Small Scale Military Headquarters

Do any/many of you mix and match 1/16 items with 1/18 items? I'veheard things about most 21st Century figures being closer to 1/16 scale than actual 1/18, and so fourth. Is this true?
I'm basically asking, because if the sizes aren't too contrasting, investing in 1/16 armor might pay off.
It has always seemed to me that 1/16 stuff is a little big for the (or what are supposed to be) 1/18 scale figures. However, I know I've seen people use the FOV 1/16 figures with the 21st Century 1/18 figures in dioramas.
So, some opinions please?

Thanks in advance.

I think where you'll hear the biggest complaints is when people try to mix and match vehicles of the same type in both scales, ie. 1/16 Tiger and an XD Tiger.... the 1/16 will dwarf the 1/18... well, not exactly...but it is much bigger. XD figures will work fine with 1/16th though, no problem.

I remember hearing one member saying that he bought a 1/16 tank and was too big for the 1/18 tank crew guys. But i guess it should be alright with 1/18.

I think they work fine as long as you don't show the same vehicles in both scales together.

Using a 1/16 Pershing with some 1/18 vehicles are almost OK. Using a 1/16 Firetruck, like the Highway61 RAF Firetruck looks good with 1/18 figs and vehicles.

Depends on whether you are a "bolt counter" or not. A BC will never be happy anyway, nothing is perfect.... even museum pieces can have flaws the will always upset the BC's of our small world....

TTT

What are some of the best brands for 1/16 armor? I've seen a variety, and they do of course vary in quality. Some look a little more toyish than others.

it's a bit of a case of 'ignorance is bliss'. If you're well versed in the relative sizes of tanks, then 1/16 tanks are going to look too large with 1/18 tanks. Otherwise, if you don't use the same subject in the two scales, then you'll probably be happy with them.

This is why bolt counters are never happy....they know too much.

The only 1/16 tank i've used so far, is the T-34; only because it is such an important wwii vehicle. It's still smaller than the Panther, despite being 11% too big, so it really doesn't look all that bad.

Otherwise i've been very brave and avoided getting 1/16 armour. Thanks to card models i've been able to build a 1/18 KV-2 and Elefant and have plans to build others, so that really helps to keep me brave.

However, if a 1/16 stug were to come out (which it is supposed to), then that might make me buckle..

SolidSnakeEyes wrote:What are some of the best brands for 1/16 armor? I've seen a variety, and they do of course vary in quality. Some look a little more toyish than others.

Best? It really depends how much money you're willing to fork over.

In 1/16th, Tamiya's the best, in terms of RC. They are in a kit form though, and you have to build them.

In terms of detail, the 1/16th Trumpeter T-34 kits are the best out there. Not even Tamiya can come close to the level of detail of these tanks.

Third best are the later-models of Heng Longs. The older Heng Longs are crude copies of Tamiyas. That's why they look toyish. But they recently came out with the Panzer III and Panzer IV, which are quite good. Evene better looking than 21st's offerings.

Fourth best are the Matorros. They're fourth best in my opinion, is because their gearboxes are plastic, with no option to option to upgrade them to metal (unless you want to use Heng Long gearboxes, but that will require mods). The Matorros are good detail-wise.

The tanks that are available in 1/16th now:

TAMIYA

M4 HVSS 105mm Sherman
Early Tiger I
Porsche King Tiger
Henschel King Tiger
Panther G
M-26 Pershing
Leopard 2A6

They are soon coming out with the Panzer IV Ausf. J

Heng Long
Tiger I (crude copy of Tamiya)
Pershing (crude copy of Tamiya)
PanTiger (Panther that uses the Tiger I hull)
M-41 Walker Bulldog
Panzer III Ausf. L and Ausf. H
Panzer IV Ausf. F.1

They are soon coming out with the Stug III and thinking of making the Elefant/Ferdinand.

Trumpeter/WSN
RC Mid-Production Tiger I
RC T-34/85
Full-interior T-34/85 (2 versions)
Full interior T-34/76 (2 versions)

They are coming out with the full interior M-16 Half-track (note: this is NOT a quad trailer), and a full interior Porsche King Tiger.

Matorro
Sturm Tiger
King Tiger w/zimmerit (heavily modified copy of Tamiya's King Tiger)

*EDIT*
Almost forgot about the FOV 1/16th tanks.

Forces of Valor
Full interior King Tiger
Full interior Late Tiger I
Full interior Late Tiger I (befehlstiger)

And they are coming out with a full interior M4A3 75mm Sherman.

What are some of the best brands for 1/16 armor?

