[Alt-Build Contest] 60378 Arctic Explorer Truck and Mobile Lab -> Rebel MPTL-S

[Per_SW]

In my other entry for the AL-Build Contest I teased something "Very orange and very out of place threadin' through the snow", and here it is:
 

The funny thing is I bought set 60378 finding it at a discount just around when the contest was announced, and while playing Empire at War I realised I had both many orange pieces and threads still sealed in a box. Thus was born the MPTL-S, or "Mobile Proton Torpedo Launcher - Scout", which it's meant to be the smaller cousin of the rebel artillery platform MPTL-2a from the videogame Star Wars: Empire at War .

The build recreates most of the features found in the larger vehicle, from the "descending" cockpit to of course the opening "shell" on the back to deploy the artillery:

I seats a pilot in the cockpit and a somewhat exposed gunner at the controls in the back shell. The guns can be raised up for deployment but unfortunately cannot turn and the top-most cannons have to be removed in order to close the shell, but there is plenty of storage space under it when closed.
Seating a pilot in a 4x6 cockpit and making them somewhat easily removable has been maybe the biggest issue of all the build, more than the mechanism to lower the whole cockpit or building the SNOT side doors/shells (thank goodness for those horizontal hinge bricks), but I'm more than happy with the final result.
Also, fun fact, I believe this is the first time I build something that has almost no visible studs when "closed". That said the model is surprisingly sturdy, I can pick it up from the shell when closed without fear of the doors coming off or press down on it in order to get the single tire+threads rolling, and the hinges are secured tightly to the rest of the build to make the repeated opening and closing of the shell go smoothly. The flimsiest part of the build is the back cover, connected only with a couple of brackets, but unfortunately at that point a compromise had to be made and it still stays on quite firmly - barring a direct hit from the "inside" when the model is deployed.

Hope you have enjoyed this almost last-minute entry, and good luck everyone. :)

 

Edited January 27, 2025 by Per_SW
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