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Armor/AFV: Modern Armor
Modern armor in general.
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French AML90 by Takom
vab75007
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Paris, France
Joined: January 13, 2014
KitMaker: 93 posts
Armorama: 92 posts
Posted: Wednesday, July 19, 2017 - 08:44 PM UTC
I bought this new kit from Takom and could not resist so I've just started it.


1st impression, the box is small and we have not so many sprues : only 4. But everything is really well moulded even all the small pieces and details.
Very impressive. The manual is in black and white but well deocumented and easy to follow. Very efficient and a real pleasure. Mounting the first steps is very fast and easy.

This is only my second kit from Takom and I must say I'm really impressed by their quality. Takom could easily become one of my favorite brand all the more if they propose other French tanks ;-)
The only missing point for me is the lack of any interior details.


Some pics:












DriftwoodDan
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Idaho, United States
Joined: March 25, 2015
KitMaker: 23 posts
Armorama: 23 posts
Posted: Wednesday, July 19, 2017 - 09:09 PM UTC
I have started this kit too. Wonderful little thing and builds pretty quickly. I see that your grab bard handle over the right side door broke as mine did. I finally had to replace it with some Evergreen rod. I have question for the knowledgeable the on the AML 90, there appears to be a folded down rack on the back engine deck. Is is a storage rack that pivots back or some other kind of contraption?



vettejack
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Florida, United States
Joined: November 23, 2012
KitMaker: 1,277 posts
Armorama: 1,254 posts
Posted: Wednesday, July 19, 2017 - 10:07 PM UTC
If visual memory experience of the real vehicle serves me right, the kit should have 2 perforated steel plankings/tracks that are similar to Marston Mat, stored on the front of the vehicle. I never saw a vehicle with less than 2...at least on the AML's I carried around from conflict to conflict. I assume that was standard practice...no matter the country of use. Likewise, having only 1...perfectly ok in my book. However, the one they included in the kit, I fear, may be too 'thick' in it's scale rendering. Lets hope the aftermarket PE folks catches up with this vehicle real soon. The rack on the back...some of the vehicles I saw with it used it as a kind of 'luggage rack'. You can omit it from your build and be perfectly ok too. If there was a specific purpose/nomenclature for it, no body told me of it. For the most part, a majority of the AML's I've seen were not fitted with it. The storage bin on the back of the turret, again, I never saw any of the AML's with it. One could probably assume when Takom was in the design phase of this kit, the vehicle they had access to probably had all the features that now appear in the kit. Oh yea, don't forget ridding yourself of the sink marks under the fenders.... Nasty little buggers Takom should have taken care of.
vab75007
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Paris, France
Joined: January 13, 2014
KitMaker: 93 posts
Armorama: 92 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 02:36 AM UTC

Quoted Text

I have started this kit too. Wonderful little thing and builds pretty quickly. I see that your grab bard handle over the right side door broke as mine did. I finally had to replace it with some Evergreen rod. I have question for the knowledgeable the on the AML 90, there appears to be a folded down rack on the back engine deck. Is is a storage rack that pivots back or some other kind of contraption?



I just fixed my right handle with some glue
see:
vab75007
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Paris, France
Joined: January 13, 2014
KitMaker: 93 posts
Armorama: 92 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 02:37 AM UTC
Next step of my building





assembling the turret




turret and hull together

celt15
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Wales, United Kingdom
Joined: September 16, 2016
KitMaker: 95 posts
Armorama: 91 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 04:54 AM UTC
That looks like a very big gun for such a small car.Well tidy work so far.
vab75007
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Paris, France
Joined: January 13, 2014
KitMaker: 93 posts
Armorama: 92 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 12:24 PM UTC
yes this the main advantage of this vehicle: a big gun on a small car.
this is why it has been exported widely
vab75007
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Paris, France
Joined: January 13, 2014
KitMaker: 93 posts
Armorama: 92 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 12:24 PM UTC
I call it done


Maher_R
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Dubayy, United Arab Emirates
Joined: February 22, 2013
KitMaker: 46 posts
Armorama: 46 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 01:33 PM UTC
Nicely put together.. Good luck with the coloring, with all these details it will come a beauty!

