I've had this kit waiting to be built for some time. Originally it was going to be part of the Campaign in the Pacific, but I ran out of time. As I currently have five kits waiting to be built, I'd better get one done or I'll be in dutch with the wife, so here goes. The kit.



The instructions are fairly simple well laid out. The sprues are the mostly the same as with the M5A1 early kit, with the addition of the sand skirts, cullen device, armor shield for the turret MG and the rear tool box. Plastic for the kit is a little different for each sprue, with the older (lighter colored) sprue being softer and the newer (darker) sprue being harder and a little brittle.

I didn't get overall sprue shots as I had already started removing parts. Construction starts with the suspension assembly. First problem is the road wheels. There is a full set of the open spoked wheels, but for the dish wheels there were originally two types, each with different sized indentations for the grease nipple, with 4 of each offered, or enough for one side. The late kit offers two each of two new wheels, similar to the first set, but softer in appearance, leaving you now with four incomplete options. I had already used one set of road wheels from this kit for the build of the M5A1 early I did, and used the extras from that kit for assembling this one. Here is all of them together.



You are also given two different idler wheels (complete this time), one open spoke and one solid. The problem is that from photos I have seen the solid type is apparently not very common. I have an Eduard photoetch set for the Tamiya M5A1 that has inserts for the open spoke idler which appear to match photos I have seen. Here are the kit parts as provided.



Assembly of the idler wheel just needs a little patience to get things to work. The two arms each have significant ejection tabs on the inner surface that will have to be removed. There was also some flash that had to be cleaned up, but the details are very nice, including on the end.







Here are all the parts together, with the front idler. The late version used the late style drive sprocket.



Next up is the lower hull. It comes as separate parts for the bottom and sides. Inner and outer surface detail is excellent but you will need a good square and ideally a square block of some type to help in forming the sides. Here are the parts as removed from the sprue before cleanup, and after assembly.







There are some small mold lines on the side of the hull that need to be carefully sanded or shaved off.




There is a lot of detail on the inside in preparation for an interior, probably to be included with the one day coming M8 HMC. It would be really nice to have for this kit, but since I can't spring for a resin interior, I will have to close up the hull. The next update will have some small details to finish off the lower hull, particularly for the rear end. Let me know if I missed anything. Thanks for looking.

Hey Russ
Will be following this with interest as I have the early version half built. I would especially like to see some pics of the .30cal mg mount on the turret side if not too much trouble? Would maybe want a shot at scratching one for mine... Oh and on that, does it include the rear stowage box?
Cheers
Brad

Russ, nice start. I've got this one in the stash so I'll be following along. I used the AFVClub suspension kit on my recent M8 build here , and it's light years better than the ancient Tamiya pieces. I think the solid idler wheels were much more common on the M8's, hence it being included on the sprue.

Looks like you have some little nicks in the tires of the road wheels. Was that an early weathering technique, or just part of cleaning up the mold seams on the tires?

Russ,
Great review! I also have this kit laying around and hope to get to it one day. hate to see those small tabs on the lower hull-pesky to remove I imagine?
Brad-it does come with the rear box and deflector.
Dan

Thanks for the comments. I always hope what I post is of help to someone, even if it shows what not to do.

Brad, as stated, it does include the rear box in styrene and a PE screen. I'll get a shot of the mount for you.

Jesse, I dinged up the road wheels to make them look worn. The solid rear idler is different from those I have seen in photos, which look like the open spoke with a plate welded in the opening.

Dan, the tabs were not too bad to remove, but the plastic is prone to tearing and splitting, so they have to be nibbled at from both sides.

Just a very small update for today as I was stuck in the yard, and have to work. Several of the sprues have small bolt heads, rivets and grease nipples. You have to add four to each side of the lower transmission cover. There are enough to do the job and extra for the carpet monster.





Next was the escape hatch for the lower hull and the sponsons, which Mr. T doesn't believe in. These have nice detail for the lower side.





The rear exhaust is made up of multiple parts to create the curve with the inner sections. A PE screen cover will be added when they are attached to the model.




I'm heading into my days off so I will be able to get more done for the next post. Thanks again for the comments.

Hi.
If you want to open the engine compartment ok, if you want to close, be careful. Carefully fold the elements

Rafal, thanks for the info. I should have paid more attention to your build and looked at the rear end for parts placement.

The way the kit is set up, if you put on the rear exhausts and then mount the engine access doors afterwords, they don't quite fit, unless you attach them in sections to the rear hull. I suggest putting the etch screens on after all parts are in place. I had to trim the etch a bit to get the doors to fit as I was afraid that trying to pry them off and re-attach them would destroy them. The etch is quite fine and cut fairly easily.



