Years ago if we wanted to play modern wargames we could field a massive American Army with M48, M60, M60A1, M60A2 and even M1 Abrams tanks, and M113 and Bradley fighting vehicles, but the Warsaw Pact / Soviet forces were pretty slim. About our only choices were $30 each for a Trident lead vehicle if you could find them or the Roco T54. So I have about a zillion T54 since they had to face a very strong American force when they come through the miniature Fulda Gap.
Then a Hero Of The Hobby arrived, by the name of Robert Petner, founder of Petners Panzers. He made an HO injection molded T72. Later, another company, Armourtec, made an HO scale T62. Unfortunantely, Armourtec did not last and Robert Petner purchased their old stock and their mold. Robert spent thousands of dollars on an upgrade to the Armourtec T62 and made it into a much more accurate kit. While rummaging through his stuff recently, Robert found a box of those old T62 and gave them away for the price of postage. I managed to get a few of them from him. They came in a big cardboard box, with drawings on it to simulate a wooden shipping crate.
I got my box last Friday and put everything aside to build T62s. Each kit is ten parts and that came to over 200 pieces. The kits are nearly finished now and I am very happy. Robert Petner is a great guy and has given a tremendous boost to our hobby by making both the T72 and his upgraded T62 HO scale, 1/87 tanks.
This drawing was on the side of the package, showing the completed model, and the simulated wood grain of the cardboard crate.
My worktable shows two dozen T62s with the parts laid out and trimmed off the sprues. The white plastic boxes on the left hold the machine guns, snorkel, hatches, and searchlights. I trimmed all the parts off the sprue and assembled all the kits together, after doing one for practice. Two dozen tank kits in three days is fast, instant Soviet Army!
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