Lion Roar provides an easy replacement to the rubber tires that come in the Trumpeter kit. The set includes 5 pieces; 4 full tires and one spare. The tires are cast in a blemish free, cream colored resin and have very good surface details. There are also very small pour block which makes clean-up a snap. They are packaged very well in a sturdy cardboard box and wrapped in bubble wrap. My sample was damage free and packaged well.
review
The tires appear to be the same size as the kit tires and scale out perfectly to the actual tire size. A closer look at the tires shows that they are not direct copies of the kit rubber tires though. They are equally well done on the tread and feature the Michelin X markings on the sidewalls. The difference is the sidewalls are molded smooth, as opposed to the kit tires which are molded with wavy, or rippled sidewalls. Both the rippled and smooth sidewalls are seen on actual tires, so both versions are correct.
The tires are also cast with the wheel hub and brake details on them, making assembly and installation a snap. These seem to be direct copies of the kit parts. The hubs are also cast without the CTIS (Central Tire Inflation System) hoses on them, so you will still need the ones provided in the kit. The details on the hub look very good as well.
The only down side to the set is the spare tire. Unfortunately, Lion Roar made the same mistake that Trumpeter made on the kit spare. The issue is the number of bolts that were left off the spare. The actual spare has only the inner ring of bolts missing, leaving 10 open holes for the wheel studs to attach the tire. Both the Lon Roar and Trumpeter wheels also left off the bolts on the outer ring, which are the bolts that mate the two-part wheel rim. If these bolts are removed, the rim comes apart in two pieces and off the tire. This issue can be easily overcome by adding sliced hex rod or AM bolts to the outer ring of holes.
This set provides an easy replacement to the kits soft rubber tires that look the part when installed.
SUMMARY
Highs: Nicely molded and with very small pour stubs to clean up. A quick replacement for the kits rubber tires.Lows: The spare tire has too many bolts removed from the wheel.Verdict: A very good replacement tire set. The issue with the spare can be easily overcome. If you are looking for an easy to use replacement tire set, this set is the one. This is another great set from Lion Roar.
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About Gino P. Quintiliani (HeavyArty) FROM: FLORIDA, UNITED STATES
Retired US Army Artillery Officer, currently a contractor at MacDill AFB in the Tampa, FL area. I have been modelling for the past 40+ years, really seriously on armor and large scale helos (1/32, 1/35) for the last 35 or so.
@Dave: There are listed three US distritbutors on the Pro Art Models website.
I think you will find the Pro Art Models wheels set in the United States, too.
Thanks again.
Good review Gino.
I find it interesting that they made the same mistake as Trumpeter on the bolts for the rims. In my opinion, it doesn't seem to be much of an improvement over just using the kits parts.
Thanks guys. I agree that they are not that much of an improvement over the kit tires. For those who can't stand to use rubber tires they are a good option though.
To me the missing bolts are not that big of a deal and are easy to fix.
On the price, I based it on what I found at US distributors. I'm sure it will vary by country.
Would I normally pay $35 for them, personally no, but many will just to have the resin wheels.
Here's the dilemma: I appreciate the enhanced level of detail possible with these resin tires, but can't find that level of detail to be a "must-have" when faced with the cost which is close to the price of the base kit. It's like buying Fruil tracks for an Academy Sheridan to obtain that special track sag (that can't be done as well with the one-piece vinyl track), and knowing those tracks will actually cost more than the kit. It's all ties to what you want. As for me, I want the cheap ones that carry the idea of reasonable in-scale appearance.
I'm not cheap, but like many others in this hobby, my funds are not without limit!
Another option is to just cast your own copies of the kits tires in resin, im pretty sure thats basically what Lionroar have done-well clearly if they matched the bolt mistakes!
I never understood the point in resin tyres. Unless they are an improvement over kit tires in terms of accuracy. If they are just the same as the kit tires then I will just mold the kit tires and save a lot of money.
Not totally agree with you Rob on that
You seems to forget that vinyl tires are not very well know to stand the UV on the vitrine.
Based on my experience, I will replace the vinyl tires with the resins one only for this reason.
My humvee tires from TAM cracked after 18 months of regular exposure of sun light in my living room in Switzerland same to the tires of my BTR-70 from Dragon.
Now and for the future resin tires.
What do you think ??
Giving the tires a good coat of sealant will prevent the cracking, but this is a variable. My TAM HUMVEE tires are fine on the shelf, but my JGSDF LAV tires are totally cracked even after sealing them.
I quite agree with you Seb about vinyl tires, some tyres from my Tamiya humvee have cracked. I was more commenting on spending lots of money on resin AM tyres, when one could just easily cast their own copies of the vinyl kit tyres. Often AM tyre sets are VERY pricey, and no more than a recast of vinyl tires-so why not do it yourself!?
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