Is the Trumpeter Osorio a good kit? I can't find many English reviews of it, but to me it seems like it was something in-between their first efforts at model-making (Tamiya copies and motorized kits) and their outstanding kits today...

dear blank, the kit i have has as slight bow in it and a static copy. it comes with parts for the EET-1 105, and the EET-2 120. overall i think it's a very good kit, and the quality is comparable to newer trump kits, it multi piece suspension, poly for road wheels, no crew, vague markings (remmember this was a pre-production vehicle that was aimed at the saudi's was not purchased even by the argentine's- see wiki), no-rotating mounts for drive sprockets, passible tracks, ( i'd give them a 6). i'm glad i have mine, michael

When I first got the kit, my thinking was along the same as yours, Michael. I then tried to build it, and my opinion of the kit went way down. It is a piece of *&%$#, especially the tracks. The fit is horrible, especially on the turret, the plastic is brittle, and the tracks actively repel paint and refuse to bend easily. Some of those problems, in isolation, would be OK, but all of them put together make for a tough slog. The worst part was putting the tracks on--I can confidently say that it is even less fun and more painful than having a hole drilled in your head (and yes, I HAVE had a hole drilled in my head...while awake). At the end of the process, I ended up with ill-fitting tracks, a snapped suspension arm, and thousands of tiny paint flakes from the tracks all over my workbench and carpet. The darn thing is still spewing paint flakes even in the display case.

That said, this is the only kit of the Osorio we're ever likely to have, so if you want one, go for it. Make sure you don't pay much for it though, as the sweat equity you'll put into it is quite high.

dear desk jockey, sorry to hear about the hassles with the osario. mine is still in the box. i orignally bought it to have parts for a heller leclerc, then want'd to use it as a donor for a TR-85. i keep getting side-track'd. i do alot of scratch-building/replicating and may judge a kit more favorably. here's an example, the tamiya 113 is old, the academy 113 is much better but the lower hull is inaccurate(oh yes, no track scuff guards and the road arm mounts are not stagger'd) and finally the italeri/revell ag 113 has some important details the others have miss'd, it's still the leser of the three. and yet i still have build a complete hull from 30,40and 60 thou evergreen to get it all right! my beef w/ afv club ypr's are the way they did the mount and axle for the idler wheel(way to far from hull r side). sorry to get so long wind'd and yes i do have some kits that i would shoot the mold maker over ( figuretivily),michael

It was a Brazilian tank.

- Steve

Details are very soft and some are even wrong, just compare it to this tank. The two prototypes (w/ 105 mm main gun and w/ 120 mm. main gun) still exist and are operational, sometimes deployed in military parades. The 105mm gun version is painted in brown and green and uses an MAG machine gun and the 120 mm gun version is painted in sand and green and uses a .50 M2 MG as seen in the walkaround. Non-slip surface needs to be made. Trumpeter's is the only styrene kit to start with. The tracks are very simmilar to Italian Ariete's. Best regards.

José.

I got this kit, along with some other Trmpeter kits, for $5 when my local hobby shop moved a few years ago. Built it last year. This was actually the first kit I've built in about 20 or so years, and my first introduction to Trumpeter. Can't really speak to the accuracy of the kit, as I could not find alot of information on the vehicle at the time, but I will tell you what I remember of the build.

The kit itself is very simplistic, but then the real thing could be as far as I know. The rear of the upper hull was warped, and required a decent amount of filling. The few tools, jerry cans, and the M2 .50 sucked big time...all of which I would try to replace if I had it to do again. The vinyl tracks were not horrible, compared to what I built 20 years ago (back before all the cool aftermarket tracks hit the market). The road wheels are held on by external polycaps that are next to impossible to clean the flash off of. Lots of molding lines on the parts to remove. There is a small sheet of clear plastic pieces to install in all of the periscopes(and thereare a bunch of them)...MAJOR pain! I would fill the periscopes with sheet styrene and paint rather than try that clear stuff again! Exterior stowage racks were thick and brittle. The decals were for what I assume was the demonstration model of the vehicle...in other words, not much there. The instructions show one paint scheme...an overall light desert tan.

I chose this kit over the others (Trumpeter Type 69II and several Ti-67's) for my return to modelling for a couple of reasons. It was $5. The large flat panels gave me a chance to try "pre-shading" with an airbrush, and the fact that it was so simplistic gave me a chance to try and relearn some basic techniques (there was quite a bit of shock once I found this site and saw how much kits and the hobby have progressed...better to screw up on this one than a new Dragon kit LOL).

Basically, get this kit if you HAVE to have an Osorio, but be prepared to do some work.

What, in Brazil?




So if they really are as bad as everyone says, would Ariete tracks (say, from Bronco) be the most accurate substitute?

