Dave W's Dragon 1/35 M3A1

[Dave Ward]

I was intending to do the Eastern Express Zis Half Track. Looking in the box, I decided that I really didn't need that sort of grief, when I have a much more suitable model in the stash:
This is courtesy of John in Quebec ( Wotan ), who generously donated this - again many thanks!!
I blogged the Dragon M4 Mortar carrier in April, the running gear is the same, so hopefully, I won't have any problems ( famous last words! )
I'll start this when I finish the ICM Spitfire, or Koenig.................
Dave

 

[Gern]

Welcome aboard Dave. Pity you've changed your mind about the Zis. My tiny fire engine version is turning out to be a bit of a pig and I was hoping to use yours to show me what the chassis should look like! Still - a nice alternative choice.

 

[Dave Ward]

Welcome aboard Dave. Pity you've changed your mind about the Zis. My tiny fire engine version is turning out to be a bit of a pig and I was hoping to use yours to show me what the chassis should look like! Still - a nice alternative choice.

The main problem with the EE model was the crude mouldings & the large attachment points - I didn't feel like hand fitting every part & the rubber tracks are pretty dire!
Dave

 

[Jim R]

One of the few (only?) non German half tracks. Lets hope the instructions are decent.

 

[Jakko]

One of the few (only?) non German half tracks.

TBH, there’s not that much choice: German, American, French, Russian half-tracked lorries, and something like this:



I’m sure there are more, but not that much, and especially very little you can just build from a kit.

 

[Dave Ward]

Not sure when the first real half-track was produced, but Citroen were one of the pioneers!

Citroen Type-B 1922

1930 Citroen-Kegresse

Dave

 

[Mikerf]

One of the Scottish shooting estates near me had a Kegresse that they used to take sporting 'gentlemen' up to the butts.

 

[Steve Jones]

Not sure when the first real half-track was produced, but Citroen were one of the pioneers!

Well! Thats my next scratch building project sorted Great photo Dave

 

[Allen Dewire]

A nice choice Dave and good that you have experience with the Dragon destructions from your other build. Should be a breeze for you this time Sir...Nice pics of the Citroen 1/2 tracks.

If you don't mind, here is one I found from Germany in 1914. Not sure if one could classify it as a true 1/2 track, but the idea was there at the time,


and in 1916 with the same vehicle from Bremer, a bit modified and built in Berlin,


Now this would make for an interesting scratch build!!!....Any takers???................Sorry for the intrusion Dave......

Prost
Allen

 

[The Smythe Meister]

Love these half tracks Dave,
I'm doing the much older Tamiya version,so It'll be interesting to see this much better detailed and more recent tooling quality come together

 

[Dave Ward]

Rough sprue shots - the battery low warning was blinking......................


Loads of sprues - the Dragon instructions look the normal confusing muddle of options, you can make the M3, the M3A1 & the M3A2 - main differences being roller or winch at the front & the 50 calibre pulpit mounting. Finish options are Olive Drab, or Olive Drab!
I do have the Voyager PE set.............

There 7 A4 sheets of instructions - some of the parts will definitely not be used - the tiny parts especially & some of the larger parts. like the replacement doors ( bottom fret ), don't seem to give any improvement in appearance. The moulded cab floor has a textured pattern, the Voyager part to replace it looks pretty much the same! It will be very much assessing each part & whether it adds anything to the model.
Dave

 

[Dave Ward]

I'll put up a few detail shots tomorrow - the camera batteries on charge. I'll compare the kit parts with the PE & you can see which is better!
Dave

 

[Jakko]

Voyager looks like it suffers from the same delusion as Eduard: more parts = better, even if it replaces perfectly adequate plastic parts by less convincing etched ones.

By the way, you say the kit makes the M3, M3A1 or M3A2. The latter never went into production: it was intended as an improved vehicle, to replace the M3A1 in production by late 1944 or so, but all halftrack production was halted before then because there were enough around already for the foreseeable rest of the war. The only M3A2s (and corresponding M5A2s) built were pilot vehicles, according to R.P. Hunnicutt.

This didn’t stop Tamiya making a kit of it, of course

 

[Dave Ward]

Voyager looks like it suffers from the same delusion as Eduard: more parts = better, even if it replaces perfectly adequate plastic parts by less convincing etched ones.

By the way, you say the kit makes the M3, M3A1 or M3A2. The latter never went into production: it was intended as an improved vehicle, to replace the M3A1 in production by late 1944 or so, but all halftrack production was halted before then because there were enough around already for the foreseeable rest of the war. The only M3A2s (and corresponding M5A2s) built were pilot vehicles, according to R.P. Hunnicutt.

This didn’t stop Tamiya making a kit of it, of course

I'm intending to do the M3A1 - it has that big winch on the front - which looks better than the roller & you have to use that big M2 m.g. mount!
Dave

 

[Jakko]

I’m not 100% sure, but I think the M3A1 could be found with either a roller or a winch, but the M3 (that doesn’t have the ring mount for the machine gun) would be unlikely to have the latter.

 

[Gern]

Considering the number of single-part assemblies - the tracks, cabin and rear floors etc - Dragon still seem to have outdone themselves with the parts count!

 

[Dave Ward]

With Dragon 1/35 models, you always have loads of bits left over - the spares box will be topped up!
Dave

 

[Dave Ward]

A few detail shots, then some comparison between kit parts & PE 'enhancements'

As usual, with Dragon, the parts are cleanly moulded - mine racks & the halves of the tracks - the M3 tracks never sagged in operation.

The kit part for the cab floor:

The Voyager replacement:

To get the PE to sit right,you'd have to sand off the existing detail..............
Door parts, plastic & front armoured visor

And the PE parts

There are PE rivets & hinges on the frets - but nope!
The Plastic 50 cal m.g. mount

And the flatpack PE version ( there are two pages of instruction for this )
Hmmm

Plastic 30 cal m.g. mounts

and the PE versions
As I said in a previous post, the use of the PE will be on feasibility ( too small! ), and if they add anything to the model. There are some parts that will be used, the instrument panel & dial film. The engine has a few PE detail parts, like a cooling fan, but the bonnet will be closed - so no point!
The instructions are typically Dragon, confusing and 'busy' & need several readings to sort out the bits for the various options.
The basic chassis and running gear is the same as the M4 mortar carrier I did earlier in the year, so hopefully I won't have any problems with basic construction. Dragon supply a single driver figure - who will look a little lonely, so it's either finding him some company, or leaving him out - I'll have to look in the spares box................
Dave

 

[Jakko]

To be honest, if this were my model, I think I would sell the etched sets on to someone crazier more dedicated than me

 

[Dave Ward]

I think I would sell the etched sets on

can't really do that, as the whole package was a donation....................

Dave