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Wooden Barrels – Small & Medium (35632 & 35630) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Wooden barrels. You don't see so many of them these days without flowers in them, but before mass-produced metal and plastic barrels became the de facto standard, they would have been much more prevalent where large quantities of anything needed to be stored. Everyone’s thinking of beer right now, but they have been used for a great many things over the years, so they’re not only found in pubs and breweries. These two sets give you a gaggle of styrene barrels in different sizes with various hoop patterns. It is worthy of note that both sets also have plank grooves inside, so an empty barrel is just as realistic. Each set arrives in a figure-sized end-opening box with six identical sprues in each one, plus a sheet of decals for stencilling of the painted barrels for the medium set. Wooden Barrels (35632) These should be referred to as small barrels by comparison to the size of the medium barrels, and each sprue contains three barrels, two smaller and one larger, with lids, spigots and anti-roll frames for each one. In total you can make 18 barrels with or without the ancillaries. Wooden Barrels Medium Size (35630) These larger barrels are pretty substantial, and as a result only two are provided on each sprue, with a slight difference in size between them. They are made in the same manner as the smaller ones with two halves and lids that fit into a groove round the tops and bottoms of the barrels. Spiggots and stands are included too, and this set has decals for stencilling the lids. Conclusion Painting will be key, so check your references for examples before you start. The wood used in barrels is very dense, so wouldn’t have the engraved marks that model companies add to create texture, which is correct. Wood decals for ultimate in realism anyone? Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Pz.Kpfw.IV Ausf.J Nibelungenwerk (35342) Late Prod. Jan-Feb 1945 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Unlike the later Tigers and Panther tanks, the Panzer IV had been designed in the years leading up to the outbreak of WWII, and was intended for a different role than it eventually played, which was as a form of infantry support with the mobile artillery function rolled into one. It was a heavier tank than the previous numbered types, and was well-designed, although it did suffer from the typical WWII German over-engineering that made them complex, expensive and slow to build. The type went through a number of enhanced variants including a more powerful engine to give better performance, improved armour thickness for survivability, and latterly the provision of a larger gun with a longer high velocity barrel that was based upon the Pak-40, but with shortened recoil mechanism and an enlarged muzzle-brake that helped contain the ferocious recoil from the 75mm gun. The new gun was in direct reaction to the first encounter with the T-34 in Soviet hands, an incident that put the wind up the German tankers and their superiors, as they knew very little of its existence until they had to fight it. The Ausf.J was the last mainstream variant of the Pz.IV, and was made from 1944 until the end of the war with over 3,600 made, some of which were manufactured at the Nibelungenwerk, one of the largest factories in the German area of influence, based in St Valentin, Austria. Other factories initially making the type had been switched to produce other vehicles although the Vomag factory was still producing some quantity , but by the war’s end Nibelungenwerk was the home of the Panzer IV, and as such was bombed heavily, strangling production as the bombers took their toll. The Kit This is the first boxing of the newly tooled model of the Panzer IV from MiniArt, and is brand new. It is an Interior kit, which extends to the full hull, with a great deal of detail included that should keep any modeller happy, beavering away at their hobby. The kit arrives in a heavily loaded top-opening box, and inside are sixty-eight sprues in grey styrene of various sizes, a clear sprue, two sheets of Photo-Etch (PE) in a card envelope, a decal sheet and thick instruction booklet with colour profiles for the decal options on the inside covers. It has individual link tracks included that are made up on a jig (more about those later), and the level of detail is exceptional, which is something we’ve come to expect from MiniArt’s output. Construction begins with the interior, which is made up on a main floor with bulkheads, ammo stores, then a complete Maybach HL 120 TRM engine. The engine is begun by putting together the transmission and final drive units, which is at the front of the hull next to the driver, with a set of instruments fitted to the top. This is inserted into the interior with the drive-shaft, with the driver’s seat is assembled along with the foot and hand controls, plus a worrying amount (from his point of view) of shells behind his area, plus another