mmi.149.2018

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Alan 1:35 Pz.Kpfw. I Ausf. F

ARV WISENT 1

Issue 149 September 2018 www.modelmilitary.com

USMC Guadalcanal 1942

Perfect Scale Modellbau’s 1:35 Armoured Recovery Vehicle

Life Miniatures’ 1:10 bust

INSIDE: p 01 Cover MMI 149B 1

1:35 DAK Pz.Bef.Wg. III Ausf H ■ 1:35 LeClerc ■ 1:35 Tiger I ■ 1:35 Panther Ausf. A ■ LRDG Feature part 2 ■ and more...

September 2018 / £4.75 / Issue 149

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Contents - Issue 149 September 2018 38

REGULARS p 4 NEWS

What’s new in the world of military modelling

p 58 1:48 SCALE

News and new releases in 1:48 scale

p 59 BOOKS

Reviews of recent military and modelling publications

p 60 FIGURES

Reviewing new individual and figure sets in all scales

p 66 LAST POST

British Army’s new air defence missile blasts airborne target by Baltic Sea

22

FEATURES p 6 THINK TANK

LRDG Part Two

p 12 PREVIEW

Dragon 1:35 Pz.Bfw. III Ausf. G

p 14 TOUGH AS NAILS Part Two

Painting Tank Workshop’s 1:48 LRDG by Luke Pitt

p 20 PREVIEW

Tamiya 1:35 Leclerc Series 2

p 22 ARV WISENT

Perfect Scale Modellbau 1:35 scale Wissent 1 by Michael Franz

p 30 PREVIEW

Takom 1:35 Panther Ausf. A

p 36 BUILD REVIEW

Dragon 1:35 Ka-Tsu by Graham Tetley

p 38 GUAD GUADALCANAL MARINE

1:10 scale bust by Matt Wellhauser

p 42 PREVIEW FEATURE

Rye Field Models 1:35 Tiger I

p 46 CHUNKY PANZER

14

Alan’s 1:35 Panzer I Ausf. F by Chris Leeman

p 54 SHOW SHO REPORT

Melbourne Model Expo 2018

© Doolittle Media Ltd 2018 Tel: (UK) 01525 222573 Email: enquiries@doolittlemedia.com Address: Doolittle Media Ltd., Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane, Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX, UK Model Military International is published monthly by Doolittle Media Ltd Ltd. Reproduction in part or whole of any text, photograph or illustration without written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited.

While due care is taken to ensure the contents of Model Military International is accurate, the publishers and printers cannot accept liability for errors or omissions.

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Newsline - September 2018

MMI Newsdesk, Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane, Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX, UK Tel:01525 222573 Fax:01525 222574 Email:editor@modelmilitary.com

INSIDE THE ARMOUR 1:48 CHURCHILL MK.VII CROCODILE "Inside the Armour" is back with a brand new release - a 1/48 Churchill Mk.VII Crocodile upgrade set comprising two photo-etched frets with 126 parts plus plastic rod.

This is available now from Inside the Armour's website, priced at £15 plus shipping. www.insidethearmour.com

IBG MODELS 1:35 TKS AND OTHER NEW RELEASES

ZVEZDA NEW RELEASES

Zvezda has a number of new releases due out now: 3688 - SU-100 Soviet tank destroyer WWII Based on the T-34, this tank destroyer armed with a 100mm gun saw extensive use in the Soviet Union and its Allies during and after WWII. No. of parts: 289. Tracks in segments. Decals for two Soviet units. Partially new tooling 3695 - BMPT-72 “Terminator 2” Russian fire support combat vehicle The latest Russian fire support vehicle is armed with 4-laser guided Ataka anti-tank missiles, 2 automatic 30mm cannons and one 7.62mm coaxial MG. The kit features a completely new turret. And comprises 443 parts, a length of 20,2cm and tracks in segments.

3550 - T-72B Soviet main battle tank Introduced in 1985, the T-72B is still in service in Russia and many of its allies. A total of over 25,000 T-72 were built. No. of parts: 278. Decals for one Soviet unit, 1990.

Thanks to Zvezda for the information and images http://www.zvezda.org.ru/en/

The brand new IBG Models 1:35 TKS is now available. The kit features separate poseable hatches, turned metal barrel, photo-etched parts, detailed interior, crew figures, de tailed link and length tracks.

The TKS was a Polish light reconnaissance tank (tankette), built and produced in the 1930s. It was based on an older tankette design – the TK 3. The main improvements, compared to its predecessor, were modified frontal armour shape, different engine, thicker armour plates, improved drive train and added commanders periscope. Serial production started in 1934 and the total of 280 tanks were produced.

Initially, TKS Tankettes were armed with a Hotchkiss wz. 25 machine gun. Just before the outbreak of World War II army command decided to change the armament to NKM (Heaviest Machine Gun) wz. 38 FK-A 20mm. This Polish gun has proven to be very effective against the German tanks during the September 1939 German invasion of Poland. Unfortunately only 23 of the upgunned TKS tanks made it to the front line, most of them were still armed with the Hotchkiss machine gun.

The TKS Tank armed with the 20mm gun was also the vehicle of Polish Tank Ace – Edmund Roman Orlik, who destroyed 13 German tanks during the September 1939.

IBG Models has announced a number of other new releases: 1:72 scale • 72052 - 43M Zrinyi II Hungarian Assault Gun with sideskirts • 72055 - Type 1 Chi-He Japanese Medium Tank • WAW004 - Pz.Kpfw. IV Ausf. A Entry Level 1:35 scale Series: • TKS Tankette with 20mm Gun Quick Build Tracks with small Hataka paint set, brush and glue • E3503 TKS Tankette with 20mm Gun Quick Build Tracks

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MISSION MODELS PREMIUM HOBBY PAINTS, PRIMERS & ADDITIVES

CHANGE ANGE THE WAY YOU PAINT

WWW.MISSIONMODELSUS.COM Please visit Mission Models for dealer locations

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Think Tank - Chevrolet WB 30 CWT LRDG Walk Around

Chevrolet WB 30 cwt LRDG Walk aroun 6 Model Military International - September 2018

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T

hese photos cover a Chevrolet WB 30 CWT in LRDG colours and markings located at the Melbourne Tank Museum in Narre Warren. â–

The front grille.

The vehicle is well maintained.

round

We take a close look at a 30 CWT LRDG Chevy located in the Melbourne Tank Museum.

Close up view of one of the fender-mounted sand mats.

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Think Tank - Chevrolet WB 30 CWT LRDG Walk Around

A spare tyre is mounted on the passenger’s side running board.

The passenger’s side rolled-up matt viewed from the rear.

Compass on the passenger’s side of the cab.

The steering wheel.

Detail view of the driver’s instruments.

The driver’s and passenger’s seats.

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Rear three quarter view of the Chevy.

The passenger’s side fuel tank.

The metal and timber construction is obvious here.

Metal sand channels are strapped to the sides of the vehicle.

The tailgate.

Towing point detail.

The inside of the cargo area.

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Think Tank - Chevrolet WB 30 CWT LRDG Walk Around

The green tint is a trick of the light – it really is painted sand yellow!

The driver’s side fuel tank.

Mounting detail of the driver’s side sand channel.

Rear driver’s side wheel detail.

Battery and POW tanks on the driver’s running board.

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The cylinder mounted to the side of the vehicle is a condenser that collects the steam from the cooling system where it is condensed back to water.

A wide view of the instrument panel.

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KIT PREVIEW

Dragon 1:35 DAK Pz.Bef.Wg.III Ausf. H • Kit No. 6901

The new box parts.

Graham Tetley analyses the new Dragon 1:35 scale Pz.Bef.Wg.III Ausf.

H and compares it to the earlier release.

COMMAND PANZER III

D

ragon released a kit of a Panzerbefehlswagen III Ausf. H (Item No. 6844) last year and have now followed it up with a Deutsches Afrika Korps (DAK) version of the same vehicle. In real life this specialized command tank contained long-range radios and was modified from a standard Ausf.

H gun tank. On this version there was no main 5cm gun fitted, just a dummy one to fool the enemy and a single MG34 for close defence.

The turret was fixed to the hull and did not rotate, thus making room inside for the communication equipment. Therefore, this kit differs from the preceding Pz.Bef. Wg.III Ausf. H kit in six main ways, which are: • It bears a large storage box on the engine deck, plus a smaller storage box on the front left fender. These new parts are contained on a new ‘gated’ addition to Sprue ‘K’.

• Additional interior seats are provided on new ‘gated’ addition to Sprue ‘E’. In 6844 it appeared that only two crew members had a seat, the rest had to stand all the time!

• Dragon has corrected the front hull glacis part. We now have a newly-tooled ‘gated’ addition to Sprue ‘C’ with part C49 included • There is a spare-track rack on the glacis plate which is made from parts on the new etched fret.

• The sprockets and idler wheels are also different to those on 6844 and peculiar to DAK vehicles. We have seen them in previous Ausf. H kits before so

they are not new.

The box is filled to the brim with sprues but many parts will be left over as spares. Moulding quality is first rate with no flaws on my kit at all. DS Tracks are included and whilst mine are not deformed in any way there is plenty of flash on them. Some love them, some hate them, but mine will be replaced with aftermarket individual links.

Why Dragon do not include their excellent Magic Tracks to keep both camps happy is a mystery to me.

Marking options are provided for four vehicles: two from North Africa and two from the eastern Front. Erroneously, the DAK vehicles are both noted as ‘North Africa 1940’ but the first German mechanised units didn’t arrive until February 14th, 1941.

The instructions come in typical Dragon format and there are 24 construction steps with many subassemblies dotted around. Best advice is to plan your construction well and think six steps ahead.

Here are my construction niggles: • The fender tops have some lovely dot-pattern texture on them, but Dragon ask us to fill many unused location holes. That means that the dot pattern has gaps or, worse still, you damage it whilst filling the holes in.

• The fender front & rears also require surgery with some areas to be removed. It would be nice if Dragon gave us new fenders to rectify these two points.

• Dragon give us the same turret front part E8 as in 6844 but we are required to cut and carve this to make way for the new gun and

mount. The instructions are not very clear, so I recommend that you look at the hi-res photos on Dragon’s website at http://www. dragon-models.com/d-m-item. asp?pid=DRA6901 to see what I mean. We are asked to carve off the mount for the gun housing as well as open the back of part E8. Would it really have been too much to give us a new part?

• As mentioned above, we get nice new etched brass spare track racks. Sadly, Dragon do not see fit to provide us with spare tracks to put in this rack!

Those points aside, what we do have is very well detailed with virtually nothing missed. There is lots of exquisite detail both inside and out and, as mentioned above, extra seats are now provided for the interior. There is some detail in the turret but it would be a shame to fix it in place and hide the insides. I must admit to not having built an Ausf. H yet so can’t comment on the fit of these parts, but after having built several other Dragon Panzer and Stug IIIs there should be no major problems. Just test fit regularly, go slowly, and plan ahead.

Those who have purchased 6844 may wish that they had waited as this kit is technically a ‘2 in 1’. We have all of the parts in 6844 (albeit minus the brass bits for the idler wheels) plus the new interior parts as well as the DAK-specific ones in this kit, 6901. Apart from the niggles noted above, this is a fantastically detailed model that fills a gap in the Panzer III family. I give it ‘Recommended’ and a score of 8.5/10. ■

Close-up of the sprocket detail.

One of the idler wheels.

Should we really have to carve this out?

Detail on the turret top.

Internal radios.

References Used:

Decal options. A second bonus sheet is included too.

New etched fret and parts.

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Various Google Searches After The Battle ‘The Desert War Then And Now’: ISBN 978 1 870067 77 5 Achtung Panzer No. 2 Panzerkampfwagen III’: ISBN 4 499 20578 6 The new hull top.

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H G U O T AS S L I A N AS FEATURE ARTICLE

Tank Workshop 1:48 LRDG Chevrolet 30CWT

G IN H IS IN F D N A G IN T IN A P – O PART TW Luke Pitt describes the painting and weathering of his heavily modified Tank Workshop 1:48 scale LRDG Chevrolet 30CWT truck.

S

elf–reliance, integrity, adaptability, initiative, the ability to drive, navigate, do simple mechanical repairs and gather intelligence behind enemy lines. These were the hallmarks of the men of the Long Rang Desert Group. Formed in June 1940, their exploits have become legendary. The men of these units were, by their very nature, as tough as nails.

This article has been written in the Spanish way, for want of a better term, as most of the build process has been covered in some way or another with photos. I have not reviewed the Tank Workshop kit, as it has been done many times before and to be honest I was a bit too close to its conception to be an objective judge, but suffice to say it is a little difficult to put together.

I hope that you will enjoy the second part of my LRDG painting journey over the following few pages. It is my hope that it may inspire some you to build one yourself.

This month I will zero in on the painting and finishing of the model.

Due to the long time lags between the models I build these days, I find I have to re-learn a lot of the painting and finishing processes that I once took for granted. For instance, this model was stripped back to the primer coat no fewer than four times as I re-learned the painting and weathering methods that I have employed before.

The weathering was another hurdle I had to overcome. I wanted the model to be subtly weathered as most of my reference photos

indicated that. The Mid Brown camouflage was hand painted over an airbrushed sand base. Some have asked why I like acrylic paint so much. The first is that I like the finish and more importantly it is just so easy to remove the paint in a tub of Windex if you do make mistakes. Unlike Aircraft with already painted interiors, you can basically just insert the model into a tub of the stuff, leave overnight and the paint just dissolves. This is the complete antithesis to enamel paints which can be very hard to remove.

THE PAINTED MODEL As I stated in my opening comments, this model was painted no less than four times. The first was a darker shade of sand that you see here and the application of an “oil wash” created a sand base that was much too dark.

I stripped this in a tub of Windex.

The second rendition was lighter but unfortunately had various pieces of grit on the surface so I stripped it again. The third base colour turned out well but the hand painted brown camouflage extended over and on the front grills that I didn’t like.

I stripped this third attempt and moved on to the one you see over the following pages. All of the subassemblies including the figures, stowage, machine guns and wheels were painted off the vehicle and treaded as separate pieces.

With this in mind, let’s look at the final and successful paint job! ■

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The bare model prior to painting.

