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British Stuart Mk.I ‘Honey’ Early Prod. Interior Kit (35421) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd The M3 Stuart was designed before the US went to war, based upon the experiences of the British, which led to the US top brass deciding that their M2 light tank was obsolete. While the radial engine M3 was an improvement over the M2, it suffered from an underpowered M6 main gun at only 37mm, which although it was improved later in the war, the crews had to suffer with it for some considerable time. The British troops in Africa used it first against the superior tanks of the Afrika Korps, but fared badly in combat, suffering from the lack of range of the Stuart in the wide-open spaces of the African desert. It was fast and manoeuvrable however, and a British driver’s comment that she was a "honey" to drive led to one of its nicknames during the war. The M3A1 was an improved version that deleted the sponson mounted machine guns of the initial production, and some of these used more conventional diesel engines instead of the bulky radials, which gave the crew more room for other equipment. It also had a new turret with a basket for the turret crew to stand in, and no cupola for the commander that gave the tank a lower profile, and added a gun stabilisation system that helped with vertical alignment of targets while the tank was on the move, ironing out the bumps for the gunners. In British service it was known as the Stuart III and with the diesel engine version was designated the IV. It was hopelessly outclassed by Axis armour in Europe for tank-on-tank engagements, and was soon relegated to infantry support and recce roles, where it performed well. It was more successful in the Pacific theatre against the lightly armoured Japanese tanks in the jungle, where medium and heavy tanks could soon flounder in the mud and jungles. It continued to be used to the end of the war by the Allies in the Pacific area, although Russia, another user of the Stuart disliked it intensely and refused to take the upgraded M5 design that followed the M3A3. Variants were used well into the 60s, and Brazil even built their own version with redesigned upper hull and carrying a 90mm gun. Paraguay still had a few of its ancient original stock of 12 beyond the turn of the millennium, which is astonishing, considering the age of the machine. The Kit This is a reboxing of a brand-new tooling from our friends at MiniArt, who are producing an amazing output of new kits and partial re-tools in recent years, which is doubly-impressive given the situation in their native Ukraine over the last few years. This kit arrives in a top-opening box with a painting of a Stuart in Caunter camouflage scheme on the front, clearly illustrating the scheme. Inside the box are twenty-one sprues in grey styrene, although your box might be a variance from the sprue map and be linked together by runners. There is also a clear sprue, a long fret of Photo-Etch (PE) brass in a card envelope, a decal sheet, and the instruction booklet, which is printed in colour on glossy paper, with profiles of the decal options on the front and rear of the booklet. Detail is excellent as we’ve come to expect from MiniArt, and as this is an Interior Kit, you also get the complete engine and the entire crew compartment, for which the hull panels are detailed on both sides, although the interior has a few unavoidable ejector-pin marks, as they must go somewhere, or they wouldn’t be able to remove the still-hot sprues from the moulds. The running gear is similarly well-defined, and the tracks are supplied as link-and-length, taking the benefits of individual links and rubber-band simplicity and making the job a lot less labour intensive. Construction begins with the vehicle’s floor, laying out driver controls, foot pedals and other equipment, plus a choice of two styles of rectangular floor hatch, just in case you have a preference. The transmission and front axle assembly is made up from five sculpted and cooling-finned parts, which is then detailed with pivots, end-caps and linkages before it is installed on the floor, adding a short length of wire to link the assembly to a nearby conduit if you feel adventurous, then building up a box with a padded top, and two crew seats from base frame, cushion and back cushion, with a pair of PE lap belts wrapped around from the rear. The curved transmission armour on the front of the tank is detailed with various towing eyes, additional bolt heads that are cut from the sprue runner, and a central frame that can be folded from PE or replaced by a single styrene part. When it is complete, the interior face should be painted so that it can be installed on the front of the floor, locating on several ledges with the floor inverted. The sloping drive-shaft tunnel is made from three main parts, adding a bottle to one side, a decal nearby, a small grab-handle, and a pouch on the opposite side. This is lowered into position in the centre of the floor, with