Where is the 1/48th scale love? (10 pages, not one thread?)

Modeling Subjects Armor
1

Hey guys, I KNOW a lot of you blokes think 35th scale is ‘the thing’, and I have built a few Dragon 72nd scale items and they also seem good. But I have also seen nearly everything of worth in 35th scale in the catalogues we all browse too.

Right now I am looking at my Dragon 35th scale Jpz Lang and I know it will be an awesome kit, but I also know, I’d rather it was a Tamiya 48th scale release instead. I bought it because there are no Langs out from Tamiya that I am aware of. Sometimes you need to go out of the usual to get some vehicles.

Just finished the rebuild of his Tamiya Brummbar (which was likely a waste of glue) and I know I might be able to get the resin conversion of a Tamiya PzIV in 48th scale (then making the ugly duck 35th scale item unwanted).

But it seems no one is talking about 48th scale. Is it that no one much likes this scale? Or is their a secret beef I have not encountered yet with Tamiya’s 48th scale line?

I will admit, I don’t get out the microscope to examine my models. I call a good kit one that assembles without giving me any more gray hair than I already have. I don’t rate a kit on the final tally of parts I had to glue back together. I like link tracks more than the ole one piece ones more or less. I find the cast metal hulls of the Tamiya armour quite ‘neat’.

So I am just scratching my head hear wondering, why was I able to read 10 pages here in Armour and not see one mention of a Tamiya 48th scale tank? Or did I miss it?

I am willing to say (in my opinion at least), that any of my Tamiya 48th scale items, are the full equal of any of their 35th scale items. Example, the Cromwell Mk IV, I have seen both, they are equal kits in my view.

2

I think it is that most builders are comfortable with 1/35 since that is what they have always built.

I know that is the case for me. Also, all my spares, figures, accessories, resin upgrade and extras are all in 1/35. I have no desire to replace them all with 1/48th stuff. I also like the size of 1/35 items. Lastly, I build mainly modern (post WWII) US items (armor, artillery, softskins and large scale [1/32, 1/35] helos), so there is nothing that interests me in 1/48.

I personally see no benefit in swapping to 1/48.

On the down side of Tamiya 1/48, most people don’t like the metal hulls since they are harder to work with and make conversions that involve the hull a real pain to do.

3

The latest Tamiya kits, like the Pz II, are all plastic. I believe it is the cost of kits. At first, they were roughly 1/3 the price of their 1/35 scale counterparts. Today that price is a little more than half the cost of the 1/35 scale kit.

1/48 is a bit of a niche market. Anyone really into 1/48 scale tends to seek out the model website that specializes in TOTS. http://www.track48.com/shop/home.php

4

I find that 1/35 is a bit easier on the eyes. 1/48 might as well be 1/72, way too small. I salute the modelers that work in those scales and churn out some great models. There is also the fact that there are so many kits, conversions, AM, PE, tracks and the list goes on and on. IMHO of coarse.

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I like 1/48 I built almost all the Tamiya line and even a couple of the AFV Tigers,but the manufactures have basically stopped,maybe one a year from Tamiya.If they put out more,I will buy them.

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[dto:] Anthony!

Since I started modelling just over two years ago the bulk of my builds have been 1/35 WWII armour which will always be my first choice as it’s a great scale to work in.

I have also built a few Tamiya 1/48 builds - namely the IC Sherman Firefly, Tiger I and Flakpanzer IV. All were great little builds but, like pretty much everyone else, I found the Die-Cast hull a complete horror.

I recently picked up a magazine and on the back there was an advert for the Tamiya 1/48 range and the build that took pride of place in the centre of the photos was the (I presume) new 1/48 Panzer II which looked great and is definately a build I’ll be tackling asap. I’ll also be building the Tamiya 1/48 Jagdtiger as the 1/35 scale kit is huge and will take up too much room in the cabinet! The Jagdtiger with an AM metal turned turned barrel and Friul tracks will be a really nice build.

By the way, my current WIP is the Dragon 1/72 Brummbar from their Armour Pro range. She’s coming together well and is an enjoyable build but where armour is concerned, 1/72 is just too small - for me at least.

I’d love to see Dragon release a range of 1/48 builds but for the time being I’ll be happy to stick with an occasional Tamiya 1/48 kit - especially now that I understand that the Die-Cast hull is gone! I know that the Jagdtiger is one of their latest releases and doesn’t have it.

ATVB

Ben [t$t]

7

HisNHer Tanks,

I am a big fan of vintage Bandai 1/48 scale armor. Due to their age the details are somewhat simplified yet its all items most modelers scratch build or get AM accessories for.

