Hi all

I'm a novice when it comes to armor models (been building planes and helicopters for the last 2yrs) and I'm currently building the Tamiya M1A2 OIF. I'm really enjoying the kit and I'm definitely going to build more armor models.

I've heard that the older M1A1 kits from Tamiya aren't that great or as good as the A2 kit.

However I would like to buy one of the Echelon decal sheets and build one or two M1A1s with a mine plow attached.

How bad is the M1A1 kit? Besides the inaccuracies (I wouldn't know) is it quite an enjoyable build?

I posted this on FSM but only got 2 responses. They suggested that I get the trumpeter M1 panther kit and use the rollers on that kit and then use the plow on the tamiya A2 kit. Unfortunately then I have to build a kit that I'm not interested in.

Would it be possible to "fix" the M1A1 kit with the remainder of the parts from my A2 kit?

Any comments or suggestions will be appreciated.

Thanks
John

The Tamiya M1A1 with mine plow isn't that bad, mostly it's the same kit as the A2, so build and level of detail are similar. IIRC very early versions of the Tamiya M1A1 had the shorter M1 turret, but this was corrected and the old turret shouldn't be around now.

Even though Vodnik's wonderful comparison epic (link below) doesn't specifically cover the M1A1 you can work out a fair bit about the model from it.

M1 Comparison

The original Tamiya M1A1 with or without mine plow is a pretty good kit and builds into a decent pre-Desert Storm and Desert Storm era early M1A1. Many of the new M1A2 parts are easily interchangeable with the older kit. The Tamiya mine plow is probably the easiest of the three (DML and Trumpeter) mine plows to construct.

The early style tracks still suffer from the inaccuracy molded into them in the 80s when the kit was released. Aftermarket early style track replacements are rare, but the kit can use the later style tracks, even for a pre-Desert Storm tank.

View the contents of the kit and the instructions on this page from Hobby Search

Tamiya M1A1 with mine plow

Hi guys

Thanks for the feedback.

Drader, I've spent the last 2 days at Vodniks site and found his comparisson quite helpful. Thats where I found the Echelon decal reviews.

HobbySearch is a favourite site of mine, have downloaded the instructions for all the Tamiya M1s.

In the interim, I've emailed LuckyModel.com to see if they could order sprue E out of the MinePlow kit, then I could add it to a M1A2 kit.

I want to build "Hard Lighter" from Echelon but its APU is different to the part in the M1A1 kit according to the instructions.

My other option is to order the MinePlow kit and another M1A2 kit. Then I'll add mine plow to the A2 kit and build it as a M1A1HA using the Echelon sheet.

Then I'll build the Mine Plow kit as an M1A1 in Nato 3-Tone and use the decals from one of my A2 kits and build option 'E' which doesn't use an APU or MCD.

What do you guys think?

John

Wow, my head is spinning. Let me see if I can follow?

If you want to build "Hard Licker" (not Lighter) from the Echelon USMC decal set, it is an M1A1HC, not an A2. USMC does not use M1A2s. It used a bustle rack APU, as most modern M1s use. The rear hull mounted APU in the older Tamiya M1A1 was discontinued after ODS ('90-'91), and replaced by the bustle rack APU.

You can put the plow on either an M1A1 or an M1A2.

If you are looking to use any of the Echelon decals, they are all for M1A1s, not A2s. No M1A2s were used in the initial invasion of OIF. USMC uses only M1A1HCs and 3ID drew/brought all M1A1HCs as well. Only 3 Corps units (1 CAV, 4ID, and 3ACR) have M1A2s. 4ID and 3ACR did not arrive in Iraq till late April to early May of '03, after Baghdad had fallen. 1CAV did not go till early '04.

As someone who doesn't really like yellow tanks, the NATO scheme sounds like a good idea for the M1A1 if you can't get a separate Mine Plow sprue.

You're right about the Tamiya M1A1, it has the APU stuck on the rear of the hull.

Heavy, according to the tamiya instructions in the A2 boxing, there are parts to build M1A1HAs, option C,D and E.

Firstly, can I make an accurate M1A1HA from the A2 kit?
Can I build a M1A1HC from the kit or what would I have to add?
Is the APU provided the correct one?

Drader, I figured that I would eventually build an Abrams in the NATO 3-tone scheme one day (starting with single colour tone tanks) and atleast the kit will be utilised.

John

Yes, you can build all 3 versions from the kit. All the parts are there.

From Tamiya's directions, version A and B are Army M1A2s from 3ACR, version C is an Army M1A1HC from 3 ID during the invasion, version D is a USMC M1A1HC from the invasion as well, version E is an Army M1A1HC from 1st AD in Kosovo.

You just need to be careful how you mark them. Not all units have M1A2s. Follow what I wrote above and you should be O.K. Aditionally, all M1A2s are sand, none are in NATO camo.

By the way, HA is a modeling term, it is actually called a Heavy Common (HC). Heavy since it has DU armor, and Common since it is common to the USMC and US Army. Same vehicle, just the modeling world calls it the wrong thing.