here is a work in progress on Amusing Hobby’s Abrams X
considering iv built a couple other Amusing hobby this kit was bult in a couple of hrs
from what i seen of the real one the 120mm looks to be a little too big compared to the M256
when you see real pics of the M360 120mm it looks slender compared to the M256
Now heres my opinion on the Abrams X even though the diesel hybird power pack offers better fuel consumption than the ATG 1500 gas turbine but the diesel spews out a lot of black smoke on accelerating compared to the gas turbine
As for the 3 man crew all in the hull and considering the average height of a tanker is 6ft and would make for a very cramped crew compartment Im sure the Russians make it work on the T14 Armata because Russian tankers are shorter If the US Army is considering a 3 man crew in the M1E3 (eventual M1A3) it would make sense to go to a conventional crew layout driver in the hull gunner and commander in turret .
As for the cameras on the hull for 360 deg situational awareness you hit one puddle you will have mud covering all those cameras and the crew is blind everyones know tanks attract mud same goes for dust I guarantee if you ask any former tanker on this site and ask them about summer and winter training at Grafenwohr and Honenfels how dusty or muddy a tank can get My dad was a former tanker and tracked vehicle mechanic for the better part of his 21 yrs in the Army told me stories on how muddy and dusty tanks can get over there
now as for the turret
The Turret better intergrates the Trophy APS giving it a more balanced look than the the scabbed on mount on the M1A2 SEP V.2 and V.3 , one very large blow out panel dosen’t seem to make sense 2 smaller ones as on the M1A2 would make more sense
2 things i keep wondering about how does one reload the coax machine gun and what is the round hatch looking object with a vision block?
the 30mm adds too much height and should be replaced with a low profile mount not sure if a 30mm is a good choice maybe a M2 50cal would be better choice
now the 4 tubes for switchblade drone launchers i say not on a tank ,mount them on a scout vehicle
over all the turret would make for a great crewed turret for the M1E3 (M1A3)
as far as the model goes it was a quick and pleasant build one thing i did though was change out the drive sprocket and put on the Diehl 530p0 tracks used on the Leopard 2 i didnt want to have to deal with the multi piece indi liks had they had one piece or link and lenght i would have used them
