Isn’t that the truth. Usually just after a project completion a photo will turn up showing that my best guess was wrong about some detail I could not find before during my searches.
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Thanks Gino!
And there are a few more Khmer Rouge M113’s in this 1976 news footage (along with other US-made equipment)
https://www.ina.fr/ina-eclaire-actu/video/vdd06002001/defile-militaire-khmer-rouge
(some shots are reversed…)
H.P.
Great, thanks!
The Lon Nol regime Khmer M113 in the photo I mentioned has large Cambodian numbers for “19” surrounded by a stenciled circle on the side of the hull.
It’s also flying a small Khmer Republic flag on the antenna.
“there was a different steering mechanism used. The handles hang down from the inside of the front”
Information like this is what I relish about this forum, I’m assumeing the round access cover on the exterior glacis would be in front of the box that the hydraulic valves are mounted on interior? The reason I mention this is regarding whether fluid stains would occur around the service cover.
As far as which M113 kit is best in general I’d have to say the AFV Club offers the best scale casting of smaller parts but it is a fatigueing and sometimes frustrating effort to assemble, Academy seems to get the most votes for user friendly assembly vs. detail accuracy. Best of luck on your choice Sean @Grumble, anxious to see how your project turns out 
Cajun 
and I just found two Academy kits buried under a bunch of other kits. Never bought the AFV kit as you just don’t see a lot of AFV kits around here. Have owned several Tamiya kits thru the years, and just build the engine compartment buttoned up. Brother in law was the first to point out the errors in the tamiya kit as his unit had a couple gas engine M113’s.
gary
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remember this; In Vietnam, you set five M113’s side by side and they all would look different. The interior wasn’t much better either. The one thing to remember was that 99% of them were diesel powered in the bush for logistics alone
gary
For me, the best M-113 kit overall is the Academy M113A3.
as previously stated; it is not 100% accurate, but it has enough updates to pass muster.
The Tamiya kits still use the early hull design with the single shocks up front
The Academy ones have the dual front shock up front and single rear.
I think there is a size error on the fuel cell on the kits, not sure though. Elefant Corp. makes a fuel cell that’s accurate for the A1 and A2. The A3 has the fuel cells in the back, so you would have to modify the roof to remove the full cap on the rear left, and cover it with an antenna base, which is what I did for nmmy IDF M113A3 Nag’mash.
And ditch the .50 cal on the Tamiya kit end get the kit from the Academy M1151 Humvee. Much better.
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Agreed. It is the same plastic as the M113A2 kit with a couple extra sprues for the later A3 parts.
Yes, it is more accurate than other M113 models, but still too long. The Elefant Corp. parts are the correct length.
https://www.elefantcorporation.com/out/pictures/5/350518.jpg
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The circular access plate on the glacis is for servicing the left side final drive and u-joints in the engine compartment. The hanging steering levers are for pivot steering and amphibious/swimming use only. Their control box is at the very top of the drivers compartment glacis plate interior.
Tamiya.
Tamiya and Academy are fine if you want something that ‘looks’ like an M113, but the best model out there is the AFV Club kit, no contest. Finer details, individual suspension arms with torsion bars, accurate idler mounts, road wheels, engine deck is better, clear vision blocks, antenna guards that aren’t a scale 2" thick, the missing middle hinge on the rear door, beautiful .50 and .30 cal , etc, etc. And yes, I’m aware it’s the A1 (and now Aussie and Israeli versions) I’m sure an A2 will be done sooner or later. Probably less work to do the A2 conversion than to fix up an Academy kit.
Jim
Top of my wish list for is an up to date M-113 .
An updated M577 especially would be welcome.
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Yes, with an interior!
Ken
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Looking to turn one of the old Tamiya M577 kits into an M1068A3 SICPS.
Yes, Frenchy… Using that exact kit.
Using the M577 parts and an Academy M113A3 hull and other components.
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What a great idea. I hadn’t even considered mating the two together.
I’ve got a spare Tamiya 577 top hull sprue.
Sort of what I did a few years ago (damn, it’s been almost 14 years 
) to make an M577A2 for a customer. I still need to do one for me and plan to kit-bash the two as you describe.
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