Build: Zvezda's BTR-80A Armored Personnel Carrier
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BTR-80A
Being developed from the BTR-40 of the 50's, the BTR-80 is by far the
most common version of the wheeled type BTR series, used currently by
Russian forces and widely sold to many foreign countries throughout the
world to help a failing economy.
The twin gasoline powered engines of the earlier models have since been
replaced by a single diesel power-plant, with an automatic transmission
instead of the former's manual style transmission.
The turret has power elevation, as well as traverse capabilities. Both
weapons can be elevated to twice the height and level as the BTR 60 and
BTR-70 (which is 60 degree's) which in turn makes these weapons quite
useful against low flying aircraft, and firing upon buildings and mountain
passes.
The BTR 80A is basically a standard BTR-80, but with a new turret design
addition. A 30mm auto-cannon, and a coaxial PKT machine gun have replaced
the former, and six smoke grenade launchers have been added as well. All
other specifications are the same as standard BTR-80 vehicles.
Follow this link
to read the inbox review of this kits from Kent Kirkpatrick.
Construction
 I'm
going to be very honest with you all, and tell you that I'm quite fond
of Soviet subjects armor, AFV's, artillery, warships, and figures. Why,
you may ask? Well, quite simply, these articles just plain look mean -
big and beefy armor, massive guns, but with a certain sleekness included.
And the BTR falls right into these qualities! I was quite interested in
Zvezda Models new BTR-80A, and was quite excited to see how the build
would progress.
Just in case you're not familiar with my style of reporting, with full
build reviews, I will always build the model out of the box, with no PE
additions, aftermarket goodies, or improvements. This accomplishes two
things one, it gives every modeler the opportunity to see exactly what
they should come to expect when buying/building this model, and two, shows
how the addition of aftermarket products may increase the accuracy of
your final build, as I strive to make the most accurate reports as possible.
So, on with the build! First examination of all kit parts went quickly,
as all parts looked good, with nice detail, and very clean lines no flash,
that's right, NO FLASH on any of this kit's parts! A few mold lines and
pin marks to deal with, but overall, a very clean looking box of parts.
One of the first hurdles will be the instruction manual, and unless you
can translate Cyrillic, you will be at a total loss at trying to read
any notations. Luckily, a good study of the diagrams (which are very good)
as you build is basically enough to keep you on track.
 The
build begins at step 1 with the attachment of various hatches, (most can
be operating or fixed) grab-rails (which are VERY delicate!), and the
windshield assembly. All parts are nicely detailed, with no assembly problems
encountered at all.
Steps 2, 3, 4 and 5 all involve attaching more exterior details to the
upper half of the vehicle assembly. Steps 6 &7 are primarily adding
exterior details to the one piece rear assembly. All parts attachment
went without a hitch.
Steps eight through twelve, the suspension system, is by far the trickiest
part of this build, and again, reading the text notes would definitely
be an added plus! This being an eight wheeled vehicle, the front two pairs
of wheels are designed as the steer wheels, and are fashioned the same
on the model kit as the full size vehicle. Each wheel is supported by
an individual suspension, consisting of an upper and lower control arm,
twin shock/struts, axle support, and axle/wheel mount assembly. Follow
the diagram carefully, and after you get one built, the rest will follow
suit quite easily. As mentioned earlier, the front two pair of wheels
are the steering wheels, and are designed to turn in unison. The concept
of achieving this deed is done by the engineers at Zvezda very easily,
by attaching the two axles together at a pivot point on the inside of
the belly of the machine, thus allowing two axles to move as one.
 In
step 13 the construction of the side hatches is accomplished, each consisting
of eight separate kit parts. The hatches are quite intricate, accurately
representing the full size counterpart, which open to the front and the
lower part folds down to form a step (the kit's are non-operating, but
with a bit of scratch-building, I can see this as doable), for infantry
dismount. Once again, there are some tiny parts involved here, supports
and grab rails, which can be broken very easily.
Step 14 involves the attachment of the one piece rear assembly (built
back in step 6) and the recommended attachment of the wheels and tires.