Primed with Tamiya Grey Primer.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tank Workshop 1:48 LRDG Chevrolet 30CWT

I generally use 30% paint, 70% thinner. For this model I have thinned the paint with Mr Hobby Levelling Thinner, which simply does wondrous things to Tamiya paint making it, so much easier to achieve a fine finish. The paint mix was half and half Mr Hobby H79 and Tamiya Flat White XF-2. I hand painted the Dark Brown portions of the camouflage with Vallejo Panzer Aces Beige Brown (70.875) as I had it on hand and it seemed to be a close match. The application of paint to this sort of assembly can be tricky and a good quality brush is essential. I always use Windsor and Newton series 7 brushes as they keep their point, if taken care of.

The kits headlights were used. Two sets are provided in the kit, both covered and uncovered.

I elected to use the uncovered ones but no lenses were provided for these. I found the lenses in a Hasegawa 1:48 scale Isuzu truck (Item No. x48-14) that I had in my stash, and re sized them to fit the kit openings. The model was painted first and then silver using Vallejo “Fine Silver” (848) was painted on the inside of the headlight and the clear parts glued in place after everything had dried

In this head-on shot almost nothing is given away in regard to scale. The frames for the front Aero windshields were made and attached to the bonnet and then thin pieces of clear flat plastic were inserted into the groves of the assembly after the model was painted.

My favoured method of displaying figures on 1:48 scale vehicles is to have them in action. This is a deliberate attempt to add a little visual interest to the top of the vehicle

I used the “‘less is more method” approach with the shading process. The colour choice of the Sand Channels was also a deliberate attempt to add some contrast to the model.

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A mud mix was applied to the wheels and lower half of the body in a random pattern. When complete, the treated areas were highlighted with a thin oil wash and dry brushed in a sand white mix.

All of the wheels were painted separately. The hubs were sprayed with the base sand colour and then the wheels were painted by hand using a mix of black and white to produce the grey colour you see here. I never airbrush the base tyre colour as find the masking process tedious. A heavily diluted mix (10% paint to 90% thinner) of the base sand mix was applied to the tread surfaces and side wall of the tyres to simulate dust. The tread pattern was then oil washed in black to expose the tread detail. The hubs were then oil washed in a Burnt Umber oil wash to pop out the detail. The final process was the application of very subtle enamel dry brush to the raised details on the hubs themselves.

In my view, nothing beats a side profile photo. The shading is deliberately muted and subtle.

If you look closely you can even see daylight through the front grill work, something that, I wanted to achieve with this build.

The extreme rear of the vehicle shows the sharp had edge camouflage pattern that appeared on the rear tray of the vehicle, which is in contrast to the wavy pattern that appears on the front of the vehicle.

The figures were always going to be part of this build and, for want of a better term, they bedded down nicely and seem part of the vehicle and not just sitting on top of it, which is something I always try to avoid in my builds.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tank Workshop 1:48 LRDG Chevrolet 30CWT

The one thing I would change if I was to build another would be a subtler approach with the woodgrain effect on the wooden portions of the tray guards. In this photo they look over emphasised by a big factor.

A

Micro-chipping was applied all around the vehicle but more on common wear areas such as the crew cab and rear tray. The effect was achieved with an HB pencil filed to a fine point. Note the subtle weathering effects on the front of the vehicle. One thing I did like in this photo was the finger cut outs on the figures gloves, not often seen but very noticeable on a number of the reference photos that I had.

B

C

A. All of the corners of the vehicle were sprayed thin sand mix (to mimic dust build up), the effect is subtle but brings out the angles of the vehicle nicely. B. The combination of different colours and textures gives the stowage a pleasing effect when viewed from this angle. The stowage was a painted separately and added in the final assembly, but tackled very much the same way as the rest. I looked upon this as a separate model in itself. C. Painting figures in 1:48 scale can be a real challenge. On close examination many faults appear. I’m a student of the Shep Paine school of figure painting, learnt so many years ago from those old Monogram painting guides in their aircraft and armour kits. As the heads were painted separately I did however make a few mistakes. After stripping the heads with Tamiya airbrush cleaner of all things, they were then re-painted multiple times. I generally use Tamiya enamel sand (XF-59) as a base coat and shade with Vallejo. Brush selection is important and I always use Windsor and Newton series 7. They are expensive, but if cared for, they last for many years.

D

E

F

D. Most of the water cans on the side of the vehicle were scratch built from plastic card stock. The Hauler Sand channels were painted by hand using the Lifecolor four-step rust process (Items: UA 701,702, 703 and 704). As a process goes, it’s almost bullet proof. E. The sharp lines of the rear camouflage can clearly be seen on the rear of the vehicle. The dust build up on the tailgate was achieved with a sand coloured pastel ground down on a piece of sand paper and applied with a brush. F. I was conscious from the start that did not want that “hand of god” painting style on the top of the vehicle. I tried to keep the camouflage in logical places like between the two crew openings), thinking as I was going “how would do this on the real vehicle) and using reference pictures as a guide. The name Rakahiri (Maori meaning Rainbow God) was surprisingly the most difficult part of the project. When the final camouflage was done. I masked off the dark green areas where the name and circle “R” on the side of the body work would appear and sprayed them dark green.

White letters of the appropriate size were sourced from a Microscale sheet after a plea was put out on Facebook. A modeller by the name of Dean Kohler was instrumental in pointing me in the right direction to obtain these. The decals I used were Microscale N Scale Block Gothic letters and numbers in white, (Item No. 70051). My thanks go out to Dean for this advice and help.

G

H

I

G. When looking at all the reference pictures I had available, it seemed that the dark brown patches of the camouflage were a mix of sharp angles on the rear tray but wavy on the coach work and bonnet.

H. The scratch build Boys anti-tank rifle was painted with MIG Gun Metal (Item No MIG-045) and highlighted in a black oil wash before being lightly dry brushed to bring out the detail. I. The quite magnificent Gaspatch Lewis Mark 1 machine guns were painted the same way as my Boys anti-tank gun. I said this last time but I’ll say it again, they are without a doubt the best resin gun castings I have ever seen and are a credit to the manufacturer.

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Acknowledgements: Many people helped with this build and they are, in no particular order: • Andrew • Andrew Judson for his Judson initial initial reference help, Alex reference Giersch Giersch for actually doing for actually the the master for the Tank master for Work Work shop kit shop kit • Phillip Young • Phillip Young for his words of encouragement, of encouragement, ego stoking, reference stoking, reference and photo etch help • Dan • Dan Rothenberger Jr for his Rothenberger conversation conversation and reference help • Dennis Loep for designing • Dennis Loep outstanding outstanding wheels. wheels.

• Brett Green for his • Brett Green for photography skills and photography advice. advice.

• Dean Kohler for his decal • Dean Kohler for help and advice and finally help and advice • Martin Hughes • Martin Hughes for providing photos for the walk around photos for the photos that accompany this second part of the article. second part of

Modelspec I produced a dust protection box and base for my model, as I normally do with all of my completed models. I do this as I’ve always thought modellers put all of this work into a model and yet they don’t protect it from the ravages of dust, which can destroy a model over time. The black portion of the base was made on my work computer and printed as a colour print. It was affixed to foam board from an art store and the ends capped with thin wooden strip using white glue. The entire base was then coated with a two-part gloss epoxy. The base was made from a wooden a moulding found in a hardware store to fit the black portion of the base itself with a gap that would allow the acrylic to fit in. When completed, the assembly was fixed with white glue and the model attached, again with white glue.

Tank Workshop Chevrolet WB 30 cwt. LRDG Truck Kit No. TWS48300 Materials and Updates Used: • Hauler British San Channels item number HLX48331 • Hauler British Flimsy cans item number HLX48046 • Gas Patch” Lewis Mk1 were used on this build item number 13-48021 • Tamiya WWII US Navy Pilots (item 61107) • Peolini Design 1:48 Chevy LRDG sand tyres printed

by Shapeways on the following link: https://www. shapeways.com/product/QMLENK3N6/1-1:48-chevylrdg-sand-tyres?optionId=63591823 • Figures with Attitude: “Phil’s Grill” and his head sets can be purchased by sending him a message on his Facebook account with the following address: https://www.facebook.com/search/ top/?q=figures%20with%20attitude Tools Used: • Waldron Sub-Miniature Punch and Die Set • Small Shop Brass Assist Roller set • Small Shop Hold and Fold Paints Used: • Tamiya XF-2 Flat White, XF-69 Nat Black, XF-58 Olive Green, XF-1 Black, XF-52 Flat Earth, XF-49 Khaki, XF-51 Khaki Drab, XF-79 Deck Brown • MIG Gun Metal “MIG-045” • Mr. Hobby Sand Brown “H 79” • Humbrol Matt White “34”, Wood Brown “62”, Brown “94” • Vallejo Matt Varnish “520”, Red “829”, Brown ”856”, Maroon“859”, Yellow “953”, Orange Brown “981” • Revell Colour light flesh “35” • Life Colour “Rust System” items “UA 701,702.703 and 704” • Andrea Flesh paint set “ACS-01”

The acrylic dust cover was made and inserted into the slot provided for by the gap in the base. The model was finally complete.

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KIT PREVIEW

Tamiya 1:35 French Main Battle Tank Leclerc Series 2 • Kit No. 35362

Tamiya revises their 1:35 scale Leclerc Series 2 with new plastic road wheels.

The upper hull with grilles and vents moulded integrally.

Side armour and skirt detail is convincing.

THE FRENCH CONNECTION 2

T

he Char Leclerc is a main battle tank built by GIAT, now Nexter of France.

It was named in honour of General Philippe Leclerc de Hauteclocque, who led the French element of the drive towards Paris while in command of the Free French 2nd Armoured Division in World War II. The Leclerc is in service with the French Army and the army of the United Arab Emirates. In production since 1991, the Leclerc entered French service in 1992, replacing the AMX 30 as the country’s main armoured platform.

The improved Series 2 LeClerc features: • new NBC system which integrates a hybrid air conditioner.

• independent air conditioning unit installed on the back roof behind the gunner’s hatch.

• In order to balance the turret since the adding of the air conditioner, the turret frontal armor is thickened a few centimeters ahead of the commander’s station.

• revised sprocket cooling fins.

• extra splash guard added to the front hull.

• Remote operated hydraulic track tensioner.

• bolt-on appliqué armour on each

A nicely moulded Commander figure is included.

hull sponsons.

• Athos thermal camera on the gunner’s sight is replaced by the new Iris thermal camera since the block 9 (T9).

• SIT ICONE battlefield management system added in 2009 With production now complete, the French Army has 406 Leclerc and the United Arab Emirates Army has 388.

The Leclerc has mostly seen deployment on low-intensity conflicts, including 15 Leclerc stationed in Kosovo (KFOR) and others in Lebanon (UNIFIL) within UN peace-keeping operations, where their performance was judged satisfactory by French officials.

Until 2010, 13 Leclercs were deployed in the south Lebanon for a peacekeeping mission with UNIFIL. As of August 2015, Leclerc tanks of the United Arab Emirates were deployed in combat operations in Yemen (near Aden) as part of the Saudi-led coalition. It is estimated that 70 Leclerc MBTs were deployed by the UAE in Yemen, 15 of them equipped with the AZUR package. During one month, three tanks were damaged, two by antitank mines and one by an RPG, which damaged the grid without piercing the hull. In a single incident; one Leclerc tank was hit and penetrated in the driver’s hatch by an ATGM, possibly of Konkurs or Konkurs-M type, resulting in the death of the driver and injuries to the legs of the commander. None of these tanks were completely destroyed.

The price in 2011 was €9.3 million, which made it the most expensive tank in history at the time.*

IN THE BOX Tamiya released their 1:35 scale Leclerc Series 2 in 2005. The main

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difference between this latest release and the original kit is that the road wheels, which were originally presented in die-cast metal, are now plastic parts.

Tamiya’s 1:35 scale Leclerc Series 2 comprises 244 parts in olive coloured plastic, 13 parts in clear, two full-length flexible vinyl tracks and markings for four camouflaged vehicles.

Kit breakdown is conventional.

The lower hull is a tub with a separate rear plate. Sponson covers are moulded in place.

The upper hull is a single piece with various vents and hatches moulded on the top. These look quite effective.

The turret is made up from a top main shell and a base incorporating the turret ring.

The road wheels and drive sprockets are held in place with polythene caps, which will make painting and final assembly easier.

The full length vinyl tracks looks good, with a high level of detail and being able to be secured with regular plastic cement. These are live track so they would not sag, making the vinyl tracks perfectly appropriate for this vehicle.

A nicely sculpted Commander figure is supplied.

Clear parts include headlights, tail lights, sight windows and crew goggles.

Markings are supplied for four camouflaged Leclercs.

I had not seen this kit before, and its quality of moulding and detail belie its origins from 13 years ago.

Tamiya’s 1:35 scale Leclerc Series 2 is a well presented kit that should just about fall together.

It is big too, so it will look quite impressive in its three-tone NATO camouflage when finished. ■

The one-piece lower hull tub.

The upper turret shell.

The new plastic road wheels.

Full length flexible tracks are appropriate for this style of suspension.

The kit’s clear parts.

Thanks to Tamiya Japan for the sample www.tamiya.com * Historical summary adapted from Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AMX_Leclerc

Four marking options are offered.

10/07/2018 13:47

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FEATURE FEA ARTICLE

Perfect Scale Modellbau 1:35 Danish ARV Wisent 1 • Kit No. 35151

THE ARV WISENT A HUGE VEHICLE OF GERMAN PRODUCTION FOR THE DANISH ARMY Michael Franz builds the “Model of the year” of Perfect Scale Modellbau

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T

he Wisent 1 is an Armoured Recovery Vehicle (ARV) developed

by German company FFG Flensburg as a private venture, mainly for export.

The Danish Army has about five units in service since 2008, which were also seen during combat in Afghanistan. The ARV is based on the Leopard 1 chassis, identical to the Leopard 1 ARV which was developed for the German Army in the 1960s.

The Wisent 1 could be reconfigured from an armoured recovery vehicle to an armoured engineer vehicle in less than 5 hours. It could be used for various different missions but its main use is to support the Leopard 2 main battle tanks. It is equipped with a front mounted dozer blade for earthmoving operations or as an anchor to stabilize the vehicle.

