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Hi all,

I'd like to make the main barrels on my new Leman Russ model interchangeable, but am struggling to come up with a good system. I'm a reasonable good kit basher/modder and have a lot of experience working with magnets.

Suggestions to get the old brain going would be greatly appreciated!

What I do is unsubtle in any sense of the word but damned if it doesn't work well. You know the nub at the end of the barrel that goes into the turret that is meant to work as the hinge? I chop that off, gouge a hole in the piece large enough to fit a magnet and then glue down a piece of sprue down in the hole so that the magnet fits flush. I shave the piece of sprue down to roughly the right size.

On the turret itself I do this before I assemble it but you can always pry it part. There is a slot where the nub you just hacked off was supposed to go. Clear all of that junk away until you are left with the "wall" itself. Glue down a piece of sprue roughly where the slot used to be, still remembering to shave it down, and glue down the magnet. Adjust it as you need to make sure it fits flush as this is important. I am sure using green stuff and pin vices is a lot more effective but I am broke/have neither so... yeah.

I did it without magnets, just with a bit of sprue. Simply glue a piece of sprue to the back of the barrel piece, so that it acts as kind of a lever to hold the gun up when left free. Not as sturdy as magnets, but cheaper/less labour intensive.

Unless they changed the kit again, I've found that my russes have no issue just slotting in the weapons on the little nub. I thought I would need magnets, but, as it turns out, not really.

Dronze, are you talking about the hull/sponson weapons?

It turns out that pretty much all the tanks easily can take magnets.
The "demolisher" version is even better where I can imbed the magnet inside before glue the gun halves together:
http://www.dakkadakka.com/gallery/images-28305-8180_Demolisher%20Magnet%20Convert.html
Just get magnets to the full size that fits with a bit of crazy glue and they do not move.

For the "normal" Russ I did add a magnet to the 2 part main barrel so I could have the normal battle cannon or the longer one.
I had to fabricate a shroud at the back of a barrel in order to have all the options.

 goblinzz wrote:
Dronze, are you talking about the hull/sponson weapons?

A guy at my FLGS has left his barrels unglued and they just slip on/in. Mostly stay where you point them also.

edit: To clarify, I'm talking about the main gun and not the sponsons.

Easiest way to make the russ swapable (best done during assembly)

You will need:

3mm drill bit (preferably with pin vice)
drill bit less than 3mm (around 1mm)
3mm  Ø x 2mm thick round magnets
superglue




1. Use a smalll dab of superglue to attach the magnets in the slots in the turret

2. drill a hole through the center of the mounting lugs, cut the lugs off and widen the hole with the 3mm bit.

3. minding your polarity, press magnets into the holes in the gun (if they are nit held in by friction then place a small amount of thin superglue over the top.

 goblinzz wrote:
Dronze, are you talking about the hull/sponson weapons?

All of the weapons, actually, including the turret gun... actually, come to think of it, i have to take stock, that may have just been for the plastic Leman Russ Demolisher kit....