a small cut-out allowing it to fit over a transverse suspension bar moulded into the floor. A very busy engine firewall is based upon a rectangular panel with cut-outs, onto which a fire extinguisher and other equipment are installed, followed by a pair of radiator cores and associated hoses, radio gear with a protective cage over the front. The completed assembly is slotted vertically across the floor, which will later have the radial engine mounted behind it, but first there is much more space to take up with equipment. A square(ish) stowage box with cushioned top is built and installed in front of the firewall on the left with a canteen strapped to one side, a two-part instrument panel is attached to the transmission housing, applying three dial decals into the circular faces, making another diagonal panel from three-parts, with a PE dial in the centre, which then has a decal applied over it. The driver’s seat is emplaced behind his controls, fixing another box into position on the right side behind the bow-gunner’s seat, with another smaller box nestled behind that with another canteen, and a long ammo box in front of the gunner for his immediate use in battle. Working on the engine bay now, the two fuel tanks are situated in the front corners of this area, with caps on top that can be accessed from the engine deck by removing two large armoured covers. Another tank is installed in the rear left of the compartment, adding various manifolds and hoses once they are in position before the curved engine support is slotted into the bay near the front. The Continental W-670 engine is next, with all seven cylinders moulded in this boxing, all of which have separate head parts, three pairs of which are linked by a narrow curved lead. A conical fairing is arranged around the forward end to duct the cool air from the large cooling fan, with a cross-brace and circular boss across the open space at the forward end. The fan is mounted on this boss, with a stub-axle on the outer face, with all the blades moulded into this well-detailed part. The tinwork is substantially different from an aviation variant of this motor, but the push-rods, intake hoses and ancillaries are similar, while the exhaust take-off doesn’t have the same constraints on it. The two exhaust manifolds carry the fumes from three and four pistons each, reducing to two larger pipes that end with a stepped joint to strengthen the join between it and the exhaust pipes. The intake manifold at the bottom of the engine is fed by two pipes that head up the sides of the engine, covered by a substantial engine carrier beam that also holds additional ancillaries, with the hole in the centre allowing more to protrude. More ancillaries including distributor and belt are layered over the carrier, with two tubular mufflers attached to the tops of the exhaust pipes, after which it is fitted into the engine bay, adding a cover to the top portion between the fuel tanks. Only now can the hull sides be fitted, but not before they are detailed with various parts, including electrical junction boxes, ammo boxes, a Thompson machine gun, and other small parts, adding final drive housings to the front ends, using the bogie axle ends to locate the parts on the sides of the floor. The rear bulkhead is built with a hatch space in the upper half, with a dash-pot and hose on the inside and a beam across the top edge, gluing it to the rear of the vehicle with the assistance of a scrap view from below. The rear hatch is in two sections, one of which has a PE clapping plate, both having handles, while the left door has a strange pot with a short hose fixed to the inner face, and both doors can be posed open or closed as you wish. Above the hatch is an overhang with a PE mesh horizontal insert and styrene rear, with a couple of towing eyes mounted on the lower edge of the bulkhead. The next assembly is a thirty-cal machine gun, which has a cloth dump bag half moulded-in, finished by an additional part, and with an ammo box with a short length of link under the breech with a two-part mount. This is slotted through the glacis plate in a ball-mount from the inside, adding a two-part instrument panel with five dial decals in front of the driver, plus a riveted strengthening strap under the driver’s hatch, and a sub-panel with decal on its solitary dial. It is glued into position on the front of the tank, fitting the transmission inspection hatch with handle to the centre, and adding a pair of towing shackles to the front. The driver’s hatch is in two parts, and can be posed closed for battle, or with both parts folded open to allow the driver to view a broader vista. A two-layer T-shaped cross-member is located over the upper glacis, adding a PE bracket that supports the open driver’s hatch, and a pair of bearing spacers to the final drive housings. Unlike the earliest Stuarts that had sponson-mounted machine guns, which extend from the main hull out over the tracks, roughly along the middle third of the vehicle’s length, the British variants had space