Vickers Light Tank Mark VIB Resin Prints in 1/72 Scale

This is a 3D resin print of a Vickers Mark VIB from a file available on Thingiverse. The lattice structures under the parts are supports needed during the printing process. These must be cut away and cleaned up, similar to sprue gates on injection molded kits, but there’s a lot of them!

Here are two prints cleaned up and ready to go, an AA tank on the left and a Mark VIB machine-gun tank on the right. There is some clean-up needed to smooth out the print layers, but otherwise these are comparable to models intended for the wargame market. Construction is simple – only two parts!

The vehicles were modified a bit to increase the level of detail. The rear stowage frame was replaced with sheet stock to reduce the thickness of the parts. The exhaust pipe was replaced with tube. This tank also got the dust shields seen on tanks used in North Africa.

In this case the application of primer is most useful for the identification and elimination of print layers. These are best removed by scraping with an eXacto knife and filling with Mr. Surfacer until they are gone.

Mr. Color paints were used for the Caunter scheme seen on Commonwealth tanks in North Africa. I applied these with ye olde hairy stick as the shapes proved difficult to mask for the airbrush.

Decals are from Star Decals sheet 72-A 1065 for ANZAC armor in North Africa. The stowage box is a spare from the Plastic Soldier Stuart kits, the canvas roll was made from masking tape.

The commander figure is from the HäT British Tank Riders set. These are of the soft plastic variety. They look a bit underscale to my eye, but he fits nicely in the hatch opening.

Both finished models together. The resin prints are simple to model and details can be added to suit your tastes. I wouldn’t say the desktop 3D printers are all the way there yet, but the day is coming when they will augment the traditional kits. Another tool in the toolbox, certainly this is the Golden Age of modeling!

More photos here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2022/12/06/vickers-light-tank-mark-vib-in-1-72-scale/