Zebraoutrider’s Astra Militarum Tank Rescue, Recovery, Repair, Repurpose and Recommissioning Workshop
Recommendations: 69
About the Project
Having completed or semi-completed four Astra Militarum projects on OTT/BOW to reflect the four seasons Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter and built or converted over 20 vehicles, looking at my work bench I can see four Leman Russ tanks, a Chimera, a Basilisk, an Arvus Lighter, to name but a few... so now I’m opening the Workshop to recover, rescue, repair, recondition and recommission second-hand, unwanted or unloved 40K Imperial Guard tanks and other craft.
Related Game: Warhammer 40,000
Related Company: Games Workshop
Related Genre: Science Fiction
Related Contest: Spring Clean Hobby Challenge (Old)
This Project is Active
The Bull and the Ram gain a splash of colour
Post the Spring Clean Challenges of 2023, I’ve returned to the Astra Militarum vehicle Workshop and the restoration of a couple of Leman Russ tanks with Forge World turrets and replacement rear engines along with massive bulldozer front rams.
Having undercoated the tanks with black spray I decided to give the tanks another spray of sky blue from PlastiKote followed by a wash of Drakenhof Nightshade.
The tracks were painted with Leadbelcher and the foundation lines for the camouflage were created with Wraithbone.
I’m thinking of making these guys part of a mobile unit known as the ‘Midnight Company’ originally from Necromunda.
WIP gallery follows.
Next up… fine detailing.
The Bull joins the Ram with a nod to the Gothic past...
Friday night and time to finish off the construction of ‘The Bull’. The Dozer blade was again cut down and slotted on to the front with added armour plates inserted to cover the joins. On the underside, the original dozer blade was cannibalised to provide extra support to the lower dozer pistons. In addition, I ferreted around my bits box and found two old Imperial Manufactorum scenery street lights and by slicing off the base, rotating the lamp by 90• and adding a new cable, each tank could have a laser search light for night vision manoeuvres.
The Bull and The Ram... with gothic search lights. Below is a gallery of the work in progress to bring these two together, ready for the paint shop. Note that because I was simply copying the construction, time taken was no more than two hours. 
Costs to construct The Bull are the same as The Ram, i.e. £39.
The street lights are approximately £2 each second hand.
Total project cost so far: £82
Next up… painting scheme.
Leman Russ Battle Tanks x2 Stygies VIII Pattern - repair, repurpose and reconstruct
On the work bench are two Leman Russ Battle Tanks with Stygies VIII turrets (cost (£21 each via eBay). These are the old LR kits with converted Forge World Vanquisher turrets that appear to be shortened to the standard battle canon length. The tank rears are missing exhaust pipes and storage boxes. When the conversion kit was available it cost around £18-24 RRP. FW tanks currently cost around £67 for a complete kit although the range has become limited. I’m going to remove the dozer blades and use a Kromlech rear power plant (£12) and a 3D printed large dozer blade (£4 each on eBay) to customise the tanks as sisters - ‘The Ram’ and ‘The Bull’. 
‘The Ram’ repurposed with large dozer blade and enhanced rear power plant and exhaust. The power plant was easy to attach once the old exhaust and barrel had been removed. A handle was added to the grill top and a cover for the side storage box was cut to size before liquid green stuff was used to fill gaps. The new dozer blade has the top removed with a hacksaw and reglued to the front of the dozer blade. The connection rods were reinforced with cut down extra armour panels and underside the discarded dozer blade was chopped up and repurposed with green stuff to add a further support to the large plough-like blade. The blade had to be cut down to allow the hull mounted bolter to fire and the tank driver to be able to see! Liquid green stuff came in pretty handy (x1 pot £4). Bolter barrel was bored out using a 3mm finger drill. Total conversion time taken 4 hours. 
I will replicate the initial conversion changes to the second tank - The Bull - in exactly the same way so that they will look like twins. I did contemplate whether to reinstate the Vanquisher cannon, but in keeping with the uniqueness of the vehicles and to fit in with the ‘ploughing’ capability of the tank, it would seem sensible to retain the shortened cannons. Each tank will be customised further with additional stowage and individual crew. Then the paint job decision...
Total cost of rescue and reconstruction (not including my time!) (£21 tank + £12 power plant + £4 dozer blade + £1.50 worth liquid green stuff and £0.50 of green stuff putty) = £39Workshop Inspiration
And so another project opens… This will be slow burn project in which I will not only clear my own pile of shame, but try to avoid buying any new Astra Militarum kits, rather going green by recycling old and damaged tanks in my own collection and purchasing unwanted or unloved tanks on eBay for a reasonable price and to resurrect them with conversion techniques and paint jobs to make unique gaming pieces to be returned to battle. I will attempt to record the rebuilding of each tank, any conversions, paint choices, etc. as well as the financial costs for parts acquired.
Previous conversion work included remodelling a Vampire Counts Lord into ‘The Red Baroness’ for the Thunderbolt Heavy Fighter flying above the Spring jungle canopy.
A Blood Bowl Forge World miniature was repurposed to ride the turret of this Mubraxis Dustdogs’’ Leman Russ Incinerator, whilst salt weathering techniques and a launching hunter-killer missile adds a unique feel to the old and weary Leman Russ Battle tank roasting under the Summer desert sun.
The toxic, brown hues captured that Autumn feeling as the Salvar Chemdogs 3rd Armoured Division muster for battle. This was a nine tank Spring Clean Challenge that ended up as a runner up in Armies on Parade and included a heavily converted Atlas Tank Recovery unit.
In the cold wet of a nearing Winter, Commander Glofski found herself in charge of a bunch of misfits and battle-scarred veterans having been promoted by an ever watchful Commissar. All these tanks were repair jobs and repainted to make a unified five (wo)man tank unit. All of these are previous projects you can delve into if you want more info via my projects link on my profile @zebraoutrider.
Periodically I’m going to dive in and fix up a tank or two at a time and hope that you will follow and enjoy my endeavours to reclaim, reinvent and renew fallen mechanised and once-loved heroes of the 40K wars.
In effect, this is an ongoing Spring, Summer, Autumn and Winter Cleaning Project…
