Academy 1/48 T-72 MBT

The T-72 is a family of Soviet main battle tanks that entered production in 1973. T-72 made by Uralvagonzavod The T-72 was a development based on the T-64 using thought and design of the previous Object 167M. About 25,000 T-72 tanks have been built, and refurbishment has enabled many to remain in service for decades. It has been widely exported and has seen service in 40 countries and in numerous conflicts. The Russian T-90 introduced in 1992 and the Chinese Type 99 are further developments of the T-72. Production and development of various modernized T-72 models continues today.

Thanks to issues with the earlier T-64, the development of the T-72 was expedited. The initial batch entered service in 1974. The number of updates and upgrades have been continuous to where the current T-72 is barely recognizable from the initial production variants. This kit is more like an earlier version.

I was unaware that Academy did a line of 1/48 armor kits, so I was quite pleased to have won this one in a recent raffle. Molded in a dark green plastic, one will not confuse this with a Tamiya engineered kit. Academy has gone the route of a kit that is a lot less parts dedicated. A lot of what are detail parts on some other kits are molded in place on this one. As an example, the turret/gun has only seven pieces to attach to the turret. All of the suspension pieces are molded onto the lower hull.

The road wheels are attached by external caps so they can rotate. Sprocket and idler have a shaft connecting them. The kit provides a 'rubber band' vinyl track so that in theory this can move. In the back of the tub is a piece that will hold a pair of fuel tanks. A somewhat unusual feature is that there is no interlocking structure for the turret. Instead, it has a large pin that fits into a raised socket on the upper hull piece. That's it. No separate hatches. No figures. I would dare say that most modelers can have this assembled and painted in just a few days.

Instructions are well drawn. There are no decals. Instead a set of stickers are provided for one option. I don't know if aftermarket decals are available in this scale, but I'd certainly put forth the effort to locate some.

I'm actually quite pleased with this despite the stickers. I like 1/48 for armor as they are generally less fiddly than the larger scale, which ensures I'll actually finish them (I have a 1/35 M7 Priest that has been on hiatus for nearly 20 years). I can see this one being popular with younger builders and those who need something that isn't fussy as a breather.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-72

October 2026