Hey what is a good second armor in 1/35 scale. Looking at some type of german armor.
Thanks Branden

You will probably want to try something from the New Tamiya, they fall together easily, and you don't have the hassel of putting together individual link tracks. I will recommend Marder III, or JadgPanther, they are easy to build and the result is good. HTH.

But if you want to try the individual link track, I will recommend DML Hetzer, or Pz III Ausf J, I built these two, and the fit is great.

Why not try the Tamyia Stug - it goes together easily and looks great. choiceof side skirting or not. There are articles on how to build it on a number of sites - eg Hyperscale, Missing Links and maybe TrackLinks.

Anyway I like it.

Cheers
Digger

It's a good choice, but if you want something nice and doesn't require a lot of AM stuff to make it look right, avoid the Stug IV, because it's the old Tamiya mortorized version with holes in the lower hull. Try the Stug III of Tamiya. The one with the little dog... :-)

That's the Stug I was referring to - i reckon its a beauty.

Digger :-)

Try something new each time. But build as much as you can. There have been some great tips suggestions here. Try and find some articles on a build-up and follow that. Then you can see exactly what the "experts" would do. I agree with the idea of building some of the new Tamiya kits as well. Great fit is so important for the beginner. Maybe then for your next kit try one with seperate link tracks and after a few try a basic PE kit as well. Dont go all out buying loads of aftermarket stuff and spend loads of money and then waste it all with a lousy paint job. You will learn a lot with each kit as you build it, but put in as much time at learning good painting techniques as well on each kit. Take your time and enjoy what you are doing. You will be amazed at your own progress as you finish each kit. Read loads of articles from here and other sites on the net and magazines if available. But if there is anything you are unsure of, ask here. Believe me, I have loads of times and got exactly the help I needed.

My only word of warning (not a big WW2 German armor builder) is to not get a real expensive kit. That way you won't freak out if you mess it up or not do as nice a job as you had hoped. That being said, the new and expensive Tamiya Tigers and Panthers are supposed to be nice. I have two Tigers at home that I haven't seen yet.

Another good choice would be Italeri. The quality is pretty good but I have found the price to be cheaper than Tamiya.
Some of my first models look like I was going for a battle damage look. So I would go cheap the first couple of models.
Good luck.

Don't be like me and buy a bunch of expensive models right of the bat. I bought a cromwell and centaur for my first 2 models, big mistake. They went together easily but I painted them terribly (for a single scheme job that's an accomplishment!). My best so far was a cheapy tamiya kubelwagen, nicely detailed, easy to build and paint and "Cute" according to my girlfriend, and everyone knows cute is what you go for.

Jeff

Since you didn't specifically ask for WW2 German armor, may I suggest some MODERN german armor. For instance, try an Italeri Leopard 1A4, Lepard 2A4 or A5. They're relatively cheap, look like the real thing (if you're not too much of a rivetcounter) and would look great in a historical line of German armor. Many people here agree that the Leo 1A4 is one of the best Leo models out there, even better than Tamiya or some other brands. Modelexpo-online had some sales going on recently.

Regards,

Some other really awesome model that might not break your bank are -

Tamiya Panzer IV J, Mobelwagen or Marder III

DML Panther A or D - these kits are just plain awesome - they do have link to link tracks which many will say are a pain... I say that these tracks go together very, very well.

DML Ferdinand - Ditto the remarks on the Panther - Stay away from the DML Elefant until you are confident with Zimmerit and aftermarket.

Italeri - RSO Tractors there are a number of these that are nice kits.

Let me know if there are any questions.
Tim

Thanks Guys for all the help I am still deciding though
Branden (:-) (:-) (:-) (:-)

i like the Tamiya Pz lllL or the Pz IVJ, they are an easy build and don't need a lot of AM stuff. so enjoy.

Chris Pig no.1

I agree with the earlier statement - "not any expensive models"... not this early yet. I HIGHLY recommend the italeri line as they have "decent" detail and yet many of their most popular kits cost under $10. Go to www.modelexpo-online.com and then "search" for Italeri. You will find their Tiger I, the Panter, Panzer IV and a few others all in the $6 to 10 range. They normally sell for $16 - 24, so it's not like you are getting a piece of junk. They are solid models (#4 behind Tamiya , DML and Academy by my estimation), and are widely found throughout the model hobby stores. They assemble like any other models, and quite a few are truly steller works... I just bought two ZIS-5 soviet transport trucks for under $4 each, and they were excellent in detail and fit. You mentioned you like German armor (hey - who doesn't!?) but Italeri also has a nice range of US tanks as well.... the Priest, Sherman, and the Willis Jeeps are all fun builds as well. So my advice... learn on a solid but inexpensive line... italeri is a great build for the price, and you will have a piece you can be proud of. Move up to Tamiya and Academy once you are comfortable with all the tools and techniques you will learn to use on the less expensive kits.

Quite a few great suggestion's there! The point about first starting off with an inexpensive kit is especially good crackers.
If it's not imperative you build a tank, may I suggest the Tamiya German Steyr 1500 kit. The moulding's are excellent, the fit is superb, and to put it together all you need to do is drop a tube of glue in the box, shake (not stir ), open the box, and most of the work is done for you......almost.

Just a thought.

Builds up nice.

Tread.

This may or not be the place to bring up this question, but, does anyone else have a problem with Italeri plastic? What I mean is, does anyone else find the styrene that Italeri uses for their kits too soft?
When I am cleaning up a Tamiya kit with my trusty # 11 Xacto, all goes smoothly. But, when I perform the same duty on an Italeri kit, it seems to me the plastic doesn't behave as well, and I have to much more careful cleaning the flash and the seams (joins).

Anyone else?

Maybe it's just me.