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Reviews of products for scale military vehicle models.
Package

D9R DOOBI w/ Armor Slats
Review Author
Bill O'Malley
Published on
Company
Eduard
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$69.95

This is a large photoetch set that adds lots of detail to Meng’s D9R Dozer, particularly in the interior and with replacements for the exterior maintenance platforms. The Cooling Slats are tedious to assemble, but will add a battle-damaged look to the dozer. Soldering is highly recommended for assembling this photoetch set.

This Eduard BIG ED photo etch set is intended for the Meng D9R DOOBI w/ armor slats kit. Like other Edward BIG ED sets, the D9R set is a combination of several photoetch sets that are also available individually, and includes:

  • 36335 D9R Doobi w/ armor slats - interior - $24.95
  • 36336 D9R Doobi w/ armor slats - exterior - $39.95
  • 36337 D9R Doobi w/ armor slats - cooling slats - $34.95

The BIG ED set sells for $69.95, a savings of $29.90 (30%) over the individual sets purchased separately.

Box cover

M1113 ACAV

Review Author
Chris Graeter
Published on
Company
Italeri
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$34.99

History

The M1113 is one of the most famous armored personal carriers in the history of military vehicles. It entered service in the beginning of the 1960’s and was the most widely used armored vehicle of the U.S. Army and the U.S. Marine Corps in the Vietnam War. Capable of Carrying a fully equipped infantry squad, it proved its mobility, reliability and efficiency in the very difficult operational environment of Vietnam characterized by swamps and jungles. The “armored cavalry assault vehicle” or “ACAV” version was developed very soon to improve the fighting effectiveness of the M1113. The new features implemented on ACAV version were a circular turret armor for the commander’s M2 12.7mm machine gun and two additional 7.62mm M60 machine guns, protected by shields, and fitted on either side of the top cargo hatch.

Product packaging

Model 39M Csaba Armored Car Cordatic Replacement Tires
Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
Company
SBS Model
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$15.54

A short while ago Hobby Boss released a charming model of a rarity – the Hungarian 39M Csaba armored car, which clearly shares an ancestry similar to the French Panhard armored car of roughly the same vintage. Although Hobby Boss seems to have done well in the overall design of this kit, it is somewhat let down by the soft rubber tires, which fall below the quality of the rest of the model. Ironically, what detail is evident on the tires is soft and inaccurate, and even includes a misspelling!

Box cover

Russian Light AA Gun Set
Review Author
Marc K. Blackburn
Published on
Company
Meng Model
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$36.00

Meng Models exploded on the scene several years ago and has since built a reputation for interesting subjects and well-designed kits. With the release of a Russian Light Anti-Aircraft gun set, I am sure that their star continues to rise for the scale modeling community. You get four weapons – ZPU-1, ZPU-2. ZPU-4, and ZU-23-2 as well as several of their Chinese equivalents. As part of Meng’s Supply series, this is certainly a welcome addition to those who enjoy modeling anti-aircraft artillery. With sixteen sprues and one fret of etched brass, the parts are well molded. They have taken advantage of advances in molding technology and there are many very small and fragile parts. Take care when you remove them from the sprue. The instructions are in a booklet form and come with color profiles of each weapon. You can choose any color you want as long as it’s Russian Green. There are no decals or clear parts.

Book cover

German Panzer II - A Visual History of the German Army’s World War II Light Tank
Book Author(s)
David Doyle
Review Author
Eric Christianson
Published on
Company
David Doyle Books
MSRP
$28.95

DavidDoyleBooks.com (Ampersand Publishing) out of Memphis TN, is back again with another Military Vehicle book entitled German Panzer II – A Visual History of the German Army’s World War II Light Tank, by popular author David Doyle. Anyone familiar with armor modeling literature and research will recognize this authoritative combination, and this latest release won’t disappoint.

Looking across my personal bookshelf of maybe 200 titles, I can spot several of Mr. Doyle’s books, including 251 Halftrack Visual History and Tiger I In Action, and, of course, my beaten-to-death copy of German Military Vehicles, among others. If you’ve been building armor models for any length of time, you’re probably familiar with his work as well.

Resin parts

508 CM Coloniale Replacement Wheel Set
Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
Company
SBS Model
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$13.30

Recently Italeri released a model of the Italian Coloniale – a military version of a popular pre-war civilian vehicle, which proved to be quite versatile and was used extensively not only by the Italian army but by the German army as well, mostly hauling officers around in rear-echelon areas. The kit itself is comparatively simple, which reflects the relative simplicity of the vehicle itself. However, one area where this reductionism has caused a loss of detail is in the wheels, which are simple two-piece castings with very little detail beyond the hubs.

Product packaging

39M Csaba Armored Car Firestone Replacement Tires
Review Author
Gino Dykstra
Published on
Company
SBS Model
Scale
1/35
MSRP
$15.54

A short while ago Hobby Boss released a charming model of a rarity – the Hungarian 39M Csaba armored car, which clearly shares an ancestry similar to the French Panhard armored car of roughly the same vintage. Although Hobby Boss seems to have done well in the overall design of this kit, it is somewhat let down by the soft rubber tires, which fall below the quality of the rest of the model. Ironically, what detail is evident on the tires is soft and inaccurate, and even includes a misspelling!

Book cover

Sturmartillerie Spearhead of the Infantry

Book Author(s)
Thomas Anderson
Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$45.00

The book arrived and I was very impressed with its quality and content! It was a joy just to have and flick thro as the pictures are worth getting this book for alone.

The book is a definitive guide to the history of the Sturmartillerie from its conception in 19335 up until the end of World War 2. The book also explains the development of the equipment used by them. All the major actions and battles are covered in great detail and written in a way that draws you in to the chapters.

The pictures many vehicle’s and units of the Sturmartillerie are fantastic and most I had never seen published before.

I highly recommend this book to everyone with an interest in the World War 2 and Armored units.

Book Cover

British Battle Tanks World War 1 to 1939
Book Author(s)
David Fletcher
Review Author
Allan Murrell
Published on
Company
Osprey Publishing
MSRP
$30.00

The book explores the early development history of the British tanks from 1915 to 1939. To be honest I had never read known much about the early tank development, but this book really does provide all the knowledge you could want on the early tanks and their success and failures.

It is writing so everyone can grasp and understand the history and technical details of this important piece of the tanks creation.

It covers all the prototypes and concepts of the British Tank development including the main variations and their uses. The many pictures really add to the books ability to clearly show the primitive tanks as they evolved into practical working armored vehicles.

I cannot recommend this book enough I finished during one long flight. The booked helped me learn and understand the early years of the British Armor.

Thanks go to Osprey Publishing for providing this book to review and IPMS USA for allowing me to review it for them

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