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DRAGON MODELS LIMITED
7262, T-34/76 Mod. 1941 Cast Turret. 1/72nd-scale injection molded styrene/multimedia kit. Contains: 92 styrene parts, two DS-100 soft styrene track lengths, one piece of braided wire, one photo-etched brass part, six decal marking schemes and four pages of instructions in five steps.
At the time of this writing, this is the fifth T-34 kit from DML to be released in the last 12 months (more are in the works). It is unique in featuring the cast turret and detail fittings seen on tanks produced at Factory 112 from the spring through autumn of 1942. By deleting some parts (notably the various grab-handles for the “Desant” infantry) a Factory 183 vehicle from the winter of 1941/42 can also be built. The fuel boxes seen on the rear superstructure plate are included and should be fitted to either the ‘112 or ‘183 tanks.
But to do either version, there will be some things that the modeler must do that DML did not. For instance, according to references (AJaKS’ “T-34 Stalin’s War-Horse”) the Factory 112 version should have interlocking armor joints where the glacis and rear plates attach to the superstructure side plates. Furthermore, according to the above-quoted reference, both the Factory 112 and 183 versions should also have all-steel idler wheels; the kit provides the rubber-tired version. The kit’s designers also appear to be confused when it comes to the various grab-handles seen on the ‘112 tank. There are handles for the glacis plate, but none for the turret or engine deck. The ‘183 tank did not have any grab-handles, but the ‘112 tank had them all. This should not be too much of a problem for the modeler who can bend some brass rod.
The cast turret is well-done and has two different hatch lid variations. There is a nicely-done, if basic gun breech for the interior, which along with the gun tube and mantle collar was manufactured using a slide mold; this translates into a gun tube with a pre-drilled bore end. The two turret halves, after joining, should have all seams on the rear face removed, since this is the type without the separate rear plate insert. A tiny separate pistol port plug is provided for the rear face, while equally small lift rings are provided for the turret roof.
The superstructure features separate front and rear plates, with a separate hatch for the driver. The rear deck features two styrene parts for the screened opening. One part has the screen molded on, while the second is opened up to accept the fine etched brass screen provided in the kit. The exhaust pipes and their armored cowls are separate parts with the pipes having pre-bored openings. A second set of cowls are provided, but they are a post-war variation and should not be used as per the kit’s instructions. There are all sorts of tool boxes and spare tracks for the fenders, but most are “blued” as not for use. Stowage is provided in the form of wood crates, rolled tarps, un-ditching logs, spare tracks and various tools and boxes. Finally, there is a length of wound metal wire, which when combined with the styrene end loops, will make a pair of rather fine tow cables.
The running gear consists of the early style rubber-tired (with perforations) road-wheels, along with rubber-tired idlers. The drive wheel has holes in it that should be drilled completely through for the best appearance. All wheel pairs are each beautifully rendered as a single part using slide molds. The axles for the Christie suspension are all molded integrally with the hull, which while it limits diorama possibilities, will ensure that the road wheels sit straight and level. The tracks are the 550mm “plate” type with small horizontal ribs on their faces; these are the later type seen on tanks from a number of production facilities, according to AjaKS’ “T-34 in Combat”. They are rendered in DS-100 soft styrene and can be glued using standard cement.
The instructions are simple (as is the tank itself), so should not prove to be any problem. The full-color painting guide details the finishing of six tanks (one Polish, one Estonian and the remainder Soviet) using Gunze or Testors paints. The markings themselves are quite colorful and include a winter white-washed tank with red turret slogans. The remainder of the tanks are painted overall in green “4BO” and all have interesting slogans, Tac markings and/or numbers. One Soviet tank includes the rarely-seen red stars, while the Polish tank features the Piast Eagle national insignia. The decals, from Cartograf are excellently printed, with crisp edges and fine color saturation.
Again, although there are some glitches, this is a nice little model, which, with a bit of extra work (and some proper references) will allow the modeler to produce yet another version of this most “Soviet” of tanks.
Recommended.
Frank V. De Sisto
Reviewer’s note: Since May of 2005, I have been working on books for Concord Publications, a sister company to DML. The reader may wish to take this into consideration. For my part, I will attempt to maintain an objective viewpoint when writing these reviews.
DML kits are available from retail and mail order shops. For details see their web site at: www.dragonmodelsltd.com.
