Part 1: First Look

MSRP: $17.00 Distributed by Dragon Model USA. Early in WWII, Russia had a turreted, 10-wheeled armored car known as the BA-10. Main armament on this vehicle was a turret mounted 47mm gun, and the BA-10 was mostly used against Finland and Germany early in the war. The kit is molded in green plastic with 172 parts. There are also 12 vinyl parts making up the 10 wheels and 2 spare tires. Minor flash was noted on the plastic parts, and mold separation lines were seen on the vinyl parts. I didn't find any sink holes or ejector pin marks when reviewing the kit parts. Only minor clean-up will be needed in the construction of this kit. There are two build options here; a BA-10A or a BA-10M can be constructed. The BA-10M differs from the A-model by the addition of a machine gun shield on the hull mounted MG and additional fuel tanks added to the rear fenders. The BA-10A has a few more tow hooks than the BA-10M on the rear of the vehicle. The kit has an engine and chassis, but there is no interior detail. I'm sure that aftermarket interior details will appear soon enough for this one. The kit directions are made up of 6 pages of black and white text and illustrations including a parts map and a brief vehicle history. The directions are descriptive enough to aid in the location of the kit parts, and that is all that a person can really ask for. The decals are black or white text and have been printed for 3 different vehicles. Two of the paint/decal schemes are for BA-10As and the other is for a BA-10M. All of the schemes are for Russian army vehicles. Model Master Paint numbers are given for the colors used in the kit. I look forward to building this kit. It is unique looking and it has enough detail and shape to make weathering fun. I intend to build the kit out of box as a BA-10A in an all-green scheme with the slogan "Orlovsky Partisan" written on the sides of the vehicle. I would like to thank Zvezda and John Noack for allowing me to do a review on this vehicle. Stay tuned for the results.

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