Hello all, Ive decided that my next project was going to be the new Leopard II A5A6 and would like to know which manufacturer has the best kit on the shelf. And does DML produce this kit? So far I havent seen one, thought maybe someone else might know something I dont.

Tamiya hands down. The kit is several years old now, but it's still one of the better modern kits out there. Typical Tamiya fit and detail, which to say, is excellent. No DML doesn't make a Leo 2A5 or A6, at least not in 35th scale.

Mike

Tamiya is one choice, but don't discount the Revell kit. At half the price of the Tamiya kit you get the Dutch smoke launchers, MAG machinegun and decals. As well as the German parts of course. Two barrels are included, so you can built either the A5 or the A6 version. The Revell kit (which I build many moons ago) has superb moulded air intake grills, which need not be replaced with after-market items. The rubber tracks are also more than adequate, considering that you can only see a small portion of them. Good fit and detail of all the parts.

Cheers
Henk

dont get the hobbyboss kit!

Ditto. The 1/35th scale Tamiya kit is far nicer than the Italeri/Revell Germany offerings, and reportedly, the new Hobby Boss kit isn't bad, but it's still not in the same league. Buy the Tamiya Leo2A6 kit, as it includes the short barrel as well, and has some improvements over their own Leo2A5. You will need a photoetch set for the stowage basket mesh at least (Tamiya offers a PE set separately), and Eduard and Lion Roar offer more comprehensive update sets if you want them.

I just finished building a Leopard 2A5 from the Tamiya A6 kit, and concur, it's a great kit. There are a couple of very minor things that need to be done to the kit OOB, and one of them, as mentioned is the Tamiya aftermarket stoage bins for the back of the turret. I also replaced the solid grilles on the back deck with PE which I think added a lot.

I used a metal barrel as well which saves having to do a lot of sanding to eliminate the seams.

Very nice kit.

Tom

Just curious but what is wrong with the Hobbyboss kit? For the price I can't find much fault with them (they are half the Tamiya in price and do variants Tamiya doesn't do). I have the Swedish and A4 versions on my shelf and while I admit buying the Strv 122 to use the parts with a Tamiya kit I since decided it could be made into a decent rendering on its own.

Rob,

Have you seen this review? The anti-skid surfaces are way out of scale to start and check out the lack of detail on the commander's PERI sight.

http://www.onepointed.com/dan/model/LeopardList/HobbyBoss/

Jason,

Nope I had not seen that review which is why I asked the question Looks like I go back to plan and use the parts for converting a Tamiya kit if I use them at all. The no slip could be fixed by removing it I guess but it would be a lot of work. Still for what I spent it might be relaxing since I am hording my Leo 2 Tamiya kits for Canadian projects.

If you have any Hobby Lobby stores near you, they typically stock the Tamiya Leopard 2A5 or 2A6 (I've seen both in Missouri stores). Hobby Lobby has a 40% off coupon in their website this week.

You could get the kit for around $25.00 using that coupon and you can't go wrong with that.