Hi Armoramans,
I am currently building an old 1/35 Revell Leopard 2A5 “KFOR” kit, and was wondering whether I should add some tools on the hull or not. They’re missing from this particular kit but they are included in pretty much all other Leo 2A5 kits I have in stash.
Please excuse my ignorance. What are they? Should I scratch build them and add them to the kit to depict a KFOR Leo 2A5?
This is what I am talking about:
I have seen many reference photos without the tools so I am wondering if it’s worth the effort:
Thank you for your help.
Kind regards,
James
OK, one question, are the brackets (shown in pic 3 and 4) present in the kit? If not you will need to add something!
Those appear to be the gun cleaning rods. Some photos show them missing, some show them in place. It looks like it may by up to you, unless you are building a specific tank.
Ken
1 Like
Thank you, Ken for the reply. Yes, the brackets are included in the kit. I’ll probably leave it empty.
My first thought was gun cleaning rods also but they should always be on the tank and would probably have its own storage location. Given the number of rods (looks like 12) my thought is they are for a camouflage netting system and that would make more sense for sometimes not being on the tank.
Would be nice to hear from a Leo expert.
3 Likes
Not a Leo expert but from my experience of peacekeeping operations in contact with crowds most of what can be stolen during riots is removed and secured elsewhere.
Olivier
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According to the caption of this picture :
https://www.panzer-modell.de/referenz/in_detail/leo2a5/011.jpg
these brackets are indeed used with the gun cleaning rods ( = "rohrwischer " ).
H.P.
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Hi Frenchy,
I knew that you’d provide a reply with a reference photo! You do not disappoint. Thank you! 
You’re welcome 
A picture is always worth a thousand words (whatever the language ! )…
The full walkaround is here
H.P.
When I translated the page to English, it called the rods “pipe wipers”! 
Ken
Decided to add the barrel cleaning rods b/c they didn’t seem hard to replicate. Some photos to show my build progress. Next steps are to add some weld seams on the turret then add some anti-slip texture to it, too. I’ve tried to stick to out-of-box build but some things had to be improved - like scratch-building most of the turret panorama periscope and replacing anti-slip patches with 200 grit sand paper pieces, etc. Still felt like it was better than Hobby Boss offerings.
5 Likes
in Italy all tools are removed…
Nice additions! The PERI looks really better.
Olivier
Looks very good - just one little nit pick: The “tracks” on the very thin MG ring around the loader’s hatch are NOT raised on the prototype, but just polished metal, as the wheels of the MG skid wear off the paint.
Peter
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Thanks for letting me know. It was an easy fix - sanded the raised part away. A bit tricky with all the junk around it but got it done.
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Extremely slow progress on the old Revell Leo2A5. Airbrushed some light gray primer today. Broke an antenna in the process.
Tried some embossing powder to make antislip coating instead of the tried-n-true Rust-Oleum spray. Not too happy with it, but o, well. First time trying a photo booth.
I’ll post some more WIP painting photos in a few months. 
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Pretty good work! Never thought an old Revell/Italeri A5 would come out that nice.
… back to the initial question. Tank_1812 is right. These rods belong to the camouflage netting system, they are not barrel cleaning rods.
2 Likes
Welcome aboard and not just saying that cause you agree with me. That’s an added bonus. 
Did you crew on Leopards?
Most time I spend on A4.
Still in business with Leopard 2.
1 Like
Placing the MG3 into this position will prevent the loaders hatch from opening. Usually, MG3 mount is in the 9 o´clock position.
Thank you, Hermann for pointing it out. I knew I could rely on this community to see the errors.
I was also thinking a scenario where the loader is telling the commander, “Müller, would you please move the MG so I can get out?! Stop messing with me!” 
Quick fix - now waiting on the glue to dry.
