I agree, that’s why I said they peaked in the 80s. Their newer kits like the HEMTT, 5 tons, M113/901/163, M1A2, are not as good quality as their 1980s kits. Great subjects though.
Nice thread guys. I’ll add some thoughts here:
To make a Sexton from the Italeri M7 kit would be asking too much. The only thing that they shared in common was the suspension (and even here, the Priest has the upswept VVS). The Sexton only looked somewhat like the M7. Different gun (25pdr) different hull completely. Although it would be welcome, I don’t see Italeri doing it.
“Doing an Academy M3 on a beach dio” – I’m not familiar with any beach landings with M3 Medium tanks. Maybe there were some training excercises but M3s were delivered from the hulls of ships onto African or Pacific island shores.
Recent Italeri: they did come with the SdKfz 231 (mixed reviews) but the Italian armored cars look to have been well received.
I also recall doing the pries…errr…building the model kit of the priest. I also recall it was a good quality kit.
Admittedly, I’ve only built 1 kit from Dragon, the StuG III with extra wide tracks, the directions were frustrating (vague in the extreme) and the individual track links will drive me to drink.
Zvedya kits are identical (IMO), the parts fit better, but the directions are so vague as to be utterly useless. I speak for the BTR-70 and the StuG III Ausf. F (short barrelled 37 IIRC).
I’d utterly hate to lose Tamiya, they are a top notch firm, which understand those of us who don’t want to have a master’s degree in physics to understand how the kit goes together.
I’m going to try a Tristar kit soon, but currently I have enough on my bench (as do we all it seems)
Those two particular Zvezda kits are reboxed DML kits.
Yes there were many differences between the Priest and Sexton, but at least the lower hull would be a good starting point. Or if they could backdate it to an early production M-7 with the M-3 style bogies and 3 piece transmission cover and other detail differences.
M-3 Mediums were used in the assault at Makin in Nov '43. I dont know at what point they came ashore during Operation Torch in Nov 42. In either case, Italeri’s LCM would do nicely for delivery craft. LVT-1’s were used in Torch, and at Makin, where the LVT-2 was used also.
I haven’t built a Tristar kit, but I’ve seen one of their Panzer IVs. That had the most complex suspension I have ever seen on a kit. It would have been insanely complex in 1/16 scale. In 1/35, I don’t think I could build it. There were many, many parts that practically required a microscope to just see!
I’m only exaggerating a very small bit here. I think the construction of the suspension for each individual wheel was 15 parts. That’s per wheel. I was slack jawed looking through the instructions. I have never seen assemblies that complex in a plastic kit of any scale.
Dragon kits have improved a lot over time. The Stug IIIs were some of their first armor kits. Some of their newer kits still have the individual track links and some have strips of injection molded track with a few individual links for the complex curves.
I built an Italeri Priest many moons ago. I was in my early teens, so I wasn’t as picky about a lot of things back then, but I recall it was a nice kit.
Bill
…Those two particular Zvezda kits are reboxed DML kits…
Figures…I swear, it’s going to be my curse, to buy a nice-looking kit, and find out it’s a re-boxed DML one…
Quality and detail of Italeri kits can be hit or miss(older kits seemed better), but yet they seem to do kits no one else will do(ie DUKW, LVT, etc)
I suspect that is why there is an Italeri. Sadly, I enjoy there kits, but I don’t enjoy the oob look they offer. Most of the time they take more care to make an impression.