I'm looking for a bustle rack to make an M1 into an IP and a bustle rack extension to put on the Tamiya M1A1 with mine plow. After looking at the Verlinden prices, I'm consider getting a Dragon 1/35 M1A1HA, 1st MARINE TANK BATTALION ($24) and gutting it for these parts and the stowage.

Is this a good move or am I nuts?

Paul

I my opinion your nuts.... #:-)
Better take a Trumpeter M1A1HA ($15,- or so) to bash, the rack even has the welded on eyes for stowage! I don't know about the bustle rack extension though... (I tried scratch-building but that was a hard job)
HTH

There's a lot more to work with when one is to backdate a Tamiya M1A1 to an IPM1. I think the hardest do do is replacing the 2 large blast panels in the top rear of turret with three.

Regarding the bustle rack - Are you pertaining to the production version, or the field-installed rack? According to my references, the earliest versions of the IPM1 (or M1IP) just had a, for the lack of a better term - scratchbuilt - version that was smaller; kinda similar to the DML M1A1 1st BTN OIF (the one that's mounted in the rear as an extension of the standard bustle rack; though it was more of bars than the pieces in the kit).

The resident specialists can give more insights there though.

BT6

For the M1IP, I'm starting with the plain Tamiya M1 so it's either add a bustle rack or the webbing straps but I'm going for a M1IP in Germany around '88-'90 so it needs the bustle rack added as far as I know.

Paul