Project:M2 Bradley

Alright its time for a new project. Finally got some time to start on my M2 Bradley. I probably have mentioned before, I purchased the Bradley together with the Merkava 1 tank and probably my last modern American armour I'll get(focus on Mid East Nations now on). It's by the company called Academy and the parts looks good unlike the one by MiniHobby(the plastic looks cheap). I had some prior experience with Academy product so I'm slightly more confident of its products. I guess it is as good as Tamiya stuff except the figure which comes with the model looks rather not up to 1/35 scale(looks like a Hobbit compared with Dragon figure models).

Anyway the most interesting portion of the construction is the interior part of the build. I have to cautiously airbrush the interior and make it almost just as good as the exterior. It looks rather cute having 7 small seats plus steering wheels for the driver complete with toolbox kits and all. That took twice the time to fix and paint as compared to my Merkava 1 but I guess it is well worth it considering it looks quite good when fully completed.

A different airbrushing technique
Before I started, I decide to go for a slightly more rugged and weathered look for my Bradley. This time round instead of totally covering the 1st layer of primer which was flat black, I lightly airbrushed with desert yellow and then applied a lighter shade of desert yellow for the 3 third layer and at all times letting the blacks show on the joints and seams of the model. That made the contrast and lines bolder and made the details of the whole model stand out better. After that I did some highlighting by adding about 70/30 white to desert yellow and painted lines in the corners with a small brush. When done, it looks weathered and pretty much the look that I had envisioned at the beginning of the project.

Ah yes! The decaling was next, though not much to do cause there seem to lack of symbols(no company or platoon number) provided in the package. Maybe need to steal a few from other models that I have. The last thing I did was drybrushing the tracks to make it look used in the desert environment.

The M2 Bradley is one of the latest IFV used the US army today in Iraq next to the LAV. It has ATGM(Anti-Tank-Guided-Missile) on the left side of its turret providing defensive capability against enemy MBT. However i dunno how that will help once the trophy system comes into service around the world. Although the Bradley is one of the pioneers in IFVs it is still vulnerable to ATGM weapons or road side bombs.

The Armour Revival

It's been many years since i last laid to rest a favourite pastime. And in that many years that had gone by, many things and changes have happened around the world( like wars and stuff) and one day i decided to research on what's been goin round in the middle east thru books and surfing the net, actually discovered many details that the common layman do not know about. So here I am learning history thru different accounts from different sides of the battlefield. It was until the advent of Lebanon war of August 2006, after the IDF(Israeli Defence Force) battered Southern Lebanon and at the same time seeing their most advanced tanks in the world blasted away by the Hezbollah on Youtube that made me finally made me come back to modelling(its all about details I guess). Hmm... the most advanced weaponry and army unable to overcome a small militia in this time and age...interesting. More like David versus Goliath(Jewish history) but ironically you have to reverse that equation (cause David is not on the side of the Jews). I became curious and ulimately hooked on armour in modern warfare eventually.


My first Project
The first thought on my mind was to find out more about the IDF MBT(Main Battle Tank) known as the Merkava. After seeing it in action on TV and internet, I decided to visit a local hobbyshop downtown. I picked up a 1/35 Merkava tank which reads Merkava Mk 2 with mine roller by a company called MiniHobby not knowing what to expect but because it cost just bout $20, I made the decision to get it as my first collection and study...wow. I also picked up a M2 Bradley along the way but I'll talk about it next time.

Disappointment and yet a Surprise...
Upon opening and admiring the new purchase out of the box, I checked out the Merkava with real pictures of IDF Merkava 2 on the net to see how close are the details with real stuff( you know what I discovered?). The supposedly Merkava Mk 2 is not actually a Merkava 2(that's the dissapointment part) it is actually a Merkava Mk 1 the first type of MBT that the IDF designed in their push to modernise their armour...well is'nt that a surprise. I got an earlier mark of the tank, I also realised that the company MiniHobby is a new China company and probably they are not interested in what the details are as long they make some money in their venture. Anyway the model looks good enuff although the small parts are very brittle(cheaper plastic I guess). After fixing I also discovered some parts are missing from the original box and certain things don't fit(like the mine roller). Eventually i decided not to fix the mine roller and replaced the 50 caliber machine gun handle from an old Hummer I had many years back. With some three layers of experimental airbrushing here you go.

I experimented with using diferent layers of colours for this project using 3 colours(black, Iraqi sand and desert yellow). Some drybrushing using metallic colours on the three MGs, some decaling and finally its done. I decided not to add highlights to keep track of which technique is best for future use. History lesson: The Merkava Mk1 was first used in the 1980 Lebanon war.

On with the next project!