Takom – 5022 – M60A1 w/ERA & M60A3

Description:

M60A1 w/ERA & M60A3

Unassembled plastic model kits in 1/72 scale of the M60A1 and M60A3, both are variants of the M60 Patton series, which was a main battle tank used by the United States during the Cold War. While they share a common lineage, there are differences between the two variants, primarily in terms of their upgrades and improvements.

M60A1 Patton was introduced in the early 1960s and served as an upgrade to the original M60, was armed with a 105mm M68 rifled gun and featured an improved fire control system compared to the original M60.

M60A3 was introduced as an upgrade to the M60 series and was developed in the late 1970s, also equipped with the 105mm M68 rifled gun but featured a thermal sleeve on the gun to reduce barrel distortion caused by temperature variations. Equipped with the M21 ballistic computer, laser rangefinder, and thermal imaging for the gunner was a great improvement in the fire control versus previous variants.

Some of the M60A1 deployed by the U.S. Marine Corps were upgraded with Explosive Reactive Armor (ERA), and with this configuration saw action during the Gulf War in 1991. This was the last operation in U.S. service, starting its retirement just after the war, and completed during 90s from National Guard units. It was common to see them also loading a bulldozer kit not includes in this scale model.

M60 series was widely produced and exported to both NATO allies or other countries, in particular in the middle east.

Takom kit offers two full kits, one for each variant, both models share most of the parts, there are 5 (five) common sprues one for each kit (2x), and one exclusive sprue for each model, including the gun and some details, and the ERA parts in the case of the M60A1. Tracks are link and length type. All the parts are well casted without flash or defects and kit is well engineered. Turret hatches can be open, but main hull hatch is molded closed in the hull part. ERA blocks are not individual but arrays of blocks with same configuration deployed by the USMC (U.S. Marine Corps). Kit also includes a small PE (Photo Etched) sheet and wire for the tow cable.

Kit also includes decal sheet with 4 markings, including two for the U.S. Marine Corps during the Desert Storm operation (Gulf War 1991).