Kit: No. 32519
Scale: 1/48
Manufacturer: Tamiya, from Tamiya America, 800-826-4922
Price: $26
Comments: Injection-molded, 245 parts (8 vinyl, 1 cast-metal, 3 metal screws), decals
Pros: Accurate shapes, good detail for the scale, poly-cap gun mounts
Cons: Hull sponsons have no floors so track can be seen through open turret
Tamiya continues to expand its line of 1/48 scale World War II armor with this new M10 tank destroyer.
Tamiya's M10 inherits the cast-metal lower hull from the previous M4 Sherman kit. The plastic "link-and-length" tracks and bogie units are also from the M4. Tamiya has accounted for the differences in the M10 by providing a new cast-style transmission housing and a different exhaust system for the diesel engine. Also included are a new set of stamped-style bogie wheels and spoked idler wheels. Packs, tarps, fuel cans, and oil drums are bonus parts. No crew figures are provided.
I had no problems with the suspension. The new stamped wheels are nicely molded on the front but have no detail on the back.
The upper hull took the biggest chunk of assembly time. Adding the separately molded bolts to the hull sides was tedious. All the tools are molded separately, and the hull hatches can be positioned open.
Care needs to be exercised when installing the ammo racks to the hull interior. If not aligned properly they will interfere with the turret race. I moved the right-side grouser rack (B26) rearward on the hull to match a photo of the vehicle I was modeling. This exposed the location of two more hull bolts, but luckily the kit comes with two extra bolts!
Since the hull side sponsons have no "floors," the track can be seen through the open-top turret. Next time I'll make floors with sheet styrene. The turret goes together smoothly, and the interior detail has a comprehensive gun assembly, boxes and ammo racks, and seats. Poly caps installed in the gun mount allow the weapon to be elevated easily. The twopiece main-gun barrel captures the proper tapered profile.
I painted my M10 with a combination of Tamiya acrylics and spray lacquers. Markings are given for three U.S. Army vehicles serving in Europe. The decals are well done and went on perfectly over a gloss undercoat.
My primary reference was Squadron/ Signal's Armor Walk Around Number 3 - US Tank Destroyers. I also found Harry Yeide's book, The Tank Killers, useful as it had a photo of the vehicle I chose to build.
I completed my model in a quick 14 hours. It was fun to build and had the right amount of detail for the scale.
- Jim Zeske