This time, I am going to make the PT-76 amphibious vehicle of the Soviet Army. It’s a Trumpeter kit from pretty old years ago.
I am starting with the assembly of the rolling wheels as usual. The rolling wheel looks like a pressed metal plate and it doesn’t look very sturdy. It’s an amphibious vehicle, so I think it’s designed to be more lightweight than sturdiness.
There are two big holes in the underside of the tank. Probably related to equipment for water-navigation. Like inhaling water and hitting a screw?
There are two ducts in the chassis that may be related to water flow. I think this area will be almost invisible if the upper part of the tank body is bonded, but there are parts just in case.
The etched parts are almost used up. The headlight guard is complicated and difficult to assemble.
(2025/01/31)
I think this will be a must-have item for modelers who like connecting tracks. The rubber belt track looks a bit shabby, so this separately sold track track will be more realistic if available. If they included this at the beginning, I wouldn’t have to look for it.
First of all, it is hard to pick out runners. I am working steadily with the goal of separating them all.
Assembling the connecting track is more painful than I imagined. It’s just a matter of gluing two guides to the track, but it’s a lot. It’s also very small, so if you’re good with precision tweezers, you won’t have much trouble. Even so, it would be better to divide it into several days because it would be too monotonous and tiresome to do this assembly all day. The two guides to be bonded are very small, but they have a curved surface, and they narrow slightly toward the tip, which I think is well reproduced.
Is that all? Isn’t that a bit small?
It is an inset type, so it seems to move a little after it is assembled. But like any movable type of this type, it comes off easily. In the end, it’s easier to line them up like a Magic Track, It’s easier to roll it all around with pouring glue.
(2025/02/03)
I was able to wrap the tracks on one side without problems. When I thought I made the space between the pieces a little too tight, it turned out to be as follows…
I had a bad feeling, and as expected, the number of pieces on one of the tracks was not enough. I felt like I consumed strangely on the other side. By the way, it would be nice if they added 10 more pieces. I had no choice, so I cut a little from the rubber caterpillar and added it. The color is completely different now, so it’s obvious, but I think it will probably be less noticeable.
When I glued the chassis to the top of the tank, I noticed that some parts of the front of the AFV were missing. I think it’s the round cylindrical part of the hinge. I think it’s better to fix it with a stretched runner or something as it is 3 places.
It’s a turret assembly. Unlike the Merkava, this turret is small and doesn’t have many parts, so it will be ready soon.
The towing rope that is attached to the kit is cotton yarn, so it can’t be helped because it gets fluffy. I think it will be easier to paint and glue later to change to thread rather than nylon.
(2025/02/06)
I forgot to take photos right after the assembly and started the painting process. I have primed it with black.
This time, it is a vehicle with a white cross sign that identifies friend or foe from an aircraft. First of all, I airbrushed the white band a little thicker.
Basic painting was done. It blends Russian green of Cleos and dark green of German fighter.
When I removed the masking seal, the white band was not painted properly. There are sticking out and soaking in various places. I have to retouch with a brush later.
Decals are attached and detailed painting is done. This time it’s a Naval Infantry of the Soviet Army. This Navy Infantry seems to be a traditional unit that has been around since 1700. The unit mark on this AFV looks rather plain.
Valentine’s Day is close, so my wife bought me some chocolate. These days I prefer simple ones like Lindor round ones rather than fancy ones. In other words, the price of these things seems to be going up tremendously due to the rising price of goods, and gift events like these are also on the decline.
Anyway, I’ll put the thankfully received chocolate in the refrigerator and eat it on the 14th. Well, I usually eat it with my wife.
(2025/02/11)
“The PT-76B under making has been completed. The Soviet Army had been developing amphibious combat vehicles since before World War II, and as expected, it was an army deployed in a terrain that involved many large rivers. The first amphibious vehicles were equipped with only machine guns, but the PT-76 developed after the war is a 48 caliber 76.2 mm tank gun, an improvement on the 41.5 caliber 76.2 mm tank gun used in the T-34 medium tank.
In addition to howitzers and armor-piercing bullets, this gun was capable of firing HEATs (molded explosives) with an armor-piercing force of about 100 mm, and it can be said that it had a reasonable anti-tank capability at the time.”
From 1951 to 1967, a total of 12,000 PT-76 amphibious light tanks were produced for domestic use and export. A total of 10,000 PT-76 units were deployed to the Soviet Army and Navy infantry units, and 2,000 units were exported to more than a dozen countries including Vietnam, Indonesia, Iraq, and Afghanistan. The PT-76 amphibious light tank has extensive combat experience and has been used in conflict zones around the world, including the Vietnam War and conflicts in the Middle East and Africa.
This time, the markings are for the Naval Infantry. I stuck big white troop mark decals on the left, right and back. After basic painting, weathering is done lightly. I usually don’t use chipping on AFVs other than WWII, but since it’s a single green tank, I did a little chipping to make it a little different.
There are three crew, the driver, the captain, and the loaders. It’s a large vehicle, so I thought it could carry a squad like an infantry fighting vehicle. But the inside is full of shells and amphibious systems, so there seems to be no room for infantry room.
The PT-76 amphibious light tank was also used in the war in Ukraine. Both Ukrainian and Russian forces operate these tanks, and especially on the Ukrainian side, the PT-76 also appears on the battlefield as part of a large arsenal of weapons made by the former Soviet Union. Because the PT-76B has amphibious characteristics, its ability to cross rivers and lakes allows it to operate favorably in certain terrain. However, the armor and firepower are inferior to modern tanks, so they are mostly used for supporting roles. For reconnaissance and transportation of personnel. Maybe it was better than nothing now.
I looked to see what the difference was between PT-76 and PT-76B, and found that a stabilizer was added. Has this improved the accuracy of shooting somewhat? The counter reaction of a light tank with a large anti-tank gun will be very strong.
I thought it would be more realistic to put one of the figures on it than just a tank, so I put my own figure on it. I think it is an Evolution resin figure for T-72. Khaki combat uniforms are common for Russian tank soldiers these days, but since they were tank soldiers just after the WWII, I thought black tank uniforms would probably suit them and painted them that way. It’s a resin figure. It’s easier to paint the face than injection. Maybe because the mold around the eyes is easy to recognize.
The number of parts is rather small, but not as small as Trumpeter’s KV series. The turret also had quite small parts.
Also, the etched parts on the front headlight guard are thin and very realistic. But the assembly was complicated.
It was hard to mask the white band. And the white of the naval infantry unit mark decal is quite weak. It is more natural to match the color of the belt, so I retouched it a little with a brush. I don’t think it feels so strange after weathering.
This is an amphibious vehicle that I started to make because I was wondering what Trumpeter’s separately sold connecting tracks would be like. The number of frames is probably on the limit, so those who make it should be careful. But if you don’t have enough, you can recover to a certain extent by cutting out the rubber caterpillar like me, so don’t throw them away too quickly.
(2025/02/13)
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