HobbyBoss EBR-11

[Frank3k]

This is the HobbyBoss 1/35 scale EBR-11 recon tank, built OOB. I skipped the turret skirt and bustle rack because not all vehicles had them... but more importantly, the HobbyBoss parts are awful, especially the rack.
The kit in general is fairly easy to build, but with the usual and expected annoyances that are included free, in all HobbyBoss kits:

Tiny PE that adds nothing to the model and could have easily been made in plastic.

Vague locating instructions and small attachment points for critical components. The wheels in particular have small nubs and even smaller contact area. Without some extra work, they'll wobble or not stay even.

I'll add antennas later.

Thanks for looking!

[arkon]

Nice! I always thought that one looked odd with the big steel wheels.

[Steve Blazo]

Nice build of a unique vehicle. Looks very good.  :)
 I had that kit and thought the turret was the week point of the kit, so I made the EBR ETT APC out of it.

[Frank3k]

I had that kit and thought the turret was the week point of the kit, so I made the EBR ETT APC out of it.

Do you have pictures of your build? I tried an M41 turret and considered turning it into an APC.

[Steve Blazo]

EBR ETT
Here are a few -





More pics here, including some build pics -
http://www.network54.com/Forum/110741/message/1390228020

[ChernayaAkula]

Awesome builds! 

[Dr. YoKai]

 Second that! I've always liked the EBR. I never realized the tread pattern on the steel center wheels wasn't...hmmm, not really sure what the term I want is! Anyhow, they appear mirrored, the forward pattern being reversed on the rear pair.

[Frank3k]

Second that! I've always liked the EBR. I never realized the tread pattern on the steel center wheels wasn't...hmmm, not really sure what the term I want is! Anyhow, they appear mirrored, the forward pattern being reversed on the rear pair.

Craig, you wouldn't believe the number of times I took the wheels off, switched them and switched them back. Of course, the HobbyBoss instructions were not too helpful. It was more annoying than plugging a USB device into a computer (until i learned the trick).

Steve, great job on the EBR ETT! I just couldn't find decent drawings to copy the shapes from. The "rear" end of the ETT looked difficult to blend into the EBR body. Looks like you cut the rear off completely; I should have thought of that.

[Madhatter]

Never seen anything quite like either of those 2 builds - but I like them! I like them a lot!! :)

[Frank3k]

I added more dust to the rear of the vehicle because I saw this picture:



"Un Engin blindé de reconnaissance (EBR) de la Légion étrangère dans le désert saharien." (A Foreign Legion Armored Reconnaissance vehicle (EBR) in the Sahara Desert)

From http://archives.ecpad.fr/raid-des-engins-blindes-de-reconnaissance-ebr-dans-le-sahara/

[LemonJello]

Part of the Mars Expeditionary Brigade?

Definitely a great build and the subtle weathering is something that I struggle with on my own projects.  The kit has a lot of WhIf potential in it.

[Weaver]

Great builds! :) Still looks futuristic even today, doesn't it? I'd like to see more kits of French armoured cars.

BTW, if you want some engineering to marvel at, go look at the EBR's engine and transmission some time: a flat-12 air-cooled engine that went under the middle of the floor in a space just 18 inches deep. Whether this was a good idea overall is debateable, but it remains an impressive packaging job.

[Dr. YoKai]

 I vaguely remember reading that the EBR's engine could only be replaced with the turret removed - though I might be thinking
 of another French armored car. Ingenious, certainly, but not calculated to endear it to the maintenance men.

[Weaver]

I vaguely remember reading that the EBR's engine could only be replaced with the turret removed - though I might be thinking  of another French armored car. Ingenious, certainly, but not calculated to endear it to the maintenance men.

No, you were right first time: that was the major drawback in the EBR. The little AML 4x4 armoured car didn't have anything like the cross-country capability of the EBR, but it was WAY simpler. Eventually, the ERC and the AMX-10RC struck the right balance.

[Buzzbomb]

like ' em all

[GTX_Admin]

I'm thinking of a missile armed version

[Weaver]

I'm thinking of a missile armed version

How about four ENTACs in boxes on the back corners of the ETT like the Belgian AMX VCIs?

[Frank3k]

In a turret like Buzzbomb's Longbow anti-tank missile carrier?

[Brian da Basher]

I just love the look of that EBR, like it just leaped off the screen from the 1937 classic "Things to Come".

I had to google it to figure out it was an actual real vehicle. Gotta love a subject that's appears to be a whiff right off the bat like that!

And Frank, your amazing, incomparable style really makes this beauty come alive!

Brian da Basher