I'm building the italeri M1, but I am having some trouble with color and decals. first, in the instruction it doesn't say anything about the rubber in the front fenders, but they say that a decal is supposed to go there, but in my reference I haven't seen anything like that, has anyone built this kit that could help me identify the markings that go in the dessert storm M1 abrams? thanks

If you are building Italeri M1A2 kit, and I think you are, as there is no other Italeri 1/35 Abrams kit available yet, then you just cannot build it as Desert Storm tank - M1A2 were not yet in service in 1991. Markings you get in the kit are for tanks from 194th Armored Brigade in National Training Center on Mojave Desert, CA.

Do not use yellow stripe markings and red/yellow squares. Those markings are only used in Europe by USAREUR units.

Also note that while in instructions you get painting/decalling instructions for two tanks, they are both in the same desert camouflage and are from the same unit. But for some reason next to the upper drawing Italeri placed color references for regular NATO 3-color scheme - useless in this case, as they didn't provide markings for any 3-color tank.

Regards,
Pawel

I am just adlibing my paint and finding my decals elsewhere. I just didn't like the instructions. I just went with Tamiya (or Testors? can't remember) US Army/Marines Sand. I panted the tank overall with it (though I made the foward front right armor side skirt plate OD Green (I know the color isn't right) and sploched on the USA/MC Sand to make it look like an addon. Much of the instructions on the detail are vague, especially (at least for mine) where the differences for the colors are; the differences between the shading on the sheet is hard to define. Either way, Few tanks I've seen in OIF had anything other than a sand weathered 3-tone and sand colored tanks. They just didn't look good to me either. I hope to get pictures up soon, but I'm pretty lazy, plus with graduation and my Senior prom this weekend not sure when I'll find the time.

Reading what I wrote, I realized that it seemed like a really bad model. Not so. It definitely has its deficienies, I like it. Pretty accurate - from what I could find - and pretty detailed especially with Eduards PE set and Tamiya's accessories kit. Though this is my first armor model, therefore I have a biased view, I guess I don't understand why everyone talks constantly about Tamiya's M1 series as well as Dragons model; some say it the best model, others the worst. So it interesting to see how everyone is going for the Tamiya while I'm sitting here with my Italeri chugging along. Its definetely a challenge to overcome some of the warping and other problems, but thats the point of modelling.

sorry, I forgot to tell you that it is the 1/72 M1, not the 1.35 M1A2, but thanks anyways, as I am going to build that one too. this one kit is not bad, no fit problems and the detail is fair enough

Well...damn...that was a buzzkiller, especially after my spiel.

While I don't have any pictures to back me up right now, I've seen pictures of more than one Abrams with the red reflective tape on the rear of the tank when deployed in combat (specifically Iraq). Would this be laziness on the part of the deployed unit or the simplicity just to leave them on and not bother?