Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company

Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company

Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company

How to assemble your IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company

Check out the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company spotlight here...

Step 1. Begin assembly by gluing the tracks onto the hull. The keys ensure the tracks are on the correct sides.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 2. Add the body to the hull. You have the choice between the IS-2 obr 1944 hull top (left) and the IS-2 obr 1943/IS-85 hull top (right). See more explanation below.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 3. Now we begin assembly of the turret. Start off by gluing the top and bottom together.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 4. Now choose the appropriate turret front. The part with the wider gun mantlet (left) is correct for the IS-2 obr 1944, and for most IS-2 obr 1934 tanks. The narrower mantlet is for the IS-85, and some early production IS-2 obr 1943 vehicles. Below: Next add the gun. The one with the muzzle brake is the 122mm gun for the IS-2 obr 1943 and obr 1944. The straight, tapered gun is the 85mm gun for the IS-85. Both guns are keyed at the top to ensure correct alignment.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 5. Once the bond between the gun and mantlet has cured glue it to the turret body.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 6. Flip the turret over and glue the turret pin into the bottom. Step 7. Simply place the turret onto the body without gluing, so you can rotate the turret to point at the shooting target.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company

Alternatively, you may prefer to glue rare earth magnets into the recess in the hull and to the bottom of the turret. Magnets are a quick and secure way of fixing your turrets to the hulls, but they are a small added expense, which is why the turret peg is provided, leaving the choice up to you.

Rare Earth Magnets (XX105) are available through the online store here...

These 1mm x 5mm magnets fit perfectly into the round spaces in the hull and turret.

Rare Earth Magnets (XX105)
Step 8. Next glue on the hatch and turret. You can chose between a closed or open hatch. You can aslo add a DSHK AA machine-gun, if you have chosen to include this +5-point upgrade option in your army list. AA machine-guns always seem to be the part of a tank that is most likely to get broken off and lost, so a spare is included on the sprue.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 9. Next glue on the turret rear MG.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 10. Adding the external fuel drums. The standard layout was two on each side of the hull. But historical photos commonly show vehicles with some or all of the tanks removed, so feel free to leave some off to give your force some variety.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Step 11. There is also an option to add spare tracks to the front of the hull.
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company
Assembling the IS-85 Guards Heavy Tank Company