The main crane fitted on top

of the vehicle can lift loads up to maximum 30 tons. The front mounted winch has 90 meters of cable to pull vehicles up to 35 tons. This is a heavy, fat looking vehicle – and no less so as a model in 1:35 scale.

THE KIT The German short run manufacturer Perfect Scale Modellbau is a specialist for uncommon military scale models or upgrade / conversion kits.

Their 1:35 scale Wisent 1 is a full kit, consisting of a huge quantity of resin parts in highest quality.

No air pockets, no warps. All parts are packed in several small plastic bags. Additionally you get a big plate with lot of photo etched parts, a small sheet with decals and the instructions, printed on 4 DIN A4 pages, consisting of small photos of the model with the numbers of each part. The pictures

could be a little bit bigger but they are still okay. On the first page you get a survey of all parts numbered.

The tracks provided in the kit are made of resin. These are the only con of the kit. As additional parts / upgrade parts I have used the plastic tracks of Meng Models for Leopard 1 which are a hard work to build but the result is fantastic.

The sockets for the antennas were replaced with the correct ones for the Danish Army from Leopard Shop. These consist of small resin parts, small springs and two pieces of wire for the antenna.

The gun barrel for the remote gun system is a turned metal part of Master Model from Poland. All the other wonderful details of this vehicle are included with this great kit, which justifiably received the “Model of the Year” award in Nuremberg 2018 from the German magazine “Modell Fan”. A

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Perfect Scale Modellbau 1:35 Danish ARV Wisent 1 • Kit No. 35151

Putty and sanding is necessary only on the lower side of the hull. Note the added details of the suspension.

B ASSEMBLY Starting this kit means some clean-up work first. I removed the casting blocks and strips from all th parts, cleaned them and stored them in organiser boxes, separated accordingly to each step of the instructions.

After having done this, I started with the hull. This is made up from by two huge, wonderfully detailed resin parts. The engine cooler and mesh were mounted in the upper part of the hull before both parts were glued together, then the rear part was inserted. Fit of these parts is very good, even though a little bit of putty and sanding was necessary to close some smaller gaps between these parts. All sanding work of resin parts I only make under water to avoid any unhealthy resin dust in the air.

The parts for the chassis, the arms for the road wheels and some of the initial bigger parts of the upper hull were added next, followed by all the other resin and photo etched parts that were mounted on the huge vehicle: The winch at the front, the smoke

Main body assembled. Do not forget to mount the mesh and engine cover from the inside.

The fit of the two huge resin parts is incredible.

grenade launchers, the hatches, handles, frames, lamps and all the further small stuff.

The dozer blade, the cargo deck (the biggest quantity of parts of the kit is used for this area), the road wheels, the remote gun and the crane were all built as subassemblies and remained separate until the end.

The crane was glued with the hydraulic cylinders fixed in the chosen position. The hook was built separately as well.

All the subassemblies were ready for the painting process now, before the smallest details will be added later.

First parts added on the side of the vehicle.

All the hatches received handles made of photo etched parts.

Photo-etched mudflaps, lights and lot of small details.

Details are incredible, and the fit of all parts is perfect.

The huge crane with the fine ladder, made of resin and find plastic rods.

Crane booms are glued in the raised position, but remained separate until painting was finished.

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Remote gun with a new gun barrel of Aber Models which replaces the resin part of the kit

PAINTING I started the painting process with a layer of the Vallejo’s famous black primer to provide a uniform surface and a good base for the final painting. A black primer always gives stronger colours than a white primer and it could be used for an interesting colour scheme.

An iron colour was airbrushed next on the heavy strained surfaces: the dozer blade, the upper area around the hatches, corners and edges and the tread surfaces. A layer of heavy chipping medium was airbrushed next on the iron coloured areas.

The main colour, used for this project comes from the Polish company Hataka. They have

The finished crane boom and the hook ready for painting and rigging.

perfect matching colours for nearly every project in highest quality – including also the correct green colour for the Danish Army that was airbrushed on all parts next in thin layers to keep the black base shining through it: A bit more in the lower / shadow area, a bit less in the upper areas.

As the Danish Wisent was painted from FFG Flensburg its colour is a bit different from the original Danish colour – it has more of a yellow note than the standard Danish green. The yellow/green colour “bright” of the Modern Russian Green Set of Vallejo was used like a filter, airbrushed on the whole model.

With an old stiff brush and warm

The rear platform. Most of the smallest parts are used at this sub-assembly.

water I have removed the green colour from the heavy strained surfaces again to bring the iron base colour back to surface and give these areas a “used look”.

The details were painted next with a fine brush: The tools, the iron rope on the winches, the

gun etc. The kit provides a few decals which were applied next: the license plates for the Danish Army and a few stencils. That’s all.

The hydraulic cylinders received a chrome finish with liquid chrome from Molotov after a layer of matt and satin varnish was applied on A

Danish Green SK/80 of Hataka was used for filtering and highlights with Vallejo’s yellow/green.

The combination of these two paints delivers the perfect matching colour.

Vallejo Black Primer was used on all sub-assemblies.

This is the perfect shade to homogenise the surface and build first shadows in the painting process.

Rubber on the road wheels was painted in rubber black before the wheels were mounted.

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FEATURE FEA ARTICLE

Perfect Scale Modellbau 1:35 Danish ARV Wisent 1 • Kit No. 35151

The cover of the exhaust was airbrushed black.

Black pigments at the exhaust outlet to give it a more realistic touch.

Vallejo Matt Varnish and Gloss Varnish were used to achieve a different look from the various surfaces.

B

A green wash was used as a filter to accent all the raised or recessed details and edges.

Note the chain at the back, made from separate chain links casted of resin.

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Further details were brush painted. The gun barrel was painted in black and rubbed with metal powder.

Shiny headlights, hydraulic cylinders and base of rear lights chrome painted with Molotov’s liquid chrome.

The dozer blade was painted in iron, chipping fluid and green. Several rust-coloured washes were added and dabbed away after the green painting and chipping was done.

B the whole vehicle. Also all the

lamps received a chrome look. The front lamps remained like this, the side markers and rear lamps were painted afterwards with Vallejo’s Clear Colours in Orange respectively in red.

Meng Model’s multipart tracks of the Leopard 1 were used instead of the resin track parts provided in the kit. These look much better although it is terribly boring work.

Each link consists of four small parts plus the connectors – but the final result is fantastic. The tracks were painted with Track Primer of Vallejo from the inside and outside

and received a rusty looking track wash next. After that the rubber pads on the outside were painted in black colour.

Dust and Dirt Deposit from AK Interactive was used as a wash on the lower area of the Wisent, on the wheels and on the tracks followed by different kind of earth- and sand coloured pigments which were applied and fixed with thinner. Bare metal on the tracks was applied with a graphite pencil which was also used at the edges, corners and other heavy worn surfaces.

Several washes in rusty colour were applied on the dozer blade

Metal cable pieces were used for the rigging of the hook.

and dapped away. The process was repeated several times to achieve the typical look of a dozer. The edges were rubbed with metal powder to show the sheer metal of the blade.

The crane hook was mounted after finishing the painting and weathering process. Thin steel cable was used for that. 4 strings cut in the same length and bent around the wheels in the hook, glued and fixed until the drying of the glue. The upper side of the strings were bent around the wheels at the top of the crane boom and also glued in place. I

really like the result of that as it looks much better as if using some cotton string or something like this.

The two towing cables were added at the side of the boom and further pieces of steel cable used at the winch above the dozer blade and at the rear at the towing bars. Last but not least the outside mirrors were mounted after painting these with liquid chrome, the antennas added and some final touches were applied.

These included leaking oil on single wheels and on the engine deck, and some more pigments as dirt on the top of the vehicle. A

Note the shiny chrome look of the liquid chrome. This is the perfect paint for hydraulic cylinders.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Perfect Scale Modellbau 1:35 Danish ARV Wisent 1 • Kit No. 35151

B THE BASE A small base was made for the Wisent, representing a dirt road and a patch of grass. The landscape was sculpted with wooden spatula on a white wooden painting board.

Some bigger stones, made of plaster, were pressed inside the still soft surface. Also, some traces of tracks and wheels were pressed inside to represent the heavily used road. Fine sand, earth, stones, fine roots etc. were spread over the base once dry and fixed with wood glue mixed with water.

Several brown shades were airbrushed to present realistic earth. Tufts of grass were glued at the corners in different sizes and colours, some flowers added to give it some varied dabs of paint.

Several brown and beige washes break the vivid colours of the grass and unify the landscape. â–

A wooden spatula, rocks made of plaster, small stones, earth and sand were used for the base.

The base was painted in several brown colours, then the Wisent was test fitted on it.

Different brown washes were used on the base to give it a realistic look of earth and stones.

Grass tufts of different suppliers, dried flowers and some dry brushing were also added.

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Modelspec Perfect Scale Modellbau 1:35 Danish ARV Wisent 1 Kit No. 35151 Accessories Used • Meng Models D640A Workable Tracks for Leopard 1 Family (SPS-016) • Leopard Club Danish Leopard 1 Aerials (with real springs) (LW022B) • Eureka XXL Leopard 1+2 Tow Cables (ER-3507) • Aber Stainless steel cable 0,6mm (ABTCS06) • Copper wire and pipe work in different diameters • Etched parts, plastic parts, etc. of my spares box • Gerstaecker: Gesso Board • Clear plastic foil Tools and Modelling Products • • • •

Tamiya Extra Thin Liquid Cement Revell Contacta Clear Modellbau König Super Glue Mr. Putty

Paints and Finishing Products

The vehicle in place on the base.

A huge kit full of high “end quality resin and

photo etched parts which want to be assembled straight away...

”

• Hataka: Danish Green (SK/80) (HTK-A286) • Vallejo: “Bright” of the Modern Russian Green set (78408) • Lifecolour: Yellow (UA042), Orange (LC04), Black (LC02), Rust & Dust Set (CS10) • Revell Aqua Colour: Iron (91), Silver (90) • Molotov: Liquid Chrome pens • AK Interactive: Clear Red (RC503), Clear Orange (RC506), Track Wash, Rust Streaks, Dust & Dirt Deposits, Dark Mud, Heavy Chipping Medium, Dark Brown Wash, Engine Oil, Pigments North African Dust, Pigments Dark Earth, Pigments European Earth, Track primer • Uschi Van der Rosten: Metal powder • Ammo of Mig: Dark brown wash for Green vehicles (A.Mig 1005) • Graphite pens • Winsor & Newton oil colours: Van Dyk Brown, Burned Umbra, Black Base: • Gerstaecker: Gesso Board white (wooden painting support) • Plaster • Sand and small stones, fine earth • Mini Nature: Different grass tufts • DioDump: Different grass tufts • Dried flowers ✓ A fantastic kit that won “Model of the Year” title in Nuremberg. The kit is huge – lot of parts with a perfect fit. ✗ Those resin tracks …

Available from Perfect Scale models are available via the website http://www.perfect-scale.de/

Rating Perfect Scale Modellbau 1:35 Danish ARV Wisent 1 is a very impressive model.

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KIT PREVIEW

Takom 1:35 Panther Ausf. A Mid- Early • Kit No. 2098

NEW PANTHER

Kit decals, photo-etched parts and cable.

WITH FULL INTERIOR Mateusz Szefer reviews the all-new Takom Panther Ausf. A with full interior.

T

akom’s 1:35 Panther A comes in a huge and deep box with unusual box art.

The size and weight of the box promise a tremendous content which fill it to the brim. And it lives up to its promise.

After initial inspection I can say that moulding quality is very good. Most of the parts are clean and crisp with sharp details .

Knock out pin marks are located in invisible places. The weld seams and texture of rolled steel are also well made. Next worth to mention thing is lack of the Zimmerit coat that was applied at almost all Panther Ausf. A. It need to be make yourself or you have to wait for aftermarket sets which for sure will be released soon.

All components of Panther suspension are well reproduced in this kit, The torsion bars, swing arms, return roller etc are great but the wheels disappoint me again.

They are very well detailed, all bolts are nicely done but one wheel have serious moulding issue, in place of hub it is a big hole. I discussed about it with other people who bought this kit and all of them have the wheels in great shape. I contacted with Takom and probably they will send me new wheels.

Beside this I have no any objections to moulding quality in this kit.

Tracks comes as link and length pieces with separate guide horns.

The details on them are very sharp

and crisp, what is also important they are free from any injection pin marks. To make assembly process easier kit contain two plastic jigs which also helps create realistic track sag. Overall these tracks are one of the best link and length tracks that I ever seen.

As its stated on the top lid this kit include full interior.

Maybach engine, the transmission, driver’s compartment, fighting compartment with two types of ammunition, turret interior- all of these areas are very well reproduced and superb detailed, even the operating inscriptions at the shells are provided as decals.

I’m sure that finished interior will look gorgeous. Interior is a very strong point of this kit and the only one thing that I’m still wondering about is how to highlight it on finished build because close those great details inside is just not okay.

The upper hull is the biggest part that comes in one piece.

Despite some fragile parts moulded on it comes in great shape, all welds, cutting marks and surface texture looks very realistic. It’s a pity that most of those will be invisible after Zimmerit applying. I examined all parts that comes into the hull and most of them are great but I found three things that need to be upgraded for maintaining the level of the rest of the model.

First- the tools clasps are not the best that I ever seen. In my opinion

Takom should provide them as pe parts, at least the parts for clasp handle. Secondly- jack block don’t have any wood grain moulded on, it looks a little bit flat and unrealistic.

Third- each side skirt comes as solid piece of styrene. There is no possibility to select which panel we want to hang or miss without serious scratch build. The separate pe plates would be much better but you can’t have everything.

Except those mentioned above all parts looks just great.

It will not be a surprise if I write that the turret exterior parts looks as well as the other details. Main turret part is moulded together with roof and rain guard over the mantlet, all welds and rolled steel texture looks very convincing too.

Main gun barrel comes as one part and join with a muzzle brake consisting of three parts so some putty and sanding will be needed anyway. Quality of the other parts is very good but lack of clear periscopes in commander cupola is a little strange in my opinion, especially in nowadays, where almost all producers make parts like this in clear plastic. I don’t have any idea why Takom gave up this habit.