Mind you, I once persuaded a set of Italeri tracks to stay painted, so how bad can it be ... ?

dear steve, my mistake , at any rate, it good to see some good production (thread) finally. best regards, michael.

dear sean, on the on the point of getting paint to tracks, w/ the trumpeter tracks , i used some water based acryilic pigments used for painting(watercoloring/ murialsetc.) i first put drop about the size of smallfinger-fingernail in a container holding 10oz. of water/alcol.mix. stirred it up. ran the sections(link&length) or bans thru and tap-dryed on a cloth or paper towel(no tissue please). you'll have to determine what level you wish end the dunking. when dry, fog on some acrylicflat clear. i 've had some minor flaking/debris fall off when dusting, but on the whole it holds to the acrylic steel/rust base. regards michael

Yes, both prototypes are in Brazil.

These are Osorio's tracks:



These are Ariete's tracks (Bronco's offering, pic taken from PMMS, review by Terry Ashley):



Judge yourself... Best regards.

José.

Hi Guys,
Also looking at those roadwheels, they look pretty much a match for the Osorio. I have the old Coree resin kit and, when I get around to it, I plan to cast a set of wheels when I build the Trumpeter kit. I also have a set of Leopard II track which look the part. The kit needs alot of work to build a decent replica, but most of the basics are there. I'll be talking with one of the designers of the Osorio next week and I'll pick his brain then. I'll keep you posted.
Regards & Happy Holidays,
Georg

Hi Jose, I still have the trumpeter kit of the Osorio and was always waiting to get more info on that tank to build a decent model. The tracks of the Ariete seem to be a good match. My only problem is that there are only few photos of the Osorio on the WWW - and I remember having seen a video on youtube. But that's still not enough to get all questions answered. Do you know where I can find good building references?
Hope you can help me.
Cheers / Stephan

Hi,

Did you see the artcle from member Paulo ArmouredSprue Castro, here at Armorama ?

EE-T1 Osório: The Lost MBT

AFAIK, the only walkaround available is at http://www.ruedasycadenas.com.ve/ but the site is down right now and it is always down at night past 22:00 or 23:00, so I can't post a direct link right now. The walkaround is about the EE-T2 w/ 120 mm main gun. The pic I posted of the tracks is from that walkaround (I'll upload the pic again from my PC). I have some other pics of the EE-T2, I can't remember where I found them, I can send them if you want, just tell me youe e-mail. I used to have pics of the EE-T1, but I think I lost them, maybe I can contact the guy who send them to me the first time, but it will take some time (I hope he still has them). Best regards.

José.

*EDIT* The direct link to the walkaround is here.

Good afternoon Jose and Jose,
many thanks for the links. Did not know the articles and the walk-around sofar. Really great stuff. Thank you! It's really a pity that this interesting vehicle has not been put into service and is a prototype only.
Cheers / Stephan

tuga, prefecto!!!, clay_cliff, the great pumpkin, Edit. hats off to you guys. there is a santa claus!! best wishes during our holiday season, be safe, be good( if not, be good at it). phantomred4.

Hi...

walkaround EE-T2 http://www.ruedasycadenas.com.ve/galeria_referencia_modernos/Engesa_EE-T2_Osorio/ref_Osorio.htm

Sergio...

Sí, Sergio, ya la había puesto (con un BBCode) cuando edite el post hace dos días. Un saludo.

Yes Sergio, already posted the link (with a BBCode) when I edited my post two days ago. Best regards.

José.

Trumpeter 1/35 Osorio or EE-T@ is a pretty basic kit with nice details. Tank resembles M1A1/Leopard 2A2.

The kit almost fall together but there are several faults that need be addressed -

TREADS - are 2 links too long and will result in tracks fitting loosely and not touching drive sprocket or Idler.

My Remedy was to take tracks and cut the guide teeth off, flush to track, from the tab side up to the third link.

Overlap Tab to the other side and then staple 2 or 3 times for security.

At this point when you replace they should sit pretty well into the drive wheel sprocket and against the rear idler

Seal the top to the lower hull checking for alignment

*** I usually paint my tracks first before attaching and enamel rattle can colors for a base coat makes it a little easier for weathering.

When you add the side skirts you will not see staples IF you make sure they are on the top run

Good Luck hope it works for you

Hi Guys;
The Osorio was a Private Adventure by Engessa and a couple of other Firms, its only Customer was a Middle Eastern country who provided financial support, Beyond that they just could not get other Buyers or Investors into the Project. As the Arms Market just was not willing too take such a Risk on a Un-Proven Vehicle. The Project was finally Scraped due too the High Cost and Production Difficultys.
As far as the kit is concerned, it was o.k. but not one of Trumpeters better kits. The only thing that made it worth its Attention was that it added a Vehicle too your Collection.
CHEERS; MIKE.

Hi All,
This has got to be one of the longest-running threads on the site: nearly 10 years! anyway, I've come to discover that the upper hull has some serious problems, namely that the side plates aren't flat plates (which they should be). I'll post a couple of pics tomorrow to illustrate the problem.
Regards,
Georg

The best EE-T1 Osório Build:

http://webkits.hoop.la/topic/350887963618241093?page=1