Borgward IV 1/35 kit Ausf. A Dragon "Crimea 1944" Heavy Demolition Charge Vehicle

Hello again, I return after a long time without posting. I did this kit two years ago, but didn't make photographs until this spring.

Is a Borgward IV demolition vehicle, painted with a camo as other vehicles from a regiment in Crimea in 1944.

I bought this kit in a street market and decided my unbuilt stashes couldn't grow more, so I built it on a weekend along my brother.

Hope you like it.

Esci WWII RUSSIAN Soldiers 1/72 set 203 Italeri 6057

We continue the WW2-themed reviews, but this time it's a set of soldiers which we are going to review. The Esci Russian Soldiers!

This is the original box. Typical Esci stuff, with a man portrayed very near and the rest in the background. Quite good and all poses are really included inside (only exception the crouched machine gunner).

This is the box of Italeri's reissue. I don't know why the "Rifle Forces" logo is there, just because there are so many riflemen? The artwork is depicting more action, but the colouring is a bit strange; they seem American infantry in the Pacific. The soldier outside the artwork looks strange and fat.

SCULPTING - 9.5 out of 10

These soldiers are very finely sculpted, with the usual perfect lifelike proportions Esci used to make. All detail is sharp, although, for example, I have my set bought in the mid-90s where detail is a bit blurred and not so sharp as always with Esci, and I have received some examples from eBay that were older and seem much sharper, so I assume that the originals had very good sharpness and the mould started to deteriorate with the years. I have no idea how Italeri's reissue is.

These soldiers can be found in grey, military green, and a sort of tan-egg colour and probably more.

The poses are well chosen, maybe the mortar-man looks a bit silly holding two projectiles and looking at the camera at the same time, or the man throwing the grenade shouldn't lift his foot, but the rest are very lifelike and correct. 

HISTORICAL ACCURACY - 10.0

You can't go much wrong with a subject that is 100 % researched, the maximum you could do is go wrong with pouches, weapon proportions, etc. And this time, Esci keeps the proportions very well , much better than usually when it gets a bit carried away with the firepower and gives too many machine guns. 



ARMY REPRESENTATION - 0

"The army representation score is the potential of the soldiers to be used for other purposes different to the one originally intended"

In WW2 is hard to reuse soldiers, and in this case, impossible besides reusing the horse.


FUNNESS - 9.0

This set has very high funness . First, it gives a woman with a radio, which is both historical and a neglected subject by other manufacturers. Also, we are given a cossack with his horse, and although some people would prefer a cossack set and to leave this pose outside this one, in those days there wasn't a cossack set, so it was a good addition. As always, you have a leader, although strangely there is no unique man in this set (not that he is so much needed in a so standarized  army, but maybe a general and a officer would have been better). The Maxim guns are also a very nice addition.

Finally, there is the odd man holding his gun up, a bit like surrendering, or maybe celebrating, or simply drawing the attention of friendly troops from a distance. 

Maybe the most important thing that is lacking are some snipers, but representing in a general way the Red Army,  this is an absence that can be understood.


WARGAMING VALUE - 8,5

As we have commented, it has a very nice balance. The Cossack and its horse will be of little use, but you can always use it as a supply unit adding sacks to the horse. 

PRICE-VALUE RATIO - 9.0

"The price value ratio of this soldiers will vary between any shops you go to, and the best I can do is judge by their average price on eBay"

46 men and two horses maybe looked a few compared with other Esci sets, but now it is a perfect quantity. You are also given 3 Maxims. You can get it shipped for 7 pounds, and  at a similar cost in shops. If you keep alert on eBay, you'll find them second hand under the Esci name for even half this cost .
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PAINTING AND GLUEING - 3.0/8.0

The Esci as always are slippery and flexible, a nightmare to paint and keep painted. The Italeri reissue solves this with their hard plastic. It is your choice if choose the sharper detail of the old Esci ones or the harder plastic of the Italeri reissue.


OVERALL VALORATION - 9.0

A very fine set, some of the best sets Esci made. And I frankly believe the best Red Army set on the market still. The Red Army in winter dress of Italeri is a interesting set, but it doesn't cover fully the subject and has some flaws (that will be commented in a future review).

In one phrase; simply a must have, after all these years, for any wargamer/collector interested in WW2.

Thanks to Gabriel, a superb painter and modeller, for giving permission to use pics of his painted figures.

You can see more of Gabriel's work on his website; http://1-72degabriel.blogspot.com.es/search/label/Infanteria%20Rusa%20WW2%20-%20ESCI

Make any comment! We´ll love to read it! If you want to share your painted version of this set, send a email to tam_cob@hotmail.com with the subject "Painted Soldiers" and I will include them in this post.

Thanks for reading, and see you in the next battle!

POLIKARPOV I-190 Amodel Plastic Model Kit Ref: 72112 Russian Aircraft 1941

Welcome to my second review of an aeroplane, a unknown aircraft to many, including myself, before finding this model on eBay, and I have a full bookcase of WW2 airplane books. We are speaking of the prototype Polikarpov I-190.

This is the box art;

BOX ART >> Very correct and stylistic box, typical stuff but nicely made. It gives a nice sensation of strength and speed. If you wonder who is the guy portrayed  on the top left, it is the famous designer, Mr. Polikarpov himself. A curious addition, only seen normally depicting the famous pilot.

THE KIT - 6.8 >>

The quality of this kit is not very high, it is on the line of Smer, Kovozavody Prostejov, and other eastern lesser known brands. You will need to sand quite a bit to get good fittings, I discarded the panel board, as it is useless (it doesn't fit inside the model, it is way too big) and it is nearly impossible to see it (more if you plan to put a pilot , which I did). 

