Balaton Modell

Gaz-66

What you get:

53 pieces of resin, an etch sheet of 22 pieces and the instructions show a transparent sheet of 5 pieces for the windows. This however was not in the box. The resin pieces are well moulded in yellow resin, with very few bubbles (some are to be seen, but do not affect the surface) and no warping is noticeable. The etch sheet is rather thin, but is well thought out in that it provides pieces which are themselves flat and therefore suitable for etch. My only criticism is that the bumper pieces at the rear of the chassis are moulded in place, are very thin and have suffered a little in transit. I think they would be better in etched metal. The resin pieces are all loose (no sprue), and most have hefty casting blocks attached which will have to be carefully removed. The casting blocks have the part number cast in, though it would appear that a few have changed since the masters were made. They are provided in a ziplock bag, as is the etch sheet, and the whole comes in a substantial box, in which the bags rattle around somewhat.

The instruction sheet is beautifully drawn and reproduced, though it does not indicate the exact locations of the parts. It also provides a list and diagram of the parts. I have done my best to place the parts in the same order in my photograph, but where more than one part is attached to a single casting block, this does not always work.

Comments:

This is another very widely used truck of the Cold War era; probably many thousands are still in use. I have been hoping for a kit of this one for years. I hope it will become popular.

As I have said, the moulding is good. Maybe the tyres are a little too square in cross section, but this is easily fixed, and the tread pattern is very fine. Windows and some other gaps have a very thin flash over them, easily removed. I cannot see any obvious parts missing, nor glaring errors. The size is hard to estimate until the kit is put together, worse because of the casting blocks, but the width seems about right, perhaps a fraction too narrow. The kit provides a couple of roundish bits moulded in one block of transparent resin for the headlights. The part is very small and I have dropped it several times already. It looks to be too small in diameter and would be better replaced with aftermarket lenses.

My only reservation is that the kit is designed as Eastern European kits always used to be, with each side of a box moulded separately. Therefore it may well be quite tricky to put together. Provided you are not fazed by this, I can recommend it to modellers of reasonable experience. Once again, as far as I know, it is the only small scale show in town.

Article Last Updated: 11 May 2010