by Pierangelo Caiti

This 8"x11", 160-page (plus covers) paperback is also published by Squadron/Signal (the only company to send me books for review lately). Again the title could be slightly misleading, since some of the AFVs covered date back to WWII, but all types covered are still in service somewhere with some government or other (or still under development, in the ultra-new cases). They are arranged, however, by the country of origin, not current service. Specific vehicles covered are: the Argentinian TAM medium tank; Austrian "Kurassier" light tank; West German Leopard 1 and 2 medium tanks; German/British KP23/FMBT-80 medium tank; French AMX13 and AMX10C light tanks, AMX30 and AMX32 and EPC medium tanks; Israeli Merkava heavy tank; Japanese Type 61 and Type 74 medium tanks; Chinese Type 81, Type 60/63 and Type 62 light tanks and Type 59 medium tank; Swedish Strv M/40L and Ikv9l light tanks and Strv103 medium tank; Swiss Pz61, Pz68 and "Lamborghini" medium tanks; the Russian PT-76 and BMD light tanks, T-34, T-54/55, T62, T-64, T-72 and T-80 medium tanks, and Josef Stalin III and T-10/T-10M heavy tanks; the British Scorpion CVR light tank, A34 Comet, Charioteer, Centurian and Vickers MBT medium tanks and Chieftain heavy tank; the British/Iranian Shir 2 main battle tank; and the American M3/M3A1 Stuart (believe it or not!), M24 Chaffee, M41 Walker Bulldog and M551 Sheridan light tanks, M4 Sherman, M47 Patton, M48 Patton, M60 and XM-1 Abrams medium tanks.

Incidentally, so you won't die of curiosity, the Stuart is still in service with Chile, Colombia, Ecuador, Guatemala, Indonesia, Mexico, Uruguay and Brazil--the latter country having extensively modified it with such goodies as a Cummins diesel, tracks, bogies, and idlers from the M4 Sherman, and a new turret with a (believe it or not!) 90mm smoothbore gun. Most types are thoroughly covered, with photos and text and a few line drawings are included. There are eight pages with color photographs. If you're interested in exploring the current state of tank design (note that APCs and SP guns are not covered), and comparing the design philosophies of different nations, you'll find this work very informative. It sells for $9.95 and should be available at most hobby shops.

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