for stowage instead. The two sponson floors are glued into position, adding boxes of ammo cans, leaving sufficient space for the battery box with separate handles and a divider in the right sponson, filling the remaining space with a large stowage box. The sides of the sponsons can then be built around the equipment, painting the interior faces as you go, consisting of a short wall to the rear, a long panel along the side, and an angled panel with covered exit for the missing machine gun barrel at the front. This is repeated for both sides, fitting two hatches to the front of the upper hull after adding an extra layer behind, a clear vision port, and supports to the sides. If you intend to pose the hatches up, you have the option of leaving the inclement weather inner hatches in position, which have large panes of glass and windscreen wipers to save filling the tank with precipitation. The open outer hatches are propped up with a pair of short stays from their top hinges. The hull roof is next, starting with the panel that has the turret ring moulded-in, adding rollers in housings to the underside, additional nuts on the top ring, and a pair of filler caps on the deck behind it, shaving away clasp details around them, and fitting a grab handle to one side. The completed part is lowered into place on the hull, adding a horn to the glacis next to the bow gun, including a small length of wire between it and the nearby bracket. Turning to the engine deck, four holes are drilled out on the diagonal deck panel to fit handles, gluing it in position and fitting a pair of rear lights on brackets to the sides, adding a little connecting wire if you wish. The main deck panel has a jack block added to the underside before it too is placed over the engine, adding a PE shroud to the forward edge to deflect incoming rounds or debris. Another PE bracket for one of the aerials is attached to the right, with another mounted on the side wall slightly lower and further to the side than the other. The aerial bases are each made from two parts, adding 73mm of stretched sprue, wire, or carbon fibre rod to represent the aerials themselves. A pair of dome-topped cylindrical air-boxes are built from four parts each and attached to the rear of the sponson on brackets on both sides. We finally get some wheels for the Honey, starting with the over-size idler wheels, which have PE rim-faces glued in, and are trapped between two halves of the swing-arm, building two of these assemblies, plus two more drive sprockets for the other end of the track run. The road wheels are mounted in two-wheeled bogies, each one made from eleven parts, building four in total, handed for each side. The road wheels flex-fit into position between the arms of the bogies, so that they can be mounted on the sides of the vehicle in shallow recesses along with the idlers and drive sprockets, plus three return rollers on short axles above the main run. As discussed earlier, the tracks are link-and-length, using long single-part lengths under the wheels, individual links around sharp curves, and shorter lengths where the tracks are relatively straight. The various sections are attached to the sprues at the edges, and each short portion has a unique tab and slot format to ensure that parts can only be put together in the correct manner. There are a few ejector-pin marks on the inside of the longer track link sections, but these are raised and on flat surfaces, so shouldn’t be difficult to remove with a sanding stick or sharp blade, and won’t slow you don’t too much. When the track runs are suitably cured, fenders are added over the open areas, the rear straight sections fitted with a curved end to reduce kicked up mud, while the front sections have inner side skirts to prevent mud ingress, which is improved further by gluing a PE web between it and the leading edge of the glacis plate, along with a PE stiffening strap further back. Before we start festooning the vehicle with pioneer tools, a pair of headlamps with clear lenses are placed, one on each fender protected by a PE cage, and both with a short length of wire leading back to hole in the glacis plate. To apply the pioneer tools you have two choices, the first and easiest method is to use fully styrene tools that have their clasps moulded-in, although detail will be less impressive. You can fit the same variety of tools to the rear of the vehicle removing the slightly raised location points from the styrene panel, and replacing them with PE clasps around separate tools that have no clasps moulded-in. An axe, pickaxe shaft and separate head, plus a shovel are included, with a scrap diagram showing the finished area with PE clasps. More tools are located on the forward sponsons, with the same choice of moulded-in styrene clasps or separate PE fittings, which again have the raised marks removed first, with a completed diagram showing their locations once in place. The same process can be carried out for the single towing rope that the modeller must provide from either a 165mm length