PT-91 Twardy

Manufacturer:Modelkrak (Kit #7211)

By Pat Storto

Continued from PT-91Preview . . .

Assembly- mid way. Thisshows the placement of some of the metal parts (tow hooks, sparefuel tank brackets, main gun, MG). I found several usefulwebsites on the web showing the assembly of 1/35 scale PT-91models. Also, my Galaxy kit has come in handy in determining theexact positioning of parts when the instructions are unclear.

The kit does not havereturn rollers; if you look up under the side skirts, you'llnotice they are missing, so I'm adding some small wheels of theappropriate size from my spares box. If you don't plan on lookingup under the skirt (:-o), then you can live without the rollers.

I also added a wooden beammade from a section of brown sprue, roughened up with a file. Theinstructions show this beam, but it was not included in mypackage.

The more I look at thekit's tracks, the less I like them. The pattern looks incorrect,so I will use a set of spare T72 rubber tracks from Galaxy.

The colors I'm selectingare: Floquil RML greenblack, Testors flat green, and Humbrolleather. Several photos show the PT91 with a rather bright greencolor, as opposed to a dull olive green. An alternative schemeuses the same colors plus light sand patches.

Assembly - suspension: Fortracks, I took the Galaxy T72's and soaked them in laquerthinner. This leaches out the softeners, but the first effect isthat the rubber tracks soak up thinner and actually EXPAND! Onceyou air dry them however, they SHRINK and are less flexible. Theresult: the tracks are a better size for this kit (the Galaxy kitis larger than 1/72) and they will accept paint better.

Assembling the suspensionwas a long procedure, however, as the wheels are not attachedwith strong axels, but have rather small attachment points, sothe wheels will pop off rather readily while trying to get thestiff tracks on. But they look much better than the kit tracks.

Here's the finished kit. Ionly added some strings as hoses from the fuel drums. I reallylike the details on this (except for the aforementioned tracks)and they come out nicely after a wash and drybrush. One could addmore details such as turret-mounted searchlights.

Here is a side-by-sidecomparison of the Modelkrak PT-91 and the Galaxy T72. Both claimto be 1/72; I suspect the Galaxy kit is too big!