Are Tamiya 1/16 scale tanks the most accurate?

[B_Man]

Well, I suppose in the case of the Pz IV they at least managed to get the slope of the rear engine deck right, as well as the position of the rearmost return roller. I only wish the competition had too.

The only Tamiya I own is the PzIV. It's a great looking model but lacks a few minor things like working lights, opening hatches (except the commanders hatch) and an LED in the coax machine gun. Detail wise it looks pretty spot on to me and as Tom said it's just a case of a few minor things being left off.

My first RC tank was a Heng Long PzIV and when you put them next to each other the inaccuracies of the HL really stand out. My old PzIV has now been retired and will eventually undergo some major surgery to be reborn as a jagdpanzer IV thanks to a resin conversion kit.

[43rdRecceReg]

In earlier days when the OEM smoker failed which it inevitably did I would take it out and use the space for a bigger board/speaker/battery that was simply because I reasoned that a serviceable Tank engine would not smoke, at least not in the amounts that most of us seemed to want,
Perhaps a brief plume of black on start up and a smear of grey on heavy acceleration but not the constant egress of smoke which even the best smoke units are putting out.
I favour Tamiya's attitude in that respect,
And as Roy says the annoying niggles that we are expected to fix because Heng Long/Taigen and Torro are too cheapskate to fix themselves.
Why cannot these makers when a new Tiger 1 body mould is being cast remove the second spare aerial holder from it ?? After all most of them are now selling their Tanks free of moulded on Tools and in the case of the PZ4 finally getting the rear roller at its correct hight,
Tamiya have actually spent time and money researching the Models they sell whereas given the matter of the excess spare aerial holder as an example the other company's seem to save money by just copying the opposition.
That keeps the price down to us but raises the blood pressure in old men
Shaun.

..and I would agree with you almost entirely, Shaun except for 'brief plume on startup'. Maybe that's what you would, and should, expect from a modern tank. However, those old WW2 clankers were real puffing billies.
I remember well seeing much of that hardware post-war, at displays, on regular Sunday parades and drills. (From Bedford lorries through to Centurions, Saladins etc.,) belching out smoke like a London pea- souper.
I also recall, as digression, the Air-Raid siren would go off almost every Sunday before Church parade, prior to the crunching of hob-nailed squaddies in the street and smokey, noisy, green painted vehicles appearing.
That went on throughout the Fifties. In fact, I can't remember when it stopped Funny thing that, you don't hear church bells any more, I wonder why? Noise pollution? Doubt it...

[ausf]

Tamiya was the industry standard for a long time. Tamiya san himself measured museum Tigers back in day and as he pushed the 1/16 kit forward.

That said, when DML came along, they surpassed Tamiya in accuracy and detail in 1/35. They were the first to be the turret correctly asymmetrical as well as other details.

It really wasn't until the 90s that modeling companies were rewarded for being accurate. Aurora started it all with roughly 'if you squint it's real' method and Revell took up the accuracy deal to compete.

Trumpeter static kits blow away Tamiya for detail, but Tamiya 1/16 is designed as a functional RC. Molded closed hatches and tools are to facilitate their design. While they'll get the shape pretty good, they'll gloss over stuff.

In my opinion, the Tiger I was (is ) their best, the JS-2 being pretty good as well. The IV is disappointing with the molded on tools and coding the switch under the spare track rack (which I got rid of right away) as was the Panther storage bins, etc. The M4 is from the 70s, so don't expect much with that one.

Taigen, HL, etc don't belong in the discussion, they are molded like toys. You can correct them, but it's a bit of work.

In terms of smokers, nothing commercially available is accurate or revs with an engine, scale smoke doesn't behave like real smoke and the argument can be made that a properly running engine wouldn't show exhaust unless it was in cold temps. Yes there are plenty of video of T-34s spewing smoke, but how old are these tanks in the video? I don't recall seeing any WWII footage or Tigers spewing smoke. They went to lengths to develop smokeless charges in the shells, would they tolerate a column of exhaust bringing every p-47 for miles towards them?

[43rdRecceReg]

Thanks, Ausf, for the fascinating potted evolutionary history of the 1/16 Tank. That's the kind of background info that relative newcomers to the hobby, (of which I'm still one), can appreciate.
We can see what it-the Hobby- (plus artefacts) has emerged from, and maybe help shape where it is going. I knew very little of this 'backstory' to use the modern idiom...Thanks again.

[Raminator]

In terms of smokers, nothing commercially available is accurate or revs with an engine, scale smoke doesn't behave like real smoke and the argument can be made that a properly running engine wouldn't show exhaust unless it was in cold temps. Yes there are plenty of video of T-34s spewing smoke, but how old are these tanks in the video? I don't recall seeing any WWII footage or Tigers spewing smoke. They went to lengths to develop smokeless charges in the shells, would they tolerate a column of exhaust bringing every p-47 for miles towards them?

When you're running on the dregs of sub-70-octane pool petrol with engines/transmissions with a propensity for oil leaks? It's not totally inconceivable.

Scale smoke does look strange though, it's far too wispy and thready (for want of a better description). For my money, the vapour you get when liquid nitrogen boils off would provide the best scale effect and behaviour, but you'd be hard-pressed fitting and filling a dewar in a model tank.

[Max-U52]

... I now have the Tamiya Panther G waiting in the wings; still in it's precision wrapping.
I swear it calls to me at night..urging me to assemble it!

Roy, that Panther isn't calling and urging you to assemble it, it's really saying, "Send me to Gary! Send me to Gary! Right now!!"

[43rdRecceReg]

... I now have the Tamiya Panther G waiting in the wings; still in it's precision wrapping.
I swear it calls to me at night..urging me to assemble it!

Roy, that Panther isn't calling and urging you to assemble it, it's really saying, "Send me to Gary! Send me to Gary! Right now!!"

I've been on a wee cold-turkey break from the 'addiction', for a few days, Gary so..I missed your April Fool's prank . Nice try, though...The problem with this scratch building thing, is that it turfs every other significant life-connected thing, or activity (chores, eating, dog walking etc..) out of the 'Nest'- just like a sort of cultural cuckoo!