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After what seems like an age of no plastic modelling , I decided to go for something I wouldn't normally choose just by way of a change . I settled on something Modern-ish and something U.S. Finally after reading a lot of great things about AFV Club's M60 Patton series I couldn't wait to try one for myself . Opting for the M60A2 because I really like the look of this vehicle , even though by U.S. Military standards they were relatively short lived and a little unpopular ,they were for a short time at least ,a part of the vanguard that would help protect Europe from the "Red Tide" who would invade and overwhelm western forces should WW3 erupt . The kit itself is a really nice kit with some really neat things going on inside the box like textures a nice drivers station interior and a rear section that's all ready to accept an aftermarket engine . This will be a relatively slow build as I plan to adapt a voyager etch set made fro the M60A1 for parts of this build and also some of the textures area little over the top in places and in others either too dissimilar or non existent . I will also be doing some additional detailing along the way and finally converting the crew figures ...eventually . So here's the kit box and overflowing contents ...this is a very full box ! The Lower hull is a very nice slide moulded item , the Cast texture though is a little overboard and looks akin to pebble dashing , There's also a few large mould seam lines to deal with . My copy seems to be suffering in a little mould misalignment though , this impacts on some key areas such as the large flat areas where the plates mount to build the suspension arms onto . Lots of nice features though such as the casting/foundry marks including the "G shield" of manufacturers General Steel . To my eye these also look a little bit too sharp but they'll doubtless be fine for most . These interesting Circular marks are to be removed , they're what I hope are marks to mount Blazer armour to in a future release ? A M60 RISE and an IDF Magach 6 would be nice eh ? So I began this project by trying to calm down the heavy pebble texture with 800 grade Wet or dry paper , This actually gave a much more convincing "Cast" look and I'm quite pleased with the result . Maybe I wont need to Mr surfacer it after all ? , Next I began work on the Turret mouldings . I didn't take a photo of their "Before" state but they are almost devoid of texture completely . I think AFV Club listened to critique regarding the texture and dialled it back .. almost completely . Anyhow I started to add cast texture using a 1mm round dental burr and a very fine 0.5mm round diamond burr in my motor tool , the speed setting was slow at first and then turned up for subsequent passes . This will give me the multi layered effect of a cast surface . Finally I brushed out some solvent cement over the entire turret to help soften things out a little . Incidentally upon test fitting the turret halves I found a strange anomaly , it appears it may be mould misalignment ? but I will have to do some blending in . Need to find out the shape of the real turret . The opposite side seems to mate a lot cleaner . Lastly It was time to add some smooth marks and some linear marks to the upper turret edges to simulate areas where the raw casting was ground and finished at the foundry and also to simulate more of the layering effect of laminations to the steel . These were made with the tip of my scalpel blade and point respectively . this was then partially softened and melted with solvent cement . Throughout I have been using photos of Jacques Littlefield's M60A2 for surface effects . More soon , thanks for looking ! Jim .

M60A2 Patton "Starship" 1:35 Academy The M60A2 was named the "Starship" due to the then modern technology fitted to the tank. It was designed as a force multiplier to operate alongside M60A1 tanks. Development began in the 1960s with them entering service in 1972. The Starship featured a new different turret from other tanks of the time. The main turret had quite a low profile which was offset somewhat by a large commanders copula on top. This featured a sighting system and a co-axial 50 cal machine gun. The idea was for the commander to find the target and lock on the main armament and then be searching for the next target while the gunner engaged the current one. The turret was fitted with M48 152mm gun / launcher. This was the same gun fitted to the M551 Sheridan. This could fire conventional ammunition to a range of 1.5km and the MGM-51 Shillelagh anti-tank guided missile with an effective range of 3km. A groove as cut into the barrel to allow the missile to fire. The US Army at this time had spent a considerable amount of money on the MGM-51 system. One of the major problems with the missile for its time was its technological advancements which made it unreliable. The missile did not come into sight of the gunner until it was over 700m from the tank and with an effective range of 2km (later extended to 3km) it had a limited envelop of operations. Over 88000 missiles were purchased with the only reported use being a dozen or so fired at bunkers by Sheridans in the Gulf war of 1991. In the end the Starship proved to be a bit of a disaster. The main gun range had already been exceeded by other tanks and the missile system was unreliable. In addition a closed breech scavenger system), which used pressurised air to clear the breech after each shot lead to a slow rate of fire. It was also found that the missile was not as good at penetrating armour as was required. The Starships were phased out by the early 1980s with the hulls being converted to M60A3 tanks, or in some cases armoured bridge layers. If anyone is interested in seeing the Starship in operation there is a training film available here on YouTube. The Kit This is a not a new kit per se from Academy, some of the main parts are from other kits; however the parts for the Starship, and the tracks are new to this boxing. It should be noted that as the main hull is from a kit which features added reactive armour there are some markings on the front of the kit scored in for placement of this armour. The modeller will need to remove them for this kit, which should not be difficult. The addition of photo etched parts for the turret stowage bins, and other small fittings is a nice touch. Construction starts with the lower hull. Fittings for the rear drive and front idler sprockets are added along with suspension components. These are followed by upper parts of the lower hull which house the idler wheels. The main torsion bar suspension parts are then added along with the two part idler wheels, followed by the 3 part main wheels, and five part drive sprockets (these all feature central poly caps so the can be pushed on at any stage of construction). Construction then moves onto the upper hull. The first item to be installed is the drivers hatch, this is installed from underneath. On the top the various stowage bins are added to both sides along with various hull fittings such as light, lifting eyes and protective bars. A few small photo etched parts are used at this stage. Construction then moves to the turret. The first item to be made up is the side mounted searchlight. This a complex affair with 10 smallish parts, some photo etch and a clear plastic cover which the modeller has to cut to size from a small sheet of acetate supplied. The main gun parts are then added along with the barrel, this in one part but there will be the mould line to remove. The commanders copula (a main part of this build) is then built up and added to the turret. Various hull fittings are added along with the turret bins. The mesh for the bis is supplied as photo-etched parts. The last parts to be added are the tracks. These are not rubber band, or individual links. They are short lengths of moulded track which are connected by individual links where they go around the sprockets and bend at the bottom Though better than the rubber band type they will still not sit correctly where they run over the idler wheels so I suspect they will be replaced by many modellers. Luckily they are standard M60 tracks so replacements are readily available. Decals There is a small decal sheet with markings for one tank from the US Army. Conclusion This is an unusual and short lived Main Battle tank, and part of the M60 Patton MBT line. It should make a great addition to a collection of cold war Armour. It is good to see companies bringing us this type of kit. Highly Recommended. Review sample courtesy of UK Distributors for