Well, I chose NOT to attach the wheels and tires at this point, because
of painting preferences. I guess you could, but you sure would be wasting
a lot of time and tape to mask them off! And this is the only occurrence
on this kit as to the need for any type of trim for fit. The rear assembly
mounts at an odd angle, and must be carefully trimmed (only a very small
amount, though) to fit well. Or you could probably just glue it up and
do a touch of putty to smooth the seams.
The wheel assemblies consist of a three part hub assembly, inner and outer
wheel hub, and a plastic interior bearing to attach the wheel assembly
to the axle. The tires themselves are black molded vinyl, and represent
a good facsimile of Soviet tire pattern.
I assembled all of the wheel hub assemblies, and gave them a couple coats
of MM #1764, European Green, as suggested in the paint scheme.
After the paint had cured, the molded tires can be mounted easily by pushing
the hub assembly into each tire, which is a firm mount. You may have to
place the hub on your bench and push the tire down onto the hub. I finished
off my tire assemblies with Rust-All Dull Coat, which I always use on
anything that represents rubber on my models it makes them look "right",
not too shiny, and not a fake dull look. Set these all aside until a much
later time!
 Steps
15 through 24 all involve the construction of the updated turret assembly,
which is very well detailed. All parts fit perfectly here, and although
a movable gun option is there, if you decide to mount the hydraulic boot
(part # E9) to the main guns, you will have to make it permanent because
the addition of this part raises the guns to the maximum firing height
again with a little imagination and scratch -building, I think that a
very accurate, happy medium could be accomplished here as well!
Step 25 was one that was worrying me, attaching the upper and lower vehicle
halves together, and although I had dry fitted earlier, anything can happen
to alter the final fit but I was totally amazed and pleased that the parts
fit together like a glove! At this stage you can then add the delicate
hinge mechanisms to the armor shield that mounts at the front of the vehicle.
 At
this point you are basically done with construction, and it's now time
to paint! The instruction sheet lists a color scheme of three variants,
two camo patterns and one solid, with separate markings for each. I chose
the solid pattern, to make it easier to see all the kit's "fiddly
bits" in the photos The paint scheme is listed in Model Master Colors
(thank you!) and is quite basic. My overall color would be MM #1764, European
Green, in an enamel base. I sot a couple good coats overall, and set aside
to cure. After curing, you can then add the final touches of accent colors,
such as Gun Metal for the barrels, Red/Orange for the tail-lights, etc.
I normally apply decals and markings at this point, before the weathering
process begins, and as mentioned earlier, there are markings provided
for three separate variants, with different ID numbers, division insignia,
and unit insignia. Now I have had mixed results with Zvezda decals, and
this time was no exception. The decals went on to the model beautifully
no buckles, bends, breaks, etc. And when they dried, there was absolutely
no silvering at all BUT, we'll talk a little more about the decals later
on.
I used a basic acrylic black wash to help to bring out a little detail,
and then mounted up the tire/wheel assemblies onto the beast. Well, all
that was left now was to apply the matte clear coat that I use on practically
every one of my model subjects, which is good old Model Master clear matte
in the rattle can (works great!). Normally two very light coats is all
that's needed, and after these two light coats, I walked away to let the
thing cure overnight. On the way home from the office, I couldn't wait
to take a peek at the final look, and low and behold, when the clear matte
came in contact with these decals, it left them a wrinkled, silvery mess
a little work with Micro-Sol and a cotton swab took out most of the wrinkles
and some of the silvering, but there is a bit of each left on the finished
subject (seen clearly in photos). I do believe that a different decal
set, maybe even a dry transfer decal will be on my next Zvezda BTR.
Conclusion.
Quite honestly folks, this model kit is primarily a dream to build!
There are a lot of parts to it, but they all fit well together. I wouldn't
be afraid to even say that this could be an entry level kit to the beginner
AFV model enthusiast. With great detail, clean lines, good accuracy, and
a clean build, I give this one a definite thumbs up! Aside from the decal
SNAFU, there were no problems whatsoever in the build. There are some
very good aftermarket detail sets that would further increase the overall
look and accuracy of the kit, although honestly, maybe just a turned barrel
(and different decals!) will appear on my next build of this kit. Highly
recommended from this modelers point of view!
Keep Modeling!
References
Janes "Tanks and Combat Vehicles Recognition Guide"
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