Eagle Design 1/30 Panzer III (2 Viewers)

[ivanmoe]

Already released

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-30-ww2-Ge...700305?hash=item4b13152611:g:k94AAOSw4A5YvAvz

And a winter 1.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/1-30-ww2-Ge...707927?hash=item4b131543d7:g:NjEAAOSwTM5YvNKw

Deserving of its own thread perhaps?

-Moe

 

[ucla1967]

I ordered the Panzer Grey version on eBay on February 24th. It arrived on Friday, March 10th. I must say that I am more than pleased with it. The long barrel Panzer III in grey has always been a favorite of mine and I am glad I finally got one for my collection. It was very well packed and arrived without any broken parts or other issues. It was reasonable priced at $135 with free shipping from China. I am hoping that they will add some of the tanks that at not as commonly offered by other manufacturers such as the Panzer 38(t) or early war French, British, and Russian tanks.

Here is how it was packed after I threw away the brown cardboard outer shipping box.

 

[ucla1967]

Here it is out of the box with the last photo showing the hatches that open.

 

[katana]

Who made the comments? Can you provide a link?

I have read some comments elsewhere that this KT is similar to the CS one. Overall, the comments weren't very flattering.

 

[lancer]

Mike, that is a very nice looking tank. I can see why everyone is so enthusiastic about it. -- Al

 

[jazzeum]

You have to be a member to read comments so a link won't work. I will see if I can reproduce them here.

 

[katana]

The ED Panzer III looks far better than the TCS or K&C versions. The tracks, sprockets and bogies are far superior IMO.

Here it is out of the box with the last photo showing the hatches that open.

 

[jazzeum]

Here is one of the comments that is typical of the other comments:

"First impression is I am not overly impressed on this one.

It looks like a TCS King Tiger to me. Track detail and engine deck looks identical. Too large of a hull and too small of a turret to my eye too. The figure in the turret definitely looks like a TCS figure. The mudguards look better proportioned though.

The removeable hull and turret sections stand out and are completely unrealistic when in place. They don't even sit flush. Very poor looking.

Curious to see what scale this one will actually be. I'd give odds this is the TCS mold with the added interior detail features. Of all their tanks so far, this one looks the most pirated to my eye.

A bit disappointing to me personally, as a 1/30 Konigstiger with the detail of the ED Panzer III would have been much appreciated."

 

[Terp152]

Here it is out of the box with the last photo showing the hatches that open.

Mike, that's a very sharp/clean looking model. Looking fwd to my DAK arrival. I think this series at the price given will be a game changer. Like you, would like to see a whole range of releases. BTW, don't care what the HBF comments are.

There have been several hull numbers released (DAK version) and at the price, lends itself to dio possiblities. Chris

 

[DM101]

Here it is out of the box with the last photo showing the hatches that open.

1. Are the hatches metal ?

2. The hull looks like is plastic ?

3. How about the turret and guns ?



PS: The hatches does open - well that's {bravo}}

 

[katana]

I checked the Ebay posting again and per a previous comment the KT is not identified as an Eagle Design product. No manufacturer is mentioned and the KT is stated to be polystone. The measurements indicate it is over 1/28 scale, not 1/30 like the eagle design panzers. I will inquire who is the manufacturer. Very possibly the TSC or K&C mold is being used; as both are about the same size.

 

[ucla1967]

Mike, that is a very nice looking tank. I can see why everyone is so enthusiastic about it. -- Al

Al, it is a great looking tank. Since I display my AFVs in static displays rather than in dioramas, I prefer little to no weathering. Mike

 

[ucla1967]

Mike, that's a very sharp/clean looking model. Looking fwd to my DAK arrival. I think this series at the price given will be a game changer. Like you, would like to see a whole range of releases. BTW, don't care what the HBF comments are.

There have been several hull numbers released (DAK version) and at the price, lends itself to dio possiblities. Chris

Chris, the sharp/clean lines are what appealed to me, too. I don't like or collect polystone AFVs, so this resin model with some metal parts is right up my alley. I especially like the tracks, road wheels, and the like. The price is very reasonable; lets hope we see some more from them. Mike

 

[ucla1967]

1. Are the hatches metal ?

2. The hull looks like is plastic ?

3. How about the turret and guns ?



PS: The hatches does open - well that's {bravo}}

Although my degrees are in political science, history, general management, and marketing rather than materials engineering, I think the model is made of resin and not plastic; it is not made of polystone either. The hatches are also resin as are the turret and gun. The tracks and some other accessories are metal. The turret rotates but the gun is fixed.

 

[marthins2000]

Hello,

I got the camo version PZ III and it is quite good. The fenders are a bit too wide but the length is fine and it fits in well with its First Legion cousins. One little oddity in mine is that when the turret is in the standard straight ahead position it can come off because the that's where the holes to remove it are (usually they are 90 degrees opposite!) Thanks for posting the picture of the grey version. On Ebay is appears way too dark but glad to see it is not. I will order one of those soon. I just did place the order for this vendor's King Tiger (Ebay Item Number 322442700305). It looks pretty nice.

