The 2a45 Sprut AT Gun was developed in the mid 80s and is reported as commencing fielding in the forward group of forces in the late 80s early 90s, FM 100-2-3 does not acknowledge the deployment of this gun in 1991. Isbey in the 1986 version of weapons and tactics of the Soviet Army does. Ultimately it's a cool looking gun and something a bit different so I'll use it post 1989 and use the 2a29 MT12 100mm anti tank guns prior to that.
When you pull it out of the box it looks fairly simple, three spurs and a bunch of bits after a few hours you start to realise just how many! Quite a complicated kit given its size. Despite its limited production run status the parts quality is really quite good and the general fit and lack of flash are again good. Having said that there is plenty of construction fun in this model for the unwary, the principal issue being with the lack of part location definition on the model and a degree of ambiguity around the detailed assembly sequence some thinking effort is required in order to sequence the assembly to achieve the desired fit.
Trail Assembly
As I was building all four models in the firing position the first task was to assemble the trails deployed for firing.
Top Tips
- Chamfer, the top of the trail on the inside edge where it fits to the centre of the gun platform, in the diagrams that refers to the inner ends of parts 4, and 2
- Increase the depth of the indentation on the underside of the inboard end of the 2 smaller trail arms, otherwise the arms struggle to reach the ground, parts 8, 4, 2 and 9.
in the second phase of the trail assembly part 68 needs to protrude clear of the lead trail arm as it is the attachment for the front wheel and part 62 needs to attach to the trail arm to the side of 68
Main Gun Assembly
The sequence of assembly and the creation of sub components can lead to problems, I certainly struggled
In order to get the breach and barrel all lined up correctly I found the best approach to be:
- assemble the recuperatory system housing parts 61, 24, 27
- assemble the breach parts 15 and 11
- attach gun barrel to breach and recuperatory system housing
- add rear of recouperators to top of breach, part 19
- add covers 34 and 38, note the inside lower edge of these parts needs filling to ensure good fit
- add breach side 58, this is the only way to get this in the right place
- then do the rest, part 22 could be left until later as it can interfere with setting the gun in the gun cradle
- The motor housing needs quite a bit of filler
There is a part in any model that can bring a man to tears for me it was the second phase of the trail construction and seating the gun in the gun cradle. Having filed and checked fit on everything obvious the things I wished I'd been told were as follows:
- Parts 73 and 74 fit outside 48 the rotation table
- I inserted some plasticard under the engine platform and on the gun rotation table in order to more firmly fix those components.
- getting it all straight was fun!
After that it was a breeze
The Gun is mounted on a CD, something to do with your CD collection now you have iThis iThat and iTheOther. The handy part of the CD is the hole in the middle can help solve the "trail legs won't touch the ground" problem.
The figures are from Elhiems Cold War Soviet Range in Flack Jackets with the weapons removed, the prone figure is from the AT4 set.
To be fair this is a very detailed model of a lovely looking gun, once you have got the sequencing sorted, the final model looks great and is a fairly unusual subject. Employing it in a game is the next test of the Soviet gamers resolve but I have a few answers for that as well.
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