Char B1 bis Preview	Tamiya , 1/35 scale
by Steve Zaloga

Description

I received a test-shot of the Tamiya Char B1 bis last week for a forthcoming review article in Military Modelling magazine. It is a splendid kit and a lot of fun to build. I did a scale plan of the Char B1 bis many years ago based on measurements of the Bovington vehicle, and a quick comparison showed it to be spot on.

I made a few minor changes like swapping a Hornet head for the kit crew figure and some small detail improvements. I did my own markings as I wanted to depict a tank from the 41e BCC at the battle of Stonne in 1940, but the kit comes with decals for at least four French tanks.

The tracks are a change for Tamiya as they are individual link. However, they come pre-cut-ready-to-assemble in a little bag and are an incredible bit of molding technology. I snapped together both sets in about 10 minutes after a bit of clean-up.

Click here to see Steve's earlier images and impressions of Tamiya's forthcoming 1/35 scale Char B1 bis kit from the Paris Model Show