three ready-round boxes layered on top of various positions around the turret base. A ring of tread-plate defines the location where the turret basket will sit, and various other components are arranged around a simple seat for the radio operator/bow gunner, then the engine is assembled from its various shaped segments, topped off with the rocker covers and oil filler caps. A lot of ancillaries are added, including tons of drive-belts, engine bearers, exhaust manifolds, dynamo and pipework. It all fits snugly into the engine compartment section of the interior to await boxing in by the hull sides. The highly detailed brake-assembly for each drive sprocket is a drum-shaped affair that comprises a substantial number of parts, some of which are PE, and really does look the part, fitted to the inside of each hull wall flanking the two crew seats, with more small equipment boxes and a fire extinguisher fitted nearby, then the exterior face of each side is detailed with the final drive housing, suspension bump-stops, return roller bases and fuel filler caps before they are glued into place on the hull sides, with the lower glacis plate helping keep them perpendicular to the floor, and a length of track applied to the panel with a bracket holding them in place. Again, more on the tracks later. We’ll gloss over them for now. Back in the engine compartment, the empty spaces around the Maybach engine are filled with airbox, fuel tank and large radiator panels that are set in the compartment at an angle, as demonstrated by the scrap diagram. The rear bulkhead closes-in the final side of the compartment, and this is festooned with detail with a choice of armoured covers for the track tensioner arms, stiffener plates and access hatches, including a manual starter slot with PE chain keeping the cover captive to the vehicle. The big towing eye and its stiffeners are applied to the bottom of the bulkhead, and after fitting another full-width plate, the twin exhausts are attached to their exits, made from a combination of styrene and PE parts then braced to the bulkhead by PE straps. The sides of the hull have a series of armoured panels fixed to the underside to protect the suspension mechanism, then the fenders can be slotted into position at the top of the hull sides, with a delicate tread-plate pattern moulded-in where appropriate. The rest of the lower glacis plate with hatches for final drive and transmission access is made up with detail inside and out, plus an optional hatch for the central transmission unit. The final drive hatches can be posed open if you wish to expose those attractive assemblies within, of use in a maintenance diorama scenario. Another length of tracks is made up to apply over the glacis plate, with small PE brackets holding it in place as it is glued in place at the front. As if the tank wasn’t already carrying enough ammunition, more stores are made up and fitted into the inside of the hull around the sides of the turret well for easy access. The rounds are painted in one of three shell types, with decals to improve the detail further. The addition of a cross-brace between the two hull sides with oil can and fire extinguisher strapped on completes the lower hull for now. The upper hull is constructed in a similar manner to the lower, with the roof accepting side panels after making some small holes, the engine bay is fitted out with the side vents for the radiators and a flat rear panel that closes the area in. At the front the thick armour panel is adjusted by removing some location markers for certain decal options, the bow machine gun installation is created as a sub-assembly, and set aside while the hatches and the barrel of the MG are fitted, mostly from the outside, together with the armoured covers for the radiator louvers, hatch levers and lifting hooks, along with the jack-block in its bracket, or the empty bracket if you choose. The driver’s armoured vision port cover and the ball-mount for the gun complete the exterior work for now, and the assembly is flipped over to detail the inside, which includes a highly detailed set of radio gear that has a painting guide next to it. The bow gun’s breech and aiming mechanism are inserted into the back of the ball-mount, and the clear interior section of the driver’s port is also inserted along with the operating cams for the armoured cover. Another fire extinguisher is attached to the wall by the driver’s position too. Flipping the assembly again and it is time to add the interior louvers to the radiator exits, which are PE parts and can be inserted in the open or closed positions, with a change in how they are fitted. The hull halves can be joined now, but the instructions confusingly show the top louvered panels in the engine deck as being fitted, when they’re not installed until the very end of the next step. This involves making up the pair of twin fans that cool the radiators within the engine compartment using movable slatted panels to adjust cooling as necessary, and these two sub-assemblies are mated before the