So I finally got the Bradley from Zvezda via PSC. I've already seen this on other blogs and some of early observations concerned me that the vehicle was a much later variant and not great for the 1986 / Mid 1980's.
Well I had a plan in mind of what I could do to make it suit my purposes....
Frankly I love this model, it's easy to convert, easy to change, adaptable. Okay it's a bit more expensive, but for me I'll pay the extra because I can convert it much more easily.
Key things I did to change it :-
1. Cut off the rear Turret rear cage and stowage to make the turret cleaner. Filed it a fair bit and removed some bits I didn't like.
2. Cut the side armour skirts in half, reduced and cut the front end. Then built a thin strip of plastic-card ready to build Green Stuff over it.
3. Rebuilt the TOW Launcher to be "Up, ready to fire".
4. Cut off the Barrel and then drilled it out and put a Brass Barrel in.
5. Cleaned up the rest of the model, and then added some stowages and packages.
On top of this, you might notice that I've swapped out the Barrel for a turned Brass one. I've got another big post on this for later next week as the Barrels are often weak or easily broken on 15mm Models so I've decided to invest in them and I'm going to make them available to anyone who wants them as cheap as possible as I am ordering them in large numbers. They look great and mean your models will be playable for longer.
Some extra's and additional storage.
EDIT - Post a discussion in the Comments below with Arrigo "the Crazy" about Bradley's and the various mk's I realised I made a mistake in removing the turret bustle....No big deal, but it irked me so I approximated the following :-
It's not perfect, but in future I won't remove the bustle...*whoops - over zealous knife wielding*.
Many thanks to Arrigo for helping out and pointing out something I'd missed. I love this community, adults being adults on the Internet it's such a refreshing change from the rest of the internet.
Fantastic work with the barrels. And I'm really impressed with the look of the Bradley - a real step up from the Abrams!
ReplyDeleteCouldn't agree more with your Abrams comment. The Barrels I bought so it was just a case of getting out the good ol' Pin Vice and use the right size drill bit.
DeleteLooks like a usefull kit. Nice conversions.
ReplyDeleteBig question... why cutting the turret bin? Only the prototype and the pre-production batch tested in US were without it. The production samples sent in Germany had it (albeit the A0 and A1 had it slightly different).
ReplyDeleteI had a look in Book I've got and it had pictures of the early ones without, is there a definite reference for the A1? If so I'll gladly change it in future, this is a test bed so I can live with one being wrong. Have you got any good sites on the Bradley because most I have found talk about M2 and M3, not the earlier marks. Interested to see, so I can make the changes.
DeleteFrom the book I've got the M2A1 didn't enter service till 1986 (the year this ruleset is set in) and believed the turret was like so..
ReplyDeletehttp://www.army-guide.com/images/bradley-m2a1_woeirowe1.jpg
http://t3.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcRii5T9Pr0OooulpFvaYL2lTj81NZg2OmChgPX6OdFEXnt_gH1hYg
I maybe completely wrong, but if you've got some info, if you could share it, you'd be a bit of a hero and get youself a special mention in the new rules as one of my Proof readers and Historical buffs. ;) Mike
Sorry for the delay... I have dug out both Zaloga and Hunnicut. The pictures of the turret without the rear bustle are in Hunnicut always associated to original prototypes (T-BAT-II, Hunnicut p. 282). The XM2 (original prototype) had the turret bustle from its mock up (p.284). You can see the bustle even in the vehicles painted in MRDC camo during test in the US. As far production is concerned: first production delivered in May 1981, the A1 variant prototypes were delivered in 1984. Block I production vehicles were deployed in Europe from 1986onward as you said, but there is no visible difference between the M2A0 and M2A1. The Bustle is a different from the A2 bing tapered toward the top rather than straight as in the A2 (and kit), but without the bustle the turret looks weird. The A2 model appeared in 1987 as prototype and production started in 1988. Yet, to make your life easier... some late production A1 had the same bustle than the A2.
ReplyDeleteyour pictures are correct but you got tricked by the turret bustle... it is still there but the shape is different, still you do not see the basic turret like in your model. Here is a good drawing showing the trick:
http://www.armyrecognition.com/images/stories/north_america/united_states/light_armoured/bradley_m2/Bradley_M2_tracked_armoured_infantry_fighting_vehicle_United_States_US_American_Army_line_drawing_blueprint_001.jpg
If you have other questions I have the full set of Hunnicut books on US AFV... (do not ask how I got them...)
Ah I see, it is there but not obvious, thanks for that. I'll remove the Packs and build out a bigger bustle using Plasticard. Many thanks, that was a really informative post!
DeleteNice gun. Is it a Combat Wombat one ?
ReplyDeleteYes and no, it comes from the same supplier.
Delete