Todd Michalak takes us through his building, painting and weathering of Tamiya's BT-7, with a little help on the way from Glenn Bartolotti's BT-7 Step by Step.



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Thanks!

Todd,
Congrats on a super looking build. I really like the weathering and paint, I'm like you, that is the prize at the end of a build. Got to love those Tamiya kits, they prove over and over you don't need a parts count that pushes 1000 to make a superb model.
Cheers,
Rick

Outstanding Todd, great build and write-up. Felt like I was right there with you, taking a break and talking about GB's SBS half way through! Thanks for sharing this one with us

Wonderful work Matthew, getting this one all together and published, thanks!

Great review and man what awesome painting and weathering. Very nice work brother.

Todd, most excellent my friend Well written and very informative. I was impressed with the low parts count and relative ease of the build. Jeff T.

Thanks a bunch Rick!! A lot more fun when you can "just build"!! Then take your time on the good stuff!!

Thanks James!! Appreciate the kind words! It was interesting to try and slide the review within the review...lol!! Spoke with Glenn last night and he was real pleased with the outcome...he is a solid builder and a great guy! Matt did great getting this up too...being blindsided with 6 pages of my ramblings and a hundred some-odd pictures...good man!!

Thanks a ton there Rob!! Just doing the do, right? This will look good on the table at AMPS this year!! LOL!!

Thank you Jeff!! Awesome little kit!! Tempted to pick up another now! Just straight out FUN!!

Very nice article and lovely model.

Thak you very much Dave!!

Hi Todd,

Lovely build. I do like this vehicle and it's straightforward construction. The link and length tracks look to be a a great improvement on the normal Tamiya style rubber band tracks.

Excellent work.

Al

AWESOME Review Todd and BT-7 is stunning to say the least! Well done sir.

Hi Alan! Thank you kindly Sir!! Big improvent with the tracks! Easy to clean too! Small pin marks but like I said in the review...sand and done or leave and cover with mud!! LOL!!

Brotha Gary!! Thanks bud! Appreciate it...thanks!!!

Excellent write up, T. A modeler and an author.... truly a man for all seasons!

Hello Bob!! Thank you, thank you! LOL!!

The is great, I wish more modelers would write up build-reviews like this! I just copied it onto file for my references.

Thank you very much Jeremy! Sometimes it takes a bit longer...but it can be fun to go through the process!!

What I like the most from the article is the part about scratch building of the "lost" details. How often we see posts on forums asking for help, because some detail got lost. With little bit of internet search and some work a new part can be built, which may look even better than the lost original one. The author definitely didn't have a heart attack from losing a couple of parts! Kuddos for that!
I only would like to add that "the two white scratch-built parts on the rear deck" are not to fill with fuel, but to adjust the rear suspension shock absorbers.



I wouldn't put too much trust in your historical sources, though.

>>>"By the onset of the German invasion of the Soviet Union in June 1941, and with tank losses soaring higher and higher, the BT-7 was still in full production."
No BT-7 was produced past September of 1940 as the T-34 started to go into mass production.

>>>"By the time of the Battle of Kursk, the BT-7 was making up nearly half of the armor in the Soviet Army."
Hardly over 5,000 BT-7 were produced at all time, and most of them lost in 1941-1942. More than 15,000 T-34 were built before 1943; plus, another 15,000 were built in 1943 alone. Plus all kinds of light tanks, KV tanks and SPGs. Not exactly "...BT-7 was making up nearly half of the armor...".

Anyway, great build! Thanks for sharing with us!
And good luck on your future projects!