ICM has been releasing quality kits, figure sets, and recently paints to support their vast library of releases. This one is a rebox of the original 2021 Leyland Retriever General Service Truck (Kit # 35602), but adds a figure set of Montgomery himself with three of his staff. It also has decal schemes for three versions of the same caravan: one sand-color scheme based in North Africa in 1942, a two-tone camo scheme for Tripoli in 1943, and the one I decided on, an all-dark green based in Germany in the spring of 1945.

What’s Inside the Box

You get thirteen light gray and three clear sprues, as well as seven vinyl tires and a small PE fret for the front grill. An additional sprue is inside for the four figures. Details are pretty crisp and there are a lot of interior details for the latrine and office area.

As is typical with ICM vehicle kits, construction begins with the lower frame and engine for the first 50 steps or so. There is a lot to try to align here and care is definitely needed to keep everything on the ground and true. Next up is the cab. There are decals for the instrument panel and some nice detail inside. With rolled-up canvas doors and after about another 25 steps, you are ready to add the cab to the frame. Next up is the radiator with grill, fuel tank, and the side steps, storage box, and the four-piece canvas top for the cab.

Step 91 starts the interior detail: adding lights, photo frames (Monty had framed photos of enemy generals around him to inspire and motivate him, and these are included as decals to add to the frames), and a leather couch made up of 17 pieces. A sidestand and cabinet faces are up next, along with the toilet, bringing us up to step 116. Windows and their frames and more photo frames and the desk are added to the walls, which are then added to the main floor. The instruction manual has a floor for the bathroom and a rug for the main floor you can cut out and glue down. Desk accessories are up next. Two desk lamps, a cabinet, ink well, and other assorted bits are added to the desk. A pocket door for the latrine and a back door are then added.

We then come to the bathroom mirror, sink, drain, and faucet. Towel racks, and other bits are added here. I carved a small bar of soap from strip styrene and some towels from Green Stuff rolled out. A corner cabinet is added before the front wall closes everything up. We then head back to the office to add the 10-piece desk chair and a shelf. All the clutter on the desk in the photo, files and documents, teacup and glass, rocks, and the scratch-built cribbage board are all my additions.

The one-piece roof has three lights to add and is then added to the top. I left mine loose so that the interior can be seen. The underside supports and frame are added, as well as storage boxes, flaps, rolled-up canvas window covers, and other bits before this massive assembly can be added to the frame in step 180. Final bits include lights, placards, hand crank, two options for the rear canopy (open or closed) and rear ladder finish up the assembly. The figures fit together quite nicely and there are assembly and painting instructions on a separate sheet. The drawings show their insignia badges quite clearly. I thought that meant there were included decals for them — but alas, ICM would have you paint them, providing the color detail — but I am not that skilled so the raised areas on their arms for the badges will have to wait for some aftermarket decals.

I used ICM paints for the painting: dark green for the truck body and khaki for the canvas. Decals for the Germany scheme went down flawlessly and look great. Weathering was done with AMMO Missing Link markers.

Conclusion

Overall, a great kit from ICM and all the interior detail begs to have the roof removable to see it all, although leaving the rear door open will reveal some detail if you do decide to close it up. Care should be taken in assembling the lower frame and cab assembly to avoid issues later when joining everything together — but in the end, the care pays off with a great-looking model. There is a lot to align at the end and loads of steps with multipart assemblies — so this is not a kit ideal for a beginner. I would recommend at least an intermediate level of skill for the challenges inside. Including decals for the uniform detail would have been a nice touch, but the figures look good enough on their own.

My sincere thanks to ICM and IPMS/USA for the review sample.