The Model Box

I chanced upon these at my local market. I think they're Chinese made models based on a better known brand's scale model but i'm not familiar with aircraft models. Each is around a dollar. The box says its 1:115 scale which I feel is wrong. More likely it is 1:144. Any one tried these? How do they build up? I think I saw 3 different helis as well as an assortment of fighters. I bought one of each, namely a US Apache ( which I think is missing some nose parts), a Chinese Harbin Z-9 and a Chinese WZ-10.

More of the 1:48 M-60A1 and AMX-30 WIPs from Kitech.

Aargh! Why do I torture myself? This Kitech M-60A1 has exactly the same problems as the AMX-30 . First of all, the Reactive armor parts are under scale and pretty thin. So I didn't put them on. Poor detailing, rudimentary parts, make-believe lower hull, wrong tracks, poor bustle rack etc. I could go on but I did put it together in a few minutes, save for around ten to fifteen minutes spent resanding the attachment to the commander's cupola. In short, still not a total waste since I enjoyed the practice time. This kit is more of a toy than an accurate scale model. It came with a motor but I didn't waste time trying to make it work. But who knows? Maybe some day. If I'm bored enough :)

I decided to do a side build while the T-34 was being prepped for detailing so I cracked open a Kitech motorized 1:48 AMX-30.  The AMX-30B is a French Army main battle tank. The basic model is armed with a 105mm gun that is accurate out to 1925m while stationary, as it is not equipped with a stabilizer. It's secondary weapons consist of M693 Autocannon with 500 rounds, and an NF-1 MMG with 2000 rounds. The 105mm gun has 30 rounds and is capable of firing seven a minute. The AMX-30B is a potent combination of firepower, and speed. AMX-30Bs acting as a mobile reserve while on the defensive really can make a difference, provided you're not throwing them into headlong charges at T-72s. The gun it's equipped with, the F1 105mm, is accurate for a low points cost making it quite useful defensively. One of its most distinctive features, its 20mm Autocannon, allows the AMX-30B to be more flexible by giving it significantly better range, some extra damage, and a decent abil...

The wife and I got home quite late last night and after a good dinner highlighted by her delicious fern salad, we killed some time before heading off to bed. She had some emails to write and so I searched around the bodega for something I could build really quick. I found some 1/144 kits that I had picked up a few years back and decided that they wer perfect for a modelling quickfix. First up were some Soviet T-72 M2's from a maker named Mini Hobby Models. I think it's a Chinese maker. The T-72 was the most common tank used by the Warsaw Pact from the 1970s to the collapse of the Soviet Union. Iraqi T-72s that fought in the First Gulf War in 1991 were outclassed by western tanks but whether their loss was due to the tank's deficiencies, poor Iraqi training/doctrine or both, is up to debate. The model's a pretty easty build but the plastic is of low-quality. Even though the details were crisp, the sprue locator marred some of the details and rescuing the surf...