Hey all.
I was inspired by Joseph Rocamora's T-55 binge build to work on a few of my own. You should check out his excellent work.

https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/267369

Although I have the T-55's he is working on in my stash, I decided to pull a few other types out and work on them slowly during a military posting.
I have completed phase one of the move from Alberta to Ontario, Canada. Since my wife will not be joining me for about 2 months, I am staying in military accommodations and felt I needed a hobby to keep me out of the bars
I won't have access to a spray booth, so I will be basically building to the point of painting then putting them away until the entire move is completed and I am settled in the new home.
I brought five T-55's and a bonus T-62 model for a little variety...


I also visited a LHS in Toronto today and found a couple interesting accessories in a bin.





I thought the Verlinden T-55 Dozer would help set one of the models apart from the other ones. Other than these accessories, I will be basically building out of the box. I will be using various sources, including Joseph's posts, to scratch build some missing features on the tanks.

I'll also be painting each one in very different camo schemes to highlight the immense diversity of this iconic tank.

Progress will be sporadic, but stay tuned!!!

I'll be watching.
Dan

Just a heads up if you didnt already know, that Verlinden dozer blade was patterned off of an modified Israeli version of of the BTU-55 blade, so accuracy wise, your only real option is to mount it on the Tiran.

Wow. Good to know. Thanks for the heads up. I guess that is settled then.

I've never searched for ref pics about the Tiran and dozer, so that will be a project for this weekend. I'm thinking of starting with the Tamiya basic T-55 as a the overall general base model. I've read good reviews about it and think it would be the most detailed.

I often do that. I have several early/mid 1990's models of vehicles that have been superseded by newer releases by Tamiya, Takom, Meng, etc. I build the newest models, then go back and look at the shortcomings of the older kits and update them slightly with scratch built items.

The Tamiya will either be a base soviet green as a starting point, or something else that is interesting. Undecided.....

Thanks again for the shout out. You've got quite a variety for brand and makes. Looking forward to seeing you progress.

-Joseph

My pleasure Joseph.

So, I've decided to start on the Tamiya T-55A. It's a good thing too, as I may even turf the Hobby Craft and Esci offerings. You'll see what I am talking about in the upcoming posts and pics.
1st, here is my work station in my room, and my traveling tool box:




Ahhh.The prospect of a fresh kit right out of the plastic:



Instructions and some internet downloads that I forgot I stuffed in the box a few years back. One is for the fuel piping layout.

Let me apologize if the pics are poor quality. I'm using a simple old point and shoot.

The Model Point Replacement barrel has excellent detail, inside and out. Notice the rifling:



But, now I run into the first snag. The replacement barrel is significantly shorter the an the kit part. The bad part is the Tamiya barrel has the additional barrel end cap to make it seem hollow, which will make it even longer. The barrels are actually lined up at the turret end. Just a perspective thing:



Does anyone have a scale measurement for the barrel lengths so I can see which one is correct?
Also, the replacement barrel fume extractor is slightly different in design on it's aft end (furthest from the muzzle). From pics on the web the fume extractor on the Tamiya barrel is the right design.

As an added point, I wasn't going to review the kits during these builds. Lots of reviews can be found on the web. After opening the box I decided to do a quick comparison of the other manufacturers kits. I originally started with the barrel as I wanted to see what length Hobby Craft and Esci used. This is where I noted significant differences in all aspects of the kits The more I dug the worse it got! The Tamiya ones are basically the exact same except for details for the different types.

Barrels from the top down: Model Point (MP), Tamiya, Hobbycraft, Esci:


It not only lengths that are different, but quality of the moldings and details:



I'll be doing separate posts for the turrets, tracks and road wheels.

Interesting fact that I never knew (I am definitely NOT a T-55 or Soviet armour expert), the T-55 turret is not symmetrical. The gun is slightly offset to the right to accommodate the gunner and TC:


Might be hard to pick it out, but the offset is there.
An added shot of the Enigma turret:


Tamiya weld and cast texture detail (freakin' awesome):



Hobby Craft (HC) turret is symmetrical. No offset gun:


HC weld detail and detail placement indicators:


HC texture is almost non existent. Actually very smooth. They also included some casting letters on the turret that I'm not sure should be there.


