Introduction:
Aside from the M1 Abrams, perhaps no other armored vehicles represented the US Army more than the High Mobility Multipurpose Wheeled Vehicle (HMMWV, Humvee) family of vehicles.
The HMMWV is well represented in the modeling world as well, with numerous vehicle variants produced in different scales. In 1/35 scale, the best plastic kits come from Tamiya, Bronco and Academy. DEF Model produces resin replacement wheels for these HMMWVs, offering superior details and accuracy to vinyl/plastic wheels supplied in the kit. This review covers US M1114 HMMWV MT Sagged Wheel Set (DW35151).
Review:
The set comes safely packed in a small cardboard box. The box features an image that shows a single resin wheel from this set installed on an assembled model. To avoid any confusion, the image also states the set contains 5 resin parts and masking seal.
Opening the box reveals the contents: a zip-lock bag with resin pieces, masking sheets and masking instruction leaflet.
The set includes 5 parts cast in grey resin: 4 road wheels and a spare wheel. I inspected the pieces and was very impressed with the cast… there are no imperfections in the resin or any kind of casting defects. The details look really good and well defined.
The casting blocks are located on the bottom of the road wheels and should prove very easy to remove using side cutters, a sharp blade and some sandpaper. Moreover, as the blocks are attached at tire ground contact, any mishaps during the cleanup will not be visible after the wheels are installed on the model.
The set depicts HMMWV wheels sporting Goodyear Wrangler MT 37x12.5R16.5 tire on 12 bolt rims. Wrangler MT was used on military Humvees from late 1990s and, although Goodyear received HMMWV fitment approval for its new Wrangler MT/R in 2007, the MT was still in use during the 2010s. Normally, the tire was installed on the vehicle so that when looking from the front, one side will face one direction and the other will face the other.
The Wrangler MT has a diameter of 36.6" (930 mm) and a width of 12.4" (315 mm) and is mounted on a 16.5" rim.
After gathering references of the real tire, I inspected its DEF Model counterpart in 1/35 scale. The complex tire tread pattern is nicely reproduced and, as far as I can tell, looks authentic. The sidewall details are superbly delivered and correspond perfectly to the embossing of the real tire, with the inscriptions clearly identifiable under high magnification. Very impressive! The rims look the part as well, with the 12 long bolts perfectly defined. The hubcaps, different for front and back wheels, are also nicely delivered.
The 1/35 scale tire is sized to 27 mm (diameter) and 8,9 mm (width), which means they are slightly larger in diameter than the real tire… although I’m not sure the 0,4 mm difference is noticeable to an untrained eye.
The road wheels in this set include 2 front wheels (labeled on their carrier blocks as “A”) and 2 rear wheels (labeled as “B”). The front and rear wheels are slightly different, not just because of the specific front/rear hubcaps, but also due to the orientation of the tire compression and sidewall details. This slight variation ensures the wheels fitted to the same side of the vehicle do not look identical, adding to the realism of the finished model.
As suggested in the title of the set, the road wheels are depicted with a slight sag. I feel the effect is not overpronounced and that it realistically conveys compression of the tire at the ground contact due to the weight of the vehicle.
The set also includes a spare wheel, which is mounted on the tail gate spare tire carrier.
Fitting the wheels:
This set of resin wheels is designed as a direct replacement for plastic wheels supplied with the Tamiya (M1025/M1046), Bronco (M1114) and Academy (M1151) kits. I fitted the DEF offering to the Tamiya and Academy models with no modifications required, just by inserting the wheel pin into the axle opening. As I don’t have the Bronco Humvee in my stash, I can’t comment on the fit of the DEF wheels to that particular kit.
Wheel masks:
Three identical pre-cut masking sheets are included in this kit. The masks are of help when painting the wheels, allowing airbrushing without overspray. Also included is the instruction leaflet which shows two different ways of applying the masks and painting the wheels.
Conclusion:
If you stumbled upon this review, you probably have a 1/35 scale Humvee kit in your stash and wonder if it is worth investing in aftermarket wheel sets to upgrade your model. I was once in your shoes… Back in 2011, I was building my Tamiya M1025 and wasn’t satisfied with the tires supplied with the kit. I found DEF Model, then a modeling company with no serious track record, decided to bite the bullet and order their resin HMMWV replacement wheel set. After being thoroughly impressed with the set, witnessing first-hand how superior in detail resin wheels are to the ones included in the kit and how much of an improvement to the model they offer, I never looked back. Ever since 2011, all of my wheeled vehicle models sport DEF Model resin replacement wheels.
Today, DEF Model has four different aftermarket Humvee wheel sets designed to upgrade Tamiya, Bronco and Academy kits. All of these sets are reviewed on Armorama and all of them present a huge improvement over the vinyl/plastic wheels supplied with the original kits.
US M1114 HMMWV MT Sagged Wheel Set (DW35151) delivers resin replacement wheels for 1/35 scale Tamiya, Bronco or Academy’s HMMWV kits. The set includes 4 road wheels and a spare wheel, perfectly cast in resin and featuring superbly defined and accurate details, making these wheels an authentic miniature replica of the real thing.
Highly recommended.
A big thanks to DEF Model for this review sample.