DML sees to have released (in Canada) the army and marine abrhams are these good kits?

I have almost all of the M1 kits on the market (except for all of the Trumpter kits, only have the M1A2). I even have both of the old Esci M1s. I still think the DML M1A1/2 kits are the best of the bunch. They are a trickier build than the Tamiya or Trumpeter kits, especially the bustle rack and grunt rails.

All of the DML kits are basically the same kit. The M1A2 has a different Commander's Weapon Station (CWS) and has the Commander's Independent Thermal Viewer (CITV) added, but is otherwise the same.

One kit comes with the mine plow. Another comes with a rudimentary interior and the four man crew set. The USMC M1A1 comes with wading gear.

The breakdown goes as follows:
3516 M1A1 w/mine plow
3517 M1A1-HA w/tank crew
3524 M1A2
3531 USMC M1A1 Abrams (Heavy Armor) (with the wading gear)

The mine plow kit and tank crew are also sold separately (kits #3804 & 3020 respectively). Only kit #3517 comes with the interior sprue, this is the one I recommend.

I am currently doing the M1A1-HA with the crew. The crew is excellent and there are a lot of good things about the kit, but it lacks the crisp detail of Tamiya. I can't say I agree about the interior, but it is better than what comes with the Tamiya kit. I actually have a sprue for one of the Tamiya kits that I am stealing some of the parts off of, like the rear hull and parts for CWS. If you want to put an engine in it,then 3517 is the kit, it has the engine hatch molded separately. Most of the upper hull details are better than Tamiya's, too.

In a perfect world, I would buy the DML kit and the Tamiya kit and bash them, but if you only want one, go for the DML.

Rob

I concur: all things considered, the DML kit is the best over all. I too have built the ESCI and Tamiya kits and while the Tamiya kit is good, the DML version is just more accurate, gernerally speaking. And I'm not only a modeler, I used to be an M1A1 tanker.

Dave Clark

The only problem I have with the USMC Abrams (DML or Trumpeter) is the scale of the smoke grenade dischargers. If I recall correctly, they seem smaller than a comparable unit from the Tamiya AAVP7A1 or the Bradley. Aren't they supposed to be the same scale?

Asked this over at Missing Links...if I got a response, I missed it.

Just curious, what did I say about the interior that there's to disagree with? Here's what I said: "Another comes with a rudimentary interior and the four man crew set." Rudimentary meaning: "very imperfectly developed or represented only by a vestige." The interior is not complete by any stretch, but it is a start (enough so that when you look in the hatches something is there). I then recommended the this one since it comes with the crew and a basic interior not found in any other (only kit besides the OOP Verlinden M1 Abrams Upate and Interior Set #621).

Sorry, Rob, I didn't mean to offend, I meant I couldn't recommend the kit if you were buying it for the interior which is how I misinterpeted you last line: "Only kit #3517 comes with the interior sprue, this is the one I recommend." I am sorry if I have in any way offended you, and I do acknowledge the fact that you know Abrams better than any other guy on this site. And I did say that it is better than what Tamiya offers, which is nothing.

Rob

You didn't offend me, I was just wondering why you thought it wasn't the best choice, but then recommended it. For some reason, all of the kits were originally the same price regardless of which kit it was. It just seemed like you could get more bang for the buck with the one with the crew and interior. You could always buy the mine plow separately or the crew, but not the interior.

Best thing is that Kirin's M1A1/A2 engine set (#28506) was made to fit this kit as well. Decent set that is worth looking for.

The only reason I'd recommend the others is if you wanted an A2, USMC specific tank (post-Desert Storm USMC) or want a complete Abrams collection. I ended mine when Trumpeter came out with all their Abrams variants. Neatest pieces in my collection are the original Tamiya M1 with 3 engine gear box and wired remote and the full R/C M1A1 with radio control unit. I've never seen them on US shelves. Also sheds light on what all those unused bits on the Tamiya sprues are for.

Now I could recommend it for the crew, which is pretty well done.

Rob

DML is very good. Have built Tamiya's (M1A1 with mine plow)1, Trumpeter's (2 M1A1s with mine plow and mine roller) and DML's (M1A2). As Sabot noted, the bustle rack is tricky (broke mine in several places when I built my 2 M1A2s), but you can substitute that by using wire of the appropriate thickness. What's nice about the Trump kits though is that they come with 'extras' (like the M1A1 with mine roller which has MILES gear) and are relatively cheaper (well, in this place [Philippines] at least), although the DML M1A2 has the M1A1's CWS as an unused part (quite useful to have around if you want to make the Tamiya's CWS move around - just slice, patch up, and install the DML extra part :-) ). But if I had a few extra bucks, I'd spend it on DML. One thing I noticed was, comparing the DML M1A2 with the 2 Trump M1A1s, the latter had a more detailed lower hull.

Knowing very little about the subject, which manufacturer makes the most current version of the M1? Better yet which variant is used today? Are there any variants (real or replica) beyond the M1A1 and M1A2?

TIA
...Kevin

I know Trumpeter makes one of the M1A2, I thik that might be the most current. as for variants, there are:

M1(base variant)
IPM1 (improved M1)
M1E1 (improved armor pakage)
M1A1 (Same armor upgrade as E1 with new 120mm gun)
M1A1-HA (Heavy Armor with depleted Uranium armor)
M1A1D (Digital Aplique)
M1A2 (new CITV and upgraded CWS)
the Grizzly engineer vehicle
and a recovery tank variant I think

What else Rob?

First version out was the XM1, I trained on serial number 007 back in 1987. The M1E1 was just a prototype testing the extra weight of the DU armor and the 120mm gun. It was not deployed operationally. Esci's M1A1 was a pseudo M1A1 that was more akin to an M1E1 except they messed up the bustle rack. The same kit was boxed by AMT/Ertl and was also produced in 1/72 scale as well as 1/35.

Most M1s (if not all) were upgraded to M1IP standards. I have two (M1IP) for training purposes, I don't know if they are still in use with the Army National Guard, but I would venture a guess. Only Tamiya and Esci made a straight M1 tank model OOB (in 1/35). I do not believe an M1IP was made as a kit.

There have been several upgrades to the M1A1s and M1A1-HAs throughout its lifespan. DJ would know the different "block" modifications done. (Where is he?)

The M1A2SEP (systems enhancement program) is the current variant. It has been brought up to digitalization standards and has an APU in the left rear sponson.

Only M1A2s on the market are the DML one mentioned above and the Trumpeter kit. I'm not sure of the various boxings that Trumpeter may do of the M1A2 (whether it is motorized, with or without mine roller or plow, etc.).