Another advantage of 1/48 scale is if you want to incorporate aircraft with military vehicles it is the obvious choice in scale.

Next years theme award for a contest I attend is ‘desert warfare’

The ultimate diorama displaying this theme in my humble opinion would be the British SAS long range desert raider jeeps charging down the middle of a German airfield shooting up every aircraft & person in sight… in the dead on night! The harsh desert conditions alone are deadly, adding to the ‘sphincter pucker’ factor is the knowledge that any German aircraft able to fly at daylight will simple follow their tracks on a vengeance hunt in reprisal.

Picked a Tamiya 1/48 scale Sherman as a draw prize last spring, once glue hit plastic realized a sprue containing a track 1/2 was missing! Sorted out the situation by sinking the tank through ‘thin ice’ Thus hiding the missing side of track:

  • The average age here is 40 years young, as eye sight factors in modeling many prefer the larger scales*
8

I hate 48th scale armor and figs…

…why go to 48th scale when virtually the entire armor/fig/dio industry and AM companies cater to the 35th scale market?..going to 48th scale is like stepping back 35 years in the hobby in terms of selection and the AM offerings…

9

Ever since I found the Tamiya 1:48 line, Its all I build for armor kits. As mentioned before the metal hulls are a bit of a pain if you want to do something with them, but for me its perfectly fine. As another person mentioned, eye sight is a aspect too, Im 22 and I have a hard time keeping track of small parts. My reason for building them though is I like anything World War II, and Ive always built airplanes in 1:48 so building armor in the same scale gives it a sense how how big things are compared to each other.

10

Where space is at a premium, 1/48 comes in as a compromise to size vs. ability to see what you’re working on.

I saw Tamiya’s 1/48 line as an entry level armor category on two accounts. First, it was a common aircraft scale and could entice aircraft builders to try a tank kit. Second, with the price of many 1/35 scale kits averaging in the high $30s, it is a cheaper alternative.

While the selection is limited, what’s out there is of high quality in both kits and AM.

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I now build both scales,but Tamiya’s 1/48 line got me to take the armor plunge,and they were very comfortable to work with as a first time armor builder.

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yeah I get all that, but I NEVER buy a kit because of my vision…scale to me is more about what “looks right” in scale vs real-life. The larger a kit gets the easier it is to work with, but IMO it is also harder to make it look realistic…conversely, if it gets too small in scale it happens as well, mainly due to detail simplification…35th scale looks right in my book.

My point is that virtually all things armor/dio related are now marketed for 35th…If you want to build a 48th scale tank, fine—but if you want to get into it in a big way you are gonna be SEVERELY limited in your choices of kits, AM and dio material—Like I said earlier, it would be like being back in the min-'70’s in the 35th world…I also hate those retarted metal hulls that come with the tank kits…

13

Interesting replies, some I would not have expected.

Like the converting of the metal hulls. I guess I am too much an out ot the box modeler. That, and I am still feeling disgusted with anything to do with cast resin. I find it odd that anyone likes that garbage. Too brittle, too expensive, too hard to work with, air bubbles I could go on.

I like that the metal hulls mean the basis of the kit is solid and secure, a perfect hull not vulnerable to lousy part fit which I have seen from even my fav name brands in some cases. Or in the case of soft skins, a well made frame. I have yet to ever lay a finger on a single cast piece, they require NOTHING from me aside from glue on the parts and in time paint. I like that they have zero mold seams worth comment. Yet to build one of the assortment from Tamiya that let me down in any fashion.

Regarding size, well I admit my eyes are not young anymore. Did not like it when my eye doctor told me 'there’s nothing wrong with your eyes, you’re older now, you just need reading glasses now (or in my case I call them model glasses so I can see in the range of 3-8 inches from my nose without going fuzzy on me). But the part fit is so damned good, and I rarely even need to do any seam clean up. You don’t need to clean up something that isn’t there. Almost no flash to speak of. And when I look at my Dragon 35th scale, heck they have parts just as small, only twice as many as would exist if Tamiya had made it.

The most telling part of the conversion for me was looking at my Tamiya Tiger and realizing that both the 35th scale and the 48th scale had identical parts, only the 48th scale was slightly smaller.

Key for me though was shelf space. I can get 7-8 tanks in 48th scale, where in 35th scale, it is more like 5-6 assuming you pick identical subjects for mass. Hey, my home is finite and my hobby room is not elastic :slight_smile:

Currently looking at my shelf of figures and I figure, ok not quite as large as my 35th scale assortment (looks like a regiment on parade). But I have a LOT of 48th scale figures to build all the same. Granted, not as many odd ball subjects as my Dragon stash (from WW2 to Today). But I am not overly into modern any more at any rate.

