The T-34/85 is one of the most widely recognized tanks in the world. Over 18,000 were built before the end of WWII. Then, in 1951, Poland received marketing approval and continued production, re-manufacturing, and improving the T-34/85 series.

Kagero has done a great job on this book. Like most of their Top Shot series, this book is only 44 pages long and contains 180 color pictures. Also included, free of charge, is a four-page folded Top Shot catalogue. The pictures are great and definitely designed with the modeler in mind. The color pictures (180 of them), are nice, crisp, and provide a wealth of useful ideas. An example would be the one picture that shows a station-keeping light mounted at the rear deck where the electrical wires for the smoke cans exit the rear. I am not sure if this was a production modification or something required to have on a Museum runner.

This brings up the point of making sure you KNOW the vehicle you are going to model. The four different vehicles covered in this reference book are all post-WWII models with post-WWII modifications applied. The light is one, the SPO (new version tow cable) is another, and all the photographed vehicles sport the full spiderweb-designed road wheels. These are the ones that appear on T54 series vehicles.

This is a great and useful reference book – as long as you are not using it to replicate a WWII-vintage T-34/85. This is great for any postwar series T-34/85. I would definitely recommend everyone use the great pictures.

I want to thank Casemate Publishing for providing this book for review, and IPMS-USA for allowing me to review it. Now grab this book and finish one of those postwar T-34/85s that you have in your stash.