We just got Dragon’s new 1/72 E-100 in at the LHS, so, being a big E-100 fan, of course I bought one! Cheap, too (only about $9 USD).
If you’re familiar with Dragon’s 1/35 E-100, then you pretty much know what to expect. With the 1/72 kit, however, the tracks are “one-piece track link” style, done in DS…“Dragon Styrene!” It’s just like your standard belt-type track, but molded in a resin-colored flexible styrene. Just as flexible as your standard “rubberband” tracks. I kinda woulda preferred link-and-length “hard” styrene, but these look great, so no problem. Another difference is that the rear of the turret is molded as a separate piece.
You get two nicely done soft vinyl figures, but only the driver’s hatch is positionable. All other hatches are molded shut. Nowhere for the commander to stand!
The 8-per-side suspension units are each molded as one piece, as are the side skirts. An interesting feature is that the doubled-up road wheels are somehow molded as one piece, but look as though they are two separate wheels glued together, with a 2mm gap separating each wheel. Must be that magical “slide mold” technology we always hear about!
All moldings are crisp and sharp, with no trace of flash whatsoever. You also get a nice PE fret (grill screens and muzzle brake baffle).
Interestingly, all photos of the completed model on the box and in the instruction sheet show the drive sprockets at the rear and the idlers at the front! The instructions themselves, however, indicate the proper arrangement (drive sprockets up front). Can’t imagine how the Dragon staff builder missed that one, considering one mounts male and the other mounts female, and on completely different mounting systems! It would take a bit of a modification to pull that switch off, on the production kit anyway. Perhaps a bit of skulduggery was afoot!
Anyway, it’s a nice little kit of one of my favorite “semi-what-if tanks” (remember, it was nearly completed!)
Just to refresh your memories of my rampant E-100 fanaticism, here’s a coupla pix of my ol’ E from last year:


I think I will modify this new li’l E to match my old big E, and I also have the tiny 1/144 Dragon E-100, so I may do a triple-scale, triple-threat “Urban Ambush” trilogy tour-de-force!
E-100 fans, unite!