This kit will be a massive build and it is not without its problems, but it is available for a very reasonable price, which makes all the cons less important. It earns my recommendation. ■

All welds and rolled steel texture are well reproduced.

Link and length tracks in this kit are a strong point of this kit.

Wheels looks great, all details and texture look very good

Moulding quality in this kit is generally very good.

There is a lot of nicely done parts with great details.

All periscopes comes as solid parts. I don’t know why Takom didn’t provided them as clear parts.

The instructions include basic information about the vehicle on the top.

Colour images help to paint all the interior details correctly.

Tools are also well done but the clasps could be a little bit better.

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BUILD REVIEW

Dragon 1:48 IJN Special Type 4 ‘Ka-Tsu’ • Kit No. 6839

The gap where the hull halves join.

Gap smoothed, but note no weld detail.

A bit of a gap at the back.

Hull half joint ready for filling.

Where the rudders and propellers go.

Photo-etched parts would have better for this.

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ALL AT SEA Graham Tetley offers his frank opinion after building Dragon’s recent 1:35 scale IJN Special Type 4 ‘Ka-Tsu’

W

hen Dragon announced the release of this kit I was over the moon, and even more so when The Editor, via The Hobby Company, offered me the chance to review one. Therefore, following my recent in-box review of this kit, I would like to present you with my build review and 100% honest comments on this model.

First impressions are that this is a large kit and that alone makes it impressive. But the closer I looked, and the more I compared it to references, the more it became apparent that lots of detail is

missing. I did ponder whether to turn this into a super-detailing project, but I decided to build it here with no modifications other than filler so that you can see the real thing, good and bad.

Fortunately, the instructions are simple and are very easy to follow with only nine construction steps and no alternate options. Dragon are famed for instructional errors and despite this being a totally new kit, they still couldn’t keep it error-free.

So, let’s get started. We kick off with the suspension and running gear which are not new and come from the excellent Ka-Mi kit. Eight sets are required, each comprising

Note the gaps around the hatch shields.

See text, but something is wrong with the steering cable.

THE KIT

of two roadwheels, four etched flanges and the suspension arms.

In my review I made mention that I previously had difficulty fitting the etched flanges between the suspension halves, however I solved it here. All you need to do is firmly press the two suspension halves together with the wheels & flanges in place.

I next fitted the mounts for the propellers and rudders to the lower hull before moving onto joining the two hull halves. A test fit showed no major problems so I started from the front working backwards, clamping the halves at each stage and waiting for the glue to set before doing any more.

Unfortunately, there are some gaps at the hull rear and at the front, plus there is a step underneath the sponsons that all require filling.

Once the hull was filled & sanded, I then proceeded to add the remaining hull parts. There is no detail present on the underside of the hatches so these were all glued shut. I must say that the various lifting rings and shields that go around each hatch have location holes that are too big. You could fill them if you wish, but I have left them as is for you to see. I can’t be sure as the photos of the hull top that I have are rather indistinct, but these could all be welded in real life. The main superstructure is just

A

Complete suspension unit.

She’s coming together.

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BUILD REVIEW

Dragon 1:48 IJN Special Type 4 ‘Ka-Tsu’ • Kit No. 6839

B one featureless lump but fits well,

and whilst there are some basic details in the wheelhouse the actual sides are moulded way too thick for real life.

The steering gear is very simple although Dragon provide is with copper wire to represent the steering cable. I found this too inflexible so replaced it with kite string.

Now, here comes the main instructional blooper. When I got to fixing the exhaust part in place there were no holes in the top hull.

They are there on the underside,

but Dragon do not tell us to open them up! Rather than curse profusely, I got my trusty torch, turned off the lights, and shone it into the hull. That showed me where the holes were located so they were marked with a pen and drilled out from the top. Annoying, but that’s Dragon for you!

Overall though, I must say that fit throughout is really rather good.

I would give it a 9/10.

MISSING DETAILS Despite the good fit, it is quickly apparent that Dragon have

simplified many areas and have made no attempt at all to replicate the many welded panels that make up the hull, superstructure and wheelhouse for this vehicle. What should be conical bolts on the towing ring mounts front & back are represented as bland, incorrect rivets. You can clearly see these in the photos that you can find on Google.

Despite the statement on the box bottom saying that ‘Mechanism for rudder steering is carefully reproduced’ I would contend that it isn’t. The grooved fishtail part sits

too high so that when you add the steering cable you find that it does not sit level with the tiny pulleys that the cable runs through. Upon investigation, the error lies with the pulleys and is caused by the lower part of them being moulded to the hull top. They should sit much higher and indeed the mount that the pulleys sit in is ribbed on the real vehicle, but Dragon represent the mounts as a plain, featureless, lump.

Part D8 is supposed to represent the green/yellow/red IJN running light and the box art

The exhaust before the etch is added.

Close-up of the hatch, and more gaps.

Note the gaps where the bollards and lifting rings go.

The exhaust part is rather bland.

More gaps and the poorly detailed transmission housing.

And the exhaust with etch.

Tracks cut & glued ready for joining.

The wheelhouse, Note how thick the walls are.

Overall top view.

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shows it really well. The part itself though is just a bland plastic rod on a base with no attempt made to represent the glass light sections.

On that point, the headlight lenses are bland plastic parts where clear parts would have been better.

DS Tracks are included from the Ka-Mi but these are in four lengths, two per side, and (very lazily) Dragon request that you to cut 20 links from one of the DS track runs per side. I carefully trimmed the links with a new knife blade and then glued them to the rear idler. You can barely see the join,

but it is a pain if, like me, you like to paint your tracks separate from the vehicle.

CONCLUSION So, after finishing this kit, I feel like I have ordered a three-course meal in a Michelin-starred restaurant yet, despite having only received the pudding, am faced with full the full bill plus a sizeable tip.

Dragon must be congratulated in tackling such an unusual subject and, due to the low parts count, this is a very simple and easy build with fit throughout

being rather good. However, it is very simplified in many areas and missing lots of detail. Having to chop up the DS Tracks in unforgiveable and the slip-up with the steering gear is just plain clumsy. There are no weld marks on the hull and superstructure, the pulley mounts are too low and just shapeless blobs, the armour on the superstructure too thick, what should be conical bolds are represented as rivets - I could go on. Please do not believe the marketing on the box saying that this is ‘Unprecedented Value’ and

‘Plastic parts with enhanced detail’ as this is not the case. It will make a great super-detailing project, something that I will save for when the torpedo-carrying version is released.

Coming hot on the heels of the fantastic Chi-Ha I cannot help but feel disappointed with this. Sorry Dragon, but you are capable of so much more and are far better than this, especially at the UK asking price of nearly £90.00. ■ Thanks to The Hobby Company for the sample www.hobbyo.net

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

I think ugly is the word!

Can you tell where the tracks are joined.

The completed back end.

Close up of the hatch detail.

The blank headlight lens.

The rear deck.

The central hull top and large hatch.

These rollers should be higher and better detailed.

The hull front in all its bland glory.

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KIT PREVIEW

– Meng 1:35 King Tiger Porsche Turret (TS-037), Interior Set (SPS-062) and Zimmerit Decal (SPS-060)

KING OF

KINGS T

he Tiger II is a German heavy tank of the Second World War. The final official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf.

B, often shortened to Tiger B. The ordnance inventory designation was Sd.Kfz. 182. It is also known under the informal name Königstiger (the German name for the Bengal tiger), often translated literally as Royal Tiger, or somewhat incorrectly as King Tiger by Allied soldiers, especially

by American forces.

The Tiger II was the successor to the Tiger I, combining the latter's thick armour with the armour sloping used on the

The Editor examines Meng Model’s brand new 1:35 scale King Tiger (Porsche Turret) and two upgrades.

Panther medium tank. The tank weighed almost 70 tonnes, and was protected by 100 to 185 mm (3.9 to 7.3 in) of armour to the front. It was armed with the long barrelled 8.8 cm KwK 43 L/71 anti-tank cannon. The chassis was also the basis for the Jagdtiger turretless tank destroyer.

The Tiger II was issued to heavy tank battalions of the Army and the Waffen-SS. It was first used in combat with 503rd Heavy Panzer Battalion during the Allied Invasion of Normandy on 11 July 1944; on the Eastern Front, the first unit to be outfitted with Tiger IIs was the 501st Heavy Panzer Battalion, which by 1 September 1944 listed 25 Tiger IIs operational.

A 1:50,000 map of the Normandy battlefield is included.

Jaws! Turret ring teeth.

Link and length tracks.

The lower hull is a conventional one-piece tub with a separate rear plate.

Note the unusual breakdown of the turret.

Lovely mesh effect on the photo-etched grilles.

Thanks to Meng for the samples http://www.meng-model.com

IN THE BOX

Henschel won the design contract, and all Tiger IIs were produced by the firm. Two turret designs were used in production vehicles. The initial design is often misleadingly called the "Porsche" turret due to the belief that it was designed by Porsche for their prototype; in fact it was the initial Krupp design for both prototypes.

This turret had a rounded front and steeply sloped sides, with a difficult-to-manufacture curved bulge on the turret's left side to accommodate the commander's cupola.

50 early turrets were mounted to Henschel's hull and used in action.*

The upper hull framework.

Optional left turret sides are offered. Texture is very convincing.

A turned metal barrel is included.

Yes, I know it’s not really a Porsche-designed turret and that the Germans never called the vehicle a King Tiger, but the nomenclature is so common use these days that I will continue to call it a Porsche King Tiger!

Meng entered the King Tiger market late last year with their brand new 1:35 scale Henschel Turret Version. This was a very impressive kit with a high level of detail. Meng has now delivered their Porsche Turret King Tiger.

Thanks to the optional and spare parts in the box, you should be able to build most variants of the Porsche King Tiger.

The kit comprises 537 parts in

The separate turret roof.

The kit’s clear sprue. * Historical summary adapted from Wikipedia https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tiger_II

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dark yellow coloured plastic, 21 parts in clear, 13 photo-etched parts on two frets, 22 polythene caps and markings for three vehicles.

You can subtract a number of optional parts that apply to different variants, bringing the actual number of plastic parts used for the kit down to a very manageable total.

A suitably aged battle map of the Caen area is included as a bonus.

Engineering of Meng’s Porsche King Tiger is interesting. The framework of the turret permits different variants to be delivered via a common framework and two different port side panels.

Assembly starts with the running gear and lower hull. The road wheels, idler wheels and drive sprockets are attached via polythene caps, which should make painting the layered suspension arrangement easier.

The lower hull is a conventional one-piece tub with a separate rear plate. Suspension swing arms are separate and designed to be glued in place.

Tracks are link and length. The individual links are attached by just two points and there is no evidence of ejector pin circles or other imperfections. The tracks should be fast and easy to install.

A jig is included to ensure that you will have a nice smooth sag at the front and rear of the upper run using the individual links. The links are a nice firm fit and are designed to be glued together.

Texture is good – notably the turret. It is shame that it will almost certainly be hidden by Zimmerit!

The turret crew and loader’s hatch plus the upper hull hatches may be posed open or closed.

The gun barrel is turned metal with a three-piece plastic muzzle brake.

Photo-etched covers are included for the engine deck grilles.

Clear parts are included for the vision blocks.

An external MG 34 machine gun is offered, plus an ammo belt and a detailed mount with spent shell bag.

Markings are supplied for three vehicles. Decals are well printed. ■

MENG KING TIGER (PORSCHE TURRET) INTERIOR SET

MENG 1:35 KING TIGER (PORSCHE TURRET) INTERIOR SET. ITEM NO. SPS-062.

C

oinciding with the launch of their lovely 1:35 scale King Tiger (Porsche Turret), Meng has also released a number of accessories for this brand-new kit.

The first is a set that supplies a comprehensive interior. This adds around 670 additional plastic parts to the base kit. 32 photo-etched parts plus a decal sheet are also included.

Straight from the box, the kit supplies everything you need for a detailed exterior display model. This set adds a full interior, including driver and radio operator’s positions, the fighting compartment,

suspension details, full turret interior, a detailed breech for the KwK 43 L/71 88mm gun; engine compartment, fuel tanks, radiator units, and stacks of ammunition and stowage.

A busy and perfectly printed decal sheet is included for instrument dials, stencil markings, ammunition markings and more.

The interior set will not be for the faint hearted, but the effort will deliver a fantastically detailed Porsche King Tiger inside and out.

This is a massive upgrade for the lovely new Meng 1:35 scale Porsche King Tiger. ■

A comprehensive interior set is available separately. Photo-etched parts for the interior.

Linings for the hull interior.

Engine bay detail.

Markings are supplied for stencils, ammo and more.

Moulding quality is first class.

PORSCHE KING TIGER ZIMMERIT

KING TIGER (PORSCHE TURRET) ZIMMERIT DECALS. ITEM NO. SPS-062

M

eng has also released a separate decal sheet with a single Zimmerit pattern for their 1:35 scale Porsche King Tiger kit.

Zimmerit was almost universal on these early King Tigers. This decal sheet will make the job much easier for those who are not confident with other options such as trowelling putty.

The decals are printed onto one sheet with the patterns in relief. Please note that you do not have to cut these out of the sheet – each decal is an individual decal with virtually no decal film surrounding the raised Zimmerit. Very clever.

Individual decals are supplied for all the various nooks and crannies of the turret, including the mantlet and tricky areas on the rear armour plate.

The pattern looks nicely raised on the sheet and should be quite visible on the model after painting.

A subtle wash and dry brush will help further emphasise the Zimmerit pattern.

I recommend that you apply a primer coat plus gloss coat as a base for the Zimmerit decals.

This is without doubt the easiest way to apply Zimmerit to your Meng 1:35 scale Porsche King Tiger.

Although, at 537, the number of plastic parts might not be appropriate for the absolute beginner modeller, it is certainly manageable and the kit looks like it will be a straightforward build.

If you crave a full interior, you have the option to purchase the separate interior set, and if you are not confident with putty, the decal Zimmerit will be a fast and reliable option.

I really like this philosophy of starting with a good quality external display kit and providing upgrades – interior, workable running gear, Zimmerit etc – as separate options for more ambitious modellers.

This is a highly detailed kit with plenty of useful options and upgrades.

Highly Recommended. ■

CONCLUSION

Markings are supplied for three options.

