QUOTE: Originally posted by phroosh
Thanks again for the comments people!
I settled the dilemma in an interesting way. I bought the Tamiya production Turret kit for my apprentice for his 21st birthday. I chose it because he likes the Henschel turret, which Dragon are yet to release in Oz, and seeing that he has only just started modelling, Tamiya's famous fit and the one piece tracks will be of minimum discouragement. He is finishing off his first kit, Italeris Chaffee and the fit and nasty tracks bummed him out a bit. OOB, I think he will get more from Tamiya.
I, on the other hand, am going to go with Dragon's Porsche Turret, as I prefer the turret shape, and like Dragon's value, with their PE screens and indy tracks, for less$. We plan on building them side by side to compare and contrast!
Really appreciated the input on this one. And I always love a Zimmerit joke, too.
Matt
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Sorry to come in late Matt, but the DML KT Henschel Turret
is available in Oz - I bought mine for AUD $50 7 weeks ago and my LHS still has 3 in stock. I have not built it yet. I see no probs with the track links that a quick swipe with the exacto and brush with scotchbrite wont fix.
This time DML have included the tow cables, by way of end loops and separate nylon thread, that they usually don't give you. The track replacing cables look okay and the sprue attachment points are on the hull fittings not the cable, keeping the twinned detail unblemished (unlike some of Tamiya's efforts.)
The DML kit has rudimentary Breech block detail, but full interior turret hatch details for both top hatches and the rear loading hatch. You will see little through the hatches anyway.
The independantly moulded Torsion bar arms and indy links allow you to build a vehicle on uneven ground if you want.
I don't have the Tamiya one (only the very first 70's era version that I use as a test base for different techniques) but at AUD $80 for the KT with a few figures and motorbike, plus needing to spend money on mesh grills, well I can't see the value compared to DML's. I use stock plastic figures as, in my humble opinion, paying AUD $20 for a single resin or metal figure to go on a Tank dio is overkill. There are plenty of figure kits around and one AUD$12 DML kit will fill all 4 hatches or you can spread them out amongst a couple of kits. In fact you can get Tamiya's 3 figure "Otto Carius' Tiger figures for AUD $9 if you want.
Hope this has confused you enough.