1:35 Centurion - Corrected Road Wheels 12 Wheels & QW Mask (for Amusing Hobby Kits)

The early marks, which could not yet defend themselves against a shaped-charge round

The first Centurions came out of the factory gates with a gun of 17-pounder caliber and with an armament that, according to the experience of Normandy, reckoned rather with aircraft than with tanks. The Mark I and Mark II differed in the shield, the armor of the turret and the arrangement of the rear, but they were produced in series only briefly, because the arms designers were already preparing a more powerful gun. Modelers are fond of them for just that transitional, unusual appearance, which is not yet far from the later versions with skirts and angular baskets, and yet looks quite different.

Why a different version for each kit

The chassis is practically identical on all the marks, except that kit manufacturers adapt the shafts and pins in their own way: the axis runs elsewhere, the seating surface sits elsewhere. This set of twelve wheels, together with the QW masking template, therefore comes into being directly for Amusing Hobby kits, so that the wheel literally only slides on and nothing has to be drilled or shimmed.

Working with the parts

Before you start gluing, measure the running gear out empty and check whether all twelve wheels sit down on the base in the same plane. The template comes in useful at the moment when the wheel is painted in the base color of the metal and the tire remains: it covers the disk, the tire is sprayed and the edge comes out without jagged places.

When to reach for the set

It will do its greatest service on a model without side skirts, where the running gear is in plain sight from the first glance, and in scenes where the vehicle stands on soft ground and the wheels press into the mud.