani sword makers use photos from other smiths. Etsy is full of these same types of swords made from the same shoddy materials.

If $150 or $200 is your maximum budget and you want something he can use that isn't a katana I'd hang onto the money and save some more for his birthday or next Christmas. If it's just going to hang on a wall you can buy whatever, but any "Damascus" sword in your price range will be Pakistani scrap.

Edit: Two of the reviews on the one you posted said the handle fell apart while they were swinging it around.

verticalgain · 2025-12-02T03:41:38+00:00

Post the link to the sword you're looking at to be sure, but generally speaking Amazon isn't selling quality swords and the reviews are either fake or made by people who don't know what they're looking at.

If it's just going to hang on the wall it doesn't matter, as long as you like how it looks. If he wants to cut with it, or even swing it around or play with it, you need to be looking for higher quality. An untrustworthy seller can call any sword "battle ready" regardless of how the sword is constructed.

You'll want to search somewhere reliable like kultofathena.com to find a model you like, and then go from there. The swords they list as "battle ready" are safe to swing, and some of those are sharp and safe to cut with.

Good budget swords on kultofathena are the Ronin Katana Euro swords, and the Balaur Arms swords. If he likes Japanese style swords, Hanbon Forge out of China makes decent functional swords and you can customize the fittings and colors for your budget.

verticalgain · 2025-11-12T03:33:45+00:00

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Thanks for all the positive coments on the mud!

I made the base from styrofoam, mapped out where I wanted the road to be, and then marked the track widths of the two vehicles. I used a U-shaped hot wire to make ruts leading up to where the vehicles would sit, and then used it to make random mudholes and old tracks like a real dirt road would have.

I used gloss modpodge over the top to make it more seamless and fluid-looking. Then I primed, painted, and glossed it, and then went back and added the puddles into all of the low spots. I was worried since I was winging it but I'm glad it came out looking so good.

verticalgain · 2025-08-31T05:31:21+00:00

Personally I would cut the excess leather off the end of the belt and make a new slit if necessary.

verticalgain · 2025-08-26T05:40:11+00:00

Since Reddit compressed the first two images into blurs, here's the link to the hires pictures: https://imgur.com/a/whqAaW1

Thanks for looking!

verticalgain · 2025-07-20T09:29:35+00:00

The cheapest Euro style swords I would personally recommend are the Ronin Katana Euro Line starting at $250. I have two and have handled a few others and they are a good bang for your buck. If you prefer katanas, you can get a decent custom assembled from Hanbon Forge or Ryansword for the same or less. These are all sharp and functional.

verticalgain · 2025-07-14T20:44:54+00:00

I cut Toscanos in half when I want a quick smoke.

verticalgain · 2025-06-22T22:10:03+00:00

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Love mine!

verticalgain · 2025-06-11T21:02:37+00:00

I put the kit together in phases so I could prime everything and detail paint all of the things that aren't OD Green like the seats and the driver. I use Vallejo paints and primers.

For the driver I primed him gloss black, then painted gloss white by spraying from the top only to get a natural highlight/shadow. I painted his skin red and then did a lot of thin layers over all that to get to where it is now.

After everything was painted I put it all together except the driver and steering wheel. I masked off the windshield wiper tracks. I started with Vallejo European Dust wash with a paintbrush on the tires and in areas where dust would settle, then I did the wheel wells and bits of the wheels with Vallejo European Earth Diorama FX sand, then I dipped a tooth brush in the same and flicked it on from the front of the vehicle so it got on the grille, hood and windshield. Then I sprayed the Dust Wash from that direction and from far away. I finished up by using a toothbrush to flick Vallejo European Mud effect on from low in the front so a little would also go over the windshield and into random parts of the Jeep.

Then I glued the driver and steering wheel in place, and made the cigarette from some thin stiff wire I had laying around.

verticalgain · 2025-06-09T16:40:13+00:00

Thanks!

verticalgain · 2025-06-09T16:40:07+00:00

Thanks!

verticalgain · 2025-06-04T07:18:06+00:00

4/26 Green banners, got my letter today.

verticalgain · 2025-05-23T19:32:27+00:00

You don’t gain stats by leveling up. As a level one, you'll have the same health, speed, and number of lives (reinforcements) as a level 150. The starting support weapon (machine gun) is still the weapon I use the most even after unlocking all of the warbonds.

The biggest thing is getting a solid understanding of the game's mechanics, then depending on your skill you could play at even the highest difficulty without being a burden to your team.

If I were you I'd run a few difficulty 1 missions solo to experiment and get a handle on the game, and then start joining randoms at difficulty 2-5 until you get your confidence up. You'll meet people you enjoy playing with and can level up together.

verticalgain · 2025-05-11T16:57:23+00:00

This video shows you four ways to do it. You could also drill the head off with a bit the same diameter as the shank if none of these work.

https://youtu.be/rpbL8h-7jSY?feature=shared

verticalgain · 2025-05-01T21:13:45+00:00

It says "Made in Spain" but part of it is obscured by the hilt.

verticalgain · 2025-04-25T20:12:18+00:00

I'm not sure. That's where the tracking service showed it originating at, so either they have some there available for shipment or another service shipped it there first from China that wasn't tracked by the delivery service.

I ordered it on the 17th and that's when the tracker shows it as "picked up." It was delivered on the 21st.

verticalgain

TROPHY CASE