Review by: Jamie Haggo
The completed Finished Now project can be viewed here.
Some useful reference…
Let’s get straight into it…
Having recently built the M26 Pershing MBT from Hobby Boss, I was really looking forward to this project. In fact, I was so enthusiastic that, as soon as it plopped onto Geoff’s doormat, I was round there like a flash to pick it up.
The sprues are surprisingly packed full of detailed parts and, when you look at the instructions, you start to see why. It’s an incredibly detailed kit.
On the chassis you get all the running gear and transmission as well as a full engine.
Looking at the main body, the engine access panels are separate, so showing off the detail will be a breeze. The interior of the cab is similarly well-appointed, with loads of detailed bits and pieces. This will benefit from careful painting, as even with the grenade mesh guards in-place, a lot will be on view, even more so if the main doors are opened.
Talking of mesh, there are THREE photo etched frets (yes, that’s right 3!). The detail doesn’t stop there, with the main armament detail taking up almost the whole of the biggest sprue, which bodes well. Two main gun options are catered for.
The detail doesn’t stop with the inside, though.
The outside also has loads of bits and pieces, so a decent wash to bring out all that detail will be a must. The tyres are rubber, which I know can be a bit contentious, however the tread has to be seen to believed, there are no mould stubs so minimal clean up will be required. They are also hollow, thus opening up the diorama possibilities.
Gallery Grid
(Click Image to Enlarge/go back).
Decals
Here we hit a bit of a stumbling block. There are 2 options provided: a grey one and a desert vehicle.
However, the number plates are a bit of a mess as only 1 option has the front number plate. It’s a shame, as I really like the quality of the HobbyBoss and Trumpeter decals, it’s just so often they are let down by silly mistakes.
Instructions
You can see from these images that there’s plenty going on inside of the vehicle, with all that detail to be painted and weathered.
In fact, the instructions are a real motivation and make you want to get going straight way, which is more than can be said of many kit instruction sheets.
I’m not an expert so I really can’t comment on the accuracy of this model, so I’ll leave that to abler pens than myself.
In summary…
This is a very nice package from those chaps over in China.
The completed Finished Now project can be viewed here.
Highly Recommended.
Jamie H.
Editor’s Note: To illustrate Jamie’s enthusiasm for this model, you may have spotted that I have included two hot off the press images from the first part of the build in the gallery grid above!
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