Steve

 

[katana]

The Polystone King Tigers were made for The Collectors Showcase and are the same scale as the TSC King Tigers, about 1/27. For reasons unknown the lot of KT's were rejected by TCS and are being sold off on Ebay. As noted in previous comments the fit of the removable panels showing the interior detail is not very good and this is probably the reason for rejection by TCS. Only Brian Levy would know the actual reason for rejection. The fit of the panels into the turret and hull does not seem any worse than the fit of the removable parts on the Figarti 1/32 Tiger I with the full interior detail. Polystone is prone to shrinkage in the mold and poor fitting removable panels/parts is the result. Polystone parts can be over or undersized. The percentage of filler material and the type of material can determine shrink rate.

A previous comment stated that resin is not plastic; this is a distinction without a difference IMO. Polystyrene, Polyurathane, Polycarbonate et. al. are all resins. Some resins are injection molded and are thermosetting i.e. Polystyrene. Some resins chemically react in a soft mold and solidify i.e. Polyurathane. Polystone is Polyurathane resin with fillers i.e. powdered metal, ceramic etc. All are considered Plastics; which is a generic term of reference.

 

[ivanmoe]

Although my degrees are in political science, history, general management, and marketing rather than materials engineering, I think the model is made of resin and not plastic; it is not made of polystone either. The hatches are also resin as are the turret and gun. The tracks and some other accessories are metal. The turret rotates but the gun is fixed.

There's one other workable part on the model, the radio antenna. Although somewhat difficult to coax out of its tray, the part can be raised and lowered. However, it's probably better not to exercise the hinge too much for fear of compromising the resin. If nothing else, the shaft will loosen over time and not want to remain in place as it does when new.

As a collection of parts, the model really is quite nice. Priced as a limited production, resin kit, in an odd scale, I'd expect to pay at least $100 for it. Throw in the metal parts and paint/assembly, and, again, it looks a REAL bargain.

The finished product is not without its vices, BTW. To my mind, these appear attributable to some roughly cast parts, very typical of resin kits, and somewhat sloppy assembly. The former could be addressed with more careful attention to parts cleanup and preparation prior to assembly. The latter issue is a simple matter of slowing down and making sure that everything is "square" before the glue is dry. Both sets of measures would raise the cost of the finished product.

One interesting possibility for the model would involve it being released in kit form. This would be terrific for anyone who wants to see this ED replica reach its full potential. However, I suspect that a lot of newbs would be shocked by how much trouble resin can be to work with. Separating the parts from their pour blocks can be something of a chore in itself. Hah, the more I think about it, the happier I am with the finished model!

-Moe

 

[ucla1967]

Hello,

I got the camo version PZ III and it is quite good. The fenders are a bit too wide but the length is fine and it fits in well with its First Legion cousins. One little oddity in mine is that when the turret is in the standard straight ahead position it can come off because the that's where the holes to remove it are (usually they are 90 degrees opposite!) Thanks for posting the picture of the grey version. On Ebay is appears way too dark but glad to see it is not. I will order one of those soon. I just did place the order for this vendor's King Tiger (Ebay Item Number 322442700305). It looks pretty nice.

Steve

Steve, the two notches in the turret ring on my model are at about 2 o'clock and 8 o'clock. You can see them in my earlier post. Mike

 

[ucla1967]

The Polystone King Tigers were made for The Collectors Showcase and are the same scale as the TSC King Tigers, about 1/27. For reasons unknown the lot of KT's were rejected by TCS and are being sold off on Ebay. As noted in previous comments the fit of the removable panels showing the interior detail is not very good and this is probably the reason for rejection by TCS. Only Brian Levy would know the actual reason for rejection. The fit of the panels into the turret and hull does not seem any worse than the fit of the removable parts on the Figarti 1/32 Tiger I with the full interior detail. Polystone is prone to shrinkage in the mold and poor fitting removable panels/parts is the result. Polystone parts can be over or undersized. The percentage of filler material and the type of material can determine shrink rate.

A previous comment stated that resin is not plastic; this is a distinction without a difference IMO. Polystyrene, Polyurathane, Polycarbonate et. al. are all resins. Some resins are injection molded and are thermosetting i.e. Polystyrene. Some resins chemically react in a soft mold and solidify i.e. Polyurathane. Polystone is Polyurathane resin with fillers i.e. powdered metal, ceramic etc. All are considered Plastics; which is a generic term of reference.

Well, I warned you that I know more about the social sciences and business than material. I wasn't aware that plastic and resin were the same. I think of plastic to be more like that found in the model airplane kits I use to glue together back in the 1950s.

 

[ivanmoe]

I wasn't aware that plastic and resin were the same. I think of plastic to be more like that found in the model airplane kits I use to glue together back in the 1950s.

Mike, EVERYONE who read the post understood EXACTLY what you were talking about. For that matter, vendors who sell model kits use the terms to categorize their wares exactly the way that you do. If you were wrong, so are they.

-Moe