Meng's 1:35 scale Porsche King Tiger is a high quality package. The level of detail is impressive, Meng has supplied many useful options and spare parts yet basic construction of the hull and the turret does not look too daunting.

The link-and-length tracks, as well as the simple sprue attachments for the individual links will also save the modeller a great deal of clean-up and assembly time.

Zimmerit decals are also available. Instructions are included.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Life Miniatures 1:10 scale USMC Guadalcanal 1942 • Kit No. LM B003

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USMC GUADALCANAL 1942 Matt Wellhauser describes the painting and shading of Life Miniature’s big 1:10 scale Guadalcanal Marines bust.

A

merican forces fought for the island of Guadalcanal in the Solomon Islands from August 1942 to February 1943.

The US Navy, Marine Corps, Army and Coast Guard fought in the battle. It was a hard fought land, sea and air battle. The Japanese were outnumbered, and in the end the Allied forced prevailed.

This bust is produced by Life Miniatures. It is about 1:10 scale. It is cast in grey resin and has eight parts. It is sculpted by Sang-Eon Lee, who also painted the box art for the kit. The bust has a partial M-1 Garand slung over the left shoulder and a M-1 helmet. He is wearing the standard issue herringbone uniform shirt (HBT).

The figure is sculpted with the shirt shown

open, and as part of the head, the exposed chest and neck sit nicely in the indentation sculpted. I wanted to portray a Marine that is hot, sweaty and dirty. The expression of the fellow coupled with the sculpted in worn uniform certainly helps portray the effect.

PAINTING UNDERWAY

As my usual routine, I like to paint the eyes first. This helps me set the tone for the figure.

The iris begins with black. I paint a black circle the size of the iris. I usually like to paint blue eyes or greenish eyes. They show up better than brown. The majority of the iris is painted the desired colour - I leave a small edge of the iris black. For blue, I mix various blues with grey until I find a colour I like. Then the Iris is shaded with a lighter blue like Andrea Blue. Finally I paint the pupil black. Finally the eyes are coated with a gloss clear. I may run a highly diluted pinpoint wash of Burnt Cadmium Red around he eyelid- it gives a bloodshot look to the eye.

I assembled the head/neck portion of the figure to the main torso. I kept the helmet and rifle separate. Everything was primed with a light grey primer and set aside to dry.

The eyes start by painting the whites - using Vallejo Off White, Basic Skintone and a touch of Brown Sand. The white is not actually white, but an off white. Next, the edges of the eyelids, tear duct are painted with a mix of Old Rose, Burnt Cadmium Red and Basic Skintone. I add a bit more Burnt Cadmium Red to define the inside edges of the lids.

SKIN TONES

I start blocking in the skin colour. Since this chap was on a pacific island, that is hot and has plenty of sun, he is painted with a slightly reddish sun exposed skin tone. This guy wasn’t hiding in his mommas basement!

My basic flesh mix is Vallejo Brown Sand (Base), Burnt Cadmium Red and Burnt Umber (shadows), Brown Sand and Basic Skintone plus Jo Sonja Naples Yellow (highlights). I may add black to the shadows and Raw Umber for the five o’clock shadows. The teeth are a prominent feature, and you have to be careful to not make them stand out like new dentures. I like to use the base colour from the eyeballs and darken with Brown Sand.

The lips get a mix of Burnt Cadmium Red and Basic Skintone. For a darker hollow of the cheeks, I will add Jo Sonja Brown Madder.

The face is base coated with Brown Sand. Then highlights are added. I add small amounts of Basic Skintone to the base and bring up the highlights. Each coat is thin- 80% water and I add more water as I get a lighter shade. Think of the technique as using pinpoint washes. Before I hit my final highlight, I start on the shadows. I add Burnt Cadmium Red to the base colour and work on the shadows. Working with acrylics means you constantly go back and forth and add mid tones, highlights, shadows, to cover the transitions. The hair and eyebrows are painted to check the colour against the skin. I usually paint dark hair- my preference.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Life Miniatures 1:10 scale USMC Guadalcanal 1942 • Kit No. LM B003

UNIFORM COLOURS

The backpack straps were base coated with Vallejo Iraqi Sand.

Then washes of Raw and Burnt Umber were used to tone down the brightness.

The shirt or tunic, was made of a herringbone twill with distinctive stripes in it. Actually the uniform was called “P41 HBT”. In looking at artefacts from the war and studying photographs, it seems the more faded the uniform became, the stripes became more apparent. Issued uniforms were an OD green colour. As this fellow has been mucking about in the jungle, salt water and sun, the uniform had to be faded and worn. To simulate this, I decide to use Vallejo German Field Grey as a base.

Shadows were added by using German Black Brown and Jo Sonja Raw Umber to the base colour. Highlights were accomplished by adding Sunny Skintone to the base. The herringbone twill “stripes” were carefully painted with a mix of the base color and Vallejo Green Grey. Be careful to dilute the mix when painting stripes- and test your brush strokes on an index card or similar surface. The flow from the brush has to be just right- not too thin, not too thick. To tie everything together, washes of Raw Umber and Flat Earth weather the worn uniform. I made a mix of those two colours and Tamiya Flat base to simulate sweat/salt stains.

When using the flat base a little will flatten acrylic paint. More will cause a chalky film. The edges of the collar and pockets were painted a very light shade of the base colour. I makes them standout and adds pop to the figure (technical term). One distinctive feature of the HBT uniform was the stencil “USMC” on the left breast pocket. Only the “U” and “C” are visible because of the sling and backpack strap. I used diluted black for the two letters.

The backpack straps were base coated with Vallejo Iraqi Sand.

Then washes of Raw and Burnt Umber were used to tone down the brightness.

The rifle (or about a quarter of it) is primed, then the wood areas painted with Vallejo Buff.

I use artist oils with a small brush over the Buff painted area. The oils will not cover that great- and that’s fine. You want the brush strokes to simulate the wood grain. Once the base coat is dry, you can add additional colour and washes to simulate grime and wear.

Once dry, the metal areas are painted with a mix of Vallejo Flat Black, and Neutral Grey to simulate the parkerised finish.

Then the metal areas were rubbed with ground up graphite and a silver pencil to show wear.

The helmet is the standard issue M1 that has a nice texture cast into it. It was painted with Tamiya Olive Drab- with German Yellow added for the very top of the helmet. Once dry it was given a wash of Raw Umber artist oils- let it sit for about 15 minutes then remove most of it with a clean piece of T shirt (not the one you are wearing). Let that dry overnight. Then dust the helmet with some earth coloured pigment, which is mostly removed with a large soft brush- I used a make-up brush from the wife (don’t tell her). Finally, some pencil graphite ground up on a sanding stick is rubbed on the helmet with my finger. Once the helmet is fixed to the figure, I usually run the pencil around the brim to simulate the worn edge.

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The rifle sling is leather, which did not fare too well in the humidity. I used various browns, oranges and black to paint the sling. One technique I stumbled upon was to use Vallejo Orange Brown and Brown Sand mixed together to pain the edges of slings and straps to simulate a worn or raw edge.

The small details of the dog tags, hardware on the sling were painted with a mix of Scale 75 metallic colours and Flat Black.

This is actually a pretty simple kit to work with. It has fantastic detail, low parts count and easy to paint. With the abundance of reference material, you won’t have difficulty with this one.

Highly recommended.

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PREVIEW FEATURE

Rye Field Models 1:35 Tiger I Middle Production Sd.Kfz.181 Pz.Kpfw.VI Ausf. E • Kit No. RM-5010

SUPER TIGER James Hatch looks back to one of Rye Field Models’ earlier releases, a mid-production Sd.Kfz.181 Pz.Kpfw.VI Ausf. E.

T

he Tiger I is a German heavy tank of World War II deployed from 1942 in Africa and Europe, usually in independent heavy tank battalions. Its final designation was Panzerkampfwagen VI Tiger Ausf. E, often shortened to Tiger.

The Tiger I gave the Wehrmacht its first armoured fighting vehicle that mounted the 8.8 cm KwK 36 gun (not to be confused with the 8.8 cm Flak 36). 1,347 were built between August 1942 and August 1944. After August 1944, production of the Tiger I was phased out in favour of the Tiger II. While the Tiger I has been called an outstanding design for its time, it was over-engineered, using expensive materials and labourintensive production methods. The Tiger was prone to certain types of track failures and breakdowns and was limited in range by its high fuel consumption. It was expensive to maintain, but generally mechanically reliable. It was difficult to transport, and vulnerable to

immobilisation when mud, ice and snow froze between its overlapping and interleaved Schachtellaufwerkpattern road wheels, often jamming them solid. This was a problem on the Eastern Front in the muddy Rasputitsa season and during extreme periods of cold.

The tank was given its nickname "Tiger" by Ferdinand Porsche, and the Roman numeral was added after the later Tiger II entered production. The initial designation was Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausführung H (‘‘Panzer VI version H’’, abbreviated PzKpfw VI Ausf.

H) where 'H' denoted Henschel as the designer/manufacturer. It was classified with ordnance inventory designation SdKfz 182. The tank was later re-designated as PzKpfw VI Ausf. E in March 1943, with ordnance inventory designation SdKfz 181.

Today, only about seven Tiger Is survive in museums and private collections worldwide. The Tiger 131 at the UK's Tank Museum, which was captured during the North

Africa Campaign, is currently the only one restored to running order.

THE KIT This isn’t a new release, but one from 2016 and the last of 5 Tiger variant releases from Rye Field Model. This time, RFM has concentrated their efforts of producing a mid-production Tiger I, and with a full interior.

The box for this kit takes up the same footprint as the recent Panther kit, but it about 20% shallower. However, this box is still crammed with plastic to the point where you need to put the parts back in the box in the same order as you got them out, or you’ll struggle to fit everything in again.

The box lid has a superb artwork of No.217 (not Otto Carius due to the incorrect tracks) and this is one of three schemes available out of the box.

Under a fairly airtight lid, you will find 22 sprues, moulded in either tan or grey styrene, and also a single-piece lower hull,

clear box of track links, two frets of PE parts, PE Zimmerit tools, a single decal sheet, and braided copper wire. A few of the latter are packaged into a single clear sleeve, along with a mini-sprue containing just two parts moulded in tan plastic. Whilst not all sprues are bagged individually (identical multiples co-bagged), all parts are in perfect condition. That’s just as well when you consider that this kit has around 1000 parts! Oh, that doesn’t include the multipart track links either. More on that soon. Lastly, a 28-page colourprinted A4 instruction manual is also included. In all, this is quite a weighty package. The intention of this review isn’t to assess the accuracy of this kit, but instead to provide details of the contents and any options that are available to the modeller. As this kit is now over 12 months old, I will supply links at the end which will supply you with further information as to the accuracy and opportunities offered with this kit.

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SPRUE A

SPRUE B

This tan-coloured sprue has a large hole in it where parts that are presumably from an earlier release, have been snipped out. Parts here are primarily centred on the multipart gun barrel (made from sections instead of the dreaded halves), turret and mantlet parts. There are actually three different mantlets here but only one (A3) is shown for use with this release. Another large and seemingly unused part is the turret lid. Instructions show one sprue Z as for use. So, some important useful parts for your spares box. Also to be found here are the stowage bins for the rear of the turret and the cupola.

Some large superstructure parts to be found here, including the upper hull with the larger cooling air intakes moulded integrally. Of course, PE screens are included for these. One of the TWO options for the rear hull plate are included here, catering for the different equipment and exhaust layouts. Also found here are pioneer tools, equipment boxes, various braided ducts/hoses for the Feifel air filters, stowage boxes and the ends of the towing cables with their crimps, and the vertical plate with driver’s vision port and MG position.

SPRUE C (X2) These two sprues contain all of the road wheels.

As this wasn’t one of the retrofitted steel wheel machines, the rims on these were rubber. The manufacturer and wheel size can be clearly read on the rims. Detail is superb, with excellent hex bolt details on the hubs. Circumferential seams are nonexistent, but of course, the sprue gate attachments will need to be eliminated. I always find this easiest when the wheels are paired together.

SPRUE D (X2) Here we have the drive and idler wheels, transmission gear housing, torsion bars and swing arms etc. The torsion bars will work if you make a slight adjustment to each one. There is a small plastic tab on these that locks them into a single position, but removal will make the swing arms move. Ideal for those dioramas.

SPRUE H Moulded in a medium grey styrene, this sprue contains parts for the Maybach engine, petrol tanks and other associated rear hull internals.

SPRUE F There are more unused parts on this sprue, such as alternative side hull walls and yet another mantlet, plus the lower side front hull where the transmission gear housing fits. With the latter, refer to unnamed sprue for the parts we will use with this release.

What we will be using, however, are the fenders, engine cooler intake doors, front shelf that sits below the driver’s vision port, and also brackets for the spare tracks which will fit to the turret side. These are moulded as a curve, so you can create the assembly properly before it’s fitted to the turret. Very nice design…

SPRUE J Another grey sprue, appearing to mostly if not exclusively, containing parts for the turret internals. Again, some parts are not for use, such as the internal turret ring and the turret floor. The parts to be used are to be found on Sprue U.

SPRUE K The genius in me has worked out that all interior parts (generally) are moulded in grey, as we now look at a sprue which contains the Tiger’s transmission, driver compartment parts, disc and steering brake units, wireless radio, bulkheads and firewalls etc. One side of my sprue is curved in through stress, but no damage to parts can be seen.

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PREVIEW FEATURE

Rye Field Models 1:35 Tiger I Middle Production Sd.Kfz.181 Pz.Kpfw.VI Ausf. E • Kit No. RM-5010

SPRUE M (X2) Every tank needs ammunition and here you will find the main gun shells and ammunition pouches for the MGs.

SPRUE O Here we have the 22T jack, external pioneer tools, and jerry cans, which actually fit within the turret! It looks like some parts here aren’t for use, such as an alternative rear turret stowage bin.

SPRUE S

SPRUE N (X4) These four sprues are moulded in dark grey styrene and are all concerned with track construction. Each link it built from 5 pieces, and here you will find the track pins that are moulded in blocks of four. These are designed to stay on their mini-sprues until after you have inserted them to the tracks and added cement. Only then do you clip the sprue from the assembly. The other track parts are the horns (2 per link). These are going to be seriously tedious to assemble, so patience will be required. Each of the Sprue N has a section of jig which will fit together for you to assemble reasonably log runs of track per time.

