I saw this Trumpeter 5 in 1 M1A1/A2 on sale so I decided to give it a try since another customer already bought the Dragon M1A2 SEP which is what I'm really intended to buy. I thought it will be a nice addition to my planned "OIF" series and she will look good sitting next to a M1A2 SEP soon.

Anyway, there's something strange with its bustle rack APU. I think it is kinda short. Here is the photo:



Question is, is there really a short bustle rack APU? Because the one I've seen on photos, videos and models are long enough to reach the back of the main bustle rack. I hope there is such a short APU though. Otherwise this upon completing this model, it will not be a near accurate one and will make me feel uncomfortable hehe. Thanks!

No, there isn't a short APU. Trumpeter just made their piece undersized. Trumpeter's Abrams kits are not that good. You can see how it compares to other pre-DML AIM and SEP kits at Vodnik's Comparison of M1A1/M1A2 Abrams kits article.

The short APU is only one minor issue. The bigger issue is the misshapen left front of the turret.

Unless you just have to build a Trumpeter Abrams, I would stay away from it. About all that the kit is really good for is to build the M1 Panther II mine clearing vehicle (I would still build DMLs over it though) or to use the mine plow or mine roller on another Abrams kit.




In my opinion, it will look pretty inferior next to a Dragon M1A2 SEP.

It will take a lot to bring it up to OIF standards.

The Trumpeter M1A1/A2 represents an early to mid-'90s version. It needs quite a bit of updating to bring it up to OIF standards. It also depends on how current you want it to be.

Here is some M1 update info:

US Army M1A1HC/AIM/A2 Upgrades

These are upgrades to bring the older Abrams kits up to the latest standards. Not all of the upgrades are on all tanks, you will have to check your references on the one you are building to see which upgrades/modifications it has applied to it.

EPLRS antenna mount, thin post to the right side of regular antenna.
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BFT antenna (w/ GPS antenna on it) attached to gunner's doghouse.
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You will not usually see both the EPLRS antenna and a BFT antenna installed on the same tank. It is usually one or the other. The EPLRS antenna mounting post will still be present when the BFT antenna is used, just with a blanking plate on it as opposed to an antenna base.

APU Power Junction box. New electrical conduit is the angle-iron piece running along the left side of the blow-out panel.
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Power connection box next to the man-hole cover. There are two screw caps to connect to located on the front of the connector, toward the front of the tank.
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PLGR antenna mounted somewhere on the turret roof. It is usually in front of the crosswind sensor. I have also seen it to the front right of the TC's cupola, or on the BFT antenna, as shown above. The location for it varies.
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PLGR antenna on M1A2
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Tank/Infantry Phone and rear Slave Cable Receptacle on right rear of hull on latest AIM tanks. These were not present until about 2006 or so.
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Deep fording kit exhaust flange on HCs and AIMs.
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Forward MCB power/control box connector next to driver's hatch. This feature also is a later one as part of the AIM rebulid and was not seen about '06.
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Check [urhttp://www.primeportal.net/tanks/m1_abrams.htm ]Prime Portal[/url] for more M1A1 and M1A2 pics.
Check out my [urhttps://armorama.kitmaker.net//features/613]M1 Variants Article[/url] as well for more info and pics.

USMC M1A1HC/AIM Upgrades

Change out the smoke launchers to the USMC 8-shot, double-stacked type.
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BFT antenna (w/ GPS antenna on it) attached to gunner's doghouse.
" BORDER="0">
" BORDER="0">

You will not usually see both the EPLRS antenna and a BFT antenna installed on the same tank. It is usually one or the other. The EPLRS antenna mounting post will still be present when the BFT antenna is used, just with a blanking plate on it as opposed to an antenna base.

APU Power Junction box. New electrical conduit is the angle-iron piece running along the left side of the blow-out panel.
" BORDER="0">

Power connection box next to the man-hole cover. There are two screw caps to connect to located on the front of the connector, toward the front of the tank.
" BORDER="0">

PLGR antenna is mounted somewhere on the turret roof. It is usually in front of the crosswind sensor. I have also seen it to the front right of the TC's cupola as well. The location for it varies.
" BORDER="0">
" BORDER="0">

Tank/Infantry Phone and rear Slave Cable Receptacle on right rear of hull on latest AIM tanks. (Added in '07. Prior to this, they had just the T/I box on the right rear.)

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Deep fording kit exhaust flange on HCs and AIMs.
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The box in front of the loader's hatch is an MCD (Missile Countermeasure Device). It is used to defeat optically and laser guided anti-tank missiles.
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Some USMC M1A1HCs are using the old sprocket retaining rings as well. They were found to be an easy fix to counter the track losing tension during operations. The USMC started putting the rings back on M1A1HCs in the early-mid nineties that were stationed stateside on the West Coast (1st Tank Bn) and they were seen on tanks on deployment with the MEUs until 2006. No rings are/were on the sprockets of East Coast (2nd Tank BN) tanks though. Most USMC tanks that came off of the Maritime Preposition Ships (MPS) in Kuwait for OIF I /II did not have the sprocket retaining rings, other than at least three known tanks that came off the MPS ships with them. The USMC tanks that have been seen in Iraq with retaining rings are from stateside (1st Tank Bn). They are part of the different ocean-going Marine Expeditionary Units (MEU) that have gone to Iraq and participated in the festivities over the past few years. So, specific USMC tanks could be seen with the rings applied.

The below pic is a USMC M1A1HC in ops in Kuwait with the rings on it.
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For the USMC BRE used in OIF.
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Eduard makes one in PE, set # 35598. There is also one in the new(ish) Academy M1A1 Iraq 2003 kit. It is one of the few good pieces off the new J sprue. It also has a T/I Phone box on the new sprue. The rest of the kit sucks though. The Dragon M1A2 SEP kit comes with a nice PE and plastic one as well.

