when I first visited the one and only remaining brick and mortar hobby shop in my immediate area they had these along with sets for the BTR70 and 80
this is the BTR70 set, check out those pour plugs
the tread is actually fairly decent
this is the set I’ve actually used so far, on a DML BTR70. As I recall I had to fill the backs with resin, rework the sidewalls and bore them out to fit the kit hubs .
Last one I have. Directions to their KMT mine roller kit, I gave up on it after a while. The instructions are fairly decent, though.
Thanks for triggering this trip down memory lane Robert.
I went through my IDF modeling “phase” back in the '70s, so by the time the AEF stuff was being released I didn’t have enough interest in the subjects to find the motivation to attempt any of them. By the end of the '80s I was doing a little bit of mastering work for MB Models and, by way of Mike Bishop, I had a good access to a lot of different “garage kits” from all over the world. My impressions comparing any of the AEF Designs products to just about any other company’s offerings from that time were uniformly quite bad - even for the time the AEF stuff was recognized by most experienced modelers as junk.
Having said that, though, I do recall seeing some really well-done builds at shows in the early to mid '90s that were based, at least in part, on AEF kits. They could be built, but getting any sort of decent results demanded skills that were good enough to just do the work yourself. Anyone I know who ever built one to good standards had the chops to scratch-built it all themselves (as illustrated by @18bravo above).
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I built this AEF Designs T-64B in the early to mid nineties. It was a relatively effortless build as I remember. I did the best I could using what photographs I could find. It was a solid well molded kit. Honestly, it was pretty good . You guys judge after you pick yourselfs up off the floor. I have some more stuff that I will post.
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Not build yet, but one off the better Kits is the Nakpadon
I could do some pics if there is interest in it.
Cheers
Rabbits
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Why not.
Looking good, I would like to see what else you have.
I have the Slovenian and Iranian T-55 upgraded conversions and have been working on them for several years now improving them but it will be a few more years before they are ready.
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That, is a nice-looking T-64.
I bought a AEF Designs 2S1 “Full” kit in the mid-1990’s, head full of dreams. What a nightmare…air bubbles, mis-shaped parts, and unusable lower hull. Ended up as a shelf queen to this day. I open it to remind me of what the “good old days” used to be.
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Thank you. It really was a very solid kit as it was well molded and the instructions were not bad at all. I know some of you will be in total disbelief, but it wasn not bad at all. If i get around to it, i will post more pictures. I also have a few more AEF kits completed. I will try to post more. BTW that was the first picture of a built kit that i ever shared on any forum.
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Solid. I tried that one a few times, but every example I received had a warped engine deck, which as you know was the thickest part of the casting and could not be fixed. That’s a really nice job.
What’s the one barely peeking out on the right?
Post away! Any criticism on this site is normally of the constructive kind. Anyway, as a great fan of the T-64 I look forward to seeing more, and other builds.
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Two items of note. Around 1987 or so, I ordered/received from AEF what was listed as a M35 2.5 ton truck kit. Being all resin, I was thinking it would be the next generation of model after the old Monogram “Eager Beaver” kit. Nope. With the exception of adding dual tires on the back axles, it was a resin re-pop of that Monogram kit. Even the Monogram logo on the cab parts had been “overcast” with the crude “AEF” logo. I didn’t even try to build it. I sent a letter (this was before email, remember) to Tony, complaining that this was essentially a rip-off of the Monogram kit, he sent a relatively nasty reply, which I’ve long since repressed…
Now, the second item; while back on active duty with the Army Corps of Engineers following 9-11, I again ordered a resin conversion kit, changing the Tamiya M60A1 to the CEV M728. I had much better luck with this item, making a fair resemblance to the 1:1 scale vehicle.
The “catalog” for AEF had quite a few interesting listings; I would have liked to see a more modern approach made with the original masters and the 3-D printing processes.
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He was neither a good businessman nor a good person. He’s lucky I had better things to do than visit him when my duty station was Fort Carson.
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There are a few AEF kits and conversions lurking in my stash. The quality varies …
But.
As BTO sang 50 years ago: You ain’t seen nothing yet
I managed to buy (at a high cost) a bridgelayer conversion from I-Corps.
One of the bridge beams had a large lump of resin, hmmmm, what could have caused this?
Digging deeper into the box I found another bridge beam with a lump of silicone with the same shape stuck in the same position as the lump of resin in the first beam.
Compared to that the AEF products were like a walk in the park …
Everything is relative …
I like the T 64. It may be my favorite Cold War Soviet tank. Some of the stuff i bought from AEF was not buildable suffering from all sorts issues that have been discussed. I have some shelf queens thay i have not touched in 25 years. I should post some pics of those. That T 64 that i got must have been the one in a milion kit. Its a shame because he had great subject matter.
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Did they not bring out a set a figures from the aliens movie.