M1A2 SEP Abrams TUSK II Conversion Set - 1:35

[Mike]

M1A2 SEP Abrams TUSK II Conversion Set
1:35 Legend Productions

The Dragon Abrams kit is widely acknowledged to be the best injection moulded kit in this scale, and the kits have recently been re-released after a long hiatus where they were commanding high prices on eBay. This set isn't new, but Legend were kind enough to let us have a sample, and it has regained relevance now that the kit has been re-released.

The TUSK II was the second phase of the Tank Urban Survival Kit that applied to the Abrams tank in light of experiences in Afghanistan and Iraq. It adds a shaped keel to the underside to direct the blast from IEDs away from the crew compartment, plus reactive armour on the sides to protect the tracks and turret area, protective shields for the loader and commander's hatches, and a remotely operated coaxially mounted 0.50cal machine gun on the barrel.

The Kit
Arriving in a flat card box with a large picture of the finished item on the front and opening flap, this is standard Legend fare. A box bulging with resin, Photo-Etch (PE) brass and all the sundry parts you'll need to complete the job. I wish other producers of aftermarket would include the styrene rod or wire needed for the details. Inside the resin bag are 33 blocks of three each of the curved shield-like reactive armour blocks, 33 more casting blocks containing other parts, and four large pieces that make up the keel and the explosive portion of the reactive armour blocks. There are two frets of PE brass, three blocks of 1mm thick clear sheet (with protective film on both sides), a coil of thin copper wire and two lengths of thicker brass wire. The instruction sheet is double-sided A4 in full colour, using pictures with annotation to detail the build.

The Explosive Reactive Armour (ERA) blocks on the hull are all moulded into one part per side, which glues over the kit side-skirts after the front section is replaced by a more in-scale PE section, and PE detail strips are added to the top of the skirting. Angled shields are fitted front and rear of each skirt to protect the sides of the blocks, and the shield-shaped sections are then added after removing the moulding horns that are moulded into each one to reduce the likelihood of bubbles in the corner. Photos show how the blocks should look in place, and how they interface with the "stop-ends". The blocks on the sides of the turret are adjusted by adding thin shims from your own stocks of 0.5mm to four blocks and 1mm styrene sheet to another eight - which couldn't be expected to be included in the box in fairness due to wastage. Each piece should be 1.5mm wide and 8mm long, so getting hold of some Evergreen or Plastruct strip of the correct thickness and width would make the job much quicker. They are added to a frame of PE with resin stand-off sections, which gives them a slightly curved profile when viewed from above.

The belly armour is pretty straight-forward, although you will need to remove the rectangular moulding blocks running along the surface, which shouldn't be too taxing due to them being on a flat featureless surface. The front section has a bow-like profile which fits 7mm from the front of the flat kit belly, and should be added first so that the rear panel is correctly positioned.

The rest of the set relates to the turret and the protective panels that shroud the crew so that they can use their close-action light weapons whilst under fire with less likelihood of catching a round. The commander has a larger shroud around his cupola, which is made from a three-panel section wrapping round the right side, and a two-plus-one section to the left. Each facet of the panels has a bullet-resistant glass panel within, for which the 1mm clear sheet is provided. The sizing of the sections are measured from the PE frames that are folded around the glazing and then glued to resin panels, all of which have holes in the lower portion so that they don't obstruct the view from the vision blocks in the cupola. The single panel has no window, and instead has a single oval hole for a vision block. The commander's gun is given a PE gun-shield with more bullet-resistant panels for improved sighting. A hand-held light is holstered on the right of his gun on an adjustable mount, with a coiled cable leading away through the hatch.

The loader's protection isn't quite as complete, relying on his hatch to the rear, plus two panels, a low-level bullet splash-screen and the resin gun-shield on his L249, which has holes for glazing moulded in. His weapon is also equipped with a resin sight, and a coiled cable for power. To his right the protection is purely based on his commander's panels, so he is a little more exposed. The new centre-mounted remote-controlled .50cal is included in the set, as is the armoured cable ducting from a place just forward of the commander's cupola. The gun is moulded in two parts with the modern short cooling jacket and separate barrel, which has a slight depression in the muzzle that could be opened up to improve the look. The mount and ammo box are also resin parts, and a loud-speaker is positioned to the right, presumably to deter potential combatants from making probably the last mistake of their lives.

Conclusion
This is a very comprehensive set and mixes resin and PE to great effect, making the shield parts more detailed on the rear, which can still be seen on some blocks when installed. The photo instructions are very helpful with construction, and the included wire is useful because it's not always simple to procure for the average modeller. The styrene strip needed to shim out the turret blocks isn't in the box, but it's not so difficult to find at your local model shop or online. If I were to consider using this set against a full PE set from another manufacturer, I'd give this one preference due to the fact that you don't have to roll out the 99 shield pieces individually. That's a lot of work avoided. There's still a lot of work involved, but the results will be well worth it, and for us average modellers, the shields will be much more uniform.

Highly recommended.

Review sample courtesy of