New Project: Tamiya T34/76 ( 1942 Production Model)

I've been cleaning our cabinets at home and found another cartload of old Tamiya models. Some were built halfway and abandoned while others are still mint in their plastic bags. I randomly chose one and started work on it. The lucky model is a 1:35 Tamiya T 34/76. I remember my uncle giving this kit to me long ago. I never really got into trying to assemble it mainly because I was more into small scale tanks and AFVs. Plus, the instructions were in Japanese. Now though, with a couple of recent small scale tanks under my belt, I'm feeling more confident. One problem I foresee though are the kit's rubber tracks. They seem wrong, aside from the fact that the track sag won't show up, the pattern doesn't seem accurate. A quick check on some forums and my fears were verified -- aside from rubber being a second choice for static scale tracks, the pattern supplied was indeed wrong. It seems that early 1942 production T-34s had waffle pattern tracks or earlier plate tracks instead. Sigh. The plus side is that the kit has more than your usual amount of accessories.

So, it seems like I have to hit the research books soon. I'll be posting my references here -- mainly to instill some discipline to my work style -- as well as some build photos. More soon:)

Comments

Matchbox 1:76 Sherman Firefly 2-Color Kit

I woke up to a beautiful morning and after a good breakfast and a brisk walk around the house, I decided to work on my scale models. Now, I recently fubbed some paintjobs and I had left the models on my main workbench unfinished. With my airbrush still needing a new needle, painting was out of the question. The 1/35 Jagdtiger and SU-122 would have to wait. I had some 1/35 figures still on the workbench but i didn't feel like brush painting either. What I needed ws a simple, fast, uncomplicated out-of-the-box build. And a good cup of coffee. I eventually headed to my bodega and decided to crack open an old kit that had languished in my bodega for years. Browsing thru my collection of unassembled kits, I decided on the old Matchbox Sherman Firefly in 1/76 scale. I had bought this kit way back in the 70's I believe, part of my early collection of 1/72 and 1/76 tanks. Even though the Matchbox tanks were smaller than the ESCI ones, I liked them because of the mini dioramas

Migrating to Facebook

After a tragedy in the family and a slow return to my hobbies, I've realized that I've been posting more on Facebook. It's easier, faster and the audience response is faster. So, posting here might be spasmodic at best for the time being. Bear with me as I decide what to do with my blogs, thanks!

WIP Delta Force Somalia

I dug up my WIP of Dragon Model's 1:35 Delta Force (Somalia 1993) and prepped them again for painting. I'm hoping to do a better paint job this time around and not surrender to lethargy:) DML's kit features four US soldiers as they would have appeared in operations during the Battle of Mogadishu '93 during the events chronicled in Mark Bowden's "Blackhawk Down: A Story of Modern War" and Ridley Scott's film of the same name. Here's a helpful review of this 1994 kit by Peter Ong at TRACK-LINK. As an aside, the reviewer notes that the M24 sniper rifle shown in the box art and supplied with one of the figures was probably not used during the said events. Instead, the figure would have been more probably armed with an M14 or a shotgun instead. In addition, there is also doubt on the use of the H&K MP5SD3 in Somalia. Since I have four more boxes of the same kit in storage, I may use some of the weapons there

The Model Box

Search This Blog