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Armor/AFV: Vietnam
All things Vietnam
Hosted by Darren Baker
M55 Self Propelled Howitzer
mertox
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Mississippi, United States
Joined: April 15, 2019
KitMaker: 39 posts
Armorama: 39 posts
Posted: Monday, April 22, 2019 - 01:06 PM UTC
The classic Revell/Renwal M55 8-inch Howitzer. A pretty fun build, expanded on the basic interior that came with the kit.


Printed map on the inside of the door and the skulls were printed and applied to look like the crew mounted a plaque of them.


Lots of red dirt and dust in Vietnam, so I wanted to show that. I thought it was a nice idea to add the "hotel royal" sign to the back, some humor by soldiers in an otherwise humorlous situation.






What proper Vietnam crew wouldn't have a pinup and some beer on hand? Manuals and mags in the shelf.




More red dirt for the scoop. I painted the water cans blue, but blue should be for keroseen, which I didn't realize at the time. Oh well, live and learn.


I love how a lot of old Renwal armor includes an engine. They are simple and redimentary, but it is a nice touch added at a time when extras weren't a common concept in models. I used some small guage black wire to make engine hoses.


The interior of this kit is pretty plain, so I did add some extras to try and make it a little more lively. I have seen some people do better, but what I did does make it come to life a bit.


An old kit for sure, made at a time when interiors and engines typically weren't a thing for model AFV kits. With even a small amount of work, it can be made to look really nice. And it is a topic that is rarely broached in armor kits, so if you are into SPGs and Vietnam era AFVs that are rarely looked at, this should be a welcome addition to your collection.
alchemymike
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Texas, United States
Joined: December 14, 2011
KitMaker: 208 posts
Armorama: 192 posts
Posted: Monday, April 22, 2019 - 04:09 PM UTC
love this build....I have an old original one that I have in line to build.... wish that AFV Club, Bronco would issue on of these
mertox
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Mississippi, United States
Joined: April 15, 2019
KitMaker: 39 posts
Armorama: 39 posts
Posted: Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - 10:39 AM UTC

Quoted Text

love this build....I have an old original one that I have in line to build.... wish that AFV Club, Bronco would issue on of these



It could be cool to see a modern offering of this. It is a pretty unique looking SPG for the modern era. It really had the feel of the 50's when everything was designed with the "go big or go home" attitude!
BootsDMS
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England - South West, United Kingdom
Joined: February 08, 2012
KitMaker: 978 posts
Armorama: 965 posts
Posted: Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - 11:30 AM UTC
I believe Elite Models of Germany do one of these in 1:35 in resin.
PzAufkl
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Germany
Joined: October 24, 2009
KitMaker: 104 posts
Armorama: 103 posts
Posted: Tuesday, April 23, 2019 - 09:28 PM UTC

Quoted Text

I believe Elite Models of Germany do one of these in 1:35 in resin.



Yes, they do: Art.Nr. 3578, at €140, but it has no turret interior. [www.elitemodell.de/elite/bundeswehr/3578]
Peter
Cheyenne56a
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Rhode Island, United States
Joined: February 10, 2010
KitMaker: 56 posts
Armorama: 42 posts
Posted: Saturday, April 27, 2019 - 08:29 AM UTC
Check out Mil-Mod.com. This modeler accurized his M-55 and wrote up how he did it. Amazing
bat_213
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Canada
Joined: January 07, 2019
KitMaker: 110 posts
Armorama: 95 posts
Posted: Wednesday, February 12, 2020 - 12:19 PM UTC
I like the old kits,but the new ones are real nice.
PzAufkl
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Germany
Joined: October 24, 2009
KitMaker: 104 posts
Armorama: 103 posts
Posted: Monday, February 17, 2020 - 08:40 AM UTC

Quoted Text

Check out Mil-Mod.com. This modeler accurized his M-55 and wrote up how he did it. Amazing



Another attempt at making a model of this kit:
linkname
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