Monday, 28 January 2013

Starship Troopers

Don M's recent post on the M-60A2 'Starship', and our subsequent exchange of comments led me to dig out my 1/300 scale 'A2s.  Do look at Don's post - it features a US Army film of the A2 rather in the style of a car advert.
I always rather liked the A2 - an M-60 with a new turret toting a 152mm gun/missile launcher - due to it's 1970s wackiness and short service life.  It always struck me as a really heavy Sheridan...  Such is my fondness for such silliness that I'd love to see a 1/300 (or 1/285) model of MBT-70 - a cancelled US/West German MBT project which was to have been tooled up with a 183mm gun/missile launcher.  Hopefully Andy at Heroics & Ros is reading this....  
I found a clip of MBT-70 here.  It seems the projected costs made the subsequent XM-1 look like something of a bargain!
My current models are all by Heroics & Ros and date from the early 1980s.  They're bearing up well.  GHQ did an A2 many years ago, but it has never been updated or re-released.  I think I have a few somewhere in dire need of a refit.
A US tank battalion with three companies of M-60A2 and a Scout Platoon of M-113ACAV (the ACAV is a Skytrex model).
Another similar battalion with slightly different paint treatment.  The M-113 is an H&R model.
 

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18 comments:

  1. David Crook28 January 2013 at 11:38

    Hi Tim,

    I used to field those with my 1/300th 1980's US battlegroup with the Combat Commander Rules from Navwar.

    Great looking pieces of kit - if fact I also used them for Sci-Fi action as as well with a suitably lurid paint scheme.

    All the best,

    DC

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  2. Ross Mac rmacfa@gmail.com28 January 2013 at 12:32

    Hmm The M60A2 entered US service the same year as I did Canadian service and was phased out the same year I was.

    Coincidence?

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  3. Tim Gow28 January 2013 at 15:07

    David Crook
    My own lurid paint schemes are my poor efforts at MERDC camo.

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  4. Tim Gow28 January 2013 at 15:08

    Ross Mac
    Well, at least one of you was technically flawed, obsolete and too expensive....

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  5. ian drury28 January 2013 at 19:07

    And I don't think the thing actually worked, if I remember correctly. On the other hand I've just bought my first Heroics & Ros AFVs since, er, the late 70s, and they look very good indeed.

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  6. Anonymous28 January 2013 at 20:23

    Back in the day I one of my M60s had a broken(miscast?) barrel just at the end of the bore evacuator, so... Voilà! an M60A2.

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  7. Don M28 January 2013 at 21:57

    LOL, yeah it's your fault Ross!
    That's OK I was field about the same time but do to bargain basement pricing I was allowed to stay...)

    Very nice looking starships Tim.

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  8. Tim Gow28 January 2013 at 22:19

    Ian Drury
    That just adds to its appeal! The new H&R models are very nice indeed.

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  9. Tim Gow28 January 2013 at 22:20

    SAROE
    In the same manner I ended up with a Panzer IV F1 after someone stood on my F2....

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  10. Tim Gow28 January 2013 at 22:22

    Don M
    Thanks for reminding me about them!

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  11. Milgeek29 January 2013 at 15:23

    LOL - and you said my 1/144 Me109 was 'bloody small'! :D

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  12. Bill29 January 2013 at 17:19

    That's my old POS ride, was very happy to leave that unit and get back into the standard M60A1! The
    only thing good about that crappy
    idea was everyone in the turret had
    their own hatch. The gun would blow the electrics so you couldn't fire the missile again before a major maintenance overhaul, it was an idea ahead of the technology.

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  13. Erhntly29 January 2013 at 18:12

    very nice job for 1/300th scale :)

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  14. Tim Gow29 January 2013 at 20:58

    Stephen Beat
    Hey, these are big tanks!

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  15. Tim Gow29 January 2013 at 21:00

    Bill
    Thanks for the 'insiders view' - I'll bet not many of my readers have see the inside of one of these!

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  16. Tim Gow29 January 2013 at 21:01

    Erhntly
    Thanks - they may be small, but I've got plenty of them!

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  17. Archduke Piccolo29 January 2013 at 22:57

    Not really my scale, but you do make these look good, and interesting as well.

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  18. Tim Gow30 January 2013 at 08:12

    Archduke Piccolo
    I'm glad you like it - I do have rather a lot in this scale!

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