Reviews of products for scale military vehicle models.

Review Author
Dan Brown
Published on
Company
AFV Club
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$88.00

In the late 1950’s the Israeli Defense Force was faced with an ageing armory consisting mainly of up-gunned M50 Shermans from the end of World War II. To update and modernize this fleet of vehicles they purchased second hand Centurion Mark III and Vs. They were quickly upgraded to local specs and were named Sho’t (“scourge”). The Sho’t series of tanks served from the late 1950’s to the early 1990’s in Israel’s arsenal, through a number of upgrades culminating in the Sho’t Kal Dalet. The Sho’t Kal Dalet came into service sometime around 1985 with an upgraded laser range finder and thermal gun sleeve.

Review Author
Ron Bell
Published on
Company
Revell
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$23.00

The Kit

When I saw that this kit was available for review, I just had to do it. It was the first model I ever built on my own. My grandfather bought it for me and I built it at his kitchen table with a tube of Ambroid glue that got all over everything, but I loved it. The model, not the glue. That tank saw many a battle on my bedroom floor and in the back yard for that matter. Can’t remember how it met its fate, but I think it just plain wore out and fell apart. But all that’s neither here nor there, so on to the review.

Review Author
Tom Moon
Published on
Company
Dragon Models
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$16.99

This is a plastic only kit comprised of about 62 styrene parts, no photo etched parts fret, and a standard set of instructions, they need to be reviewed carefully before gluing any parts together.

Review Author
Eric Christianson
Published on
Company
Dragon Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$59.99

Dragon has recently re-released the diminutive Geschutzwagen 38 H sporting the relatively large sIG 33 field howitzer – a kit that has been improved upon over the twenty-plus years it’s been out. As expected, the molding, fit and engineering found in today’s kit is up to Dragon’s excellent standards. A tremendous amount of detail adorns the open-topped chassis, including a nice engine and transmission, along with MagicTrack and an aluminum barrel. A very impressive offering that builds into a model about the size of my fist!

Review Author
David Wrinkle
Published on
Company
Hauler
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$15.30

Hauler has chosen to support a very fine kit with this release of a photo-etch & resin parts for the 1/48 Tamiya LAV. Please note, Tamiya also makes this LAV in 1/35 scale. Like the 1/48 HUMVEE kit Tamiya also produces, this kit can benefit from a bit of bling to really make the finished model pop! This set from Hauler includes a large photo-etch fret, one small photo-etch fret and two pour stubs of resin parts along with a detailed set of instructions to help you to install this array of parts on the Tamiya JGSDF LAV model.

Review Author
Ben Morton
Published on
Company
Werners Wings
Scale
1/48
MSRP
$16.00

Werner’s Wings is proud to announce the release of their latest decal sheet Werner's Wings Decal 48-14 Ride of the Valkyries - UH-1D/H in Vietnam. Designed specifically for the Kitty Hawk 1/48th scale kit, these decals will fit any 1/48th scale UH-1D/H kit.

There are 14 new marking options, as well as, stencils in black and yellow for one aircraft. Unique Danger warnings are provided in multiple colors and in English, Vietnamese and Korean.

Werner's Wing Decal 48-14 includes stencils for one aircraft on the same sheet. If you want to do more than one aircraft, additional stencils are available from Werner's Wings with their decal sheet 48-15 UH-1D/H Stencils.

The decals include markings for three Medal of Honor recipients, Major Bruce Crandall and Captain Ed “Too Tall” Freeman from We Were Soldiers fame and CWO Mike Novosel.

Review Author
Mike Lamm
Published on
Company
Dragon Models
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$18.00

The Sturmgeschütz III (StuG. III) was Germany’s most widely produced armored fighting vehicle of WWII. By the end of the war, over 10,500 vehicles, in a number of different versions, had been produced. Built on the chassis of the Panzer III, and originally designed as an infantry support vehicle intended to knock out strong points and hardened defenses, it really proved itself as a tank destroyer first on the Eastern front in Russia. First in Russia, the StuG III Ausf. F was armed with the longer 7.5cm StuK 40 L/43 gun and became a formidable opponent on the battlefield.

Review Author
Phil Peterson
Published on
Company
Hauler
Scale
1/72
MSRP
$10.99

Another nice PE set from Hauler which will find many uses for the Braille Scale modeler, especially when working with armor and dioramas.

The set includes wrenches, axes, shovels, picks and even a couple machetes. I am guessing for those jungle jobs. There are also a couple of different design tool boxes that you will have to fold.

The first thing I thought when I heard PE tools is how is that going to work with types, they will just look flat, right? Hauler has thought of this and the sledges and a mallet come with an couple extra pieces of PE to thicken the head. A couple of the picks and shovels are designed to be used with some plastic or metal rod to give a more 3-dimensional look.

Instructions are provided for the tool boxes and those tools that use more than one part. Just make sure you are careful when you cut these parts out and they will be sure to liven up that aircraft or tank maintenance scene.

Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
Company
Dragon Models
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$69.98

The Germans of WW2 were notorious for multi-tasking vehicles, and this one is a good example. In this case, they mounted an 81mm mortar in a standard light armored half-track. I’m old enough to remember the last time a plastic kit manufacturer took a shot at this particular make – a motorized version by Arii back in the early 1970’s. The older kit was pretty poor by even the standards of the day, although it did provide a nice ammunition trailer (to carry the batteries for the motor, of course). Otherwise, there wasn’t much to recommend it.

Dragon has filled the void with a new release which does a fine job of capturing this beastie, including “magic tracks” which eliminate the odious task of snipping some 200 track bits off of sprues.

Review Author
Ben Morton
Published on
Company
Master Model
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$7.50

If you click the “About Us” tab on the Master Model website you'll read the following: Master Model was created in Poland with a passion for modeling. The company knows how important details are for you. We strive to give you the best possibility of making perfect models, which are a reflection of the originals. The most important thing for us is your satisfaction. By utilizing high product quality, great workmanship, and above all customers contentment, we will take care of you. To that end, there is even a proviso that should the need arise, you may contact the headman, Piotr Czerkasow, directly.

Rather lofty aspirations for a company that manufacturers brass aftermarket gun barrels and pitot tubes for aircraft, ships and armor models. An aspiration that the company has been living up to since its founding in 2008.