of braided wire or thread, fitting a pair of styrene eyes to the ends, and clamping it in place with PE brackets along the left sponson and fender. A shallow box is made in one of two styles depending on which markings option you are building, laying it across the flat rear of the engine deck, adding another square box on twin PE brackets on the left rear fender, and a rack of three water cans on the right rear fender. The fenders are fitted with side skirts that have a PE rail down most of their length, plus a series of five C-brackets folded from PE applied along the length of the rail where indicated. The turret starts with the main 37 mm M6 gun, the gun tube formed by a single part with hollow muzzle that is surrounded by a two-part frame, and has the halves of the breech closed around the rear, adding extra detail on the right, and a breech protector to the left side, followed by three-part pivots that are fixed around the gun without glue, then the coaxial machine gun is attached to the right side of the breech, and its ammo box is located on the left side, fed by a ‘bridge’ of link over the main gun in a guide to the breech of the smaller gun. The sighting tube is installed on the left with an adjustment wheel and eye-piece, pushing the barrel through the mantlet and inserting it into the front of the turret, which has been made from a well-detailed ring, with the faceted turret sides arranged around it after being detailed themselves. The roof has a yoke inserted on its underside in stowed or combat positions, and is glued in place, sliding the mantlet armour over the main and coax guns from the front. The commander’s cupola is similarly faceted, and each side is prepared by fitting a vision block in the slot, creating an asymmetrical hexagonal shape, and deciding whether to pose the turret crew’s vision ports open or closed. The commander's hatch is a flat panel with a handle on the upper edge, and hinges on the lower, which can be fitted open or closed, with more vision ports on the turret sides posed open or closed around the rest of the perimeter, and a choice of a frame over the top of the gun for some decal options, using PE parts to create the pivots. Some decal variants have twin smoke grenade launchers applied to the sides of the turret with PE brackets, while all variants have a triangular aerial mount glued to the rear facet of the turret. Another .30cal machine gun is trapped between a two-part mount with adjuster handle, and fixed to a short column that is secured to the left side of the turret on curved brackets moulded into the surface. An optional two-part ammo box with a length of link can be fixed to the side of the gun, or if you wish to leave it off, an alternative stub part is supplied in its place. Before putting the turret into position, a few small parts are added under the gun near the hand-winding wheel for the turret. With that, the turret can be dropped into position to complete the model, adding an optional 20mm aerial to the bracket near the grenade launchers for some options. Markings There are five decal options included on the sheet, and three are wearing the Caunter scheme, while two are in a desert sand scheme, one a captured example. From the box you can build one of the following: 8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars, 4th Armoured Brigade, 7th Armoured Division, Operation ‘Crusader’, Autumn 1941 8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars, 4th Armoured Brigade, 7th Armoured Division, Operation ‘Crusader’, Autumn 1941 10th Armoured Division, Alam el-Khalfa, August 1942 8th King’s Royal Irish Hussars, 4th Armoured Brigade, 7th Armoured Division, Libya, November 1941 Guard, Rommel’s Headquarters, Afrika Korps, Winter 1942 Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion It’s great to have this much detail present in a modern tooling of the diminutive Stuart, or Honey as the Brits called it, and it deserves to become the de facto standard for the scale. If interiors aren’t your thing however, there are a growing number of exterior kits available from MiniArt now. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

PLA ZTQ15 Light Tank (TS-048) Chinese Light Tank 1:35 Meng via Creative Models Ltd The catchily titled ZTQ15 Light Tank has been developed by the PLA for what they call Plateau Operations. The tank is light enough to be transported by air but still has a 105mm main gun able to fire a diverse selection of rounds. The engine is specifically developed for a high altitude low oxygen environment where a second stage turbo charger will kick in if needed. The tank features newly designed reactive armour with the ability to add on other armour if needed. Crew is reduced by the use of an auto loader, The tank is fitted with an electroptical countermeasures system and a radar warning system. An export version the VT-5 has been ordered by Bangladesh where no doubt the low ground weight is seen as an advantage in the country. The Kit This is a new kit from Meng of this new PLA light Tank. As