dEFCONAirsoft Tokyo Marui T90 Tank Review

Picture the scene, perfect countryside setting, lush grass and vegetation - plenty of camouflage for the weekend warrior. You're slowly moving along with your squad by your side, and determination to win, when suddenly you hear a noise in the bushes. The officer in charge orders a nearby tank crew to fire into the dense woodland - the tank commander takes aim and fires - a single 6mm BB rips into the bushes, out pops your next door neighbours cat.

If the above scenario sounds familiar, you've probably already got your hands on Marui's offering, their 1/24th scale T90 type tank. If you haven't? - read on and discover all about it...

tank4.JPG (120970 bytes) Marui, and the inventive little bods that work for them, decided recently to add something new and exciting to their product range. They are the leading name to know in Electric Airsoft Guns. They've been producing various different designs for years now, and other major players such as KSC and Western Arms have appeared on the scene offering realism and affordability to rival Marui. Bet you can't think of another company however, who would have thought of this... a 1/24th scale (that’s about 410mm long, and about 150mm wide) model of the Japanese Defence T90 tank.

Incredibly detailed, and every bit as comprehensive as their Electric Weapons, this scale model is bound to bring a smile to almost anyone who touches it. Considering the amount of detail required on an 1/1 scale Electric rifle, then to take a huge Japanese tank, study every last feature and then shrink it down to this size - well, they've certainly pulled it off well.

Taking the tank out of the box at first could be slightly disappointing, true the Paint job is immaculate but the shell of the tank is slightly lacking in detail at this stage. Now take that neat little black cardboard box, and have a peek inside. A wonderful selection of small parts awaits you, ready to add realism to this already impressive model. This feature I like about this product. I'm also a keen radio controlled modeller, I fly planes, race cars - basically anything radio controlled and fiddly! Its quite satisfying to be able to accomplish something, and call it your own - and being able to decorate your own model certainly increases "enjoyment time" you can have with this Tank - or as I like to call it.... the fiddle factor.

You don't have to decorate the tank, it’s entirely up to you, but it certainly looks the part with the extra pieces added. Marui even supply you with a tube of plastic cement, similar to that found in Air fix kits, to attach the vast array of accessories, ranging from ropes, grenade launcher tubes - even a 1/24th scale Tank commander! With regards to adding the option parts to the Tank, the instructions are of the usual high quality now expected of a Marui product, although a little disappointingly written completely in Japanese. Not a problem however, thanks to the very comprehensive diagrams, which clearly point out where each piece belongs, and goes into detail regarding operation and maintenance. It strikes me a little odd however that Marui only produce instructions in English for their Electric Guns?

tank3.JPG (126590 bytes) The Tank is powered by 8AA batteries and one 9V PP3 type for the controller. Alkaline batteries are highly recommended, as they supply more current on demand than Zinc Chloride type, however, if you really want to get the most out of this, invest in some Ni-Cad re-chargables, and a suitable charger. Power drain on the controller itself is minimal, so this battery should last you a fair while. Certain operation of the Tank will drain the batteries faster, such as firing the cannon whilst performing manoeuvres. The tank has independent motors which drive the tracks, turret and fire the cannon – obviously whilst firing and driving, both motors are being operated at the same time, drinking thirstily from your electric go-go juice.

There are two separate power switches on the tank, one for the overall power, and the other to disable the cannon, which is useful as an added safety feature, if you’re just planning on cruising around your living room. True, a 0.12g BB may not damage your furniture, but could cause a nasty eye injury if this model is mis-treated. It is therefore very important to remember that this isn’t just a glorified radio controlled car, it’s an Airsoft weapon too!

