Has anyone ever modeled Zvezda? I was wondering because I saw a Panzer III kit by them for cheap but wa shesitant to buy because I was unfamiliar with the brand. Any input?
yes I have some input…DON’T BUY ZVEZDA! I made one of their models once, a BT-5. Terrible kit. the hull was basically four flat sides, no guide pins or supports except for a couple specs to tell you where to put the pieces. tracks were lousy. It was not one of my more enjoyable builds. In fact the only reason I uilt the kit was for a diorama.
I’m sorry if I sound harsh. That may be just one kit, but if that’s just an entree, I’d hate to see main course. I hope this doesn’t spoil any plans you had. This is just my opinion, so don’t take it as the whole jury’s belief on the topic.
Murder Dog,
Zvezda has a very close business relationship with Italeri. Both companies re-box each other’s kits. Some kits have sprues from both companies.
In general, they are very similiar to each other. Their molding is not quite as clean and crisp as a Dragon or Tamiya kit, fit can be a problem from time to time and a tendency for some sink holes.
However, some Italeri and Zvezda kits are more accurate than some of the other major model producers. Zvezda is very well known for their accuracy with Russian assualt tanks like the SU-100, ISU-152, as well as T-34 series. Italeri has kits no one else makes and are only available thru conversions.
gringe88 - Alot of europeon suppliers make their hulls in pieces - Maquette, Mirage etc…
Build22-
I realize that, but on my BT-5 kit, the pieces were just flat. I don’t normally have any problem with that kind of kit construction, but my BT-5 was not good. It was a “I couldn’t figure out which side was up” kinda deal. The instructions really didn’t tell ya.
Don’t give Zvezda a bad name. Their first kit was terrible, the T-60, but many of their subsequent kits are pretty good. Their T-26 series is good and prior to DML’s new T-34 line, Zvezda’s T-34s were the best ones going.
Many of Zvezda’s kits are Italeri kits reboxed. They also have other kits from Italeri’s line like the old Peerless WC Dodge and White Scout Car kits.
Recently, Zvezda has reboxed DML kits. The modern Soviet armor (BMP, BTR, T-72) are DML kits as are some German armor kits. Their Pz I’s are the Italeri kits, but the Pz III is DML.
Like I said, I only experienced one model of theirs, I’m not trying to say I know all about it. I’m sorry.
THanks to everyone. Maybe I’ll venture to give the kit a try.
Been there ! [:0]
I’m building their BT 5 right now. It’s less than stellar to be sure. I’ve got the Airwaves PE set for it which helps, but the tracks are a real problem. I can’t justify buying AM tracks for it. I may just lay them on the fenders and do it “on the road!” The build has been a bit tedious, but it’s coming along. I have their T 26 as well, haven’t built it, but it looks okay in the box.
nice topic i had just finished a couple of figures from zvezda, but i will like to try the btr-80, have any offyou guys ever tried it?
Zvesda is fine if you can wield a file and some puddy. Look for a good reference as a guide. Sometimes you can be in for a surprise with some of these Eastern European kits.
A lot of Zvezda stuff is excellent. Check out the reviews before you decide if you want to buy. Sure, it’s never going to be ‘shake & bake’, but they’re usually half the price of Dragon, and a third the price of Tamiya. And we are all modellers, aren’t we, not assemblers of plastic kits?
Chris.
Hi guys well i had a bad surprise with a “Eastern European kit”[:(!]. It was ICM 35004 (crew and infantrymen 1/35). It was suppouse to came inside the box 64 parts (2sprues) for 8 figures, but i just got the train station and i can’t wait until get my app. to opened the box so i opened in a train station bench, what a surprise just one sprue… the box cost me $ 20.00 (i live in new york) so i went back to the store and the guy brought another box to change mine. Another surprise… the other sprue was there. so he gave the 2 boxes and excuses.
About internet. I never buy a kit by internet, but i plan to built (a chechen o kosovo) diorama (i dont decided yet which one)[:I], but i gonna need 2 btr -80. Dragon dml had discontinued the btr-80 many years ago. I guess i have to go for zvezda. Does any of you know if the btr 80 from zvezda has interior details?.
Thanks for yours answers. jose
have the su100 from zvezda and seems to be a nice beasty overall (haven’t started yet [V])
It is the same kit. Zvezda has reboxed older Dragon kits, no interior.
I like ZVEZDA, it has a lot of disapointments but if you pick a really good kit and upgrade it with some PE or aftermarket parts after that ZVEZDA kits became very good. Try those T-34 models they are really good espasially the one realesed in 1997 the T-34/85. It is a good kit!
Well put
A challenge is good every now and then
I have built the Zvezda BT-5 and also have their ISU-152 which I haven’t
built yet (Both are boxed under the Italeri label, but are Zvezda mouldings).
I found the BT-5 fairly straightforward to build, but did have a problem with the fit of the front mudguards (can’t remember exactly what the problem was but I fixed it eventually). The independent track links
were tedious to assemble, but rubber band tracks really wouldn’t have looked right for a BT-5, it has very distinctive
long track links.
Overall I’d say that although they are not as well-moulded or easy to build as Tamiya
or Academy, they certainly aren’t bad, and offer a very interesting selection of Russian armour
at reasonable prices.
I’m doing the ISU-152 now. It is a good kit. Nice detail on the hull, clean and crisp moulding. It’s building into a nice looking model.
The suspension is not as good - no detail. It doesn’t bother me - going to mud it up anyway.
Zvezda kits are not readily available in my LHS, save for a few key offerings. I can’t comment overal, but the BTR I have seems like it will be a fine build. Definitely on an equal footing as Italeri. So, definitely not Tamiya or DML quality, but not much further behind either.