Hobby Boss Soviet T-26 Light Infantry Tank Mod. 1935 (82496) 1:35

[Shar2]

Soviet T-26 light tank
Hobbyboss 1:35

 

 

History

The T-26 tank was a Soviet light infantry tank used during many conflicts of the 1930s as well as during World War II. It was a development of the British Vickers 6-Ton tank and is widely considered one of the most successful tank designs of the 1930s.

It was produced in greater numbers than any other tank of the period, with more than 11,000 manufactured. During the 1930s, the USSR developed a record number of 53 variants of the T-26, including different combat vehicles based on its chassis (flame-throwing tanks, combat engineer vehicles, remotely controlled tanks, self-propelled guns, artillery tractors, armoured carriers). Twenty-three of these were series-produced, others were experimental models.

The T-26 together with the BT was the main tank of the Red Army's armoured forces during the interwar period. Though nearly obsolete by the beginning of World War II, the T-26 was the most important tank of the Spanish Civil War and played a significant role during the Battle of Lake Khasan in 1938 as well as in the Winter War in 1939–40. The T-26 was the most numerous type of tank in the Red Army's armoured force during the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941. The T-26 participated in combats with the Germans and their allies during the Battle of Moscow in winter 1941/1942, the Battle of Stalingrad and the Battle of the Caucasus in 1942–1943; some tank units of the Leningrad Front used their T-26s until 1944.

 

On the eve of World War II, T-26s served mainly in separate light tank brigades (each brigade had 256–267 T-26s) and in separate tank battalions of rifle divisions (one company of T-26s consisted of 10-15 tanks). This was the type of tank units that participated in the Soviet invasion of Poland in September 1939 and in the Winter War of December 1939-March 1940. The Winter War proved that the T-26 was obsolete and its design reserve was totally depleted. Finnish anti-tank guns easily penetrated the T-26's thin anti-bullet armour, and tank units equipped with the T-26 suffered significant losses during the breakthrough of the Mannerheim Line, in which the flame-throwing tanks based on the T-26 chassis played a significant role. On June 1, 1941 the Red Army had 10,268 T-26 light tanks of all models, including armoured combat vehicles based on the T-26 chassis. T-26s composed a majority of the fighting vehicles in Soviet mechanised corps of border military districts. For instance, the Western Special Military District had 1,136 T-26 tanks on June 22, 1941 (52% of all tanks in the district). The T-26 (mod. 1938/39, especially) could withstand German tanks (except the Panzer III and Panzer IV) participating in Operation Barbarossa in June 1941. The majority of the Red Army's T-26s were lost in the first months of the German-Soviet War, mainly to enemy artillery and air strikes. Many tanks broke down for technical reasons and lack of spare parts.

 

Nevertheless, the remaining T-26s participated in combats with the Germans and their allies during the Battle of Moscow in winter 1941/1942, the Battle of Stalingrad and the Battle of the Caucasus in 1942–1943. Some tank units of the Leningrad Front used their T-26 tanks until 1944.

The defeat of the Japanese Kwantung Army in Manchuria in August 1945 was the last military operation in which Soviet T-26s were used.

 

The Model

The kit comes in Trumpeters standard top opening, and quite attractive box, with an artistic representation of the tank in action during the Spanish Civil War. Inside there are fourteen sprues of green coloured styrene, twenty four brown sprues of track pins, a bag of track links, a small clear sprue and a small photo etch sheet. The parts are really well moulded with no flash and only a few moulding pips needing removal. Although not to everyones taste, the track links, whilst pretty small, are beautifully moulded, but note, there are 240 of them, which can be a bit daunting.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

As with most tank builds this one starts with the drive sprockets, idlers and road wheels. The sprockets appear rather complex items, each being constructed from an outer rim, hub cap six internal spigots, a poly cap and the inner rim. The idler wheels aren’t as bad, being made up of inner and outer rims and an internal poly cap. The single piece road wheels are just joined together to make up pairs of wheels. The rest of the road wheel suspension is then assembled. Each axle has two pairs of wheels sandwiched between inner and outer castings and pinned. Two axle assemblies are then fixed between a pair of leaf spring suspension arms followed by the fitting of the main torsion arm. Having made up four of these multiple units they can then be fitted to the lower hull along with the eight double wheeled return rollers and their suspension fixings. To the front and rear of the lower hull the sprocket and idler wheel axel housings are fitted, before the wheels themselves can be attached.

 

Still on the lower hull, the front and rear deck plates are attached, along with the shackle mounts and shackles. The centre section of the upper hull is made up of four outer plates and the top plate. This assembly, once built up is added to the lower hull. On the rear decking a large air filter and grille is attached. Then it’s onto building the tracks. Seeing how awkward the individual links can be, Trumpeter provided a plastic building plank to connect the links together and hold them in place in preparation for the track pins to be fitted. Once the tracks are complete it should be possible to add them after the rest of the build has been completed, which will aid painting.

 

Back to the main build, an angled part is fitted to one side of the drivers position, to which the two parts of the drivers hatch are attached. To the rear, the seven part exhaust pipe and brackets are added, whilst the engine cover grille is fitted to the engine deck. The fenders and track guards need holes drilling out before fitting. To the track guards the support brackets are attached along with the air horn to the left hand side of the upper hull. On each track guard several pioneer tools, jack and jack handle are fitted, again with PE straps. Two spare road wheels are fitted to the rear decking with a PE strap and the three piece headlamp, cover and clear lense are fitted to the front decking.

 

The turret is built up of two side halves, top mantle surround and rear. Several holes need to be opened up for the turret mounted aerial. The gun mantle and its elevating internal parts are assembled and attached to the mantle surround. To the top of the turret the main hatches are fitted, as are three eye pieces, air vent and periscope. Finally the gun support, lower armoured protection, main gun, co-axial machine gun and main aerial are attached. The completed turret is then fitted to the tank hull, completing the build.

 

Photo Etch
The small etch sheet included in the kit contains straps for some of the tools and spare wheels, grille for the engine intake, angle for the starboard track guard, straps for both track guards, and a couple of hooks and eyes.

 

[size=4Decals[/size]
The decal sheet provides two options for tanks that served in the Spanish Civil War. One in all over green with three slogans on the turret, right hand upper hull and front left upper hull. The second is more colourful, being green overall, but with a right turret roof with black republican cross, Spanish colours on turret bustle, mantle and the Spanish flag on the hull sides.

 

Conclusion
I really like Russian tanks from the 1930’s and early 40’s and this one really fits the bill. The construction is quite complex for such a kit, but it certainly gives value for money for such a small tank and will give hours of fun. The fact that the decal options are for the tanks used in the Spanish Civil War makes it even more interesting. Recommended

 

 

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