As for price, I have what I call the 100 dollar rule. If I actually want something, as long as it isn’t over 100 bucks, it’s doable. I have been finding that my average kit though is more like 40 bucks (Canadian). I can buy 2 of those every month if I have nothing outside of my model hobby that I want though.

My only current concern, is I have almost bought the entire Tamiya catalogue at this point :slight_smile:

Then again, I have planes and ships waiting on me too.

I suppose though some of you boys like buying all that after market fluff. Me, I like buying a kit opening the box assembling it and painting it. And not spending 3 times the kit price to make it something other than what was in the box. But that’s me I guess.

Yes I agree, some of those turned gun barrels look spiffy. But, there’s a point where you need to draw the line too. I’d rather have 3 models out of the box, than just one with exotic add ons.

Not that I don’t like going aaaaaaaall out. I worked as an architectural modeler in my youth. Too old for that level of dedication now though. 300 bucks on a Sherman is a young lads idea if you ask me :slight_smile:

But thanks for your input boys.

14

I got back into 1/48th scale because of the absence of AM for it. Old Aurora tank kits were my first foray into armor. It was nice to be able to build a new Tamiya kit OOB and not have to worry about keeping up with the Jones’ in terms of AM barrel, etch, tracks and resin.

My limiting factor was selection. I am mainly a modern armo builder and there just isn’t that much out there.

15

Where is the 1/48th scale love?

Eyebrow

It’s right at the very top of the Armor Forum banner… the KV1.

16

I prefer the size of 1/35. Detail is better too. Since my armor stash is all 1/35, I have no interest to move onto 1/48. If I were just starting, I’d consider 1/48, but why would you when you can get most 1/35’s on the second market for less then the price of a new 1/48?

17

I started building armor over the winter and I started with 1/35, the selection was the deciding factor but I’ve found I love the scale. It just seems right. When I get back into aircraft I think I’ll end up switching to 1/32, that size range is just too pleasing to my eye, I also like the ease of assembly (I have shaky hands).

1/72 is madness, be it armor or aircraft. Too small, way too small. 1/72 armor really lacks detail to me, and almost look toyish.

18

Hmm that KV is in 48th scale eh… neat.

I am no real fan of AM (took a moment to figure that short form out).

But even though there is a lot of stuff for the fussy sort (like turned gun barrels which I admit are nice), I DO appreciate how I can more easily match my tanks up with my planes (same scale). And I might point out, they do NOT make planes in 35th scale (at all).

I agree, it is likely the norm to have trouble getting mind numbing degrees of total scale accuracy below 35th scale. But not impossible. There’s nothing stopping them from making PE for 48th scale. And there is nothing stopping them from making plastic injection parts in 48th scale either. Case in point, the small ring had to mount over the top of the gun on my SU 122. When I saw that part my first thought was ‘are they kidding me?’. I was barely able to pick it up with the tweezers let alone trim off the sprue bur. I don’t think they can even make PE that small.

“1/72 is madness, be it armor or aircraft. Too small, way too small. 1/72 armor really lacks detail to me, and almost look toyish.”

I would have agreed with that before making my Dragon Panther and Stug kits. The detail is stunning even at that scale. they are not giving it away though. A Dragon kit in 72nd scale is not cheap. Danged near as much as the Tamiya 48th scale. They use the one piece tracks here, but I must say, those Dragon 1 piece tracks are very well done (in my opinion). I won’t say anything polite about the doofus that makes the instructions though. Wish they would dump that coloured yellow nonsense. The Panther’s instructions were so vague that only my personal knowledge of the Panther allowed me to figure out some of the assembly.

I like multiple scales occasionally. I currently have a 72nd Panther, a 48th and a 25th scale Panther. I likely will in time grab a new 35th scale item for the set. it looks neat on a shelf that way. I am currently thinking of doing a 72nd 48th 35th scale SAS jeep option as I recently found a nice AM mod for the Tamiya jeep (normally just a US version). I already have the 72nd and 35th scale items done (under glass at the store actually).

19

Detail depends on the skill of the buider and the qualit of the kit. Here is a 1/72 scale Revell HMMWV and a Hasegawa Jadgpanzer I built. Nothing fancy, just OOB; one was built to represent one of my trucks I had as a staff puke and the other was a try at a winter camouflage scheme.

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Those two kits look nice to me. Hmm maybe I am just easier to please, or is it not being so damned fussy :slight_smile:

Remember guys, the objective is to have FUN, if you want totally realistic, then you should be working in 1/1 scale with the restoration types :slight_smile: