Hope these pics will help.
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The groove in the gun for the ejection port was one of the 12 things that I had noted before I even had the kid in my hands. I had done a lot of photo reconnaissance prior to my kit arriving the day that I had to leave. Gino is right in that you can build other versions with what you get in the kit, but you would normally need five or six ammo can holders on the turret bustle and you only get four. (In the 3 in 1 kit) So youāll have to come up with another one from another kid. I notified Magic Factory about this oversight and they thanked me, but didnāt say they would start including an extra one in the kit. That missing Ammo can holder was not one of the 12 deficiency I noted by the way.
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I think it could be said to be a 4 in 1 since there are 4 option and other possibilities using the kit decals .
Yes. It should be at about the 11 oāclock position (when looking from the front) and is a hole that goes all the way in, but is flat (horizontal), so it looks like a groove.
I donāt believe the later versions uses it. It is not present on the ones below.
M7A3 BFIST
M2A4
Thanks. Does anyone make a corrected mantlet for the kit?
None that I know of. Meng did include it on their Bradley kits though.
It is easy to add, just start drilling a small hole vertically at the 11 oāclock position. Once you get a purchase on the plastic, turn the bit down to the front until nearly horizontal, making a teardrop-shaped hole that looks like a groove from the front.
It is not really incorrect. The M2A3 and M2A4 both have the CITV, which shortens the turret basket and they usually only have four ammo can holders. The M2A2 ODS-SA kit comes with extra parts that include a full length turret basket and two more ammo cans, all 3D printed.
M2A3
If you want more ammo can holders, Jacques ā@JacquesDā does a 3D set.
Thatās not what Iām seeing:
I even have one where the crew managed to add six to the bustle.
You may be confused because the Meng M2A3 and M3A3 kits only have four. Thatās because the bolt holes for one box were utilized for a Duke antenna mount, like the one in your photo.
None of thre ones on my COP or in Tal Afar had the Duke antennae, and we were in EID alley up there.
Sort of. The outer perimeter of the basket doesnāt change much from what I can recall. Iād have to check some kits but Iām on the road. The big change to accommodate the CITV is how the right end is altered. The bustle ends usually face forward. For M2A3s the bustle end angles inward, perpendicular to the faceted portion of the turret at the right rear. It reduces the internal volume of the bustle but still leaves plenty of room around the rear perimeter for five and even six ammo can holders as in the photos above.
You can here where the original bustle was simply cut off at an angle.
As I like to model using my own references, Iāll stand by the statement that Magic Factory should toss another one in the box.
Ah, but if you had read my post thoroughly youād have seen this:
but you would normally need five or six ammo can holders on the turret bustle and you only get four. (In the 3 in 1 kit)
I believe I specifically mention the 3 in 1 kit because I am aware of the contents of the M2A2 ODS-SA kit, and thatās not the one Iām talking about.
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I know you were talking about the 3-in-1 kit. I mentioned it as an aside. It looks like they have added back the 5th box on newer versions. Original versions only had four, probably why Model Factory only included four. To me, not a big deal as I have extra boxes from other kits or can order more from Jacques.
Please specify what you mean by original so folks wanting to build a particular time frame know what you mean. For instance, the photo from Iraq is from 2007. the others are all later. So original isā¦? And yes of course we know when the Army rolled out the A3s.
Iām not seeng it from photographic evidence. Again, with Duke - they had to remove a box. Without Duke, they did not. The vehicles still in A2 configuration that arrived early on, like the one at Sill. had five. Moot point for some I know, but for me it matters.
But just to clarify, your point about the CITV tsking away space for the fifth box isnāt supported by my photos.
At the end of the day, if a model company claims to able to build a certain variant, they should include the parts, not have you source them out. The good folks at Magic Factory have no way of knowing what period you want to model. Iāll go with the five.
By the way, if you have a photo of an āoriginalā A3 with four boxes and no Duke Iād love to add it to my collection. I feel it would be incomplete without it.
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I donāt have an exact date and probably should have said earlier as opposed to original. From what I see and the couple of pics I posted (Iām not looking for more as I am not too concerned about it) some A3s had four, so not totally wrong. If it was due to adding the Duke antenna, great, mystery solved.
I donāt know nor care why Model Factory only included four, just guessing they saw the same type of pics I showed. I also bet most modelers wonāt care either as they will just build the kit OOB. Others who do care will either source another holder from the spares box or purchase it.
As always, I recommend people find pics of what they want to build and build what they see.
Lastly, none of this has anything to do with the Model Factory M2A2 ODS-SA kit that the original thread is referring to.