You can take a look at my [urhttps://armorama.kitmaker.net//features/613]M1 Variants Article[/url] as well for more info and pics.

You can also take a look at my USMC M1A1HC that I did a while ago,"Angry American":
http://smg.photobucket.com/albums/v231/HeavyArty/USMC%20M1A1%20Angry%20American/


The Tamiya M1A1/A2 kit comes with the MCD and smoke launchers. The Academy kit also includes the T/I phone box, smoke launchers and MCD as well. Echelon makes a couple great decal sheets for Marine Abrams in Iraq too. They also have another sheet coming out soon.

Hope it isn't too much info. Good luck.

Wow! Now that's a very detailed info that I need to know (copied all text and saves all photos). Now I understand why this trumpeter M1 that I bought is on sale (really a cheap price). I just checked the store where I usually buy kits and too bad, they no longer have any M1's left. All they have mostly are WWII kits (for land armor vehicles). I think all I can do now is wait for a much more accurate M1A2 kit. I still wanna get the Dragon SEP though. Thanks for the enlightenment!

Damn pics got messed up. Here they are again.

US Army M1A1HC/AIM/A2 Upgrades

These are upgrades to bring the older Abrams kits up to the latest standards. Not all of the upgrades are on all tanks, you will have to check your references on the one you are building to see which upgrades/modifications it has applied to it.

EPLRS antenna mount, thin post to the right side of regular antenna.


BFT antenna (w/ GPS antenna on it) attached to gunner's doghouse.



You will not usually see both the EPLRS antenna and a BFT antenna installed on the same tank. It is usually one or the other. The EPLRS antenna mounting post will still be present when the BFT antenna is used, just with a blanking plate on it as opposed to an antenna base.

APU Power Junction box. New electrical conduit is the angle-iron piece running along the left side of the blow-out panel.


Power connection box next to the man-hole cover. There are two screw caps to connect to located on the front of the connector, toward the front of the tank.


PLGR antenna mounted somewhere on the turret roof. It is usually in front of the crosswind sensor. I have also seen it to the front right of the TC's cupola, or on the BFT antenna, as shown above. The location for it varies.


PLGR antenna on M1A2


Tank/Infantry Phone and rear Slave Cable Receptacle on right rear of hull on latest AIM tanks. These were not present until about 2006 or so.


Deep fording kit exhaust flange on HCs and AIMs.


Forward MCB power/control box connector next to driver's hatch. This feature also is a later one as part of the AIM rebulid and was not seen about '06.


Check Prime Portal for more M1A1 and M1A2 pics.
Check out my M1 Variants Article as well for more info and pics.

USMC M1A1HC/AIM Upgrades

Change out the smoke launchers to the USMC 8-shot, double-stacked type.



BFT antenna (w/ GPS antenna on it) attached to gunner's doghouse.



You will not usually see both the EPLRS antenna and a BFT antenna installed on the same tank. It is usually one or the other. The EPLRS antenna mounting post will still be present when the BFT antenna is used, just with a blanking plate on it as opposed to an antenna base.

APU Power Junction box. New electrical conduit is the angle-iron piece running along the left side of the blow-out panel.


Power connection box next to the man-hole cover. There are two screw caps to connect to located on the front of the connector, toward the front of the tank.


PLGR antenna is mounted somewhere on the turret roof. It is usually in front of the crosswind sensor. I have also seen it to the front right of the TC's cupola as well. The location for it varies.



Tank/Infantry Phone and rear Slave Cable Receptacle on right rear of hull on latest AIM tanks. (Added in '07. Prior to this, they had just the T/I box on the right rear.)




Deep fording kit exhaust flange on HCs and AIMs.


The box in front of the loader's hatch is an MCD (Missile Countermeasure Device). It is used to defeat optically and laser guided anti-tank missiles.



Some USMC M1A1HCs are using the old sprocket retaining rings as well. They were found to be an easy fix to counter the track losing tension during operations. The USMC started putting the rings back on M1A1HCs in the early-mid nineties that were stationed stateside on the West Coast (1st Tank Bn) and they were seen on tanks on deployment with the MEUs until 2006. No rings are/were on the sprockets of East Coast (2nd Tank BN) tanks though. Most USMC tanks that came off of the Maritime Preposition Ships (MPS) in Kuwait for OIF I /II did not have the sprocket retaining rings, other than at least three known tanks that came off the MPS ships with them. The USMC tanks that have been seen in Iraq with retaining rings are from stateside (1st Tank Bn). They are part of the different ocean-going Marine Expeditionary Units (MEU) that have gone to Iraq and participated in the festivities over the past few years. So, specific USMC tanks could be seen with the rings applied.

The below pic is a USMC M1A1HC in ops in Kuwait with the rings on it.


For the USMC BRE used in OIF.


Eduard makes one in PE, set # 35598. There is also one in the new(ish) Academy M1A1 Iraq 2003 kit. It is one of the few good pieces off the new J sprue. It also has a T/I Phone box on the new sprue. The rest of the kit sucks though. The Dragon M1A2 SEP kit comes with a nice PE and plastic one as well.

You can take a look at my M1 Variants Article as well for more info and pics.

You can also take a look at my USMC M1A1HC that I did a while ago, "Angry American"


The Tamiya M1A1/A2 kit comes with the MCD and smoke launchers. The Academy kit also includes the T/I phone box, smoke launchers and MCD as well. Echelon makes a couple great decal sheets for Marine Abrams in Iraq too. They also have another sheet coming out soon.

Hope it isn't too much info. Good luck.