Carro Armato M13/40
132nd Armored Division "Ariete"

This is my take on a workhorse of Axis in North African theater, Carro Armato M13/40.

It should represent a Series 3 tank belonging to the Ariete division, sometime around the battle of Bir el Gubi, November 1941, during the opening engagements of Operation Crusader. The particular vehicle belongs to the VIII battalion, 1st Company, 2nd Platoon. The Ariete's first units disembarked in Tripoli on 24 January 1941. The battle at Bir el Gubi was the first engagement where Ariete fought as a division. Also, it was the first armored engagement in the conflict that was successful for the Italians, and it was the battle that earned the Ariete division respect among both Axis and Allies. After this event, the narrative directed toward Italian armored forces changes to: "they fought valiantly, despite being ill-equipped".

The model is based on Tamiya kit No. 35296 with some changes in order to accurately represent the Series 3 vehicle (Tamiya kit is a mix of features of Series 1, 2, and 3 vehicles, as well as M14/41). I also used a few AM Royal Model sets. You can see the whole build here.

Painted with Hataka's version of Khaki Sahariano. Weathered with MIG's nature effects and MIG's and VMS pigments.