Italeri's 1/72 Matilda Mk. II
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Matilda Mk. II
As stated on the side-panel of the kit box, the Matilda Mk. II was derived
from the smaller and less armored Mk. I. The Mk. II went into service
in 1938. It was armed with a 40mm main gun with a coaxial machine gun.
The cast armor to which it was made was impervious to any tank gun up
until the German 88mm took place on the battle field. The Matilda was
widely used in North Africa until the Battle of El Alamein. It was later
replaced by more modern tanks including the arrival of the M3 Lee / Grant
tanks.
The Kit
We welcome back one of the old ESCI kits that has been reissued by Italeri.
The Matilda Mk. II kit is one of the better ones from that line of small
scale armor kits. This time around the boxart is unique in that it shows
a Matilda in an unusual camo-scheme used in Malta and Greece. This broken
pattern resembles the stone walls that were prominent along the roads
there. That would be tempting to do but could be a challenge to execute.
On the back to the box there are color plates of three Matildas for painting
and decal placement. This will help you when you are ready to finish your
model. Along with the color plates is a Model Master paint reference with
color chips.
In the box you will find an ten-page illustrated instruction pamphlet,
two sprues of parts molded in mustard yellow styrene, a sprue of one-piece
tracks molded in gun metal vinyl, and a decal sheet. The instruction pamphlet
is referenced in six different languages. All parts are documented in
a parts location diagram. Somewhat to my surprise all parts are very well
molded with virtually no flash or sink holes to speak of considering how
old this mold is.
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We begin assembly with the three piece lower hull in step 1 then it
gets really busy in step 2 and 3. Here you will assemble the suspension
systems with idlers and drive sprockets mating them to the lower hull.
This is where you will spend most of your assembly time but it gets easier
in step 4 where you mate the mud chutes to the lower hull. In step 5,
you will detail out the upper hull with stowage, headlights and other
miscellaneous details. Your detailed upper hull is mated to the lower
hull in step 6. The exhaust systems are mated to the rear of the lower
hull in step 7. The one-piece tracks are connected end-to-end with the
help of a heated blade screwdriver, in step 8. The tracks are made of
a vinyl that is alot more flexible than ESCI's old vinyl. This should
make mounting easier which you will do in step 9. Your next assembly is
completed in step 10 with the turret and it 40mm main gun. Finally, step
11 concludes your assembly by mating the turret to the upper hull and
sponson plates to the lower hull. There are also added details like the
tank commander figure and some upper hull stowage to attach.
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Once the model is assembled you can start painting and decal placement
on your Matilda. You have the choice of four Matildas to paint and mark.
One Russian from the 10th Army during the Bryansk Front, two from North
Africa (7th Armoured Division or 7th Royal Tank Regiment) and No. 4 Independent
Troop Malta Tank Squadron from Malta. Main paint colors are referenced
from Model Master using the FS color standard. The decals are of typical
Italeri quality, thin and well-registered.
You have quite a varied choice especially one Lend-leased Matilda from
Russia which in unique.
Conclusion
Even though this mold is 30-some years old it is still one of the best
injection molded kits of the Matilda. If you are interested in early British
armor of North Africa and build in small scale this is your kit. It should
be an enjoyable build and you will be pleased with the overall detail.
I would like to thank Testor's for
the review kit
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