well as the two hull parts and the turret there are 3 major sprues, and 1 smaller clear one, and a flexible part for the gun cover. There are a set of poly caps for the suspension and a set of rubber band tracks. Construction starts with the running gear. 12 pairs of road wheels, two drive sprockets; and two idler wheels. Each is in two halves with a polycap going in between. We can then move to the lower hull with 6 torsion bars going in from each side. At the front the mud guards are added. Other parts for the suspension are added along with the gearbox housings, return rollers, and tow hooks. All the wheels can now be added to the lower hull, and at the front the lower armour is fitted. Next on the upper hull the engine deck is added along with the drivers vision blocks. The upper and lower hulls can now be joined. Next up the tracks are added. At the rear the bulkhead is constructed and added to the hull. The side armour pates can now be added. If wanted the rear mounted extra fuel drums can be made up ad fitted. Pioneer tools and additional hull fittings can then be added. Work now moves to the turret. The vision blocks for the commanders hatch go in followed by the gun mount. The upper and lower turret parts can be joined with the rear and side armour plates being fitted. Sensor parts are added along with the AA gun copula. The flexible gun mantlet cover goes on followed by the 7 part gun barrel To both sides of the turret supports for additional spaced armour are fitted followed by the armour. Smoke dischargers and turret baskets are fitted to both sides at the rear of the turret. Additional top armour and the crew hatches are added to the turret. The last item to be built up added is the 12.7mm Anti Aircraft gun, once this is on the turret can be mounted to the hull. Markings A small decal sheet printed in China is enclosed. This gives marking for the digi camo vehicle shown on the box art at the 70th Anv of the founding of the PLA parade Oct 2019, and a 3 colour camo vehicle as used in Tibet. Conclusion This is an usual Tank fielded by the PLA for a specific use, it will make an interesting addition to any collection of modern armour. Recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Russian PT-76B (03314) 1:72 Revell The PT-76 was designed in the 50s, and the 76 relates to the size of the barrel, rather than the year, when Soviet tank doctrine became interested again in the light tank concept, and added the amphibious requirement to the mix to create a very capable platform that can ford a river without breaking stride, punch above its weight in a shooting match, and in later incarnations it was also fully NBC capable. The PT-76B was an improvement on the original and could fire a new more potent armour piercing round, ran a new uprated engine, and had improved battlefield electronics to further increase the type’s capabilities. It was in production from the 50s until the late 60s, and saw plenty of action, with many still in service today with a number of operators. The Kit This is another reboxing by Revell of a Toxso Model tooling, and there is a ton of detail included. It arrives in a small end-opening box, with five sprues in grey styrene within, plus a small Photo-Etch (PE) fret, decal sheet and the instruction booklet, which has a length of fine wire taped to the front. The origin of the tooling is less than 10 years old, and this shows in the level of detail included on the sprues, some of it thanks to slide-moulding. Construction begins with the low-profile “dalek” turret, which has a quartet of brackets fitted inside, then is outfitted with the detailed breech that fits into a ring glue into the bottom of the turret. The two hatches, searchlight, spare track links, aerial base, and a choice of the NBC exhaust dome or its hooked extension. The base for the extension has a pair of small sink-marks around the pipe, which should be easy enough to fill because the pipe is a separate part. A pair of rails are arranged around the top of the turret, then the mantlet, hollow-muzzled barrel and the coaxial machine gun barrel complete the turret. The lower hull has two water intake gratings moulded into the underside, and the two hull sides make up the rest of the lower. Unusually, the road wheels are first attached to their suspension arms before they are fitted into the hull, with the drive sprockets and idlers installed first and some bump-stops that aren’t moulded-in (some are). The wheels are glued to three styles of suspension arms, so take care which go where and follow the instructions carefully so that you end up with the pattern shown in a scrap diagram from the side. The tracks are standard styrene lengths, and each run is made up from two parts that are wrapped around the road wheels and joined into a band to complete them. The tracks are directional, so make sure you install them the correct way around by referring to the instructions. The upper hull is assembled around the roof, with two side panels and the aft bulkhead that has the two