Ditto everything Googly said

For the purists it would be Tamiya...but be prepared to spend from $500 at the low end to upwards of $1000 (or more in some cases) for the kit alone, then you have many hours of assembly and painting ahead of you to bring it to RTR condition. Heng Long is probably the most common name in mass produced RC armor, with base prices running around $100, more or less, depending on the model and features, but most of these will need some additional work paint wise to get rid of the "plasticky" look, and many people upgrade the electronics, motors, tracks and so forth, so depending on your needs and desires you may spend up to $400 or more on a Heng Long Tiger I to make it a really great looking and running RC tank. Still, for about $100 you can get a very nice RTR tank that will satisfy most weekend users, and they have plenty of potential for painting, upgrading, and modifying to suit your needs and/or budget, and another good thing about the Heng Long RC models is that there are plenty of spare parts available at reasonable cost should something break. Matorro and WSN-Trumpeter are two other big names in mass produced RC tanks, and some of the newer releases from Trumpeter have very nice paintwork right out of the box. I have a Matorro KT that I'm in the process of re-painting and detailing and I'm very happy so far with the model's performance and looks. Here's an example of what can be done with a $100 RC tank in 1/16th scale... This is a WSN Tiger I, and to me this looks as good or better than any static model I've ever seen, and you can drive this thing in the dirt... Click pics to enlarge...

I'm considering getting a 1/16 R/C tiger, but I can't decide between it and the 21c version. Anyone have any suggestions?

B-29 wrote:I'm considering getting a 1/16 R/C tiger, but I can't decide between it and the 21c version. Anyone have any suggestions?

IMHO, I don't know why anyone would want a 21st Tiger nowadays. Back when it's the only mid-scale Tiger in the market , yes, I could see the desire to purchase one. Heck, I purchased 3 a long time ago.

But now, with all the available Tigers in 1/18th and 1/16th, and 21st's prices is nearing the 1/16th RC price point, I just don't get the draw of 21st's extremely inaccurate Tiger I.

The dimensions of this Tiger is so wrong, it barely looks like a Tiger. Even from afar. I even tried squining whenever I look at it. But no. It still looks wrong.

Everything is off, and the details on it are completely wrong. 21st did a hodgepodge job, combining features from Early, Mid, Late, and Final versions of the Tiger.

And the exalted "interior"? Eh. Unless you're planning on cutting up your Tiger to display the insides, I don't see the point of that either. Not to mention that the interior "details" are so grossly wrong, I'd be ashamed to show it off.

I have no idea why 21st bastardized their Tiger this way. Their Panther and Sherman, even though they have their own small issues, are much more accurate than some people would give them credit for.

To me, just because a model has more "things" on it, doesn't make it more detailed. Heck, if that's the case, then I could put a whole bunch of stuff on a 21st Panther, like missile launchers, a toilet, a TV set and a futon, and call it "highly detailed".

So yeah, pay $50-$100 for a 1/18th highly inaccurate Tiger, or pay $50-$150 for a decently-accurate, RC Tiger with working suspensions, working tracks, etc etc.

LOL...well said GooglyDoogly, very well said.

Thanks for the help! I might get this one:/1-16-RADIO-CONTROL-R-C-AIRSOFT-GERMAN-TIGER-I-RC-TANK_W0QQitemZ260245762855QQihZ016QQcategoryZ44026QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
But how accurate is it? I can't tell from just the front view. Anyone else got any info on this one?

B-29 wrote:Thanks for the help! I might get this one:/1-16-RADIO-CONTROL-R-C-AIRSOFT-GERMAN-TIGER-I-RC-TANK_W0QQitemZ260245762855QQihZ016QQcategoryZ44026QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem
But how accurate is it? I can't tell from just the front view. Anyone else got any info on this one?

The link doesn't work, but from the description, I'm guessing it's a Heng Long Tiger.

It's a pretty accurate Tiger, because it's a copy of Tamiya's. But Heng Long made several "modifications" on it so they will be able to sell it.

The mods you can do to make it more accurate are:

1. Flip the gun mantlet.
2. Lengthen the barrel. You can find several sellers who sells the barrel extension.
3. Change the hull machine gun (optional, if you're anal to details).
4. Twist the commander's cupola around ten degrees to the left (or is it right? Check your references).
5. Move the antenna aerial to the correct position.
6. rotate the pistol port on the left side of the turret 90 degrees.

That's all I could remember without directly looking at one. Many of these are just cosmetic changes, except for the gun mantlet and the barrel. Those changes are a must. But other than that, it's a good looking tank. And once you've seen the tracks roll and the suspension works, you'll never go back to models that has rubber band-type tracks.