Nam '68: Major Malfunction

Next up for the project was working on Rubicon Models M48A3, just released which was perfect timing I quickly ordered one and it arrived this week. Friday evening saw me sat back watching the Weekender and assembling the kit and it was an absolute pleasure to build.

The kit has a number of options, allowing you to build the M48A3 or the M67A2 Zippo variant, includes an the option of the mantle and search light with or without canvas cover and presents a few options for the commander’s copula / mini turret, which can be with or without MG. All of which is great for Vietnam were using the AK Armour book as reference it really depends on the crew and unit how its configured.

Overall, despite the level of detail the kit was relatively simple to assemble, the only real tricky part being the crew figures, which would really benefit from keying on their arms to get them in the right position easier. The sprues where well throughout and organized with clear labels and the instructions as always for Rubicon where excellent, with clear parts and options marked. It would perhaps be nice to have had a few stowage items included but the sprues where pretty full and I’m sure “rubi gear” kits will be available in the future.

Rubicon use ABS for their plastic kit’s so you’ll need a glue that works with it, your usual Poly Cement won’t work. Rubicon sell and recommend Plastic Magic and since I started using it its quickly become my go to for all plastic kits as it works great giving a quick and solid bond. As a bonus there’s minimal odour to it too!

The track assembly on the M48 is a really nice single piece and much easier to assemble than the m113, though less detailed as it reflects the real life simplicity and rubber tracks.

One of the great benefits of building Rubicon’s slightly more detailed kits is you can learn quite a bit about a vehicle during the process. Despite being pretty familiar with the M48 from film and photos you really gain an appreciation of the size and scale when building the kit. It also lets you realise that despite its huge appearance the actual hull is quite slim, with the track and guards making up quite a bit of its imposing appearance!