You will need some putty to fill in some of the cracks, particularly between the upper wing and the motor, where you are left with a gigantic gap after assembling it. 

I decided to fit it with wheels, but the skis seemed very fragile and not specially well done.

It is just one of those kits that you buy because it is a rare model, and so you overcome small difficulties such as these in order to get what any other brand can offer you. If this kit was made by Hasegawa for example, buying it would be pointless. But as that won't happen, better you get your hands on to some putty and start sanding!.

EXTRAS - 7.0 >>

There are plenty of extras here, and although you are not given a pilot, you are given extra bombs, two types of vosp, and the possilibity of choosing between wheels or skis. 

POSSIBILITIES - 0.5 >>

Just one example was completed, so there are  no possibilities in  terms of the camouflage, but as you are given some options in terms of equipment, you could say there are some possibilities. All the same I can't imagine any one who would buy two models of this kit. 

PRICE/VALUE RATIO - 6.0 >>

Not a very common kit to find, probably online is your only possibility of getting it (I've never seen Amodel kits in any model shop before, and I've been in model shops in various european countries). You currently can find it for 13 GBP, which is a bit expensive, considering what you really get. Although other similar kits, of strange themes like this one exist, sometimes they are much more expensive.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE - 0.3 >>

The historical importance score is determined by how many were built, and how much operational service they had, and how much influence they made on the conflicts in which they were involved.

This is one of those "could have been but never was" kits. Yes, it did exist, which is more than some prototypes that make it into kits, and it flew, more than some German late war aircraft. But it crashed during testing, and the other one that was in construction was never finished. End of story. It didn't achieve the desired performance, and the crash sentenced this plane to death. It has just a small or tiny bit of importance inside the pre-war prototypes.

OVERALL - 7.0 >> 

It is a interesting model, as it was the last biplane of the russian airforce. If we add to this that it has a nice design, and it has the novelty of being unknown to many, it is a attractive model for those who have a big collection of model kits or are enthusiasts of the Russian Air Force. The downside of this kit is the price and the minimum historical importance, but if you find it at a reasonable price (I paid like 8 €) I recommend you to get it.

IMAGES OF FINISHED JOBS

Model kit made by myself. Atlantic figure modified was used as pilot.

Trumpeter 1/72 Selbstfahrlafette "STURER EMIL" L/61 Pz.Sf.V German Anti Tank Self Propelled tank TRU07210 winter front axis tank

Here today we have a obscure german tank, the Sturer Emil from Trumpeter.

BOX ART >> One of the few brands that just shows you the finished model. It serves well the purposes of seeing that it is indeed a nice model, and is a trademark for Trumpeter in their 1/72 kits.

THE KIT - 9.7 >>

This is a very fine kit, with  a high level of detail, nicely done interiors, all parts fits perfectly, no moulding marks, no filler required, and no accuracy errors (thanks I suppose because a example is conserved in the Kubinka museum, but a good thing all the same).

If it doesn't have a 10, is because the quality of the decals is quite poor. They have not resisted just 6 month of storage after it was built, when they started to fall. You will have to purchase a special product to fix them to the model, or varnish them with matt varnish.

EXTRAS - 0.0 >>

Trumpeter is a brand that normally gives you a perfect vehicle, but if you want extras, go and get them yourself, is what basically they express. With a so big open hull, a small crew will have been very much appreciated.

POSSIBILITIES - 0.0 >>

Yes, you read well, 0.0. This is a kit of tens and zeros. There were only two built, one  was destroyed and the other captured by the Russians. The one captured is the one made, and the other one had the same camouflage, most probably. So you can either make the box version, or do the other one, where the only difference will be the white lines on the cannon which demarks the 22 kills the tank achieved.

PRICE/VALUE RATIO - 8.5 >>

It is not a cheap kit, but it is of great quality. And a great quality kit in our days for less than 11 GBP like this one is hard to find. So it is fine. And you get a quite big model for your money, that always makes you happier than paying 11 GBP for a Vickers tank.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE - 1.5 >>

"The historical importance score is determined by how many were built, and how much operational service they had, and how much influence they had on the conflicts in which they were involved"

Just two were made, yes, two. It would score 1.0, or 0.5, but one of the two achieved 22 kills when it was captured by the Russians, (if we believe the white bands the tank crew painted on the barrel). The other one got destroyed. So no, it didn't change the war, but it was clearly quite effective, or at least it's crew was quite expert.

WARGAMING - 7.0 >>

Although it is a kit that everything fits well, it is not a super quick kit to make, like an Airfix or Matchbox. But all the same, it doesn't require great skills, and the final result is a sturdy and formidable tank. The other thing about this kit is that it can only represent in a generic way the multiple self-propelled guns the germans had, and was by no means a mass produced tank.

OVERALL - 8.0 >> 

This is a model most recommended to those like me who already have all the main german tanks, and want to have something different, albeit if all were used the same  operationally. I always like kits that have really fought, and not just have been prototypes or scrapped after some testing. But obviously, there are quite a lot of other tanks which were much more important in the war.The design is a very distinct one, not the typical Sturmeschultz or Jagdpanzer, and with their typical small variations, this has a unique body.

It is a pity that other nations don't have the coverage the german vehicles have had, with even the most rare and unique being modelled. Meanwhile, we still don't have some important British and Japanese tanks for example.

IMAGES OF FINISHED JOBS

Model kit made by myself.