SPRUE T

SPRUE U

This tiger is moulded with a single piece external turret, but The only clear sprue in this kit, containing the various periscope parts etc. Clarity is the internal turret details such as the viewing ports, will excellent, and everything is beautifully sharp. be fastened to a two-part interior shell that fits inside the exterior once the main turret assemblies are completed.

Internally, there isn’t any real detail on the walls as internal stowage, if any, was fitted to the inner rim/floor of the turret.

This grey styrene sprue contains more engine parts and the alternative internal turret ring and floor which should be used with this release.

UNNAMED SPRUE This contains only two parts, and is to be found in the bag containing the decals and wire etc. There are parts which form the front of the lower hull sides, where the transmission gear housing fits.

PHOTO ETCH P & V Produced as PE are the engine intake cooler screens, internal hull frames, pioneer tool clasps, etc. To properly identify PE parts in the instructions, I wish RFM had inked them in a different colour to differentiate from the styrene parts. PE quality is excellent, with narrow gates to snip through to remove parts.

PHOTO ETCH Y These are the Zimmerit tools, and four different ones are provided. The tooth pitch is the same on all of them, but the scraping faces are different lengths. Those verticals will need to be cut separately, of course.

SPRUE Z Here we have the slab sides of the tank hull, turret lid (the one that will be used), alternative rear hull panel, two cupola options (both can be used), mantlet (not to be used with this release), engine access door and various external detail parts.

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LOWER HULL A superb single-piece moulding with fine internal and external details. Internal ejector pin marks seem to be placed where the various pieces of equipment will be installed, and if you really want to remove them, they are only superficial. Welding seam reproductions are exquisite, and this is a triumph of slide-moulding technology with beautiful, sharp details on all surfaces. One thing I do note is that the external port detail on the underside rear of the hull, don’t match the port details on the inside. This shouldn’t matter though as the Maybach engine will completely obscure the erroneous details.

TRACKS (X192) These are supplied in a clear plastic box and are moulded in dark grey colour plastic and are attached in strips of 12, with two small connectors between each one. Moulding really is very nice, but you will need to fit the horns yourself, plus those pins, creating 5 parts per track, and with 96 links per side, that equates to 475 parts for the tracks alone!

Patience, Padawan!

DECALS Just a single sheet here for all three schemes.

Printed by Cartograf, these are beautifully thin, contain minimal carrier film, and are in perfect register. Colours are nice and solid, and the finish is matt.

The three schemes in this release are: • No.217, February 1944, Eastern Front • No.342, Early Spring of 1944, Belgium/Mons • No.321, June 1944, Northern France

CABLE A single length of braided copper wire is included with this release, listed at 45cm in length.

INSTRUCTIONS I’m a real fan of RFM’s instructions format. This manual is A4 in size, has 28-pages and printed in full colour. The first pages provide a parts map, but no shading for unused parts. Usually, the next pages contain the three schemes. These are usually found at the rear of a manual. The profiles are said to be provided by Mig’s AMMO, as are the paint references. If you use anything other than that brand, you will need to source your own paint reference codes. Next, various internal assemblies are shown in colour for your painting reference, and then a Zimmerit map which shows the various faces which need to have putty added. I do admit that I’d like to have seen a moulded Zimmerit option, but hey ho!

The rest of the manual has the Tiger broken down into 37 constructional sequences, but don’t let that fool you as most sequences are broken down further. Colour again features throughout, not only with more colour subassembly illustrations, but also shaded parts which define parts attachment. The last pages show more colour illustrations of the interior of the Tiger.

CONCLUSION I purchased this kit whilst on a weekender in York, in between the various fine real ales and green tea Lattes, but it wasn’t on a whim. It was only a few weeks earlier that I’d reviewed the brand-new Panther Ausf.G, sent to me as a sample from Rye Field Model, and the detail

hooked me instantly. A decision was made to pick up the slightly older kit if I ever came across it, and so I did. This one cost me £59.99 at Monk Bar Models, and it was the best money I spent that weekend (next to the real ale!).

I’m certainly not disappointed.

The superbly detailed full interior, intricate external details and

superb engineering. I’m still a little daunted by the prospect of adding Zimmerit myself, having never done this before, but I suppose I need to start learning some armour techniques if I’m to diversify a little. I also find the tracks a little daunting too, with the 5 parts required per link, including the pins, but RMF’s trick of adding

them whilst on the sprue and then snipping the sprue from them, is genius. In all, a seriously nice package that I’ll need to restrain myself from starting, until at least the Panther is built.

Review kit courtesy of my wallet and the fine folks at Monk Bar Model Shop, York. ■

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FEATURE FEA ARTICLE

Alan 1:35 Pz.Kpfw I Ausf. F • Kit No. 007

CHUNKY PANZER!

Chris Leeman builds and details the Alan Pz.Kpfw I Ausf. F

T

he Panzerkampfwagen I Ausf F was born out of a requirement by the Heerswaffenamt at the end of 1938 for a well armoured infantry support tank to be used to help engage enemy fortifications.

Due to various production delays the first units did not roll off the assembly line until mid 1942. 30 units were produced all up. The tank had an original requirement of weighing no more the 18 metric tons, but finished up coming in at 21 metric tons. It had a maximum speed of 25km/per hour (average road speed of 18km/ per hour and 14 km/per hour cross country) with a range of 150km on the road and 110km cross country.

They saw action on the Eastern Front as well as used in partisan duties in the former Yugoslavia.

THE MODEL The Alan kit was originally released way back in the mid 1990s. It is typical of the East European kits of the time. The basic shape is there with some nice detail, like individual track links with hollow guide horns (something companies like DML have only tackled in the last few years).

Having said that, most items like tools and the like are very poor with the rest of the kit being quite soft when it comes to general detail. I originally built this kit back when it first came out. Back then there were no specific aftermarket items for the kit and I had very

limited reference.

Things have now changed and there is a raft of extras for this model as well as far better reference available so I decided to revisit this old kit again and see what I could do second time around.

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BUILDING I won’t go into a blow by blow description of what I did to the model.

Hopefully the pictures can give you a good idea without you having to listen to me rabbit on about every nut & bolt added. All of the etched is from the Aber detail set unless otherwise stated.

The hull comes in multiple parts so you need to be sure that everything is lined up and square or it will have repercussions further down the track. I removed the moulded on drivers visor from the front plate as the detail wasn’t very good. I replaced this with a resin visor from Tiger Model Designs which was meant for the mid version Tiger 1. As it was the same design it worked well and was far better detailed. All the hull weld seems were either re-done or added using Epoxy-Rite 2 part putty.

The suspension arms were added, taking care to make sure they were aligned properly so that the wheels sat square. The fit was a bit loose and it took a while to get everything to line up and sit square. I replaced the kits front & rear shock absorbers with some beautiful turned brass versions from Aber (thanks to Ray Blythe for supplying me with these, cheers mate).

This set are actually meant for either Panzer 3’s or StuG 3’s but are the same type (or near as damn it) as used on the Panzer 1 F so on they went.

The moulded on vents on the engine deck were cut out and removed and replaced with the Aber etched mesh and frames. I mounted these so the frame was proud of the engine deck but I have since found out that it should sit flush. As is the always the case, this info came after I had finished the model! The smoke discharger on the rear plate was reworked a bit. I actually replaced the internals of the discharger with parts from the Voyager etched set.

There was a bit of modifying required to make it fit but nothing drastic.

Brackets were added with plastic card and various bolt heads added as well.

The exhaust has a bit of extra work done. An edge was added to both ends using lead wire that was sanded flush with the circumference and the exhaust opening was thinned for a more in scale appearance. Two Grandt Line conical bolts that were missing were also added to the rear plate.

The Aber fenders were added next.

This was a bit of a tricky job (getting the bends right so parts mated up properly) and I admit I did a bit of fudging on the front fender supports but it was definitely worth the effort as they look 100% better than the kit items. The jack, horn and “S” hooks were taken from the Tamiya On Vehicle Equipment set. The shovel and axe are resin items from Plus Models. The fire extinguisher is a white metal item from Elefant, detailed with Aber brackets.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Alan 1:35 Pz.Kpfw I Ausf. F • Kit No. 007

B all DML parts taken from my spares box. Wiring

was added to these using lead wire. The Notek light is a resin item from my spares box (I think it was originally from Azimut). The jack block is balsawood detailed with Aber parts. I reworked the centre hub of the drive sprocket as this area in the kit was a bit soft on detail. The road wheels rubber was distressed with a motor tool to represent wear and damaged from use.

The picture of the tank I was basing my model on showed a large stowage box mounted on the right side rear fender. This was made with 15 thou card with Griffon Models etched latches added. The Jerry can rack was made

with scrap brass runners left over from previous used etched fret, cut and bent to shape. New grab handles were added on the hull sides from florist wire bent to shape, using the kit parts are guides. I also added new mounting points for the tow ropes using plastic card, brass rod and etched screw heads. The front tow shackles were replaced with lovely brass ones from RB Models. The turned brass aerial came for RB Models.

The turret required a bit of work as well. A lip was added around the top of the turret. This was made with lead wire, glued into place then sanded until it had the correct profile I needed.

Bolts were added to the extra armour plates located around the turret and the join between the plates and the turret sides at the front of the turret were made more prominent using a fine razor saw to scribe it. The “U” shaped lifting hooks were made using cooper wire bent to shape and flattening the ends with some needle nose pliers. Cooling slots were cut in the armoured MG sleeves on the mantelet. Weld detail was added at their bases and the whole mantelet was textured with Gunze Mr Surfacer stippled on with an old brush. Finally the barrels were replaced with beautiful turned brass items from Adler’s Nest.

enjoyed revisiting this model. I liked it first time I built “Iitreally and my enthusiasm hadn’t waned 16 or so years later... ”

48 Model Military International - September 2018

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PAINTING + WEATHERING While a little difficult to tell from the pictures I had (due to exposure and dust) my take was that the tank I wanted to build was dark yellow with a light mottling of a secondary colour or colours. I decided on one having one extra colour and I picked green.

As I had used quite few mediums in the actual build (plastic, resin, brass) I gave the model a primer coat first to blend it all in and make the paint adhesion easier. For this I used Gunze Grey Primer sprayed straight from the can.

After the primer was dry and did some pre-

shading, spraying Gunze Tire Black into all the nooks, crannies and recess of the model.

Next a base coat of Dark Yellow (a 50/50 mix of Tamiya Dark Yellow & Tamiya Buff) was sprayed on, working with dusting coats to allow some of the pre-shading to come through. Over

A

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Alan 1:35 Pz.Kpfw I Ausf. F • Kit No. 007

B this went a mottling of Gunze green? Which

has been heavily thinned (approximately 30% paint to 70% thinner). All tools were painted with various Humbrol enamels. Markings were applied next. The turret numbers were Archer dry transfers while the Balkenkrueze on the sides were from my spares box.

The model then received a couple of washes of artist gauche (van dyke brown and burnt sienna), heavily thinned with water with a drop of dish washing liquid added to break the surface tension. Any excess was removed with a moistened cotton tip after it had dried (the great benefit in using artist gauche). Next I dry brushed the model using Humbrol matt brown/yellow mixed & lightened with Windsor & Newtons Titanium White oil paint. I try and keep the contrast between the colours quite muted and not too stark. Though not the norm now

with modern weathering techniques, I like to still use dry brushing to not only to highlight detail but also to help tone down the base colours.

Next came the chipping. For this I have used Humbrol enamels again. Matt pale stone for the light coloured chips and matt black for the darker ones. Randomness is the key here. I find it best to do this process over a couple of sittings. If you try and do it all at once it can start to look too even and contrived. I also try and think about where I put the wear and tear, concentrating on areas that would get the most exposure to potential damage like crew access points and exposed areas of the tank.

The model next received an all over wash of pigments. I mix up a slurry of pigments with water which I basically paint over the entire model. This was also done on the Fruil tracks that had been coloured first in Blacken-

It weathering solution. When I dry I remove most of the pigments with a combination of a dry brush as well as a wide flat brush lightly moistened. When using the moistened wide brush I work in vertical movements, especially on upright surfaces. This helps created the effect of rain streaks in the pigments. I then went around the lower hull and running gear with different coloured pigments trying to add layers and different tonal variations.

Before I added the tracks, I ran some sandpaper over the tracks, taking off the paint and exposing the metal underneath on all the areas of wear and contact. The tracks were then attached to the model. I did some oil/grease stains around some of the running gear using thinned oil paints and that was about it.

50 Model Military International - September 2018

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CONCLUSION I really enjoyed revisiting this model. I liked it first time I built it and my enthusiasm hadn’t waned 16 or so years later. Yes it takes a bit of work to get it up to scratch but I think it was

definitely worth it. With the new Bronco kit now out, a lot of this work is not necessary now but if you like a challenge I would say this is a project to consider. Happy modelling. n September 2018 - Model Military International 51

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09/07/2018 17:17

SHOW REPORT

Melbourne Model Expo 2018

MELBOURNE MODEL EX

The Editor makes his annual pilgrimage 1,000km down the Hume Highway to the annual

T

he Melbourne Model Expo is held every Queen’s Birthday long weekend at the Sandown racetrack in southeast suburban Melbourne.

The large room was packed full this year, reflecting the mass of competition and display models.

More than 700 models were in competition making a big impression on the visitors and judges alike. Although the bulk were aircraft models, there was an impressive selection of military and figure kits in competition too.

The standard of competition models was very high, including some imaginative dioramas and vignettes. In addition to the record competition entries, the venue was also swelled by many themed club displays from Victorian model and special interest clubs.

Traders were at full capacity as well, with many familiar companies and some new names appearing on the tables. Traders reported a brisk trade all throughout the weekend.

A number of new and forthcoming releases were on display.

The doors opened officially at 11:00 am on Saturday, and the crowds streamed in. It was pleasing to see a large number of families and young people examining the displays.

Expo also always offers a welcome opportunity to catch up with old friends and new acquaintances.

If you are an Australian local or visiting during early June, the Melbourne Model Expo is well worth a visit.

