I have seen some models made in Russia and other Eastern European countries. Can't remeber the names of the companies, but they have some interesting armour and figures. They are a bit cheaper than teh established companies. What have your experiences been. I am afraid the instructions will be in Latvian or something an dgeneral poor quality. I'm trying to avoid teh LADA of model companies :-)

its when you hit the Trabant quality,then worry.check them with a geiger counter first
Arthur.
Am Alba Mannich

Some of the Zvezda kits like the PzIB and Pz1B Command tank have been re-released by Italeri. They are not too bad, but watch the Zvezda decals. The ones I had in the 1B command tank fell apart in the water. Some of the Mirage and RPM kits are of unusual subjects, so you don't have much choice. The best way is to either ask the group here, or if the kits are cheap enough, buy them. I bought some of the Mirage/RPM Renault UE variants from one of the guys in my IPMS chapter during a swap and sell we have every year. The kits aren't that bad, they just need some care during assembly. And don't forget, dry fit before gluing.....
HTH

Howdy Padrino,

I've read a few threads regarding the purchase of the eastern European kits. And I must say, you've definitely come to the right place to ask the question. My first suggestion to you is to ask about a specific kit. Rest assured, someone will have some constructive input on it, or will be able to get it.
My second suggestion, or more accurately, an observation is; One of the main concerns when it comes to building a Grade 'B' model kit for me is whether it would be easier to scratchbuild it.
In other words, isn't it easier to at least have the basic shapes or pieces of that unique subject matter, or would it actually be easier to build it from nothing?

Tread.

Hey there Padrino

I own several East European kits, and I've even built some of them!!

Recent Alan and ICM kits tend to be pretty good, but as Kencelot suggests, ask here first!

One common feature of these kits is that they have hulls are built up from a bottom and the sides, unlike Tamiya or DML, where you get a nicely premoulded "bathtub".

I buit the original release of the ICM Luchs recon tank. It's a great kit, with well moulded independent track links, and great fit except for the upper hull to lower hull. That took a bit of work. Of course, the kit cost me $10!!

I have also built the Zvezda T-34/76. IT's another nice kit. Much better than the Tamiya kit of the same beast. The tracks are awful, and I used a set of DML waffle pattern tracks.

I have the Alan Marder IID, which has gotten mixed reviews, but looks great in the box. THe track links have hollow guide horns!!!!! Very nice mouldings.
The Alan Pz IF is also a nice looking kit in the box, as is their new Grille. You can get these kits cheap, and I think they are well worth the $$.

Andy

Another good, fairly new Eastern European armor kit maker is 'Eastern Express'. Most of their kits are Russian vehicles from WWII. They have announced 2 new Kv1s that are to be released this summer. It's been a long time since Tamiya released their KV1s, so these should be better kits. They probably aren't up to the new offerings from the Asian makers, but they are nice kits anyway. Their BT7s are quite nice, and so is their SU14/SU152.