Improving the ICM T28

The T-28 and the T-34 were the only two medium sized armours used by the URSS during the WWII. Obviously the differences between them, give to the T-28 a clear distant second position but in spite of this, is considered as a very interesting vehicle. The T-28, together with the T-35, the SMK, the Neubaufahrzeug and the British Independient, were part of the numerous so fashioned multi turret designs of the ‘30s. But no matter how impressive these giants seemed, they behaved in practice, as huge and slow to move bunkers, bad mounted and slightly armoured, that’s why it’s not strange that almost none T-28 would have survived the 1941 German invasion.

The kit
The ICM kit allows us to build two T-28 versions, that only differ just for the kind of cannon mounted on the main turret.
These tanks production was very reduced, with only 503 units built. The manufacture was largely manual and in small batches distributed along eight years (1933-1949), with just small differences between each other. According to the vehicle we have as reference, we’ll see some differences with respect to this kit.
ICM seem to have taken as model the one shown at the Central Army Museum in Moscow. The models displayed at the Kubinka and Parola Museums are lightly different.
The kit represents an initial sample, without shield added and with cylindrical turrets.

Two T-28 kits in 1/35 scale can be found, one manufactured by AER and the other by ICM (the one shown here). The AER’s has serious fit problems, while the ICM one can be qualified as superb.

Like we do before starting to build the ICM kits, we should have to clean up the parts in order to remove the rests of oil from the mould injection. I use to submerge and shake each sprue in a bowl with warm water and detergent, rinsing then with clean water. Before pouring the water out, be sure that none part would have come off the sprue.

Since the moment the box is opened, we can see that each part seems to be very well detailed, and when starting with the mounting , we can check that fit is perfect all around. My subject had the hull slightly twisted, but I could arrange it easily by adding to it a thick plastic bar as internal reinforcement, until I got it straight and square. Once this was solved, I just had to refer all my attention on improving certain simple details, let’s see them step by step.

A full article can be found here