Thanks to the Model Expo Committee and members for their famous Melbourne hospitality during my brief visit. ■

On display was a 1:1 scale engine oil tank bay nacelle outboard side top cover from a B-24 Liberator.

Melbourne’s Eastern SuburbsScale Modelling Club was celebrating its 25th Anniversary.

Themed club displays are a big tradition for the Melbourne Model Expo. Whittlesea Area’s theme this year was “Stripes”.

SPASM’s “Wirraway to Hornet” CAC display.

The Ship Modelling Society made a big impression too.

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L EXPO 2018

he annual Melbourne Model Expo.

Pakenham Modellers Group presented a “Kicking Up The Dust” display.

Takom’s 1:35 Krupp 420mm Big Bertha.

Gundam and fantasy figures are gaining in popularity with every year that goes by.

A very impressive 1:35 scale Truck and trailer combination.

Star Wars was popular!

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SHOW REPORT

Melbourne Model Expo 2018

Dragon’s 1:35 BMP2 IFV.

A heavily weathered 1:35 Trumpeter KV-1.

A gorgeous large scale Italeri WLA 750 motorcycle.

Tasca’s 1:24 scale Zundapp KS750.

Andrew Judson’s post-apocalyptic tour bus!

Dragon Panzer III Ausf. N.

A creative civil scene in 1:35 scale.

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Trumpeter’s small scale US Navy LCAC.

Project X.109 fantasy vehicle!

Planet of the Apes meets the Wehrmacht!

Revell’s PT-109.

Bronco’s 1:35 scale Buffalo MRAP.

Trumpeter 1:35 4K51 Rubezh

Meng’s 1:35 IR Tiger II Late War – well, maybe post-war!

September 2018 - Model Military International 57

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1:48 Scale – A round-up of the latest news and releases

“DO IT AGAIN AND AGAIN UNTIL YOU GET IT RIGHT SON!” P ractice is everything!

This was rammed home on my last 1:48 scale build, when attempting to paint a few figures.

Painting faces is never an easy task and only a select few can pull it off time and time again. I had considered myself to be a competent figure painter but nowhere near as good as the masters of the hobby. I approached the figures in blissful ignorance and proceeded to paint them. Time and time again I was dissatisfied with my results when comparing them to others.

It then dawned on me the reason these master figure painters were so good is constant practice.

Sure, skill is one thing and it can be argued that this is what sets the masters apart, but what about the average Joe like you and me? The answer is practice. Any human endeavour requires it and at times it can be frustrating.

I am lucky enough to know a number of armour modellers from around the world and there is one

who I considered to be a competent but not great modeller when I first met him. He used to ask for my advice and I now find myself asking for his!

The reason is practice.

This modeller can build and paint at an astonishing rate and produce a world class model in a number of weeks where I, on the other hand, take months. What’s the secret? He asks questions and incorporates new methods and painting styles in each of his builds. He has been known to build 12 models a year. I, on the other hand, am lucky to build one!

Practice and frequency are the key words here, so it’s simple. Buy and finish more kits (the model manufactures are going to love me! for that). But in a sense, it’s true that the more you do something the better you become.

Until next time!

Luke Pitt

TETRA MODEL WORKS

US MAIN BATTLE TANK M1A2 ABRAMS DETAIL-UP SET 1:48 SCALE ITEM NO. ME-48002

OKB GRIGOROV

WINTER TRACKS FOR T-34 (TYPE 3) ITEM NO. S48019

The OKB Grigorov tracks for review this month are for the T-34. This set will fit the Hobby boss kits kit or the various Tamiya kits based on the T-34 chassis . Six very well cast track sections are included, each at 9.5 cm in length and unlike the other sets I review by this manufacturer. The method of bending the tracks can be accomplished by either the hairdryer or hot water methods. The guide horns are solid, which is correct, and the detail is simply outstanding. These can purchased directly from their web site on the OKB Grigorov website www.okbgrigorox.com Highly Recommended.

Luke Pitt

Tetra Model Works hail from Korea and they have recently expanded their photo-etched updates to include 1:48 scale armour and I for one welcome it.

The set sent for review is for the recently released Tamiya Abrams Item No. 32592. This update includes over 70 finely produced photo-etched parts that include all the grilles and turret basket mesh and a myriad of other both small and large fittings in the turret and hull areas.

There is a nice reworking of the Commander’s cupola, even including pre-cut clear cut visors. Clear visors are also included for the two targeting systems mounted on the turret as well.

The Commander’s machine gun has been updated with the ammunition box and small .50 cal ammunition belt. The often seen reels of razor wire are included for stowage on the rear deck of the vehicle. All in all this is a masterfully done photo-etched update and equal to anything available.

At the time of writing this is the only photo-etched update available for the 1:48 scale Abrams at this time, although I feel sure others will follow soon.

Thanks to Tetra Model Works for the sample http://www.tetramodel.co.kr Highly Recommended.

Luke Pitt

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Incoming Book Reviews NUTS & BOLTS VOL.40, BUSSING’S SCHWERE PZ.SPÄHWAGEN PART 3: SCHW. PZ.SPÄHWAGEN (SD.KFZ. 234) (8-RAD TP.) AND VARIANTS

BY HOLGER ERDMANN AND MARTIN BLOCK PAGES: 208 PRICE: £25.95 FORMAT: SOFT - A4 PUBLISHER: NUTS & BOLTS VERLAG GBR WEBSITE: WWW.NUTS-BOLTS-DE

This is the one that Puma fans have been waiting for, and they won’t feel let down – nor will those interested in the other versions of Germany’s last 8–wheeled armoured car.

As always, the book is bilingual English/German and everything is translated, though those who know both languages will notice differences and oddities here are there. It begins with a history of its development and descriptions of the variants – the Sd.Kfz. 234/2 that we know as Puma, with its 5cm gun, the 234/1 with a 2 cm and an MG in an open-topped turret that was actually the second version into production, the 234/3 with a short 7.5 cm, and the 234/4 with its 7.5 cm anti-tank gun – almost as popular a modelling subject as the Puma.

There’s a full technical description of the common chassis and engine, and of the basic armoured body, followed by great details of the different turrets and gun mounts and the changes made to carry them. After those come descriptions of the radio outfits used and the tool stowage changes.

Production charts, unit Tables of Organisation, and allocations to units are accompanied by potted histories of use by all the Werhmacht and SS units that received any variant. Next are notes about camouflage and markings, and there are sections about trial active-service use by a special unit and subsequent experience reports from user units plus an Allied report on the test of a captured 234.3 plus a brief note about Czech use of captured 234s after the war. The final text section describes model builds by Tony Greenland and Vinnie Branigan and gives a comprehensive list of 1:35 scale kits and aftermarket sets, plus acknowledgements and a very good list of references.

And all this only gets the reader to page 57, there’s plenty more to come! There are period photos scattered among the text pages, but the main collections of WWII photos start on page 58 with some of the prototypes and test vehicles.

Yes, I did say ‘collections’ in the plural because the historic photos are shown in separate sections for each type, and chronologically within each section. Most pages have at least two good-size images, and extracts from service manuals are included to cover the areas that soldiers didn’t photograph such as turret interiors. The 234/1 section runs up to page 71, and the Puma one gets 22. Next are the 234/3 with10 pages, and the 234/4 with seven – fewer because fewer of those were built. A final page has photos of two unit conversions that would make interesting models for scratch builders.

Now we come to the plans section. 27 pages of 1:35 plans and isometric drawings of all versions including trials vehicles, prototypes, and early and late production changes – plus those unit conversions and two proposed variants that were never built. The plans reappear in colour plate form to show known camouflage schemes and markings, all based on photos in the book with their page number noted by each except for a reconstruction of the ‘factory scheme’ of the 234/4 which is based on multiple photos.

The section of modern photos shows details of the three lone survivors of the 234 series, a 234/3 at Bovington and two 234/4s at Fort Benning and Munster, but also the 234/1 used the same turret as the Sd.Kfz.250/9 so that has been covered with photos of the example at the Kubinka museum. The engine is shown by eight photos of one at Munster, and radios and individual parts are included from other collections, so this is a quite comprehensive 46- page coverage despite the lack of a surviving 234/2. Finally, there are 14 photos of models

by Tony Greenland and Vinnie Branigan to show what can be built from various kits.

Thanks to Nuts & Bolts and Historex Agents for the review copy www.nuts-bolts.de Highly Recommended John Prigent

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Figures

- A round-up of the latest figure sets on release...

KFS MINIATURES

1:35 SCALE WORLD WAR II ERA FRENCH TANK CREW ITEM NO. 35-003 The name Kamil Feliks Sztarbala should be familiar to readers of MMI, as he has contributed quite a number of excellent articles over the years.

Kamil is also the driving force behind a cottage industry company, KFS Miniatures.

KFS Miniatures’ latest release is a set of three 1:35 scale WWII German soldiers at rest.

The three figures are perfectly cast in grey coloured resin, with one being presented complete in one piece and the other two with separate arms.

The faces are all unique and full of personality.

They probably present a more realistic alternative

to some of the square-jawed, athletic and shouting figures more often seen today.

Each of the figures is wearing the Wehrmacht side cap, suggesting that they are behind the front lines. Uniforms are standard infantry M36 with the dark green collar and shoulder straps, the Litzen collar insignia, and the Wehrmachtsadler above the right breast pocket. Two of the NCOs also feature the white Waffenfarbe on the borders of the shoulder straps and collar insignia.

Each of the figures is packed into its own separate plastic bag, and the three bags packed again into

a larger one. These are stapled to a cardboard backing sheet, which includes a coloured photo of the painted figures.

These guys will be ideal for any early to mid-war scene in Poland, France, the Low Countries, Balkans and even early Operation Barbarossa. The only limit is your imagination!

These three figures are very welcome.

Available online from KFS Miniatures www.kfs-miniatures.com Highly Recommended.

Brett Green

60 Model Military International - September 2018

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AVAILABLE in the ‘HOW TO BUILD...’ series NEW How to Build The Steel Wheeled Tiger I A New and revised edition of the ultimate guide to building the Tiger I Steel Wheeled version by Angus Creighton.

The new revised edition includes: ■ Early-batch Sturmtiger, using Tamiya’s 1:35 kit with factory zimmerit, ModelKasten battle-tracks ■ Late-batch Sturmtiger, using Tamiya’s 1:35 kit, Dragon late pattern road wheels, extra frontal armour, no zimmerit, ModelKasten battle-tracks ■ Dragon’s 1:35 Tiger I (SPzAbt 510 194445), ModelKasten transport tracks ■ and more...

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Contact Details - for companies featured in MMI...

ACCURATE ARMOUR/ ARMOUR DISTRIBUTION

Units 15-16 Kingston Industrial Estate, Port Glasgow, Inverclyde, PA14 5DG Scotland.

Tel; 01475 743 955 Fax; 01475 743746 www.accurate-armour.com

ADALBERTUS

Iberyjska 7/49, 02-764 , Warsaw,Poland adalbertus@adalbertus.com.pl www.adalbertus.com.pl

THE AIRBRUSH COMPANY Ltd

Unit 7 Marlborough Road, Lancing Business Park, Lancing, West Sussex, BN15 8UF. Tel; 08700 660 445 www.airbrushes.com

ALCLAD II LACQUER

5 St Georges Close, Bacton, Norfolk. NR12 0LL Tel; 01962 65216 Fax; 01692 652334

ALPINE, ROYAL MODEL, ARTISAN MORI, YOSCI; SMARTMODELLING No.7 Gordons Way, Oxted, Surrey RH8 0LN. UK Tel; 01883 734746 smartmodelling@smart7.fsworld.co.uk

AMPERSAND PUBLISHING (via Historex Agents in UK)

235 NE 6th Avenue #4 Delray Beach, Florida 33483-5543, USA Tel; 561-266 9686 Fax; 561-266-9786

ARCHER

(Historex in UK)

PO Box 1277 Youngsville, NC 27596-1277, USA www.archertransfers.co

BADGER AIR-BRUSH COMPANY 9128W Belmont Ave, Franklin Park, IL 60131 Tel; 847/678-3104 www.badgerairbrush.com email info@badgerairbrush.com (In the UK from www.shesto.co.uk)

BISON DECALS

Available from www.hannants.co.uk and www.pdi-model-supplies.com

DELUXE MATERIALS www.deluxematerials.co.uk info@deluxematerials.com Tel; 01529 455 0340

DRAGON MODELS

(The Hobby Company in UK)

Dragon Models Ltd, Kong Nam Ind. Building B1-10F, 603-609 Castle Peak Road, Tsuen Wan NT, Hong Kong Fax; (HK) 4110587 www.dragonmodelsltd.com (For 1:6 Action Figures, please contact Amerang in UK)

ECHELON FINE DETAILS

Available from; wwwaccurate-armour.com & http://pachome1.pacific.net.sg/~kriegsketten/

FRIENDSHIP MODELS

12 Delta Drive, Musselburgh, East Lothian, EH21 8HR Tel; 0131 665 0866 Mobile; 07877166225 www.friendshipmodels.com

GREAT NORTH ROADS

CAMMETT

(Lifecolour, Scale Caliber)

Unit 5 Greenfield Industrial Estate, Forest Road, Hay on Wye, Powys, HR3 5FA Tel; 01497 822757 Email; cammettco@btinternet.com www.cammett.co.uk

CLASSIC PUBLICATIONS

Midland Counties Publications, 4 Watling Drive, Sketchley Lane Industrial Estate, Hinckley, Leics UK. LE10 1YF Tel; 01455 233 747, Fax; 01455 233 737 midlandbooks@compuserve.com www.classic-publications.com

CREATIVE MODELS LTD

(Mig Productions, Vallejo, Accurate Miniatures)

Unit 6-10, Honeysome Industrial Estate, Honeysome Road, Chatteris, Cambridgeshire. PE16 6TG Tel; 01354 760022 www.creativemodels.co.uk info@creativemodels.co.uk

DARTMOOR MILITARY MODELS Haylis cottage, Budlake, Broadclyst Exeter, EX5 3LJ, England Tel; 01392 881271 www.dartmoormilitarymodels.com

www.etchmate.com www.missionmodels.com Tel; 818 842 1885 Fax; 818 842 1886 info@missionmodels.com, sales@missionmodels.com, orders@missionmodels.com

THE ARMORY; M&MODELS

9329 S. Cicero Ave, Oak Lawn, IL 60453, USA http://home.earthlink.net/~mmodels/

MODEL WHOLESALE UK LTD Tel; 01892 533036 www.modelwholesaleuk.com

ORDNANCE MODELS

Harbour Road, Oulton Broad, Lowestoft, Suffolk, NR32 2LZ, Tel; 01502 517444 Fax; 01502 500521 www.hannants.co.uk sales@hannants.co.uk

HISTOREX AGENTS

Wellington House, 157 Snargate Street, Dover, Kent, CT17 9BZ, UK Tel; 01304 206720 Fax; 01304 204528. www.historex-agents.co.uk sales@historex-agents.co.uk

HOBBYLINK JAPAN

Sano-shi, Kurohakama-cho 162-1, Tochigi 327-0813, Japan www.hlj.com

HUSSAR PRODUCTIONS, CANADA www.airconnection.on.ca

ICM

Via Hannants in UK

(ETCHMATE, GRABHANDLER, MICRO CHISEL)

HANNANTS

BOOKWORLD WHOLESALE

CALIBRE 35

MISSION MODELS

MONROE PERDU

BLAST MODELS

Unit 10 Hodfar Road, Sandy Lane Ind Est Stourport, Worcs, DY13 9QB Tel; 01299 823330 Fax; 01299 829970 info@bookworldws.co.uk

9 Rannoch St., Battlefield, Glasgow G44 4DF, Scotland Tel/Fax; 0141 633 1400 milicastmodels@hotmail.com www.milicast.com

9a Marcombe Road, Torquay, South Devon, TQ2 6LL Tel; 01803 400436 www.greatnorthroads.co.uk email svfarrugia@yahoo.co.uk

IAN ALLAN

Via AFV Modeller or www.blast-models.com

MILICAST MODEL CO.,

www.ianallanpublishing.com Mail Order Dept 01455 254450 Kiev 02099, Ukraine, Borispolskaya 9 building 64.

