When Franks Las Vegas vacation plans fell through in 2001, he decided to take a gamble on building a full-option 1/16 scale Tamiya Tiger I. Not happy with the basic kit, Frank added Aber's photoetched detail set (No. ABB16K01) and bought every Tiger reference book he could find. He even sought the advice and guidance of Otto Carius, famed German "Tiger Ace" from World War II. He coined the project his "ultimate Tiger" and spent more than 530 hours building the model over a seven-month period. Frank's model is remote-controlled, so he had to combine the functional aspects of the tank with the super-detailed qualities of a static model. Although it sounds easy, Frank says making the functional tracks and suspension look realistic, yet stand up to remote control operation, wasn't an easy task. Each of the seams on the model was detailed with a soldering iron to simulate the rough appearance of welding, and minor battle damage was added with a dental burr and motor tool. Since Frank was modeling a specific Tiger, number 314 of Schwere Panzer Abietlung 502, he referenced the photos of the actual tank. Tiger 314 had its Feifel air cleaners removed, so Frank altered the rear engine deck to depict this change.
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