Jump to content

Type 69-II Iraqi Medium Tank 1:35


Mike

Recommended Posts

Type 69-II Iraqi Medium Tank
1:35 Takom


boxtop.jpg


The Type 69-II is an improved T-55 that was reverse engineered by China after they got their hands on a Russian T-62 after some border skirmishes. The initial batch weren't all that successful, so a revision was ordered, using a 100mm rifled gun with dual access stabilisation and many features found on the captured T-62, but basing it on the earlier T-55 chassis.

The Type 69-II has itself undergone some upgrades, incorporating lessons learned from action with the many export customers that China have for this capable medium tank. The Iraqi Army have used it both during and immediately after the Gulf Wars, where many were destroyed by the superior range and firepower that the Allies had at their disposal. Unlike the earlier T-55 ENIGMA, the Type 69 used stand-off armour in the shape of stowage baskets to protect the turret from shaped charge warheads, giving it a more modern look than the underlying technology of the main hull.


The Kit
This is a newly adapted tooling of the recent T-55 range of kits from Takom, and has a label on the box stating that the hull has been re-tooled for accuracy with the words "Approved", although it doesn't say by whom. Inside the box are a gaggle of sprues in various sizes, totalling fourteen plus the lower hull and turret top in grey styrene. There is also a clear sprue, two Photo-Etch (PE) sheets, a length of flexible braided wire, two polycaps, a flexible styrene mantlet cover, a small decal sheet, landscape A4 instruction booklet and an A5 portrait markings and painting guide in full colour. The kit is also marked as a 2 in 1, which means you can build either a standard tank, or a slightly different command tank by using some additional parts supplied in the box.

Detail throughout is good, and the quality of the package is up to standard with sprues bagged individually, some of which are re-sealable, others being heat-sealed. The track links are bagged separately, as are the PE and the decals, all in ziplok bags so they can easily be returned for safe-keeping during the build. This is especially useful for the individual track links, which have already been removed from the sprue for your convenience. A small sheet of paper is also included that advises you where to find the raised turret casting code digits, on the runner of sprue L. You'll need to cut them free with a new blade, then glue them to the turret, taking great care not to flood them and dissolve the details. Sadly, no details are given relating to the correct codes for the decal options, so you'll either need to do some research or make them up to suit your whim.

hull.jpg

sprue1.jpg

sprue2.jpg

sprue3.jpg

sprue4.jpg

sprue5.jpg

sprue6.jpg

sprue7.jpg

pe.jpg

misc.jpg


The lower hull and road wheels are first up for construction, with an appliqué panel added to the front, the final drive, idler wheels and drive sprockets first to be installed. The stub axles for the road wheels are quite detailed, and each one is made from three parts, with six different types, so keep your wits about you so you don't get them mixed up. The road wheels are next, with the wheels paired with separate tyres and central hubs, which could allow you to paint them separately if you hate cutting circular demarcations. With the lower hull completed, the upper hull is made up from three main parts, consisting of the glacis plate, turret ring section and rear engine deck. PE grilles (or are they mesh? In-joke with Ken) are added to the engine deck along with some additional parts and the driver's hatch, and then it's time to make up the tracks.

tracks.jpg


There are 92 links each side, which are supplied individually in a ziplok bag as mentioned earlier. Each one has a single sprue gate and two raised ejector pin marks, so shouldn't take too long to sort out with a fair wind and some good TV to distract you. The links fit together nicely, and the detail on the outer surface includes some nice casting marks, which makes it tempting to leave the tracks in a fairly clean state once painted. As usual with this type of track, just build up your run using liquid glue and drape them round the sprockets while still malleable, holding them in place with tape and packing to get a realistic shape until dry.

The upper hull is then glued in place and the rear bulkhead is made up, with an infantry telephone, plus and extra one for the command tank, or an optional unditching log strapped to the back, all using different holes drilled from the inside. The lower edges of the final drive housing are added underneath, plus the curved bulge under the bulkhead that houses the cooling fan, an idea taken from the captured T-62 mentioned above. The fenders are of metal construction, and are supplied as long parts to which you add lateral strengthening parts, the mudguards, stowage and pioneer tools on the starboard side, with interlinked additional fuel cells on the port. The rubber side skirts are contoured styrene parts that fix to the sides of the fenders, and the flexible braided metal cable is cut to 106mm and given plastic towing eyes before being draped over the fuel cells.