water-jet exhausts and their covers moulded-in and glued on respectively. The water pumps are depicted in full, complete with a two-part induction horn that runs from the intakes underneath to the exhausts at the back, and has the manoeuvring jet take-off for the side vents too. They are handed, and a scrap diagram shows their completed position within the upper hull. Before the two halves are joined, the circular turret floor with a stool for the commander is inserted onto a short peg in the floor, which is directly under the turret ring once the upper hull is glued in place. The completed assembly is decked out in pioneer tools, fuel canisters, hatch and vision blocks, headlamps, plus a few sundry small parts and the bow-wash deflector in front of the driver’s position on the glacis. The engine deck has two separate hatches inserted into the holes, plus two PE grilles that glue over the other louvers, with some lifting handles added to the largest one. Mudguards are added front and rear, a set of PE cages are folded up for the headlights, and on the left fender, a tapered pole is mounted on pins. The turret is twisted into position to lock it into position, and using the wire supplied, you can make up the two towing cables using the styrene eyes that are included. The photos I’ve seen online however show the cable as being braided, so you may want to look into that. The supplied wire is also not as malleable as it could be, but it could be used as aerial wire to save wasting it. Markings There are two/three decal options on the sheet, both green as you may have expected. From the box you can build one of the following: Soviet Naval Infantry, unknown unit (with alternative turret codes) Nationale Volksarmee DDR, 1970 Decals are by Zanetti, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion It’s a nice kit with some features I wouldn’t have expected on a 1:72 kit, and somewhat advanced for its original release-date. The inclusion of PE parts is just gravy. Highly recommended. Currently, Revell are unable to ship to the UK from their online shop due to recent changes in import regulations, but there are many shops stocking their products where you can pick up the kits either in the flesh or online. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or

French R39 Light Infantry Tank 1/35 HOBBYBOSS via Creative Models Designed by Renault, this was an interwar light infantry tank used by the French army in their unsuccessful defence of their homeland at the beginning of WWII, after which it remained in service with the German forces as a beutepanzer, where it was either used in second line service, or heavily converted to a makeshift gun carriage and used as a self-propelled howitzer. It was originally intended as a replacement for the diminutive FT-17, but due to the sloth in re-training their crews, they were still ill-prepared even on the eve of war. The R39 is a variant of the R35 but armed with the heavier 37mm SA38 L/33 gun allowing it to operate in an anti-tank capacity. When Germany pounced, there were almost a thousand R35s in service, although they had been found unreliable, poorly armed to combat tanks, and with too little armour. All the remaining vehicles were taken on charge by the Germans and more than a little tinkering with cutting torches began. Some had their turrets removed to use as small gun emplacements, while others were thoroughly butchered to become tank destroyers, although in doing so the original chassis was horribly overloaded, leading to slow, breakdown prone vehicles that must have been loathed by their crews. By the end of the war a small number were left and used by the French until they were replaced with more capable tanks. The Kit This is a re-boxing by HobbyBoss with a new sprue for the heavier turret on this version. The kit arrives in a fairly small box with a divider keeping the sprues from rattling about. Inside are seven sprues, upper hull in sand coloured styrene; two sprues containing the tracks; a sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) brass, decal sheet, colour painting guide and black and white instruction manual. The engine is first to be constructed, with a two part block that is heavily detailed with additional parts, a great many of which are absolutely tiny, which conspires to give you a very nicely depicted motor for your R35 chassis. Work then commences on integrating the engine with the lower hull, beginning with the sand-cast rear bulkhead, which has the idler tensioning devices and towing hook added, after which the radiator, cooling fan and ducting are assembled with the power-take-off wheel projecting from the rear of the box. The hull itself is made up from two side panels and a floor piece, into which the radiator housing, a styrene/PE stiffening plate and driver controls are added. The side panels are fitted out with three return-rollers and a final drive housing per side, and four bogies with two wheels per housing and a big suspension spring are built up. Two more solo bogies, two drive sprockets