With some mud and dust, no one will ever notice. I've even seen it done with full size vehicles. Next up was the upper hull. The hull top was placed in the hull upper with a little putty to fill/fix the seam line. Most of the seam lines along the sides of the parts result in tricky parts fit. There has also been more flash than I expected. There are large tabs symmetrically placed on the hull front and upper that are pour tabs and must be removed. They match the periscope guard on the turret side which should not be removed. I also removed the tie down cleats on the rear hull and filled the placement holes for the tools, and added two of the etch tie downs.





The glacis is added separately. You fix the hull MG before attaching the glacis to the hull. The inner ring is backwards, and would have you place the gun upside down. Either run a pin through the gun or notch the part on the other side, which is what I did.




It's not the prettiest fix, but as it is on the inside it won't be seen. I attached the upper hull to the lower hull before placing the glacis. I started at the front left side, worked my way down and around the rear and then towards the front right corner. I did several dry fits, with some minor trimming and sanding, and still had to use a bit of pressure to get everything to fit. I've had other kits with worse fit problems, so this isn't anything new. Then the front was added. I placed the lights and horn base and lifting rings, and the bolt strip for the transmission.



On the rear, I placed the upper vent and mesh screen. Again, the etch is very fine and easily damaged. I also placed the upper deck screens. The openings are only the slightest bit smaller than the screens themselves, so be careful you don't drop them into the hull when you attach them.




The rear tool box is a fairly simple assembly. The only trick is to get the curve right for the mesh screen. It took a few tries to get it to conform to the plastic sides.



Brad, I took photos of the turret side and the shield for the MG. The grid pattern is one inch, or about 25mm. If this doesn't help, let me know.





T36E6 tracks arrived in the mail today, and I'm searching references for a tank from Luzon. I have a few photos and some decals, but it's an area that hasn't received much attention. If I can work it, it will go with the Type 97 I reviewed here, which I am also building right now.

Next up will be the hatches and the rest of the hull attachments, and then the turret. I really need US Army tankers from the PTO in plastic. Oh well, maybe I can modify something. Again, any comments or tips are welcome and much appreciated. Thanks for looking.

Russ,
All good modeling advice here. AFV kits just don't fall together do they..
Dan

Nice build/review, Russ, I'm supprised by the flash and tricky fits you encountered. I built the M3A3 a few years back and don't remember any such issues. The M5A1 is certainly on my (long term) to get list...

Cheers!
Stefan

Stefhan, thanks for looking. I am suprised at the flash as well, as this is a new kit. I purchased this right after it came out.

Sorry for the delay in posting. I fell off a horse (literally) and I've been slowed down quite a bit this week. I don't have a lot to show, even though there has been a lot of work. I started on the turret. There are large pour tabs on the inside that will need to be removed if you are going to show the interior. Also partial ejector pin marks that need to be cleaned up. The turret assembly is a little fiddly as the two halves have flat mating surfaces. Some interior details are provided, including a radio, so it isn't completely bare. Externally, mounting brackets for the grousers need to be completed on the right hand side. The instructions have an error as the lower long parts are mislabeled. I will post the correction next time as I don't have it with me right now.





There was a lot of flash on some of these parts, as well as those for the gun mount. I was suprised that on the same sprue that had many delicate parts molded to it there were some very clunky moldings.





I assembled the 37mm gun. Again, not everything is included, such as the gyrostabilizer, but it does look pretty good. The metal barrel is the only option in the kit. This required a lot of dry fitting and some clamping after the glue was applied.



The forward hull hatches for the driver and co-driver were installed. There are two sets of hinge mounts. Make sure to grab the right parts. I left mine operable. Only a little bit of filler was needed here.




On the rear deck I also added some of the attachments and brackets. The sledge included in the kit has a large notch in the head which I don't understand. I will have to trim a sledge from the spares bin and add the bracket.



I spent some time working on the T36E6 tracks that will go with the kit. I am also considering replacing the plastic grouser brackets with etch parts as the plastic parts look so clunky. All comments and pointers welcome. Thanks for looking.

The grouser parts are indicated as N3 and N4 in the instructions, but are actually N12 and N13. As there are only four longer grouser sections, it should be fairly easy to find the correct part.

I haven't forgotten the build. I actually have some photos to post but forgot the USB cable for my camera. The turret is nearly complete. The hatches are much easier to build open than closed as they need some careful trimming. There are lots of small parts that need clean up as well. Still, it is much better than the Tamiya M5A1, which I see is being re-released with three figures. Photos up soon.

Russ,
A bit of a surprise to see flash on this kit! You're doing a bang up job and the weld beads look great.
Dan

Dan, I was surprised as well about the flash. The kit was a brand new release at the time. I don't know if it was a fluke with my kit, or a first batch issue or some other problem. The other thing with the kit is that it screams for an interior. It is prepped for one, but I hope AFV Club will do the full deal, like they did with the T-34.

