This just arrived from Squadron Mail Order. I quickly openned the box to check it out. What a shock!. Flash everywhere and the spare wheel is not fully molded in the center. Wait, this looks familiar… it’s the old ESCI kit re-boxed. WHAT A RIPOFF. They should have to put warnings on the box and in catalogs.
Most if not all of the Italeri 1/72 armor offerings are the old Esci kits. Mine has the exact same problems as yours. Definitely more of a challenge to make a nice model, but not impossible.
Some of the old Esci kits are really good and folks have been waiting for them. Their modern 1/72 scale line of kits like M48A2, M48A2C, M48A3, M48A5, M48A2GA2, M60A1, M60A2, M60A3, M60 Blazer, M113A1, M163, M901, M106A1 were really nice for such a small scale.
I’ve bought two of their reissues, the Italeri M1 and T-62. Both are ex-Esci kits and build up nicely with some work or the old OOP Eduard photoetch set for the T-62 and Armo barrel.
I’m not putting down ESCI, they made some great kits. It’s just that when you by a "NEW " kit, you expect it to be new, not 20 year-old molds reused again.