Which 1/35 kits to get?

[AlanG]

I thought i'd ask you armour type guys (i'm a wingy thing guy) which starter kits you'd recommend for the Jagdpanther, Panther and Tiger I (Late) tanks. i'd like to build a tank and learn some weathering techniques. Obviously i think the likes of Dragon is going to be a no no, but what about Tamiya, Italeri etc etc

[Guest]

The later Tamiya kits are quite good, but I’d stay away from their earlier Panthers and Tigers if I were you (the ones with numbers 350xx) because they’re all 1970s Tamiya standard, which means pretty crude detail, motorisation features, etc. The Italeri equivalents are better than the old Tamiya ones, not of the standard of the later Tamiya but they’re cheaper (Revell’s Panthers — if you happen across them — are reboxed Italeri ones, BTW).

[PaulTRose]

actually id recommend the early tamiya kits if you are looking for a 'starter' kit to learn on.....dont waste money on a new all singing and dancing kit to try out to see if you like armour

tamiya, italerai, some revell are all good

[Si Benson]

You can pick this up for under £30 .....John at the Scale Model shop has them Here.

[ATTACH]323927[/ATTACH]

It gets a good write up it seems. I got one myself :thumb2:

[Steve Jones]

Rye Field Model and AFV Club are worth a look. You get a lot for your money with Rye.

[Guest]

AFV Club is not really a good choice for people new to modelling, though. Not sure if this also applies to people new to 1/35 armour modelling, but I don’t think I’d advise one for a first try in this scale. The main reason is they tend to have lots of finely moulded detail parts that are as likely to break when removing them from the sprue as they are to come off OK.

Trumpeter and Hobby Boss are also good choices: generally accurate and usually fairly easy to build.

[Jim F]

Hi Alan,
Not for the first time I'll swim against the tide, it will always be about how accurate you want to be. In my humble opinion Dragon kits of both Panther and Tiger 1 are far ahead of the other brands, yes you get alot of excess parts and the instructions can leave alot to be desired of but you get an incredably accurate canvas to paint in one box
seasons wishes Jim

[spanner570]

Al, Paul and Si have it spot on. Definitely the early Tamiya kits. Crude detail they may have but they are relatively cheap, easy to put together and a good result can be obtained.

Ideal for a first try at armour.

Ron

[Lee Drennen]

Alan
I’ve only built two 1/35 in about 2yrs and both were Vintage Tamiya I’m glad I chose them because of the low parts count and price if I messed up or didn’t like them when I was building them both kits seems like they just fall together very easy fitting and easy directions to follow and there a lot of fun. Here a pick of a Tamiya kit I just finished a couple days ago. [ATTACH]323938[/ATTACH]

[AlanG]

Cheers guys. I thought the Tamiya ones would be the way to go. But there seem so many companies on the market these days i do not know where to start.

The main weathering details i want to try are the tracks and chipping effect. I also have a dio planned but that is another whole different ball game too. Old modeller trying to learn new tricks lol

[AlanG]

Right i've had a look around at the Tamiya kits and they all seem to be more expensive then the Meng kits. Would a Meng kit suffice for a newbie armour type person?

[Tim Marlow]

To be honest Alan, I think the most important thing is that the kit builds into something you want to build. If it does you’ll put in more effort than if you just get something you want to “practice” on. Don’t see why a Meng kit would be any worse than the others mentioned.....they seem to get good write ups. Saying that, the later Tamiya Panther kit I built was superb, and a really easy build, so I would recommend that as a starter kit in this scale.

[scottie3158]

Alan,
Although MENG, Tamyia are very good kits. My personal choice is to go for cheaper kits such as Italeari which are not always as well made but give me the chance to add details and make them better rather tan shake the box, and practice techniques on. that way if your not happy or get it wrong you haven't waisted a £50 kit.

[rtfoe]

If it were me I'd throw you into the deep end and see if you're a survivor...just kidding. :smiling6:

I was fortunate to grow as the hobby progressed...at the time the only 1/35th scale was Tamiya and its reputation hadn't preceded itself so I didn't know if the build was easy or I was enjoying myself. Then of course Italeri came along and that was the Dragon of its time. I was cursing at the hinges and small parts...the good thing was that the tracks were molded on both sides so I knew I was building a detailed kit.

I still build the old Tamiya kits and I think they are great starter kits that create motivation to progress further.

Al, you need to ask yourself if you want a challenge or a stroll with your hobby and are you easily distracted or discouraged. I personally like to open a box...any brand and go ooh ah and just build it.

Cheers,
Richard

[AlanG]

Cheers guys. Building it probably won't be the problem. I regularly build 1/48 and 1/32 kits so know about little fiddly bits etc (although PE still grips my goat at times). My problem will be the weathering side of things. Other than adding paint chipping and exhaust stains to my aircraft i am a total newbie at this mud/grease/oil/rust/staining malarkey.