OK, I finally have some updates on the build. First is the pesky sledge that AFV Club provides.



I can't explain why they have that center section bumped down, but it is really out of place. I had to fill in the top notch and shave off the bottom. Fixed and installed. I then went to the turret and replaced the grouser brackets as they will be visible. Tanks with the T36E6 track didn't need grousers so they weren't carried. Etch is from Eduard.




Added parts to the inner surface of the turret top.




Added the turret to the body. The commander's hatch will be left open in hopes that one day someone will release a set in plastic of a US Army tank crew PTO.



The commander's hatch has some sink marks on the interior surface that will be visible, and had to be be filled.



I added the road wheels and am working on the idlers. Put the small bolt heads on the rear deck grills, which was a pain. I'll look it over and unless anyone sees anything that really needs attention, I'll be painting.



Thanks for looking.

Some nice detailing Russ!
Thanks for the specific photos you took; they should prove useful for me (and maybe others!)
Mine is still on the shelf; hope to get some stuff done in a rush once real life settles down a bit...
Brad

Bradley, I'm glad they helped. I would have installed the shield and mg but I just lost the A frame bracket to the carpet monster, so I've got to figure out how to scratch another.

Well, things finally settled down enough for me to do some more work on the kit. I put on the primer coat of paint, added the spare track links and track clamp tools and put the tracks on. I noticed some of the guide horns on the indy track links have split a litle, but they are holding. I can brush paint the final coats and get on with weathering. The kit provided spare links aren't very good as far as the bracket is concerned, but I bent my etch parts a little crooked, so my effort didn't turn out much better. The turret is fixed in place as I stepped away from the table "for a minute" and when I returned one of the kids had been at the glue, as well as coloring on several other kits with a pencil. Here it is.






I mounted a spare road wheel based on a photo from a tank in Luzon.


And I prepped the spare tracks to mount on the forward hull.


It's getting too cold to do anything outside, so I'll have a little more time to finish this off. The next post shouldn't take so long to get up.

Russ,

I'm in the middle of the beast as well and I must say, I'm not impressed with the engineering behind the kit. There are a lot parts, the detail is great, but some of the assemblies and parts simply didn't need to be as complex and fiddly as they are. I also found the width of my hull to be about 1mm wider than the width of the upper hull that mates to it. I had to shave .020 off each side at the back to get the bloody superstructure onto the lower hull & sponson floor. Really unimpressed with that, let me tell you!

Paul

I have to agree with you. Of all of AFV clubs newer molds, I found this one to be the worst of the. On some sprues the details were nice but on others the details were somewhat clunky. There was a lot of hoopla about the AFV M5 when it first came out so I can only assume it was because they finally replaced the old Tamiya one, but I was not all that impressed.

While it not be the best kit out there, it is far far beyond the old Tamiya kit, which had a lack of detail combined with some pretty big inaccuracies.

I agree with Jesse. There are some fit and molding issues that can cause some (or a lot of) frustration, but having built the Tamiya kit, this is much better. Unless/until someone comes out with a better kit, this is all we have.

Don't get me wrong, I'm completely with you guys on how much better this is than the old clunker, but it's stillirritating when a company does as much work on accuracy as AFV has on this, that simple things are sucha PITA. I mean really? The hull is too wide by 1mm? How is that possible if they even put one of the kits together before committing to the production run.

I'm an engineer. I have designed parts to be moulded. I know how this process works andthis is simply sloppy. I't better than grossly inaccurate, like the Tamiya kit, but still damned aggravating when it simply didn't have to be like this.

The British phrase for this would be "Too bloody clever, by half."

Put me right off my kipper it did.

Paul

Paul, I do agree with you on the "too clever" part. Some bits are made very small and are nearly impossible to remove intact from the sprue. Getting things to line up well is difficult. I noticed on both my builds that the forward hull is just a bit off on the left hand side. Lots of retouching seams was done on this kit. To eliminate some mold seams, AFV runs the mold along the edge of the part, making them oversized. There is a lot of work getting things to fit, but the end result is better.

are the tracks painted? which colour is that?

Roman, the tracks are painted with an ultra-flat brown camo spray paint I bought at the local market. The spares will be painted with PS dark brown.

I have moved on a little. Added some decals and put on the initial stages of weathering. The axe is nicely molded, but in addition to the problems with the sledge, the spade lacks detail.






I've also been working on this as a potential partner in a diorama.



Let me know what needs to be fixed. I still need to add a vehicle name but can't find my stencils or the generic letters I had saved. Thanks for looking.