Thunder! Thunder! Thunder! Waitaminute.... that's a panda tank!
PROLOGUE
Aside from G1 Transformers, Thundercats is one of my favorite cartoon series from the 1980s. And one of the most iconic vehicle from that cartoon was Thundertank!
In recent years, I've made quite a few Thundertank Transformers using official LEGO sets, and below is definitely the best so far , made using set 31152
ABOUT PROJECT PANDA THUNDERTANK
LEGO set 31165 Panda Family shared similar color scheme with set 31152 used to build Thundertank TF above. And that's a reason compelling enough for me to start this project! Let's hooo I mean go!!
I tried and tried to replicate the front of the actual Thundertank but it still ended up looking like a cynical panda head.
As always, the last component to be built is the gun. However, the last thing I did before wrapping this project up was something else.
Raise you arm(s) if you like this creation!
The opening hood was an accidental design! It started as a thin panel, with intention to hide the robor head.
TRANSFORM!
In vehicle mode, the legs were pegged to each side via a single stud.
ROBOT MODE
There's a story behind the hinge for the vehicle roof. I discovered that my initial design was weak structurally with the c-clip plates having poor clutch strength when connected to the bracket. So I must redesign it.
WITN GUN
CONFESSION!
20 minutes before I decided to wrap this project up, I noticed his pelvis and waist were disproportionately sized compared to the upper body, like characters from Transformers:Animated cartoon. So I performed massive redesign by widentng them a lil.
During photoshoot of action poses.... I found out that such asthetics improvements led to reduced range for the pelvic joints! And they can't bend beyond 30 degrees to any direction, aka he can't kneel!
Removing the side panels on his pelvis can improve the range somewhat by perhaps 2-3 degrees?
VIDEO TUTORIAL
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