UM? Sounds like something
I'd come up with. I need an identity for my company. Now
let me think, what would make a good company name? Ummmm....
Hey!
I heard absolutely nothing about the imminent release
of this kit which is odd because the rumour mill is usually
rampant with, well... rumours, about upcoming kits. This
is a new company, which would explain why I've never heard
of them before, and the box boldly states that the kit
is made "With assistance of IBG, Poland". Ahhh....
Nope. Never heard of them either. This, I'm told, is UM's
first release in spite of the fact that it says "No.
301" on the box. Wonder what happened to the previous
300?
So having heard nothing about the existence of this kit
I was surprised to stumble across it in the new arrivals
section of the Hannants
website. The BT family of tanks has always been high on
my want list in 1/72 scale but I never thought I'd actually
see an injection moulded one. Ever the optimist, I hoped
for the best but feared the worst as I placed my order.
Fortunately, my fears turned out to be completely unwarranted
- this is a fantastic kit.
Surely you know the drill by now.
The flash free parts are
crisply moulded and exhibit fine detail. The wheels and
link & length tracks are very nice indeed, my only
complaint here being that the tracks are moulded flat
with just engraved lines representing what should be prominently
ridged hinges. Highlighting the hinges during the painting
stage may help this a bit or if it really bothers you
can leave the tracks off and model it in its wheeled configuration.
The large teeth on the inner track surfaces are very well
done. Spring detail is moulded on the inner hull walls
but most of this will disappear once the outer section
goes on.
There is nice rivet detail on the hull but none on the
turret which is correct for some BT-5s - some did have
rivetted turrets so check your references if you feel
the need. The turret hatches are moulded closed but the
driver's hatch is a seperate piece. There is no interior
included.
A small fret of photo etch is a nice bonus and this has
parts for the engine deck screen, rear fenders, tow hooks,
and intake covers.
The
Marking options are for one Spanish civil war and three
Russian BT-5s.
Instructions are in Ukrainian, English (sort of), German
and Polish but the 13 construction steps are easy to understand
exploded diagrams and there is a parts map - the latter
being a bit superfluous really as all the parts are numbered
on the sprues, but hey, it's de rigueur to have a parts
map these days isn't it?
A full build of this will appear as soon as I finish off
my Revell Cromwell (finished!)
and I'll be able to comment on fit and scale dimensions
then.
Not the most inexpensive kit around at £8.99 but,
based on first impressions, highly recommended.
The
Marking options are for one Spanish civil war and three
Russian BT-5s. 
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