Soviet T-100 Heavy Tank

Ron Garcia
The T-100 is an unusual, big early war Soviet tank. Like the SMK, I've liked this tank since hearing about it while reading about the Winter War. The kit doesn't fall into place as easily as Takom's comparable SMK, but it's still a fast build.

Lots of individual track links but nothing difficult. I ended up with only two links to spare and that's with no sag. The PE is reasonable with no bending required. The upper hull is spartan so after the running gear and tracks, the kit goes quickly.

A did have some very small gaps in places where the upper hull meets the lower hull. A tiny bead of putty quickly took care of that. The mantlets on both turrets also needed a small swipe of putty on one side of them.

Speaking of the mantlets, the instructions are deceptive. They show parts J5 and J3 for the upper and parts F8 and G8 for the lower going through the front of the hole in the turret. No way. They have to be installed from the inside. Furthermore, if you can get part G8 into the holes of the two part F8s and then install it into the turret, you have earned my respect. The upper turret is big enough so there is some play; impossible for the lower one. I had to cut the back ends of the two holes on parts F8 so they were like the letter C, install them and then slip part G8 into them afterwards and cement it into place.

Also note there is a projection (MG?) on parts J3 and G8. The one on J3 snapped off as soon as I tried to move the part to see if it would elevate. The one on G8 did not line up with the hole on part F4. An easy fix, I cemented both in the respective holes after attaching J4 and F4.

One other tricky spot was the attachment of parts F5 and F6. The fit is very tight. After much dry fitting, I used my liquid cement as a lubricant to firmly push both pieces into place. Not difficult, but like I said, tricky.

The above comments may sound like the kit has issues, but really, it is an easy build. Those are just things I thought I'd point out for your build. I liked the kit and it looks nice sitting next to my SMK. If you're looking for something out of the ordinary tankwise, this kit is for you. Recommended.