Esci has okay texture and weld beads, but is only a little better in the symmetry department. The offset is barely noticeable. It also uses a different mounting system for main gun:





Tamiya Enigma (tan) and HC:



From the left: Tamiya, HC, Esci:

Tamiya Tracks:


HC:



Esci:



HC left, Tamiya right. Yikes!:


Tamiya left, Esci right. Not bad for Esci, and it is link, not rubber band:

Tamiya road wheel. Note the engraved detail on the outer rubber. I've read this is supposed to be raised:


HC. Raised detail (lines are thicker as well) and there are a different amount and spacing. Also, note the difference in the design/thickness of the spokes from Tamiya:



Esci. Yikes again!!!!


From the top, Tamiya, HC, Esci:

Final pics for today. Hulls from the top: Tamiya, HC, Esci (yikes!!!!!!!)



Tamiya is the clear winner in all aspects. I'm not sure if I will bother with the other ones. If I do, I may build them in dugout hull down defensive positions in the desert with piles of dirt right up to sponsons. Maybe even a tank covered in tons of mud in Europe. That would at least cover up the serious faults in the HC and Esci kits.

So, I was going to start building tonight, but doing all these shots and looking at what I have to face has tired me out and made me hungry. Thanks for looking


I'm going for ribs and beer...

throw away the esci kit, buy a Aber barrel and modelkasten tracks and you'll have a big smile on your face.
Dan

Are you saying to replace the Tamiya plastic with those items? I may if I can source them cheap. I do have three Tamiya T-55 variants to do, so they it could get pricey.

As for the HC and Esci's, I think I agree.

I'll start on the basic Tamiya T-55A and see how it goes.

Dave,
Yes buy those two items for the Tamiya kit.
I added them to my 55 way back when and they really add a lot to the kit.
I have a lot of pics of a 55 taken at a museum in Iowa if you need them.
D

Thanks. I'll see what I can source for parts. I wanted simple builds and to not invest too much money as the Tamiya kits are very good on their own. However, They are so good they MAY need the new guns and tracks to really make them shine, if that makes sense. I'll ponder this as I build.

I may be hitting a larger LHS in Toronto this weekend, so I will see what they have. Due to the sucky Canadian dollar, I really don't want to order anything online right now.

As for the pics, I appreciate the offer. I should be able to survive on the WWW for resources. Since I will be building this as a very basic no nonsense Soviet T-55, there a ton of resources. I've read this model is a little mish-mash of 3 or 4 countries tanks, but that doesn't phase me.

I did end up starting on the model late last night. Pics and posts to follow.

I follow you.
Dan

Latest update.

Worked on rear plate. Just noticed that mold lines need to be removed on fuel barrel holders. Photos make it seem worse than it is:


Simple yet effective Tamiya mounting technique:


More excellent weld detail on rear plate:


Raised detail on front fenders. Supposed to be grooved:




Still gotta clean it up and smooth the groove a bit:


Wheel mounts. They are keyed for "proper" placement and angle, but there is still some play. I did use a ruler as the instructions suggest. Hardest part was figuring out the correct up/down angle. I basically aligned the axle with bottom armour plate:



Fender supports have small punch marks. I sanded these off:


Side storage and exhaust added:


Noted on another model site and in ref pics that a small screened inlet is missing on the right hand engine deck. I added it in. Will be cleaned and smoothed, and covered by a screen later on. Small handle will be replaced with wire as well:





That's all for now.

It’s a great kit.
Dan

Progress looks great! Nice work on drilling the holes. Very precise!

This might help?


D

D

Those Hobby Craft T-55/Type 59/Type 69 are really the very old,early Trumpeter offerings of their T-54/T-55/Type 59/Type 69.

Wow! Thanks for the detailed shots Dan!
The Tamiya barrel actually has the weld seam on the fume extractor, so I still may keep the kit part. If not then I will have to replicate on the MP barrel.

I'll have to come up with a good way to make that small screen without resorting to a PE set. (still wanna keep costs down)

Ya. They are on the "very low end" of not bad, but still not great.
I may build the HC for sh#@s and giggles like I said. Covered in mud. Still hate throwing out a kit even if it is bordering garbage.

The Esci kit may just be turfed outright.