Tel/fax; (+38044) 369-54-12 export@icm.com.ua www.icm.com.ua

ITALERI

(The Hobby Company in UK)

Via Pradazzo, 6, I-40012 Calderara Di Reno, Bologna, Italy, Tel; 051 726037 www.italeri.com

JUST BASES

21 Graham Road, Paignton TQ3 1BB Tel; 01803 558520 www.just-bases.co.uk

JUST KITS

4 High Street, Botley, Southampton, SO30 2EA Tel; 01489 781177 www.justkitsandmodels.co.uk

MDC

Model Design Construction, Victoria Place, Victoria Road, Ripley, Derbyshire DE5 3FW Fax; 01773 513344 orders@modeldesignconstruction.com www.modeldesignconstruction.com

MODELING ARTISAN MORI

http://www3.ocn.ne.jp/~m.a.mori/index_eng.html

MIG PRODUCTIONS (Creative Models in UK)

C/ Santiago Rusinol 7, Pral 2a, 08750 Molins de Rei, Barcelona, Spain www.migproductions.com

Monroe Perdu Designs, 3168 Renee Court, Simi Valley, CA 93065, USA. www.monroeperdu.com Via; www.steelmodels.com

PACIFIC COAST MODELS Tel; 001 707 538 4850 info@pacmodels.com www.pacmodels.com

PANZERWRECKS

PO Box 164, Heathfield, Sussex TN21 8WA, UK www.panzerwrecks.com

PARAGRAFIX

104 County Street, Suite 101 Attleboro MA 02703 USA Tel: +1 508.431.9800 M-F 9am to 4pm EST http://www.paragrafix.biz pgms@paragrafix.biz

PLUS MODEL

(Creative Models in UK)

SCHIFFER BOOKS

Schiffer Publishing, 4880 Lower Valley Rd, Atglen, PA, 19310 USA www.schifferbooks.com

SCHIFFER BOOKS in UK

Bushwood Books, No.6 Marksbury Avenue, Kew Gardens, Surrey TW9 4JF, UK. Tel; 020 8392 8585, 020 8392 9876, email; info@bushwodbooks.co.uk

SCHUMO KITS

www.schumo-kits.com

SDV MODEL www.sdvmodel.cz

SIMPLE 2 TRADE

No 2 Hollywood Lane, Hollywood, Birmingham, B47 5PP Tel; 0121 474 3030 www.simple2trade.com

SMARTMODELLING

(Swash, Tasca, Gap, Yosci, Royal Model)

No.7 Gordons Way, Oxted, Surrey RH8 0LN UK Tel; 01883 734746 smartmodelling@smart7.fsworld.co.uk

SQUADRON

1115 Crowley Drive, Carrollton, TX 75006-1312 U.S.A Owlerton Green, Sheffield, S6 2BJ Tel; +44 (0)114 234 4231 Fax; +44 (0)114 231 4966 General: info@swann-morton.com www.craftknives.com Tamiya, Inc., 3-7 Ondawara Suruga-ku, Shizuoka 422-8610 JAPAN www.tamiya.com

TAMIYA UK;

THE HOBBY COMPANY LIMITED Garforth Place, Knowlhill, Milton Keynes, MK5 8PG, UK Tel; 01908 605686 Fax; 01908 605666 enquiries@hobbyco.net www.hobbyco.net

TRUMPETER

POCKETBOND

VERLINDEN PRODUCTIONS

Bachmann Europe PLC Moat Way, Barwell, Leics, LE9 8EY Tel; 01455 841756 info@pocketbond.co.uk

PSP MODELS LTD (Mission Models in USA)

Unit 19B, Applin’s Farm, Farrington, Dorset DT11 8RA, UK Tel/Fax; 01747 811 817 www.psp-models.com

QUICKBOOST

www.quickboost.net

REVELL GmbH & Co. KG Orchard Mews, 18C High Street, Tring, Herts, HP23 5AH Tel; +44 (0) 1442 890285 www.revell.eu

SB MODELS

UK distributor for Model Victoria and Royal Model

P.O. Box 114, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, LA13 0WY. Tel/Fax; 01229 430 749 sales@sbmodels.fsnet.co.uk www.sbmodels.net

SBLC

PO Box 794, Cheltenham GL52 3ZW, UK RICHARDSBLC@aol.com

SBX MODEL SHOP

Norwich Road, Ipswich. IP1 5DN Tel; 01473 464311 www.sbxmodelshop.co.uk

John 1:35 air d

TAMIYA JAPAN

Jizni 56, 370 10 C. Budejovice, Czech Republic. plusmodel@plusmodel.cz www.plusmodel.cz (Trumpeter & AFV Club in UK)

FAN

SWANN-MORTON

www.trumpeter-china.com Pocketbond in the UK (Historex in UK)

811 Lone Star Drive, O’Fallon, Missouri 63366, USA www.verlinden-productions.com

VALLEJO

(Creative Models in UK)

Acrylicos Vallejo, SL Apartado 337 - 08800 Vilanova i la Geltrú, Barcelona, Spain Tel; (34) 93 893 60 12 Fax; (34) 93 893 11 54 www.acrylicosvallejo.com

VLS CORPORATION (LSA in UK)

(TRAKZ, WINGZ, CUSTOM DIORAMICS, WARRIORS); Lincoln County Industrial Park, 1011 Industrial Court, Moscow Mills, Missouri 63362, USA www.modelmecca.com

WHITE ENSIGN MODELS (Toms Model Works)

8532 Lamar Drive, Huntington Beach, CA 92647, USA Tomsmodelworks@aol.com www.whiteensignmodels.com

WWII PRODUCTIONS, AUSTRALIA 12 Prince Street, Waratah, 2298, NSW, Australia Tel; +61 (0)2 4967 3205 Fax; +61 (0)2 4967 3207 ww2prod@optusnet.com.au

ZVEZDA

(The Hobby Company in UK)

Promishlennaia Str.,2, Lobnya, Moscow Region, 141730 Russia office@zvezda.org.ru www.zvezda.org.ru

SCHATTON BARRELS

Industriestrasse 6, 94347 Ascha, Germany Fax; 09961 910 7826

■ Please mention ‘Model Military International’ if you make contact with any of the companies listed above - thanks!

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WASTE NOT, WANT NOT

Ian Barraclough improves Tamiya’s venerable 1:35 scale British Army Chieftain Mk.5 with Castoff and Accurate Armour resin.

Next Issue On sale 6 September 2018

ISSUE No.149 September 2018, Published 2nd August 2018 Editor;

Brett Green

Group Editor;

Marcus Nicholls

Publisher;

Alan Harman

Graphic Design;

Alex Hall

Advertising Manager;

Richard Andrews

Office Manager;

Paula Gray

Administration Manager; Hannah McLaurie MMI Website;

Doolittle Media Web Team

Distributed by; Seymour Distribution 2 East Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PT Tel; 020 7429 4000 Newstrade; Select Publisher Services 3 East Avenue, Bournemouth, BH3 7BW Tel; 01202 586848 Email; tim@selectps.com Model Military International is published on the first Thursday of each month by; Doolittle Media, Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane, Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX UK www.modelmilitary.com Tel; +44 (0)1525 222573 Email; enquiries@doolittlemedia.com

FANTASY FACTORY

Editorial enquiries; Email; editor@modelmilitary.com

ARMOURED SPORTS CAR

The Editor builds Tamiya’s brand new 1:35 scale Japan Ground Self Defence Force Type 16 Maneuver Combat Vehicle.

Advertising enquiries; Tel; 07708 028024 Email; richard@doolittlemedia.com Subscription enquiries; Tel; +44 (0)1525 222573 Email; enquiries@doolittlemedia.com Reproduction in part of any text, photograph, or illustration without written consent from the publisher is strictly prohibited. While due care is taken to ensure the contents of Model Military International is accurate, the publishers and printers can not accept responsibility for errors and omissions.

Advertisements are accepted for publication in Model Military International only on Doolittle Media’s standard terms of acceptance of advertising, copies of which are available from the advertising department. Please write to the address above. All advertising, circulation and subscription enquiries should also be directed to the UK address above.

Subscription rates are; 1 year (12 issues); £47 UK £59 Europe £72 Worldwide (Airmail)

PANZER RODEO

Kamil Feliks Sztarbala creates a unique 1:35 scale scene with a scratch built figure and Tamiya’s recent

FOR YOUR SAFETY Don’t forget, when using solvents such as glues, paints, thinners and cleaning agents, always ventilate your work area thoroughly and wear a face mask.

When using power tools, side cutters or any tool that can suddenly break or create highspeed airborne particles, wear approved eye protectors with hard, clear lenses. Please always model in safety!

Binders; £8.50 plus postage (UK £2.45, Euro £4.45, World £6.45) For all orders, please call; (UK) +44(0)1525 222573 or visit www.modelmilitary.com Back Issues; Back Issues are available at the current cover price. See the latest back issues advert or visit www.modelmilitary.com The paper used in this magazine is manufactured at the Leipa Georg Mill and is 100% recycled using de-inked pulp. The mill conforms fully with the requirements of both FSC and PEFC and carries the full accreditations for their environmental policies.

...and much more!

Due to many influencing factors, we cannot guarantee the appearance of the above projects, but we’ll try our best!

© Doolittle Media 2018

The paper used on this title is from sustainable forestry

Order online now at; www.modelmilitary.com

John Bonanni converts Dragon’s classic 1:35 scale Panther II to a hypothetical air defense platform.

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The Last Post...

BRITISH ARMY’S NEW AIR DEFENCE MISSILE BLASTS AIRBORNE TARGET BY BALTIC SEA A brand-new missile system at the heart of the British Army’s future air defences has completed its first successful firing trials, Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson has announced.

Trials of the new Land Ceptor weapon took place close to the Baltic Sea on a Swedish test fire range, with video footage showing a missile being launched from a vehicle and destroying an aerial target in a display of the new weapon’s accuracy and power.

Built by MBDA, Land Ceptor comprises the Common AntiAir Modular Missile (CAMM), a launcher vehicle and two fire unit support vehicles. It is being developed to protect British troops on operations from aerial threats, including hostile combat aircraft and air-launched munitions.

Defence Secretary Gavin Williamson said, “In the face of intensifying threats, it is vital that our Armed Forces have the capabilities to keep Britain safe.

“Land Ceptor will be a formidable battlefield barrier, protecting our troops from strikes and enemy aircraft while on operations.”

Land Ceptor is highly mobile, can be rapidly deployed across challenging terrain, and be brought into action in less than 20 minutes.

From the same family of weapons systems as Sea Ceptor, which will defend the Royal Navy’s Type 23 and Type 26 Frigates, Land Ceptor will provide the stopping power within the cuttingedge Sky Sabre air defence system, and will equip 16th Regiment, Royal Artillery.

The success of the Land Ceptor trials follows the Defence Secretary’s recent announcement of Sea Ceptor entering service with the Royal Navy proves CAMM’s effectiveness both in the land and maritime environments.

The trial, which followed previous munitions tests, was the first time Land Ceptor had been test-fired as a whole system, including the cutting-edge SAAB Giraffe radar.

The development and manufacture of Land Ceptor is enabled through a £250 million contract between Defence Equipment and Support (DE&S)

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and MBDA. Work to develop both Land Ceptor and Sea Ceptor is sustaining 760 MBDA jobs in the UK. DE&S Director Weapons, Richard Smart, said, “This trials firing is an important stepping stone towards bringing Land Ceptor into service with the British Army as part of the wider Sky Sabre air defence system. Land Ceptor performed as expected and the firing has helped us to verify innovative modelling of overall system performance.”

“The DE&S project team, based in Bristol, will continue to work closely with our suppliers to ensure this cutting-edge system provides an effective shield for UK troops as they, in turn, protect the UK’s security and interests.”

Land Ceptor has far greater battlefield awareness and intelligence than the current Rapier system as its engagement range is three times greater and the Giraffe radar and Rafael Battlespace Management Command, Control, Compute, Communicate and Inform (BMC4I) system within Sky Sabre will be able to observe incoming threats from seven times further away.

The missiles can be launched in quick succession to defeat as many as eight different threats at once, even if obstacles such as trees and terrain are in the way.

The system will now undergo further development and trials before Sky Sabre enters service, in the early 2020s. ■

Text: Crown Copyright 2018 Images: Copyright 2018 Shay Woods Endeavor Media Limited

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