Reviews of products for scale military vehicle models.

Review Author
Will Kuhrt
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$25.00

The RS-132

The RS-132 is an unguided Russian rocket which officially entered service in 1938. It was not known for its accuracy and in one test had no hits in 134 firings. During WWII, its performance was poor since it was usually fired from great distances. It required a direct hit to disable light and medium German armor. Near misses caused no damage at all. It was mostly effective when fired in salvos against large groups of ground troops.

The Kit

The box contains four identical gray sprues containing a total of 104 parts which build up to create four ammunition boxes each holding four shells.

The parts are crisply details and flash free. A double-sided instruction guide is provided. The seven assembly steps are very well illustrated. The color callouts correspond to three colors (olive green, flat black and steel) for which the Tamiya and Revell codes are provided.

Book Author(s)
Darren Neely
Review Author
Blaine Singleton
Published on
Company
Pen & Sword
MSRP
$34.95

The Author

Darren Neely is the author of several photo survey books on WW2 subjects including Panzer wrecks 21: German Armor and the forthcoming Operation Nordwind in the Images of War series.

Contents

The book is divided into four unnamed chapters covering the 3rd at the invasion of Normandy until the end of the war.

In the Book

The book is hardbound has 4 chapters and 306 pages. Most of the pages have at least two black and white photographs on each of them. Some of the subjects covered in the book include:

Book Author(s)
Frédéric Deprun
Review Author
Dick Montgomery
Published on
Company
Heimdal
MSRP
$89.00

C'est une magnifique publication, riche en prose et en photographie. Présentée en français, mon manque de maîtrise du français me fait passer à côté de la qualité de la prose, mais la photographie ne nécessite pas de traduction précise.

In English - This is a magnificent publication, rich in prose and photography. Presented in the French language, my lack of command of French means that I am missing out on the quality of the prose, but the photography and the captions for the images does not require precise translation.

While the book is in the French language, some ability to read and understand French would be extremely helpful. My command of French is, at best, that of a six-year old. But even with a remarkably disappointing ability to speak and write in French, I found that the captions of the photographs were not at all difficult to roughly translate and to understand. When all else fails, one can seek an online translation tool.

Review Author
Eric Christianson
Published on
Company
ICM
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$39.99

Kiev-based ICM is back again with a new offering in its Einheits-PKW (“Uniform all-terrain passenger car”) line – this time with the light Anti-Aircraft version. This highly detailed and diminutive subject sports twin MG-34 machine guns and crew seat in place of the two rear seats.

History

Officially introduced at the end of February 1938, the Truppenluftschutzkraftwagen – “Air Raid Vehicle” - (Kfz. 4) had four doors and a spare wheel mounted at the rear of the car body like the Kfz. 1 & 3.

The units which were allowed to have Kfz 4’s had only one vehicle, each. A light tripod for each gun was stored at the rear. With the tripods, the MG 34’s could be used outside of the vehicle. Even though the guns were able to be fired in any direction from the vehicle, the practical effect of this weapon during combat was questionable.

Book Author(s)
Ben Skipper
Review Author
Bob LaBouy
Published on
Company
Pen & Sword
MSRP
$24.95

Contents

  • Introduction - 1
  • Design & Development - 3
  • Humvee in Detail - 19
  • In Service & In Action - 25
  • Humvee Variants - 29
  • Camouflage & Markings - 33
  • Model Showcase - 41
  • Modelling Products - 53

This is my second review of one of the Land Craft series books (the prior one covering the Land Rover and it’s many uses. This is the sixth in the series called “Land Craft”. As I read and reviewed the earlier book, this book covering HUMVEE no less rewarding in its comprehensive coverage of this ubiquitous vehicles. While I have seen a great many HUMVEEs I had no idea about the total numbers in service with Army (120,000) and the Marine Corps (20,000). These are very heavy, with the base weight of approximately 5,200 pounds, and the many other versions even heavier.

Book Author(s)
David Grummitt
Review Author
Dave Morrissette
Published on
Company
Pen and Sword Books Ltd
MSRP
$28.95

Tankcraft is series of books from Pen and Sword covering specific vehicles in a concise format and also covering the models associated with that specific vehicle also. This latest volume covers the Leopard 2 and notes that it’s NATO’s first line of defense and covers the years 1979-2020.

The table of contents gives a good look at the way the book is laid out:

Book Author(s)
Craig Moore
Review Author
James Kelley
Published on
Company
Fonthill Media
MSRP
$32.00

American Panther Tanks: An Examination of the Five Surviving Panzer V Tanks Including the Rare Panther II might be considered as a strange title for a book; however, there are five Second World War examples in the US. It is believed that fourteen captured Panzer V Panther tanks were shipped to the United States after hostilities ended in 1945. Most were cut-up and scrapped after being used for testing and target practice on live firing ranges. The Panzer V Ausf.A Panther tank at the American Heritage Museum, Hudson, Massachusetts, near Boston, has been completely restored to an extremely high standard. The other four Panther tanks are at Fort Benning, Columbus, Georgia, under the care of the U.S. Army Armor and Cavalry Collection (U.S. AACC). They are awaiting their turn to be restored. The first four chapters briefly cover the development and production of the Panzer V Panther tank from the first version, the Ausf.D, to the second version, the Ausf.A.

Book Author(s)
Craig Moore
Review Author
Michael Novosad
Published on
Company
Fonthill Media
MSRP
$35.00

From the Publisher

One of the few books that explores what British and Commonwealth forces knew about the dreaded Panther tank and how to destroy it using previously unpublished documentation. An excellent reference book for military modelers, historians and tank wargamers (War Thunder/World of Tanks) interested in the iconic Panther with authentic camouflage suggestions. Three chapters cover the design and development of the Panzer V Panther tank.

The first book to list all surviving Panther tanks, provide photographs, and give their current location

Using only original official period documents from the Second World War, How to Kill a Panther Tank: Unpublished Scientific Reports from the Second World War provides the reader with the same information on the Panzer V Panther that was available to British and Commonwealth senior officers/tank crews during the war.

Book Author(s)
Mig Jimenez
Review Author
Michael Reeves
Published on
Company
AMMO by Mig Jimenez
MSRP
$11.85

AMMO by Mig Jimenez have been creating helpful products that can be used in any genre of modeling to recreate weathering and finishing effects that can take one’s model to the next level. In this case, you get a Solution Book that gives you guidance in how to paint 4BO schemes for your Soviet tanks or vehicles. A separately sold Solution Box contains this book as well as the featured products referenced within. The book text is in 4 languages making it accessible to just about anyone- English, Spanish, French, and German. It is easy to follow, no matter what your skill level and the products are quite easy to use.

Review Author
David Dodge
Published on
Company
AFV Club
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$60.00

Intro

The IDF M60A1 Magach6b by AFV Club is another one of their M60 series of vehicles including the M60A1, M60A3, M60A2Early& Late version and the M728 CEV as well as several foreign subjects based on the M60 series of tanks. The M60A1 Magach 6b is the version of the Magach 6 that was upgraded with Explosive Reactive Armor tiles. This kit includes sprues from the common components of the hull and turret and running gear. The Magach 6b specific components are included to model the vehicle.