I just received my new kit, in a very crushed mailing box and kit box. However, the kit itself is unmarred. Amazing. I will be adapting my T161 tracks to this kit as well, not sure exactly when but I hope soon. If my estimates are correct I should be able to create 12 link-n-length pieces to replace the 1000+ part kit tracks. 
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I told people to wait…
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If You have Pictures of The Crushed Box, Then USPS( or Whoever Delivered it) needs to be Held Accountable.
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RFM or Magic Factory, or lift it from the M2A4 models?
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Not Magic Factory tracks, they are 9 parts per link!
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RFM for M1A2 nearly as bad!
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Good grief Charlie Brown…. 9 pieces per? Yikes
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Well, the idea is to lower that parts count WAY down. Preliminary work is that it will not take much to create the necessary lengths. I just need time. 
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So far I am NOT impressed with how RFM has designed the suspension, specifically the road wheel arms and their mounting…why add the “torsion bars” to the center of the build when they will not rotate? And everything is so thin and weak that I am solidly gluing ALL the suspension in place before I add any parts. It seems busy and complicated only for part numbers and to say how complicated it is.
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The mounts aren’t even correct.
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That is crazy
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There will be a discussion on the suspension for sure. And, I hope, some quick useful fixes…
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The first easy fix is that every supsension arm has a shock mount on it, whether it actually has a shock mounted to it or not. Makes total sense from a logistical standpoint.
Here’s a photo:
Wow. Look at the mold seams on those rubber tires. The little circular punch out nubs are interesting as well.
And when I say the suspension housings are incorrect, compare for yourself. Note the very prominent weld that is missing from the kit. I crawled under this thing less than two weeks after shoulder surgery while wearing a sling. Maybe we should have had someone scratchbuild it instead? 
Wait for Jacques to come out with his.
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So Zimi is the better kit?
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Das lässt sich zeigen.
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The Zimi M109A7 was announced in 2023 but has not been released yet. It is based upon the flawed Panda kit which was based upon a prototype. We will have to see if it ever gets released and if they actually address the accuracy issues of the Panda kit.
The Panda kit was based on a prototype. I am the one that brought that to our attention. My question is - how can the Zimi model be based upon it? The molds have been destroyed.
Regarding the Panda kit, how do we know the molds were destroyed? I would think they would be fairly valuable for future releases under some brand although accidents do happen.
I will be working on the T161 track first, then I will start on the roadwheel arms. They will take a bit more doing as they have a more organic shape and I’m not so great at those yet. I will also be looking at the kit roadwheels vs the ones I already made for the Bradley…same wheels it looks.
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Robert,
And we all thank you for pointing out that the Panda M109A7 was a prototype not the fielded design.
Scalemates is showing the Zimi M109A7 as a rebox of the Panda kit. That could be in error but, nearly all of their 23 announcements are reboxes of defunct manufacturers kits. Of the 23 announcements that they’ve made since 2023, only 3 kits have actually been released - all 3 are reboxes. Thier track record of delivering new 1:35 armor kits isn’t stellar.
What is your information source that the tooling for the Panda M109A7 were destroyed?
I wish them success as 3 of their announcements are on my wishlist and no other manufacturer makes those kits in any media.
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