M1 AbramsMain Battle Tank

Manufacturer:Hasegawa (Kit #MT33)

One ofthree M1 Abrams in 1/72nd scale (the others are ESCI andMatchbox), this kit was pretty good. It is better than thecompetition in some areas, but not as good in others. Please seemy M1 AbramsComparison article for a complete comparative reviewof these kits.

This kitrepresents the base M1 version of the Abrams, and it does it verywell. All of the kit's details are appropriate for this version.The overall level of detail and quality of molding is very good.Some of the details could be a little finer, but I was quitepleased with what comes out of the box. The turret is armed withthe standard 105mm cannon, which is molded as a single piece,plus a separate piece for the tip of the barrel, as well as twoMG's on the roof: a .50cal for the commander, and a 7.62mm forthe gunner. The MG's could use a little more detail. Both hatchesare molded open. The wind sensor at the rear of the turret is avery tight fit. Be sure to sand it down some. Also, after gluingit in position, it would benefit from some filler to blend themount into the turret, which I failed to do (see photo).

The rearfenders have an optional length, depending on which particularvehicle is being modelled. The side skirts also have an optionalshape for the rearmost panel, allowing for the unique cutoutshape that most Abrams had. The driver's hatch on the front hullis molded shut. One commander figure is included, and is actuallyfairly nice.

The maindetraction of this kit are the bogie wheels. As is common formodels of most modern tanks, each pair of bogie wheels is moldedas a single, double-wide wheel. I have absolutely no idea whyseveral manufacturers decided to do this. It makes absolutely nosense at all. Also, the sprocket wheel should have four verylarge holes in the "drum" portion of the wheel.

Assemblyof the kit was simple. Everything fit very well. Once again, itmay be easiest to glue on the tracks prior to attaching the upperhull. Of course, this makes for some creative paint sequencing.The tracks are lengths of hard plastic; no individual links.Several lengths need to be scored with a knife, and then bentinto shape around the idler and sprocket wheels. Overall, I wasvery happy with the way the tracks turned out.

I made acouple of modifications to my model:

• I cut each bogie wheel in half, and inserted a spacer between the two wheels to accurately represent pairs of bogies, instead of single wheels. This was very time-consuming, and I recommend it to only the most anal-retentive modelers, because with the side skirts on, the work is barely noticeable;

• I used thin brass rod to make handles for the 7.62mm MG, replacing the poor-looking plastic lump that was molded onto the gun;

• I drilled holes in the lift hooks next to the headlights and by the exhaust grates.

I paintedmy Abrams in Aeromaster Acrylic Desert Storm Sand, and"borrowed" some Desert Storm decals from my MatchboxAbrams kit. I was very pleased with the final result. I showed itto an Army tank driver in my model club, who was very impressedwith the accuracy of the kit. Although, he said that I did notmake it near dirty enough :)