From PST in Belarus, comes four brand new 1/72 kits. These include two different 'styles' of Katyushka rocket launchers and two post war medium tanks. Rather than take up a bunch of space showing the parts for all four kits, I'll use one of the rocket launcher trucks as an example. Both katyushka truck kits are identical except for the truck cab and fenders/hoods. Both sets of fenders/hoods are provided with only the cab being different between the two.

There are three sprues; two in dark green plastic and another in black (I guess for those who don't want to paint their model). The overall detailing of the parts is quite good. Sprue attachment points are average in size and some are quite close to the part, requiring a thin saw to remove. I saw just a touch of flash and no problems with ejector pin marks on any of the parts but the tires. These have some pretty hefty ones on one side. Careful construction will hide them on all but the front wheels. Some of the thicker parts suffered from sink marks, particularly the chassis and rocket frame pieces. None are beyond easy repair.

As I mentioned earlier, the only difference is the cab portion of the kit. One is for a Studebaker body (BM-13N, shown above) and the other a GMC. The instructions cover each specific type. The construction is pretty straight-forward and colors as well as some options are offered. A length of stiff wire is provided for the axles and will have to be cut. Some trimming of kit parts is required as well to make the bits fit the specific version being done. There are no clear bits, but that is not unusual for 1/72 vehicles. If you must have them, you can cut pieces of clear sheet to cover the windscreen and windows. All the areas are flat so it shouldn't be a problem.

Overall painting is shown on the back of the construction sheet and both generic and Humbrol colors are given. There is a small decal sheet to enable the box art vehicle to be done. This sheet also covers the GMC version. The decals are very glossy and since the background is nearly white, many of the markings do not show up well in the image to the right, even though it has been darkened to try to make them more visible.

The T-54 and T-55 kits are identical. There is no difference in sprues or decals; both tank types being shown on the sheet. There are four sprues in each kit; three green and one black. The moldings are similar to what was offered with the rocket launchers. Detailing is quite good and there is minimal flash. Ejector pin marks were nearly non-existent and where they existed, could easily be filled. There was even less in the way of sink marks on this kit, with only a few of the thicker bits showing these. The tracks are not a single band, but are sectional with individual track links for the areas of the front idler and rear drive sprockets.

The instructions show the differences between the types and offer a different mantlet and barrel as the only real options on the T-54. There are none for the T-55. The T-54 kit requires just a touch of trimming in one area and that is about it. As mentioned earlier, the decal sheets are identical. There are three schemes for the T-54; two Soviet and one Polish. For the T-55 there are four; two Soviet, one Polish and one Afghani for the Northern Alliance as shown on the box art.

Any of these four kits looks like it will make into a really neat model. Separately, they retail for around $11 each, but for about the price of a single 1/35 Tamiya kit, you can get four very nice 1/72 kits. I think that Cold War Soviet modelers will find this a most useful set to have.

You can find this kit and many others at

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