AFV Club 1/35 105mm Whitzer M101A1 M2A2 Gun Crank Model

I'm about halfway through this build. It's a commission piece for compensation. It's not what I normally build....I build primarily tanks and other armored vehicles. I'm also not a stranger to comp!ex kits, having built modern and WWII armor from Meng, Dragon, Zvezda, Hobby Boss etc. This is my first AFVClub kit, and I agree with other reviewers in regard to the level of detail...It's amazing. What DID surprise me is the level of flash that has to cleaned from nearly every part. It's my understanding that this is a 2016 release and based on that I didn't really expect to be cleaning so much excess flash. What excerabates the flash is the tiny,TINY dimensions of the majority of parts in this kit. You really can't sand it off without losing detail. You need to carefully (and under magnification) trim it all off with a new blade. While this isn't a total deal breaker, it does turn completion of the kit into more of a tedious chore than a pleasure. My rating lost one star based on the flash.There are many moving parts in the kit, including a "spring within a spring" working recoil mechanism and a sliding barrel carraige. Care must be used to use cement sparingly to retain the movability of parts. Many assemblies lack locater pins or marks and care must be used for proper location, as only a tiny misjudgment will cause further subassemblies to be out of alignment. This is a model kit that should only be attempted by experienced modelers with a fairly high degree of skill. And I'll add ( based on reading hundreds of other reviews and questions from potential buyers ) that this ISN'T A TOY and paint and glue are required.IIf you're up to a challenge, this is your kit. If you're a casual modeller, I recommend sticking with Tamiya offerings. Happy modelling!

Pro: incredibly detailed, like building your own artillery piece.Con: not a casual enterprise to build.

On a quest to find everything I was on or in during my 2 years Army and this was item 7 of the 9. Very well detailed compared to another I did years ago. About 260 parts! I did not weather it much aside from wear marks in paint in a couple spots. Contrary to popular beliefs the howitzers in RVN were babied and cleaned and shown off by sections trying to one up the next section. As for muddy tires you can forget that too. Most march orders were done by air.Save your weathering stuff for the armor guys and SP arty. :)

looks awesome have not had time to assemble it yet

I haven't built this yet but looking at the sprues, I think this kit is even more detailed than my Tamiya kits, and i like them a lot.

I am looking for a bigger model, this one is nice. I am looking for a metal one. thank you your service is awesome.

Great product, quality product.

I was in a 105mm artillery battery (C-1-10) in the Marines in the mid 60's. I wanted a decent scale model of this gun for a long time and came across this model kit by AFV Club. This is an extremely accurate detailed model. It does require time, patience and a mid to high level of modeling expertise to assemble BUT the finished gun is well worth the effort. A truly eye catching piece that fits in well with my ever growing military display. AND, it comes with several variations of US and other countries decals. Left in it's olive drab color, using no decals, with minimal paint highlights it's perfect for a USMC reproduction!