The Controller slightly resembles something out of a Star Trek episode, although Mister Kirk would have a hard time setting this controller to stun mode. Instead, you’re presented with a multitude of buttons, which control the tank to your every command. As this is a Tank, those of you who are used to playing with Radio controlled cars may be slightly disappointed. You can’t move forwards and steer at the same time. But then, seen many radio controlled cars that can whip round in a 360 degree circle in less than 2 seconds? Couple this with the ability to be able to spin the turret round 180 degrees and fire, whilst still moving forwards… well, God didn’t create Man with enough fingers. You can have endless fun with this little beast, if you have the patience and flexibility in your hands. I’m too sure how many radio channels the controller is, but its certainly very versatile, every bit as much than the Tank itself. All operations can be made that extra bit faster, by making use of the "boost" button located on the underside of the controller, this will speed everything up to Warp Number 9 Mister Spock, although you can’t fire whilst in "turbo" mode. Also on the underside of the controller is the safety for the firing mechanism. Holding down this red button whist holding down the similar red button on the top, will fire the cannon with a satisfying "ker-clunk". Marui produce two models, one is 27mhz and the other 40mhz which are both legal frequencies for use in the UK. Get your friend to purchase one on the opposite frequency and have wars in your back garden, just make sure you both wear the all important safety specs!

I mentioned earlier about 0.12g ammo. It’s important you use this, to get the most out of the hop-up mechanism and to avoid any jams. I haven’t actually suffered a jammed BB yet, maybe the construction doesn’t allow such mishaps to occur. If they did, Marui don’t actually mention it in their instruction manual, or any tips on how to alleviate such a problem. Must be tribute the gravity feed magazine, which appears to work beautifully without problem, cycling all 40 rounds at a rate of about 1 per second.

Normally when I review an Airsoft model, I have two major factors to take into account, how does it look, and how does it shoot? This review was a little different. Aesthetic features aside, I have to look at how its shoots, and even more exciting, how does it drive. The answer to both of these questions, is a very pleasing "Does it nicely on both accounts…"

tank2.JPG (90314 bytes) Keeping in form with their ability to recreate weapons down to perfection, Marui decided to incorporate independent suspension on this model. I’m glad they did, because it makes this little model a very agile performer. I’ve tried numerous obstacles, and each one has been navigated and cleared with ease. Video cases, Pillows, cardboard ramps, tubes – you name it, the T90 ground defence tank cleared it. And with fresh batteries, it has fairly high torque, allowing it to crawl at fairly high speed up steep inclines without problem. Ni-cad batteries will probably give you the best performance, being able to deliver a lot of current when required, essential when climbing over what would be impossible for a normal radio controlled car.

The instructions (or rather diagrams, unless you read Japanese) make it clear not to take it across water or grass. The reason for the latter is quite simple, which I experienced when testing in my Living room, shortly after decorating our Xmas tree. Strands of Tinsel easily find their way into the drive axles and are very difficult to remove. I am presuming Marui are trying to prevent similar situations happening with grass, which although wouldn’t ruin the Tank, may impair its performance, and would certainly be difficult to remove.

I am sure this Tank would still perform well on short grass, but as it was kindly donated for review purposes, and must be returned – I obviously didn’t want to risk it. But the impression I get from its abilities on other terrain, you may be pleasantly surprised. It performs very well on gravel and stone chippings, very realistically throwing them out of its path as the 1-inch wide tracks grip the surface. And tarmac is by far the best surface, and the 360 degree turning circle is performed beautifully.

tank1.JPG (103453 bytes) As for the cannon? Well, take a mini-electric airsoft gun, increase the range slightly and lowering the firing speed, and that’s basically what you have. Marui have shrunk the insides down to a ridiculously small size, and it performs very well considering the small barrel which is no greater than your average springer, but certainly a lot shorter than an AEG. But still is surprises me with its 25+ metre range. The only minor drawback is the type of ammunition you have to use, and the 0.12g BB, as we all know, can be affected by adverse weather conditions. Still, at about 15m, I would say it’s pretty accurate, although with no sights to aim with – it’s hardly a benchmark test. Still, after practise you can easily knock down those cans at 15m+, and the energy imparted at this end of things still has quite a poke. In practise I can see potential for this in Airsoft games, if you’re willing to take it out into the field. But I think you’d be having far too much fun shooting up the back garden, and demolishing your neighbours prize flowerbeds to even think about Skirmishing. Overall, if you have an AEG, bored of GBB’s and Springers don’t interest you – you could do worse things than to spend the money on this little baby, which I guarantee you a good time with. Money well spent!

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