and two idler wheels are also constructed, and are installed on the suspension mounting points on the hull sides. At the same time the driver's seat, fuel tank and engine-mount bulkhead are ensconced within the hull, and the rear bulkhead closes up the rear. After adding a few more driver controls and their linkages, the drive-train is dropped into the hull, with a transmission housing added to the front, and driver-shafts to the sprockets complete the drive-train. Given their small size in 1:35, HB have decided to go down the link and length route with the tracks. The straight track runs are made up from six parts with a few links in between the curved lower sections, and twelve individual links at each end. Each of the individual links have three sprue gates, while the lengths have additional dead-end tabs that ensure against short-shot links, and also double as ejector-pin positions, saving the delicate detail from marring by miss-alignments. The upper hull is detailed inside with the driver's instrument panel, plus a choice of actuator for his vision hatch, which can be posed open or closed. The final drive inspection hatch is added along with some PE parts, as is the lower part of the driver's hatch, with the upper section added in the open or closed aspect, depending on your whim. The upper hull is then closed up and a host of pioneer tools are threaded through their tie-down blocks to be added to the sides of the hull together with the silencer/muffler and exhaust, the feeder pipe for which comes from the rear of the vehicle. Their is a large tail on the rear of the tank like those seen on the Renault FT-17 to assist on crossing trenches, a throw back from WWI. This is then built up and added to the rear of the tank. The new turret which is the feature of this boxing is then built up. The main hatch is added along with the vision opening on each side. The 37mm gun is quite detailed and is a full gun both sides of the mantlet. The rear loading hatch is then built up and added, The turret base can then be added and the completed turret placed on the tank. Decals Decals are provided for one rench tanks, and one re-used by the Germans. No details regarding units etc are provided. Conclusion This is a great looking kit from HobbyBoss and their attention to detail is to be commended, it is good to see more lesser known tanks being kitted. Overall Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

I'm off. A little delayed with the post but as I type the kits are washed and dried and ready for the actual build. Start time 11:40 CET / 09:40Z.

This is the new Tamiya AMX-13 French Light Tank. The model was built straight out of the box, the only additions were the aerials. Painted with Tamiya paints, weathered with a Flory wash and a Tamiya weathering set. Thanks for looking. Here is the link for the WIP

This is the new AMX-13 French Light Tank from Tamiya released earlier this year. The model is in 1/35th scale moulded in tan coloured plastic with full-length flexible vinyl tracks. Detail includes, one etched part, tools, jerry can and a commander torso figure with markings for 2 French Army Units. The box art. A sheet naming parts of the tank. Sprue A (X2), hull & turret. Sprue B, the hull top & torso figure. Sprue C, details including, hatches and canvas turret cover. Decals, full-length flexible vinyl tracks & the etched part. Apart from using wire to simulate the sag in the top run of the tracks, I intend to build the kit straight out of the box. I've not tried the wire technique before, but I think the tracks will benefit with a sag along the top run whilst still using the tracks provided in the kit. Thanks for looking, Joe.

I've very nearly finished my airfield starter, and am planning my next build. Another GAZ project, this time with tracks ... I may regret the choice, since there are over 100 individual track links to assemble. Oh, and I've just ordered some brass for this (I hate brass ) The kit includes 5 crew members and decals covering five vehicles for December 1942 through Spring 1943. The crew are in winter coats that have shoulder boards (appropriate to 1943-45). I'm not sure how early those coats would have been issued, or whether they can be adapted to suit winter '42/'43?

Here is one of my christmas builds, although I bought it some years ago! (one of those you build before the christmas models arrives and makes you forget older unbuilt models). I searched for a long time for a camo and I finally went for a woodland camo used for BA-10s, adapted to both the tank and the gun. At one point I added too much inkings and weatherings, and I had to "clean" a bit the tank to don't make it look like it has been taken out from a lake! The crew is painted representing a reconaissance camo, although it ended up looking too much like the 60s uniform. I modified all the original poses as I didn't like them all being just seating on top of the tank doing nothing. More pics here; http://toysoldierchest.blogspot.com/2014/02/soviet-t-70m-zis-3-wcrew-miniart-135.html