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In-Box Review
135
French AMX-30B MTB upgrade set
Voyager Model Modern French AMX-30B MTB Basic PE 35549
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by: Jim [ TEAKER11 ]

introduction

The Main Battle Tank AMX-30B has seen service in France, Saudi Arabian and Qatari, and actually fought in the 1991 Gulf War. The tank was equipped with 105mm main gun, and a 20mm auto cannon. Meng Models has recently released a 1/35th kit version, and now Voyager has made a PE set to complement the Meng release.

the contents

In the box you will find:

3 sheets of Photo Etch
2 lengths of copper wire for tow cables
4 brass tubes for smoke ejectors
2 different sizes of plastic rod and
1 small piece of wire along with
3 pages front and back of instructions.

the review

After building the lower portion of the kit, I was disappointed that the engine screens were molded-on, and various parts were bulky. Along came this PE set from Voyager that had all the detail parts that were needed to push this otherwise great model to a show stopper.

This PE set covers new clamps and brackets, a cover for the mufflers, screens and covers with hinges for the back engine cover, complete brackets for the spare fuel tanks and brackets for the pioneering tools. New metal brackets for the lights that replace the single-molded ones supplied with the driver's periscope have been replaced with 3 multi-folded periscopes. All the heavy-molded brackets for the pioneer tools have new, more realistic ones. There are many more parts that I can list, but they are mostly brackets and tie-down points along the hull.

Tow cables are made with wire with functioning clamps, plus there are headlight brackets, hinges for the hatches, and new prisms for the drivers compartment. You also get numerous brackets for all of the different items that are installed on the hull.

For the turret, there is a new shield for the main gun, doors for the sight, brackets for the barrel cleaning rods, and tie-down brackets for storage. Last to mention are the smoke ejectors. There are also PE painting stencils for the road wheels. I also want to mention there is a Voyager Modern French AMX-30B MBT gun barrel (part #PEVBS0172).

conclusion

This is a great PE set that will complement the Meng AMX-30B, as well as the lower hull of the Meng AUF1 155 mm SPG. It will greatly add to your build, and it is also an affordable set of PE with a large amount of parts. The build instructions are excellent, guiding your clearly through building the sub-assemblies and removing plastic parts to be replaced by brass ones.

This set is being used in a Build Log found Here.

Click here for additional images for this review.

SUMMARY
Highs: The kit fills in all the small details that make a great model a show stopper.
Lows: Small parts that have to be put together before installing on the tank. The machine gun on the turret hatch should have been addressed.
Verdict: With time you can really supercharge your build with this set, but its not one that can be done in a day.
Percentage Rating
85%
  Scale: 1:35
  Mfg. ID: PE 35549
  Suggested Retail: $19.98
  Related Link: Voyager Model
  PUBLISHED: Mar 16, 2013
  NATIONALITY: France
NETWORK-WIDE AVERAGE RATINGS
  THIS REVIEWER: 83.33%
  MAKER/PUBLISHER: 87.70%

About Jim (Teaker11)
FROM: CALIFORNIA, UNITED STATES

I started Modeling when I was 10 , Airplanes as I lived in the flight line of WPAFB and started my first Model railroad. Through the years I have Built and flowen RC airplanes, helicopters, cars , boats and I still fall back on modeling. I now build Soviet armor Cold war era and all countries of Tru...

Copyright ©2021 text by Jim [ TEAKER11 ]. All rights reserved.



   
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