Attention then turns to the turret, which begins with the main upper part that is then detailed with coax machine gun, mushroom vents, vision blocks and tie-down shackles. The extensive bar/slat armour baskets are built up simply from the respective panels and attached to deep recesses in the sides of the turret for strength, in eight sections that wrap around the back and sides of the turret, leaving a the smoke launchers and a barrel synchronised searchlight to operate cleanly. The breech is not depicted, but a wedge-shaped block is inserted into the bottom of the turret using two poly-caps to hold the barrel in place, which is made up of two halves plus a hollow muzzle and a PE ring at the base. A Chinese Type 54 Machine Gun is built up from a number of parts to sit at the front of the starboard cupola, while the commander's more complex cupola has a set of vision blocks installed in the hatch, plus a folding mechanism that splits the hatch to allow some degree of protection under fire. Before the gun is mounted, a flexible styrene dust cover is slid over the mantlet and has four holes drilled in it to accommodate the platform for the Type 70 aiming device that sits above the barrel's central access. Hooking up the searchlight to the mantlet finishes the turret, and it locks in place on the hull using the usual bayonet fitting.


Markings
There are six markings options, two of what are found on the inside cover of the instruction booklet, and as is usual now, Mig AMMO have done the five-view profiles, and have their paint codes on the legend, as well as one of their logos in the top right of each sheet. From the box you can build one of the following:

decals.jpg

  • Iranian IRGC tank captured from the Iraqi Army during the Iran-Iraq 1980-88 – all-over sand.
  • Iraqi Army, 1991 Operation Desert Storm – all-over sand.
  • Iraqi Army, 1991 Operation Desert Storm – sand with green camo patches.
  • Royal Thai Army – Sand, green and brown camo.
  • Iraqi Army, 1991 Operation Desert Storm, preserved at Saumur France – dark sand with green camo and three light sand replacement side skirts.
  • New Iraq Army, post 2003 Operation Iraqi Freedom – all-over sand.

The decals are printed anonymously, but have good register, sharpness and colour density. Everything but the "fuel" decals are written in what I presume to be Persian or Arabic, with some small patriotic slogans and flags for good measure.


Conclusion
Just right for an Iraq war diorama or one of the lesser known operators that use or used the somewhere around 2,000 examples of this more unusual variant of the doughty T-55.

Highly recommended.

Review sample courtesy of
logo.gifUK Distributors for logo.gif

  • Like 2
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Just a couple of things I would add, Mike.

Some people may have the initial release of the kit which had a T-55 type lower hull, rather than the new Type 69 one. The updated kits have that little "retooled lower hull" sticker at the bottom right hand side. From what I can gather, Takom have stated that if you have the older issue, then contact the importer for your country to obtain a replacement lower hull. The same goes for the T-54B kit.

Takom missed altering part V2 which is the applique panel for the hull front. It has the cut away lower corners to fit the T-55 hull, but should be a plain rectangle to fit the Type 69 one. Either use and add plasticard to fill the gaps, or just construct a new applique panel of the needed thickness. One other thing they also missed was the wheels, as I've mentioned a few times in the past. The kit has T-55 wheels, which means the ones for the most forward wheel station on each side have enlarged hubs. This is incorrect for the Type 69 as it's derived from the T-54 and should have wheel hubs all the same (smaller) size. The T-54 has the same issue if you are going to use the starfish wheels instead of the spider ones, though they still don't provide enough hub covers for the latter type. :doh:

Kudos to Gary Owsley over on MissingLynx.com for pointing these little foibles out. :coolio:

Mike.

Edited by MikeR
Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 5 months later...

Awesome kit this , just as Awesome is how easy Takom are to contact . I had the initial release as MikeR mentioned and had the incorrect rounded side hull included .

I contacted them via Facebook and they replied within 2 hours and I had a new hull on its way in a couple of days they even emailed me to say it had been shipped ! within 12 days I had not one but Two new hulls and two applique plates . Kudos Takom you chaps really do look after your customers !

 

Link to comment
Share on other sites

  • 2 weeks later...
On 13 December 2016 at 10:37 PM, lesthegringo said:

Sounds like Trumpeter should take note, their aftermarket support is nonexistent. Certainly gives me confidence in Takom's products and the kits I have already have been a pleasure to work with 

 

Cheers 

 

Les 

Certainly true Les. One message to them on facebook and they replied within an hour (time zone difference permitting of course) 

I even messaged them just the other day regarding a release , thier Krupp Raumer S I had on preorder at Luckymodel and they even told me when LM's stocks were due to arrive ! . I'm now making a point of looking for Takom kits first these days . Sorry it's been off topic Mike BTW .

Jim.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Create an account or sign in to comment

You need to be a member in order to leave a comment

Create an account

Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!

Register a new account

Sign in

Already have an account? Sign in here.

Sign In Now
×
×
  • Create New...