Reviews : Academy M113A1 Armoured Personnel Carrier

First this kit is outdated, and it shows. But nothing that a little work can not fix. First thing to do is throw out the tracks, both link and length and rubber. Your much better off getting after market parts. Second find better decals, the ones with the kit are very hard to work with. The build is straight forward. You get a basic interior, leaving you the choice to open all the hatches. I built only the drivers station and left that hatch open. You can build this kit into a few different variations, Royal Australian, U.S. M113A1 & ROK Army, ROK Army version and last but not least the U.S M113A1 ACAV. I choose the ACAV. As it seemed to be the most interesting of them. This model does not take long to build, leaving you with ample time to dress it up with field gear (see first 11 photos) The kit also comes with a fair amount of extra gear to put on the model.(the only reason I gave it a 4 star rating) It really is not a bad kit per say, just there is not much else out there for M113 models. All in all it is an important kit as far as the Vietnam war goes and armor modelers should have a M113 in their collection. So build away, it is worth the little extra work needed with this kit.

Great kit! Better than the Tamiya in my opinion. It’s more detailed. Comes with a complete correct diesel engine and engine compartment. I also comes with correct type troop benches and cargo hatch bumps on top of the track that the cargo hatch rest upon and the correct type of 90 gallon fuel tank inside the troop compartment . I drove one and then later on commanded one. It’s a great reliable vehicle, lots of space inside the troop compartment though a bit outdated. The few things that drive me nuts about modelers that they don’t really do research on this vehicle like actually look at it. Lots of modelers don’t realize beneath the rear mud guard above the tracks and wheel there is a curved piece there that prevents mud and debris from getting stuck up there. Also, lots of modelers forget to add the wire grill wire above the engine grill deck and other little features like MG mount chains that can bring realist touches to the kit. Sorry but, I’ve built a ton of these type of kits over my lifetime and I just feel this a great kit to build. I haven’t built the one from AFV Clib yet so, we’ll see

This was a fun build. No problems with fit. There is a wide range of options to choose. Scratch built a few items to add life to the scene. Good build.