Cheers,

Maher
canismalus
#465
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Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Joined: September 12, 2014
KitMaker: 398 posts
Armorama: 394 posts
Posted: Thursday, July 20, 2017 - 04:39 PM UTC
Nice build! I just got this kit last week as a relaxing build between builds, and iit's cool to see you get it together so adeptly - thanks a lot for posting.

Have you already chosen a paint scheme?

Jerry
vab75007
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Paris, France
Joined: January 13, 2014
KitMaker: 93 posts
Armorama: 92 posts
Posted: Friday, July 21, 2017 - 01:54 AM UTC
first layer is this:


and I think the final version will be something like that:

I already have the figures
bison126
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Correze, France
Joined: June 10, 2004
KitMaker: 5,329 posts
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Posted: Friday, July 21, 2017 - 03:03 PM UTC
Nice build but you should remove the turret bin as this was not a French feature.
Likewise, you could remove the round things on the front fenders. To my knowledge, they were only used on the AML 60.
Keep on the good work.

Olivier
vettejack
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Florida, United States
Joined: November 23, 2012
KitMaker: 1,277 posts
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Posted: Monday, July 24, 2017 - 06:05 PM UTC

Quoted Text

Nice build but you should remove the turret bin as this was not a French feature.
Likewise, you could remove the round things on the front fenders. To my knowledge, they were only used on the AML 60.
Keep on the good work.

Olivier



Agree...in the 15 years of sometimes carting these little jewels around the globe (Corsica with the 2nd Rep, France, all of Africa, Middle East, for example), I never once saw a 90 with a rear turret bin. Photographic evidence will surely reveal who, or what country, featured it, for your modeling pleasure.
Frenchy
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Rhone, France
Joined: December 02, 2002
KitMaker: 12,719 posts
Armorama: 12,507 posts
Posted: Monday, July 24, 2017 - 06:28 PM UTC

Quoted Text

Photographic evidence will surely reveal who, or what country, featured it, for your modeling pleasure.



Israel at least...







https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Latrun_-_Armored_Corps_Museum_P1100505_%285151950640%29.jpg

https://www.sayeretduchifat.org/blank-7

H.P.
dtniedert
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Kentucky, United States
Joined: December 11, 2014
KitMaker: 152 posts
Armorama: 139 posts
Posted: Monday, July 24, 2017 - 07:33 PM UTC
Damn I wish I knew about this and joined the 6 Day War Campaign. It appears they were in use for it. This is one of those vehicles that is so damn ugly that it is sexy. Especially with that guard(?)up front hiding the pinched nose.
bison126
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Correze, France
Joined: June 10, 2004
KitMaker: 5,329 posts
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Posted: Monday, July 24, 2017 - 08:02 PM UTC
Yes the turret bin was a IDF feature. Not sure of any other user.
One problem with the instructions is they don't give you the right clues for the optional parts.
canismalus
#465
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Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Joined: September 12, 2014
KitMaker: 398 posts
Armorama: 394 posts
Posted: Monday, July 24, 2017 - 11:00 PM UTC
Thanks, everybody, for the valuable information about the turret storage bin, etc. I had a question (if I might hijack this thread for a second, vab75007, sorry) about the one French Army paint scheme depicted in the painting instructions for the kit, namely, the one inspired by this photo:



I was just wondering in what regions the French Army used a scheme like this, or whether it was just something temporary for a maneuver/exercise. Of course, if someone knows exactly where/when this was taken and what unit this vehicle belonged to, that would be even better. Thanks!

