MiniArt T-44 Soviet Medium Tank (35356) 1:35

[Mike]

T-44 Soviet Medium Tank (35356)

1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd

 

 

As soon as the T-34 began production, the Soviet engineers were designing its replacement, in an effort to make a more technologically advanced tank that was lighter, better armoured and faster across rough terrain than its already formidable forebear.  That may sound like an impossible task, but the engineers managed it, just a little late.  The resulting design looked like a T-34 and a Panther tank had a baby, and in fact it was compared directly in trials with a Panther, where it performed extremely well.  By rotating the engine 90^o so that it was mounted transversely, they managed to enlarge the crew compartment, giving more room for shells and other equipment, and allowing the turret to be moved aft.  The change from  christie-style suspension to torsion-bar allowed the hull to sit lower, giving yet more room for shells, and the use of thick sloping armour made it impenetrable to the German 88mm shells from the front, and the larger octagonal turret with an 88mm main gun gave it exceptional hitting power.

 

It sounds like a winner, and it was ready for production in 1944, but the higher-ups were sceptical of the concept of mounting an engine transversely, and incorrectly thought that it would result in a massive increase in repair and maintenance of the vehicle.  The technology of the T-34 was also evolving, and the fitting of the larger turret with the 85mm gun to the older tank gave less impetus for change, as the upper-echelon weren’t all that concerned about survivability or crew comfort that the T-44 would offer.  It did suffer from some teething troubles of course, which is still true today of any military project, and various changes to the armour thickness were implemented, which curiously still didn’t increase its overall weight, thanks to other weight savings.  They attempted to put a 122mm gun in the turret, but it was unsuccessful, so was shelved.  The T-44A was signed-off for production, but initial production was painfully slow, and took time to pick up, partially thanks to the move of the whole factory back to the west from Factory 183 in the east.  In total, around 2,000 vehicles were made, but the T-44B that was to have an interim 100mm gun fitted and some other changes but was also subject to the vagaries of the changing situation after the end of WWII.  A new tank was requested post-war, and the T-44B was used as the basis for the T-54, which evolved into the T-55, a tank that has the distinction of being the most produced tank in the world, so while we may not have heard much about the T-44, it played an important part in Soviet tank development at the end of WWII and during the Cold War.

 

The Kit

This is a brand-new tooling from MiniArt, and it is also an Interior Kit, so is jam-packed with detail.  The kit as depicted here represents the third stage prototype and production variant that became known as the T-44A, with the driver’s hatch moved aft so that it was completely on the hull roof, rather than the earlier prototypes that were partly on the glacis plate.  It arrives in a standard MiniArt top-opening box, with 72 sprues in grey styrene, two clear sprues, a sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) brass in a card envelope, decal sheet and the instruction booklet in full-colour on glossy paper, with painting and decaling profiles on the inside covers, again in full colour.  The detail included in this kit is astronomical and can appear a little overwhelming on first looks, but if you are familiar with the recent output of MiniArt, you’ll realise just how impressive this model is.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Construction begins with the torsion bar suspension, which are set up on four sets of frames with two bars per unit that operate two opposing swing-arms each.  These are laid into the hull floor, with a slightly different fifth suspension unit placed at the front.  Over these are placed a section of tread-plate under the turret location, a large shell stowage box on the right of the front hull, and the right side of the driver’s station butts up against it with decals added for the instruments that are installed there.  The driver’s seat is made in two steps with controls fixed to the front frames and to a small panel on his right, then the bow-mounted machine gun is installed on the ledge to the driver’s right along with a stash of plate-style magazines for the bow gun, a toolbox and a set of foot pedals in the floor, with the seat fitted last.  The hull sides have two layers, and need a number of holes drilling in the outer skin, a small tab is cut off the larger inner skin part, and the smaller inner part butting up to it at the rear.  The left side also has a rectangular section inserted into the cut-out near the rear behind the firewall, which is detailed with fire extinguishers and ammo before it is glued to the floor, and the side walls are mated along the sides along with the rear bulkhead.  The rear bulkhead has an internal skin added too, but this is first detailed with a large fan unit that sits within curved ductwork, and slides in from above after the final drive inner housings are glued into the sides.  A set of engine support frames are made and put into slots in the hull floor, with a number of other parts added around the engine bay, before the transmission housing is fabricated from a large number of parts, plus the cylindrical brake units on the outer faces and a number of linkages to the rest of the vehicle, which includes a driveshaft take-off for the fan in the rear.  More supports, linkages and engine ancillaries are scattered around the bay, then the 12-cylinder diesel engine is made, again with excellent detail throughout that includes all the hoses, ducts and exhaust manifolds almost filling the bay when the engine is dropped into place on the cross-braces installed earlier.

