Dragon Models

AAVP-7A1 RAM/R-5

Kit Number: 7237

Reviewed by  Doug Hamilton, IPMS# 21985

MSRP: $13.95 Available from www.dragon-models.com . The AAVP-7 is a current Marine Corps vehicle commonly known as an AMTRAK, or amphibious tractor. First developed to get Marines ashore during WW II, this type vehicle has evolved over the years to get today's Marines onto the beach and in land rapidly and safely. First entering service in 1970, this vehicle type has continued to evolve into a first class amphibian. Carrying 25 combat ready Marines at speeds of up to 8 MPH on water and 45 MPH on land, while carrying out a variety of missions, the AAVP-7 series of AMTRACKs has proven its value to the Corps many times over. The kit is molded in light grey plastic, and contains about 120 parts. A fret of photo-etched parts, a decal sheet, and a four-page instruction sheet rounds out the box. The last page is a painting guide for two versions, one a solid dark green NATO vehicle, and the other a three color Marine Unit of the 1st MarDiv operating in Bagdad. The tracks are molded in a material Dragon calls DS, which is a combination of two different plastic types, according to the instruction sheet. The plastic parts are very nicely molded, and contain very little flash, or mold marks. Parts clean up was fast and easy. Assembly of the parts went very smoothly, and I encountered no problems getting everything to fit, and align properly. Part separation is, for the most part accomplished at actual vehicle seams, which greatly aid in hiding them. The suspension wheels are held on by using funky little nylon sleeves contained inside the wheel halves. These don't do much to help you align the wheels when installing the tracks, and would up superglueing mine in place. The Photo etched fret contains grill pieces, a guard for the smoke generator, tow rings, grab handles, and hatch levers. The hatch levers need to be creased to form handle shapes, and the smoke generator guard needs to be rolled into a round shape before installation. This is easily accomplished using standard PE techniques. I installed everything, with the exception of the grill covers before painting. I had a good time painting and finishing the model. I airbrushed a solid coat of acrylic Testors Dark Green over everything. The tan and black camo patterns were hand painted using more Testors acrylics. I gloss coated the model using Testors Glosscoat before adding the decals. After the decals dried, I mixed a dark slurry wash with artist oils and applied that liberally to the surface. When dry, I flat coated the entire model. This was followed up with dry brushing of the base colors, lightened about 30% to bring up the highlights. The pioneer tools were detail painted, and a light application of pastels completed the finishing. .005 stainless steel wire was used for the 2 antennae on the stern of the vehicle. This completed the model. The completed model looks very good, my armor building skills notwithstanding! As I don't normally build this genre of model, I had no difficulty completing the build. It looks correct as compared to photos of the actual vehicle I found on the US Marine Corps web site, and other places. The turret, with the MK 19 grenade launcher, and MK 2 .50 cal machine gun is quite accurate, and the earlier, smaller cupola and single .50 cal machine gun are also included in the parts selection. The wave breaker and stern thrusters can be installed either open or closed. These options allow the builder to create a wide variety of vehicle poses, perfect for combining with other 1/72 scale Marine Corps equipment to create a fine diorama, or as a stand alone model. I really enjoyed building this model, and highly recommend it. It's a first rate piece of military equipment, and a good representation of the real thing. I like the small scale of this series, and the other offerings Dragon has produced in this line. My thanks to Dragon Models, and IPMS/USA for supplying this sample for build and review.

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