Jerry
ReluctantRenegade
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Wien, Austria
Joined: March 09, 2016
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Posted: Monday, July 24, 2017 - 11:13 PM UTC
The Argentine version had apparently no turret bin neither.
bison126
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Correze, France
Joined: June 10, 2004
KitMaker: 5,329 posts
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Posted: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 - 12:28 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Thanks, everybody, for the valuable information about the turret storage bin, etc. I had a question (if I might hijack this thread for a second, vab75007, sorry) about the one French Army paint scheme depicted in the painting instructions for the kit, namely, the one inspired by this photo:



I was just wondering in what regions the French Army used a scheme like this, or whether it was just something temporary for a maneuver/exercise. Of course, if someone knows exactly where/when this was taken and what unit this vehicle belonged to, that would be even better. Thanks!

Jerry



Jerry this is not paint but mud. I guess the vehicle is in maneuver somewhere in the Champagne region where a lot of training camps are located.

Olivier
TonyE78
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Hordaland, Norway
Joined: October 28, 2012
KitMaker: 96 posts
Armorama: 96 posts
Posted: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 - 01:55 AM UTC

Quoted Text


I was just wondering in what regions the French Army used a scheme like this, or whether it was just something temporary for a maneuver/exercise. Of course, if someone knows exactly where/when this was taken and what unit this vehicle belonged to, that would be even better. Thanks!
Jerry



As Olivier C. said the light camouflage is actually mud painted on the vehicle as a sort of short therm camo scheme during manouvers. A different picture showing this vehicle and another AML90 says that they belong to a training squadron from the 12e DLB (12e Division Légère Blindée, so 12th Light Armoured Division, a training formation in peacetime), quite correctly in Champagne. This division had one regiment with 36 AML90s, the 3e Regiment de Chasseurs (active from 1981 to 1997).
canismalus
#465
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Nordrhein-Westfalen, Germany
Joined: September 12, 2014
KitMaker: 398 posts
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Posted: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 - 02:03 AM UTC
Olivier and Tony, thanks a lot! I was so entranced by this scheme's appearance in the kit instructions that it didn't occur to me...but since NATO (at least the Bundeswehr and the U.S. Army) vehicles during this period often had mud schemes during REFORGER, etc., it should have (occurred to me). And great to have the unit info and dates.

Jerry
hugohuertas
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Buenos Aires, Argentina
Joined: January 26, 2007
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Posted: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 - 03:00 AM UTC

Quoted Text

The Argentine version had apparently no turret bin neither.



That's right, they did not carry the turret bin, but the later actualizations included a rear turret basket.
Here a few pictures, I cannot recall the authors to give proper recognition.
For discussion purposes only:

EA AML 90

EA AML 90-b

EA AML 90-c
bison126
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Correze, France
Joined: June 10, 2004
KitMaker: 5,329 posts
Armorama: 5,204 posts
Posted: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 - 11:59 AM UTC

Quoted Text

As Olivier C. said the light camouflage is actually mud painted on the vehicle as a sort of short therm camo scheme during manouvers. A different picture showing this vehicle and another AML90 says that they belong to a training squadron from the 12e DLB (12e Division Légère Blindée, so 12th Light Armoured Division, a training formation in peacetime), quite correctly in Champagne. This division had one regiment with 36 AML90s, the 3e Regiment de Chasseurs (active from 1981 to 1997).



Impressive knowledge about this peculiar unit Tony
At that time, the French army had two light armored divisions composed of regular units which were supporting the branch schools, the 12th vicinity of Saumur (home of tank school) and the 14th vicinity of Montpellier (home of infantry school). The chore of the units was constituted by draftees and to reach the war establishment size, the students (officers and NCOs in training sessions) were used as augmentees.

Olivier
vab75007
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Paris, France
Joined: January 13, 2014
KitMaker: 93 posts
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Posted: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 - 02:33 PM UTC
Thanks all for your nice comments and I will definitely remove the rear bin from the turret of my AML.
retiredyank
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Arkansas, United States
Joined: June 29, 2009
KitMaker: 11,610 posts
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Posted: Tuesday, July 25, 2017 - 02:39 PM UTC
Nice build. The finish you wish to achieve is spot on Model Master OD. I don't have the specific shade number handy, though.
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