 

In the fighting compartment two rows of shells are strapped in place horizontally, and two large stacks of plate magazines with PE slots and straps are installed, with more attached elsewhere.  The crew area is then ready for closing, beginning with the roof panel, which has the turret ring and driver hatch moulded-in, the latter needing its hatch and vision block adding before it can be glued in place.  The glacis plate is simplified from the third prototype onwards, having just a vision slot visible from the outside, and a couple of holes drilled in the edges to mount the bow-wave deflector later on.  The two panels are glued down, and additional bump-stops plus final drive bell housings are fixed to the sides at the same time, adding a radiator-like box in the engine bay.  In order to enjoy the hard work you’ve done in the engine bay, you can leave the three hatches on the front engine deck panel open, or close them up if you prefer, then the fenders and idler axles are fixed to each side of the hull on slots.  There’s still some space in the engine bay, which is taken up by a large radiator bath that is made from individual faces, feeder hoses and a pair of brackets at each end.  It slips in beside the small box inserted earlier, and can be posed in the open or closed position for access to the engine underneath.  The hatch above it has a framework with four PE meshes that slot in place over a louvered exit, and it too can be posed open or closed, with the closed option only viable if the inner radiator is closed too.  If the radiator is open, an alternative hose is included to link it to the engine as per the real thing.  At this point there is still a small section of the engine deck missing at the rear, which has a full-width hatch, and two half-width hatches that can be fitted open or closed just forward of it, with PE meshes in their centres.  More detail is then applied to the fenders, including pioneer tools, long stowage boxes, and supports for the four cylindrical external fuel tanks added with PE carry-handles and tie-downs, plus the fenders front and rear with stiffening brackets on the aft.  Additional track links with PE tie-downs, towing hooks on the glacis, and two towing cables are fixed to the fenders to finish them off, having the choice of using the moulded cables, or cutting free the eyes and drilling holes to accept your own braided cable for better detail and flexibility.

 

 

Two twin idler wheels with their axles are prepared along with ten paired road wheels and their pins are made up, then the drive sprockets with five circular spacers between the faces, and a long pin for attachment to the hull, which is of course next.  With the running gear in place, you can make up the tracks, which are created from 35 pairs of two different sections, one of which is flat, the other having a guide horn, interleaved to create two runs of 70 parts each.  These are individual links, with small pegs and recesses to give an element of flexibility to them, although you shouldn’t rely on the pins too much, as they are easily damaged.  It’s best to use them during construction of the sections, and then set them in place using liquid glue once you have the correct shape and sag of the track run.  I put a run of six parts together quickly, with each link having four sprue gates to remove from the curved edges.  Once cut off, the roundness can be sanded back into the links, and those areas will be hidden to a great extent between the links, so they don’t have to be picture perfect.

 

 

The turret exterior joints are another aspect that doesn’t have to be perfect, but first you have to make up the breech for the main gun, add pivots and a seat for the gunner, then mount it in the lower turret part where another seat is also fitted.  Seat backs, sighting gear, coaxial machine gun with PE stock and other ancillaries, then adding a massive store of sixteen shells in a framework box, with all the shells having stencil decals and a detailed painting guide.  The turret sides have a really nice rough cast texture moulded into the outer skin, which extends onto the underside and mantlet, offering some great visual interest to the finished model, even including the protruding weld beads that close it up.  The sidewalls are prepared with radio gear, traverse mechanism, additional shells and ammo magazines, plus various other bits & bobs.  The roof is also prepared with vision blocks with handles, lights, fume extraction fan, as well as the external aspects of the turret, such as an open or closed gunner’s hatch and the commander’s cupola, which has five narrow vision blocks around its circumference and a fold-up hatch with periscope in the front section.  The gun barrel is slide-moulded and inserts into the base of the breech with the outer armoured mantlet slid into place over it, then closed at the top with a PE cover.  At the rear of the bustle is a grab-handle and a folded-up tarp lashed to the back.  More grab-handles and tie-down lugs are added to the sides as a final act, then the turret is dropped into the hull, and that’s it finished.

 

 

Markings

There are eight options included on the decal sheet, with colour profiles in the front and rear covers, although one only has front and rear profiles, mainly because that’s where all the decals are.  From the box you can build one of the following green monsters:

 

• Red Army, Summer 1945
• 29th Armoured Division, 5th Guards Mechanised Army, Slonim, Belarus, 1946-7
• Red Army, Summer 1945
• Red Army, 1945-6
• Soviet Army, late 40s
• 8th Mechanised Army, Operation Whirlwind, Budapest, Hungary, November 1956
• 8th Mechanised Army, Operation Whirlwind, Budapest, Hungary, November 1956
• Soviet Army, presumably Belarusian Military District, 1950s

 

 

 

Decals are by DecoGraph, 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 an impressive-looking vehicle that bears more than a passing resemblance to both its progenitor the T-34, and the German Panther that it was intended to blow to pieces in short order.  The huge amount of detail will appeal to anyone wanting to get maximum modelling time from their purchase, which this kit will supply in spades.

 

Very highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of