Greetings All,
I have two of the 1/35 Tamiya M60A1s. These are the older kits that are overall green drab. On the decal sheet there are diamonds with the numeral 12 inside. On one sheet the diamond is yellow with the 12 being red. On the other sheet the diamond is orange with a red 12. Which, if either is correct?
Thanks & God Bless You All,
Joe <>< 
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I believe the yellow is correct, and the orange is trying to be yellow.
Ken
Hi tankerken,
Thank you. I got to wondering if the difference in color might have designated a different company or platoon or something similar.
God Bless You,
Joe <><
This is the original box art:
And a painting:
I looked for a color photo of a tank from that era, no luck.
Ken
Hi tankerken,
Thanks for the additional information.
God Bless You,
Joe <><
I found a couple of pics - neither of an M60A1 - but they do show a representation of those bright, large markings; must’ve been a T-55 Gunner’s dream(!) No wonder MASSTER came in.
I too have this ancient Tamiya kit in my stash and hope to bring it up to spec and do it justice one day. One day…
Hi BootsDMS,
Thanks for the pictures. It is nice to see the actual vehicles and not paintings or models. Your comment about the markings brings to mind the practice of some U.S. WW II tankers painting over the stars.
I was thinking about just using the national insignias when I decal the models. I built the two models I have straight out of the box. No doubt they would look better with some upgrades but I have modest skills so I do the best I can with what comes in the box.
God Bless You,
Joe <><
Hey gtdeath13,
Great photos, thank you. I found the second and third photos particularly interesting with the small turret stars and the large star on the glacis along with the placement of the small stars.
God Bless You,
Joe <><
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Black and white photography was still very common then, especially in the media/press, and most of the pictures of the Army were being done in Vietnam, not Europe. So decent pictures are hard to find.
Ken
For further reference pictures, some in colour, I would recommend the Tankograd publication “Cold War Warrior - M60/M60A1/A2/A3”; it contains some pretty good photos and also this rather impressive tank helmet in service:
Photos of the era are hard to come by, especially in color. The large, bright tactical markings were in fashion in 1950s through the early 1960s. Typically in USAREUR units, you’d see yellow since yellow is the traditional color for Armor units, but even this wasn’t universal. You’d even see the regimental crest painted on the turret in a lot of stateside units. By the early 70s, you start to see subdued markings, black stars instead of white, black registration stencils, etc.
Esci also did one in bright markings:
Rare shot of an M-60 with both an M-85 and Ma Duece. M2’s wee a stopgap till the M85 was generally available on the 60A1. Little pad on the cupola side mounted the gun.
Yeah - there’s some really good shots of it (the M2 that is) in the Tankograd booklet I mentioned; I might have a go at modelling it all one day.
I hasten to add I’m not trying to get everyone to buy Tankograd books!
accelr8/gtdeath,
Thank you for the additional photos. The variation in the placement of national insignia and stenciling amazes me.
God Bless You Both,
Joe <><
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Just don’t confuse the company markings and regimental crests. The geometric shapes designate the company, while any number with is usually the vehicle bumper number. So tank with bumper number A-12 on the fender might be a triangle with a 12 within on the turret.
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@BootsDMS I have a helmet very similar to that one! I think it may have been the previous model.
@Hugh_Mills I remember seeing a lot of tanks with that bracket on the cupola, but the M2 was long gone by then.
Ken
I wish I had the confidence to try and model one! My M48s and M60s would look so much better.