Part 1: First Look

MSRP: $13.50 I've been building 1/72 scale armor since 1997, and back then, I was building Esci, Airfix, and Hasegawa kits. Since then, many other manufacturers have started to build 1/72 armor. Dragon has to be my favorite manufacturer due to their subjects, detail, and in-box value. I've built four of their kits and I'm in the middle of building one of their Jagdpanzer IV kits. It appears that with every new small scale kit that Dragon produces, the quality and features improve greatly. I hope that this trend carries over to their new T-34. The T-34 Mod. 43 was developed in 1942 to add more room to the existing cramped turret. The turret supplied in the kit is known as a 'hard edge turret with a cupola'. Other parts of this model tank that make it unique are the add-on box fuel tanks and the mixture of all-steel road wheels with the pierced rubber tired wheels. The kit comes with 5 sprues of injection molded styrene, 1 sheet of photo etched brass, a metal wire for tow cables, and a set of DS 100 (Dragon Styrene) single piece tracks. In total, the kit comes with 139 parts (115 styrene, 2 DS 100, 1 wire, and 21 PE). The instruction sheet is easy to read and is full color. Dragon also molds their road wheels, sprocket wheels, and idler wheels in sets of two. It is a nice touch and makes alignment easier during final assembly. There are markings for 4 different tanks (including 1 captured German), but interestingly enough, only one of the markings options allows for the box fuel tanks, timber crate stowage, and the mixed road wheels. The other 3 marking options use the older type of rubber road wheels and no box fuel tanks. My references say that if rubber tires were available, then they were the preferred alternative. Some of the smaller parts in the kit appear to have minor flash, but none of it seems to be thick or difficult to remove with a knife. Any ejector pin marks are on the back sides of parts and do not appear to be a problem that needs resolving. The turret has two PTK-5 periscope mounts in the front of the top plate, but my resources only show 1 being common on the left side. I will remove the right side periscope during construction. I plan on building the kit out-of-box with the mixed road wheels, fuel boxes, timber crates, and only 1 periscope. I will use the decals supplied with the kit (to match the box art), and I plan on drilling out the pierced holes on all of the road wheels. I'll also do my best to use all 21 of the supplied photo-etched parts. My reference for this build is the Squadron/Signal "T-34 in Action." I'd like to thank Dragon for this beautifully detailed kit, and I'd like to thank John Noack for this opportunity. Stay tuned for the finished product ...

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