discussion Patricks 1/35 Takom T-55A

[Guest]

Here's my entry into this GB. I bought the kit 'part-built' on ebay, although very little has been done with it.

Box art & obligatory sprue shots
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Although I had planned to do a Syrian vehicle, I'm now thinking more about the Serbian camo scheme on the left here
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[monica]

very nice looking kit,Patrick,will be watching this one,
good luck with it,

 

[grumpa]

Russian Bears! I love them, will be watching progress.......Jim

 

[Guest]

very nice looking kit,Patrick,will be watching this one,
good luck with it,

Russian Bears! I love them, will be watching progress.......Jim

Thanks Moni & Jim. I've made a small start on the lower hull & so far I'm not that impressed with the kit. For one released in 2016 the mould seam lines are pretty bad. But thankfully they'll be covered in mud!

 

[papa 695]

Nice one Patrick

 

[Guest]

Oh! Oh!! I'm in Patrick!!
I'm really interested to see how this one turn on
The Serbian camo looks pretty good, is a nice choice

 

[Guest]

Good luck Patrick! This looks to be a top of the line kit, will love to see the outcome here.

 

[Guest]

Well the building is done, bar a bit of fettling here and there.
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A few words about this kit. Had I paid full price for it, I'd be very unhappy. There's no way this is worth £40-45.

For a newly tooled kit, it's really really poor. The detail is soft and the instructions are vague & hard to follow. The pictures are so poor that it's often hard to know if you've got the right part.
The fit is often terrible. An example is the rain guards on the turret for the co-axial MG & gunners viewfinder. Because the turret is curved, these parts should be curved also. But they're flat! I had to cement the top first, leave it to dry & then clamp & cement the lower half.
Problems like this abound on this kit, leaving the builder with very little satisfaction.
Also the moulds are slightly mis-aligned, leaving not only thick seam lines, but often tiny steps that are impossible to completely eradicate.

Takom should be up there with Meng & Dragon as leaders of the field. But on this evidence, they're bringing up the rear.

Next time, everyone's favourite... individual link tracks!

 

[col68]

Thanks for the honest view on this kit Patrick I was considering on one for a future build. I'll keep my money for something else

 

[Guest]

Thanks for the honest view on this kit Patrick I was considering on one for a future build. I'll keep my money for something else

I would Col. I wanted Takoms new King Tiger, but now I'll wait until the current interest has died down & get one more cheaply on ebay.

I'm certainly not saying that all their kits are below par though. Just the one I've got!

 

[Guest]

Base coat on, Tamiya NATO green
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[tr1ckey66]

Looks like a great kit from the shots. Certainly no build difficulties evident in the pics.
Looks great Patrick!

P

 

[Guest]

Very nice work Patrick this is looking the business so far.

 

[col68]

Lootking good patrick

 

[Guest]

Good to know this kit does have issues, but youve done a great job with it. Looking really good with paint on.

 

[Guest]

Thanks guys!

I've done the camo colours. The scheme on the instructions is a very 'busy' one & it wasn't easy to get the AB nozzle into all the nooks & crannies. But I'm happy with the result.

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Although I'm trying to move more into using acrylics, I had to admit defeat & break out the cellulose thinner! It's just impossible, for me at least, to get very fine lines with acrylics.

Next up will be a gloss coat & decals.

Thanks for looking.

 

[Guest]

Very impressive paint job Patrick. Tough to pull off but youve got it right.

 

[Guest]

Fantastic job on build and paint job.

 

[grumpa]

Work worthy of your expertise, tough kit I gather, I love those who think these are kid stuff.
Great AB work (as usual)....carry on.......Jim

 

[Guest]

So now we have the kit glossed & a pin wash applied. The decals are awful! They have a very thick carrier film that appears to made to be resistant to Microsol

No matter what I did, the "Marina" decal on the turret wouldn't settle so I'll have to bodge it with some heavy dust/mud...

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Thanks for looking