Academy makes at least one.

What's the low down on the Italeri M60 Blazer. The good, the bad and the ugly. Not wanting to have to invest in a ton of AM but will probably bite the bullet and get replacement tracks. Are there any other Blazers out there?

Thanks.

I meant AFV Club's basic M60A1. Esci had a line of M60s which included an M60A1, M60A3, and the IDF M60 Blazer (which is an M60A1 with the Blazer armor parts added). The Esci M60s were the best M60 series until AFV Club's new ones (M60A1, M60A2, and M60A3) were introduced over the last year or so.

Quoted Text

---

I meant AFV Club's basic M60A1. Esci had a line of M60s which included an M60A1, M60A3, and the IDF M60 Blazer (which is an M60A1 with the Blazer armor parts added). The Esci M60s were the best M60 series until AFV Club's new ones (M60A1, M60A2, and M60A3) were introduced over the last year or so.

---

Hi, Gino!

Educate me- Which of the AFV CLUB M60 kits would form a better basis to build/convert/update a "Blazer"? Didn't our Marines have them, in ODS too?

Quoted Text

---

Quoted Text

---

I meant AFV Club's basic M60A1. Esci had a line of M60s which included an M60A1, M60A3, and the IDF M60 Blazer (which is an M60A1 with the Blazer armor parts added). The Esci M60s were the best M60 series until AFV Club's new ones (M60A1, M60A2, and M60A3) were introduced over the last year or so.

---

Hi, Gino!

Educate me- Which of the AFV CLUB M60 kits would form a better basis to build/convert/update a "Blazer"? Didn't our Marines have them, in ODS too?

---

He just said that the Blazers were converted from M60A1s, so AFV Club's A1 kit would be the obvious starting point.

The AFV Club M60A1 would be the best choice to start from. The IDF actually had quite a few different versions of Blazer configurations. So it depends on which one you want to build. Also, throughout their long use, different features were present on them. As with most vehicles that had many different types, the best bet is to find a pic of one you like and copy it.

IDF Megach 6 w/blazer armor.


The USMC used M60A1s in ODS with a similar ERA (Explosive Reactive Armor) as the IDF Blazer armor, but is is not the same. The tiles were different and stood off the hull. Academy and Tamiya both offer M60A1s w/ERA. I suspect AFV Club will come out w/one eventually too.

USMC M60A1 w/ERA

Were any USMC M60A1s deployed in ODS seen with "NATO Tri-color" camo showing through the over-painted "Desert Sand" camo, as some of our M1s and other vehicles displayed in OIF..? Please bear with me- I'm not quite as knowledgeable with "modern" US Armor as I am with our WWII stuff...

I was also wondering if some of the external details of the M60A1s with ERA might have been brought up to -A3 standards, IF such differences actually existed between the two types, i.e Mufflers, Tool Boxes, Sensors, Lamps, Stowage placement, etc..?

Thank you all for your replies. It sounds as if the "best" option would be to get the AFV M60A1 and pick up the blazer parts from the Italeri kit. Second option would be to just get the Italeri kit.

Bravo1102 - hang on to those blazer parts as you may be hearing from me.

Quoted Text

---

Were any USMC M60A1s deployed in ODS seen with "NATO Tri-color" camo showing through the over-painted "Desert Sand" camo, as some of our M1s and other vehicles displayed in OIF..? Please bear with me- I'm not quite as knowledgeable with "modern" US Armor as I am with our WWII stuff...

I was also wondering if some of the external details of the M60A1s with ERA might have been brought up to -A3 standards, IF such differences actually existed between the two types, i.e Mufflers, Tool Boxes, Sensors, Lamps, Stowage placement, etc..?

---

Pretty sure all Marine M60's in ODS had a pretty thorough painting of sand. Haven't seen any pictures of heavily weathered USMC tanks. Outside of ODS, you can see a good number of tanks in 3-color NATO, with overall green armor blocks.

Also pretty sure that all USMC ODS M60's were standard A1 RISE/PASSIVE tanks, no upgrades aside from the ERA.

Quoted Text

---

Quoted Text

---

Were any USMC M60A1s deployed in ODS seen with "NATO Tri-color" camo showing through the over-painted "Desert Sand" camo, as some of our M1s and other vehicles displayed in OIF..? Please bear with me- I'm not quite as knowledgeable with "modern" US Armor as I am with our WWII stuff...

I was also wondering if some of the external details of the M60A1s with ERA might have been brought up to -A3 standards, IF such differences actually existed between the two types, i.e Mufflers, Tool Boxes, Sensors, Lamps, Stowage placement, etc..?

---

Pretty sure all Marine M60's in ODS had a pretty thorough painting of sand. Haven't seen any pictures of heavily weathered USMC tanks. Outside of ODS, you can see a good number of tanks in 3-color NATO, with overall green armor blocks.

Also pretty sure that all USMC ODS M60's were standard A1 RISE/PASSIVE tanks, no upgrades aside from the ERA.

---

I concur with John, they stayed pretty well covered in sand. Also, the were M60A1 RISE/Passive tanks.



The USMC did have a Bn minus worth of M60A3 TTS tanks handed down from the US Army that they spread across their units in ODS to give them better/more night fighting capabilities. Noe of these had ERA though.

As I understand it, from several different reviews that I've read, the AFV CLUB M60A1 kit is a representation of a "mid-production"-vehicle. I would like to know specifically which features, besides the "obvious" Armor Plates, differentiate the M60A1 from the M60A1 "Blazer". Were "Blazers" converted from "early", "mid", or "late"-type M60A1s, or were they converted from a "hodge-podge" of all three, if there even were such things as "early", "mid", or "late" -A1s..?

The USMC did have a Bn minus worth of M60A3 TTS tanks handed down from the US Army that they spread across their units in ODS to give them better/more night fighting capabilities. Noe of these had ERA though.