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Ryefield Challenger 2 TES

Build review of the 1/35 scale armor kit with easy-to-build individual-link tracks

Review of Upgrade Solutions PE set below
RELATED TOPICS: ARMOR
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Like most nations, the U.K. updates existing weapons whenever possible. The latest update to the Challenger 2 tank that has been around since the 1990s is the Challenger 2 TES (Theater Entry Standard) similar to the TUSK program fitted to US Abrams. TES consists of improved Chobham armor on the hull front and bottom and turret front and sides. Explosive Reactive Armor (ERA) is added to the hull and turret sides and slat armor added to the rear of the hull and turret. A remote-controlled weapon system fitted on the turret can be fitted with a 7.62mm or 12.7mm machine gun or a 12.7mm gun or 40mm grenade launcher if needed. The demo vehicle showing the TES fit-out is named Megatron. 

Molded in light gray plastic, Ryefield’s Challenger 2 TES features excellent detail. Unfortunately, a large number of ejector-pin marks as well as a bit of flash and heavy mold seam lines mark some parts. These don’t detract from the quality of the parts but require a bit more cleanup. The plastic slat armor highlights the molding quality but will require cleanup, too. 

A sheet of photo-etched metal (PE) provides screens for the rear deck, mounts for the slat armor, and several hull details. Vinyl polycaps allow the wheels to move; the same material supplies the mantlet cover and ammo belt for the remote machine gun. Clear plastic supplies vision blocks, head and taillights, and several turret sensors. 

A small decal sheet covers just the markings for Megatron. The large instruction booklet has good clear assembly diagrams and a couple of errors are addressed with a separate errata sheet. A color painting and markings diagram references colors from Ammo by Mig Jimenez. 

Starting with the four-piece main hull, the main suspension arms include torsion bars that attach to a central beam inside. But the arms themselves are keyed to a fixed position. 

The individual-link tracks are some of the easiest I’ve built, comprising an upper and lower pad that sandwich the connecting linkage. Jigs help with assembly. I found I could clean and build a full tree of links in about one hour. The instructions recommend 87 links per side but there are less than 174 links in the kit. I suspect they transposed the number and mean 78 per side. I used 79 per side on my kit and got a good fit. 

I built up the side armor pods but left them off until everything was painted. I didn’t care for the PE for the skirts. It only adds minor rivet detail to the top but is difficult to fold into the forward depression on the skirt.

The multipiece turret fits perfectly. The remote weapon station consists of more than 30 parts producing a detailed mini model. 

Several parts make up the main gun, but excellent fits make assembly a snap. While the gun’s design allows it to move, the vinyl mantlet cover pretty much locks it in position.

Both the commander’s and gunner’s hatches are posable and have basic detail inside. 

After painting, I noticed the turret rubbed a bit on the hull. I cut off the locating tabs from the turret ring so I could install it without turning. The turret still fits snugly inside the ring. 

I painted my Challenger overall with Tamiya NATO green. After a coat of Tamiya gloss clear, the decals were applied and responded well to the Microscale decal solutions. 

While adding the final details, one of the front marker lights fell victim to tweezer launch. So I scratchbuilt two new ones (so they would look the same). 

I spent about 27 hours on my Challenger (not including building and installing the update kit). I estimate if you just used the kit parts you would only add 2-5 hours to this build time. The finished model matched the dimensions I found on the Fighting Vehicles website and it really captures the look of the Challenger 2 TES vehicle. Any modeler with moderate experience should be able to handle this kit. It would make a good entry kit for trying your hand at individual-link tracks. 


Note: A version of this review appeared in the November 2020 issue.



Upgrade Solutions PE set

Kit:
No. 2001
Scale: 1/35
Mfr.: Ryefield Model
Price: $25
Comments: Photo-etched metal, 328 parts (1 plastic rod, 6 brass wires)
Pros: Adds scale fidelity
Cons: Assembly of rear hanging slat armor difficult 

Ryefield’s photo-etched metal (PE) upgrade set replaces all of the slat armor and includes parts for the hull louvered vents and the birdcage antenna for the turret antenna platform. Before starting, I went through the Challenger kit instructions and marked all of the changes.

I prefer to solder PE when possible to minimize the chance of parts coming apart. I used superglue to attach small rivets and bolts.

When building the hanger rack for the rear lower slat armor, I left off the small oval rings until the rack was on the model and I was actually adding the armor. I also added strip styrene into the slots on the rear hull plate to narrow the slots to better accommodate the thin brass bracket. 

I built a simple jig to help assemble the slat armor frames. Using a scrap of wood, I cut two right-angle grooves in the wood with a thin blade razor saw. This would hold the initial pieces of the frame at a right angle while soldering them together. Once they were together it was a simple matter of adding the various slats and soldering them in place. 

I wish there were separate assembly diagrams for the rear side pieces. Somehow, I installed the slat with the mounting blocks (parts B19 and B20) upside down. I suggest not attaching the angle brackets (parts A35 and A34) to the side hull panels until they and the upper rear panels are in place. Then you can adjust the bracket’s fit. The rest of the slats went together easily. I especially liked the jigs the kit provides for keeping the slats straight when building the panels that use wire for the verticals.

I have to admit I almost met my match when trying to assemble the lower rear armor — 12 small panels held together by oval rings swinging from a bar. I glued the rings on one end; this allows the panels to swing but kept the rings in their proper place. 

I spent almost 30 hours building and installing the upgrade kit, more than I spent on the base kit. You’ll need a lot of PE mojo to do the upgrade, but the results are worth it.

– John Plzak

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