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Book Author(s)
Dr. David Nicolle and Air Vice Marshal Gabr Ali Gabr
Review Author
Frank Landrus
Published on
February 16, 2022
Company
Helion & Company
MSRP
$29.95

Dr. David C Nicolle is a British historian specializing in the military history of the Middle-Ages, with special interest in the Middle East and Arab countries. After working for BBC Arabic Service, he obtained his MA at SOAS, University of London, followed by a PhD at the University of Edinburgh. He then lectured in art history at Yarmouk University in Irbid, Jordan. Dr. Nicolle has published over 100 books about warfare ranging from Roman times to the 20th century, mostly as sole author. He also co-authored the ‘Arab MiGs’ series of books which covered the history of the Arab air forces at war with Israel from 1955 to 1973. Furthermore, he has appeared in several TV-documentaries, and has published numerous articles in specialized press. This is his fourth instalment for Helion’s @War series with more planned in 2021.

Review Author
Phil Peterson
Published on
March 15, 2021
Company
Airfix
Scale
1/76
MSRP
$7.99

I built a lot of Airfix armor in my youth but never had this one before. Airfix has rereleased this kit as part of their Vintage Classics series and the kit is unchanged from the original 1963 molds except for newer decals.

There are 71 parts molded in a dark green plastic but there are no clear parts. There is very little flash which is nice but there are some seam lines that will need to be cleaned up, especially if you decide to use the crew. More about them later. The color scheme is shown on the back of the box and represents a vehicle of the 6th Armoured Division probably in Italy though it is not spelled out.

The interior is pretty basic but does include seats for 6, steering wheel and a driver. The body goes together quickly, and the fit isn’t too bad with just some minor putty needed on some seams. The wheels can be built to roll if you are very careful, but I glued them for strength.

Review Author
Phil Peterson
Published on
March 15, 2021
Company
Polar Lights
Scale
1/1000
MSRP
$26.99

If you are reading this review I am guessing you know what Deep Space Nine was and the Defiant but just in case, the Defiant was a prototype vessel designed for Star Fleet to battle the Borg. If you need more detail there is plenty on the web. The Polar Lights kit continues their series of 1/1000th scale snap-together Star Trek universe ships. The kit has 27 parts including 13 in clear plastic and their normal 3 part stand. It also includes a plethora of decals to cover the panel colors so you don’t have to paint much other than the base color.

Book Author(s)
Charles Trang
Review Author
Marc K. Blackburn
Published on
March 15, 2021
Company
Heimdal
MSRP
$95.00

This is a big book! At 591 pages and weighing in at five pounds, in this corner we have volume two of Leibstandarte, the SS Division that was formed from Hitler’s SS body guards. I have not seen the first volume, but the set is a re-release of a previously published book. One of the challenges of this book, is that it comes from a French publishing house, so the text, captions, etc. are all in French. I have a rudimentary reading knowledge of French, so I can get the gist of the text, but probably not full comprehension.

Review Author
Chris Martin
Published on
March 15, 2021
Company
AFV Club
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$79.99

Summary

Following the release of the AEC Armoured Command Vehicle Dorchester ACV, AFV Club has “converted” the model to those captured by the German’s in North Africa in 1941. My guess is this is essentially the same kit, but with the addition of resin German radios and different decals. This thought is supported by the fact that the sprue for the exterior tools also has British radios and weapons on it.

The model is extremely well detailed, but requires an extra effort when handling due to scale thin parts that are easily broken. The parts layout and build sequence is simple and straight forward.

Background (Excerpted from the AFV Club description.)

Before the outbreak of WWII, the British Army was planning a wheeled armored vehicle to provide the armored troop commander and staff an appropriate command post.