Introduction:
DEF Model produces an amazing array of resin wheels in various scales, designed to replace soft vinyl tires usually supplied with plastic kits. The company has three resin replacement wheel sets for 1/35 scale HEMTT kit in their catalog: two of them feature Michelin tires, while the third offering depicts Goodyear AT-2A tire instead.
Review:
M977 HEMTT Goodyear AT2A Sagged Wheel Set (DW35133) is packed in a nicely designed cardboard box, providing all the essential info on the box art image. The image depicts HEMTT model with DEF wheels installed, specifies the set fits Italeri and Trumpeter kit, and that it contains 13 resin pieces as well as wheel masking sheet.
The box contains a large plastic bag with resin pieces, masking sheets and masking instruction leaflet.
The resin parts include 8 road wheels, a spare wheel and 4 adapters.
I inspected the pieces and was impressed with the quality of the resin cast. I found no imperfections in the resin, with the details sharp and superbly defined. The magnification nicely shows the high level of details on these 1/35 scale DEF Model wheels.
The casting blocks should be very easy to remove. As with all DEF Model wheel sets, the blocks are attached to the bottom of the road wheels, at the ground contact, minimizing the chance of damaging the detail during the cleanup process or leaving a visible “scar” once the wheels are installed on the vehicle. The casting block on the spare tire is designed with several attachment points which follow the tire tread. A careful cleanup should preserve the tread pattern.
The tire represented in this set is Goodyear AT-2A 16.00R20, an off-road tire optimized for military and all-wheel drive vehicles. The dimensions of the tire are 1323 x 434 mm (52.1 x 17.1 in) with the approved rim width of 254 mm (10 in).
I used on-line references to compare the DEF Model 1/35 scale tire to the real Goodyear AT-2A, and found a really good match. The characteristic tire tread is realistically delivered, together with the sidewall embossed details and lettering. The inscriptions GOODYEAR, AT-2A, UNISTEEL and the tiny 16.00R20 are well defined and can be easily identified under magnification. The bolt pattern on the rims, the hubs… all the details are nicely reproduced. Finally, the DEF Model tire is sized to 37,50 x 11,70 mm which makes it about half a millimeter smaller in width than the real tire.
Front tire:
Rear tire:
Spare tire:
The road wheels are depicted with a slight sag at the tire ground contact. The effect realistically conveys the tire compression due to the weight of the vehicle.
This set includes 2 slightly different front road wheels (labeled A and B) and 2 slightly different rear road wheels (C and D), two each. These wheel variants are differently oriented regarding the tire ground contact compression, as well as the sidewall embossing, which ensures the wheels fitted to the same side of the vehicle do not look identical and repetitive, adding to the realism of the model.
Front wheels:
Rear wheels:
Fitting the wheels:
This wheel set is designed to fit both Italeri and Trumpeter models. The set is a direct wheel replacement for Italeri model. However, if used with the Trumpeter model, the rear wheels need a specific adapter supplied in the DEF Model set. Image on DEF website could provide some help: link.
Wheel masks:
Five pre-cut masking sheets are included in this kit. The masks are of help when painting the wheels, allowing airbrushing without overspray. The instruction leaflet shows two different ways of applying the masks and painting the wheels.
Conclusion:
M977 HEMTT Goodyear AT2A Sagged Wheel Set (DW35133) from DEF Model delivers 8 road wheels and a spare tire designed to upgrade 1/35 scale HEMTT models from Italeri and Trumpeter. The wheels are perfectly cast with loads of details impressively delivered in resin. The road wheels are depicted with a slight compression at ground contact and offered in slightly different orientations, so the model doesn’t end up with all four wheels on one side looking the same. The wheel masks are an extra bonus.
Altogether, I can highly recommend this set for anyone wishing to improve their HEMTT model.
A big thanks to DEF Model for this review sample.