Leopard Club : Hobby Boss Leopard 2 Kits

Hobby Boss Leopard 2 Kits

All comments and photos by Frank Lobitz.

Facts

Nearly all sprues are included in both boxes for the Strv 122 and the 2A5 DK (partly even for later releases as 2A4, 2A6, 2A6EX). Thus the extra bits included would be:
- both guns (L/44 and L/55)
- three kinds of smoke grenade launchers (old 4/4 style, new 6/2, Galix)
- APU-hull-corner and standard-hull parts
- two different hull rear ends (two pieced anyway)
- little brass set (nice idea to include the EMES-mirror)
the hull anti-skid patches are rather overdone, will be difficult to remove by sanding
welding seams are just lines without any texture - compare them to the Tamiya welds on the same parts
there are differences on parts which are have identical parts of origin - for example the front ring of the fume extractor of gun, or the exhausts
the standard hull parts are not quite right; one hinge is missing while the other is displaced
the track included with the kit is not great - perhaps Hobby Boss will follow with an individual link track because they have already released a few sets (Cromwell, Tiger for example)
sometimes the details are crisp but in some cases they are soft
some parts are overly simplified (specifically the PERI)
the Danish version doesn't present the additional turret top box but everything else is there (including the C8 carbine racks) and the turret bustle boxes look great when assembled
the under armour APU parts are very nicely done and are provided in addition to the standard hull parts ... but the hinges on the front-most stowage bin on the standard hull seem a little suspect
the smoke grenade launchers are are lacking in detail (particularly the new 6/2 style) and the old 4/4 clusters are in line (no side angles)
a very nice addition is the PE brass parts for the cooling fans, but not for the air intakes (which need some help)
the Strv 122 turret parts look very very similar to the HKCW resin parts

Observations

The 2A6EX will be possible to build already if you don't care too much about detail differences to a Strv122 w/ L/55, APU and 3-colour-pattern. I don't believe that Hobby Boss will make a new upper turret.

I wonder how the research was done, just by making copies of Tamiya, HKCW and Italeri/Revell? So it seems. I looking forward to the announced 2A4. For me this is the key.

Personal Opinions

Of course easier to build than a resin conversion, but what is the price for? Soft, simplified details, partly even wrong. Using Hobby Boss parts to convert a Tamiya basic would be less work than to bring a complete HB kit up to standard, because it seems to be impossible to remove the overdone anti-skid patches. I hope they will be able to learn and perhaps rework the molds as Trumpeter did with the Challenger 2.

- Frank Lobitz