Once again, the club has been fortunate to be given a sample of an upcoming kit from Tamiya. I was “asked” to do a review of the kit because, well, no one else was around. Those of you who know me would probably ask, “Why him?”, as I haven’t even finished a kit of my own in…never mind. But, I do as I’m told, so please bear with me.
If you’re looking for a detailed review, with precise measurements, angles, correct number of bolts and all that, then please stop reading. I’ll leave that to the experts. This is simply a “first look build review”, if there ever was such a thing, by a less than average modeler who happened to be at the wrong place at the right time(I was treated to lunch). I will simply convey to you what I experienced in building the kit, with some comments that I could make considering the kind of modeler I am. Having laid down all the firewalls against inevitable criticism against me, let us begin.
The kit is a BT-7, a Russian tank of World War II. At first, I thought this was a re-box of an Italeri kit, which Tamiya has been doing for some time now, and are presently doing with Fine Molds kits as well. But then I realized that the Italeri kit was that of a BT-5. As I opened the sample kit, I was pleasantly surprised to find out that it was indeed a new kit, and one that Tamiya engineered themselves. Knowing the quality of Tamiya kits, having grown up with them all my life, I was more than eager to start building it. And since this is just a build review, I didn’t have to worry about painting and weathering, which have always been my problem in modeling. Molded in the usual olive drab, the parts were flash-free. I did notice the tracks but I’ll mention that later. The gates for the parts were delicate, needing only the slightest clean-up once the parts were removed from the sprues. Kit will include photo-etch parts but were not included in the sample. No decals either. In fact, even the instructions that came with the sample was not complete in the sense that almost all of the parts were not labeled. But because of Tamiya’s expected excellence in their rendering of diagrams, it was not hard at all locating the parts needed as they were called out in the instructions. Clear parts are provided for the driver’s vision block and headlight lenses. It will also include two figures which were provided in the sample.
Lower hull, running gear
Similar to the BT-5, the BT-7 also utilizes the very innovative Christie-type suspension and running gear. The system allows the tank to continue running even if the tracks are removed or damaged during a battle. The last road wheels provide the propulsion, while the first road wheels are for steering! I’d like to see an Abrams or a Challenger do that! This makes for a very fast tank for its time. Videos showing the BT-7 in motion attest to its quickness and agility. And seeing the tank run without tracks is truly amazing! Building the lower hull and lower gear went along without a hitch. All parts fell into place perfectly. I couldn’t find any place that required filling or adjusting. Clearly shown is the gearbox housing that connects the rear drive sprocket to the last road wheel. And the “tie rods” that steer the two front road wheels were intricately rendered. Able modelers can pose the tank with the front wheels turned at an angle with ease. A jig is also provided so you can line up all the suspension arms so as not to have those floating road wheels we see on some Metro Manila trucks.
I mentioned that the manual lacked the parts being labeled. It also missed out a couple of steps. Since this was a sample kit, I guess Tamiya did that for security reasons. Left out was the step where the road wheels are attached to the suspension arms. But if you still can’t figure out how to attach poly cap-inserted Tamiya road wheels, then you may be in the wrong hobby. What was not provided was the step regarding the road wheel center caps. Apparently there is a difference between the two middle and the last road wheel center caps. This I could not discern from the drawings, so I guess this will be called out in the production-run kits. Also missing were the steps concerning the tracks. I mentioned earlier that I noticed something about the tracks. They consist of the length and link type. I’m not sure if the production-run kit will include vinyl tracks though. What I noticed was the obvious bow that a long length of track had. I thought this was warped. Since there wasn’t a step on the assembling of the tracks, it only occurred to me while assembling them that it was a molded-in sag of the top portion of the track! I was so pleased with this, and then recalled that Tamiya should have done the same thing on their equally superb T-55A which only provided vinyl ones. Adding aftermarket tracks to the BT-7 would be superfluous. The front fenders are beveled nicely to depict the thinness of these, which are easily dented and damaged in no time on the real thing.
The interior of the lower hull only includes a driver’s seat, which is visible from an open hatch up front. The aftermarket companies should have a ball with this kit. An interior for the driver’s area and a complete engine would totally finish off this already wonderful kit. The hatches of both compartments are large enough for you to actually see what’s inside, unlike most of the tanks out there where you “just know you super-detailed the interior”. Oh I left the headlight off because I really couldn’t tell the right from the left as they could work either way. I’ll wait for the complete instructions.
Upper Hull, turret
The upper hull, although very basic as it was for a tank of its time, still had very good pieces to assemble. The horn typical of Russian tanks comes in two parts. The engine hatch has a nice circular cooling vent that comes in no less than five parts! With an aftermarket engine installed, the hatch can be posed in the open position to show everything. It would have been nice if the sample kit included the photo-etch screen for the radiator grilles and exhaust grates. The kit comes with a jig for the modeler to be able to form the exhaust grate screen into the correct, complex shape. I would have loved to try that jig out. Don’t you just hate it when photo-etch parts have to be bent or formed into a certain way, that is almost impossible to do without fabricating some sort of jig or buying those expensive folding tools that a certain large modeler in our group has? Probably the only reason he won that trophy. But I digress. What also got my attention were the two exhaust tubes that look like hot rod exhaust pipes. Just way cool!
In my haste to build the turret, which to me is the highlight of every tank model, I was unable to drill out the holes on the sides for the superbly molded one-piece tube antenna that encircled a tank commander’s vehicle. The fact that it was also left out in the sample instructions did not help, although we all know great modelers do not read nor follow the instructions. I will find a way to drill out those holes. Mel?
The cannon is a one-piece deal, which was a relief as I tend to flatten out cannons when sanding seams. The co-axial machine gun is a jewel in itself, and once again the interior could use some aftermarket stuff that will be clearly seen when the two top hatches are left open, along with the rear hatch. The delicate lifting rings on the top turret are also nicely done.
Building this kit made me realize just how much I miss building models. It was straightforward, no hassle and very fulfilling. The only things missing would be the interior, but I guess Tamiya left that for the aftermarket people to fill. Corporate unselfishness, if I may say. I can’t wait for the production kit to fill the shelves of our favorite hobby shop, so I can finally enter something in the Nationals.