panels are glued in place with a choice of open or closed louvers. A little tool box and some grab handles are attached to the exterior along the way. The kit supplies a set of four towing cable eyes, but you’re responsible for providing the braided cable, which should be 152mm long and 0.75mm thick, times two. These are wrapped around two hooks on the rear in a figure-of-eight pattern. Now it’s pioneer tool time, with barrel cleaning rods, shovel, the jack, plus a set of four spare road wheels in an open-topped box with spanners strapped to the sides, and yet more track-links in a cage on the opposite side. The rear mudguards and front splash-guards are applied now, and the prominent external fire extinguisher with PE frame (and alternative styrene one if you don’t feel up to wrangling the PE) is fitted to the fender with a pair of wire-cutters and a pry-bar, all of which have optional PE mounts. Just when you think you’ve finished the tools, there’s a crank for the engine, a pair of track-spreaders, a choice of three axes, plus some styrene springs to allow you to show the front guards in the up position, with optional steps welded to the sides. We’re getting closer to the tracks now, but there’s still a lot of wheels that need to be made. They are mounted in pairs on twin bogeys with a leaf-spring slowing the rebound of the twin swing-arms. There are two types of outer casting with two axles (for working or fixed suspension) that the swing-arms slot onto, and are then closed in by a cover, which you also have a choice of two designs for. Finally, the twin wheels with their hubcap slide onto the axles, and a small oil reservoir is glued to the side of the assembly. You make four for the left side and a mirrored set of four for the right, plus multi-part idler, two-part drive sprockets and a choice of five different styles of return-rollers that fit onto the posts on the sides of the hull. The suspension units have slotted mounting points that strengthen their join, and then… once you’re done, you can begin the tracks. The tracks are individual links with separate track pins, but don’t freak out yet! Each link has three sprue gates that are small and easy to nip off and clean up. The included jig will hold eleven links, which are fitted with the guides uppermost. Then you cut off one complete set of 11 track pins off the sprue and slide them into the pin-holes in the sides of the connected links all at once. They are then nipped off their length of sprue and can be tidied up. I added a little glue to the tops of the pins to keep them in place, and have a length of track that is still flexible. Just minimise the amount of glue you use. There are 101 links per track run, so you’ll be busy for a while, but the result is fabulously detailed as you can see from the pic. I didn’t bother cleaning up the mould seams for expediency, but if you plan on modelling your Panzer with clean tracks, you can sand them away if you feel the need. Track-runs done. You can relax to an extent now, but there’s a bit of PE folding ahead if you are using the PE mesh schurzen (side skirts) on your model. First you must add the styrene brackets and PE C-supports on each side, then the long tubular supports for the hook-on schurzen panels, which has a set of horizontal PE panels with folded up edges between the brackets, with additional PE clips over the tabs. There are three mesh panels per side, with diagonal front and rear lower edges to reduce the likelihood of them digging into the ground. They are prepped with styrene brackets and PE edge strips before they are dropped into position on the tubular supports. Bear in mind that these panels were subject to the rigors of battle so were often bent, damaged or even missing entirely, so use your references or imagination to decide whether you wish to depict a fresh set, or a set that have been in the field for a while. Finally, we get to the turret, which begins with the ring and minimalist “floor”, to which some equipment, a drop-seat and the hand-traverse system are fixed. The inside of the mantlet is fixed to the floor after having the pivot installed, with the newly assembled breech glued into the rear once it has its breech block and closure mechanism fixed in place. The breech is then surrounded by the protective tubular frame, and the stubs of the coax machine gun and sighting gear are slid in through holes in the inner mantlet. A basket for spent casings is attached under the breech, the sighting tube and adjustment mechanism are put in place along with the coax machine gun breech, then the basket is made up from the circular tread-plated floor with tubular suspension struts and other equipment, seats, immediate ready-rounds and spare dump-bags for the coax. It is glued into the turret base, which then has the other facets added to the roof panel, with exhaust fans and a choice of two outer armoured covers included. The side hatches are the clamshell type, and can be posed open, closed or anywhere in-between, with latches and handles added, and grab-handles over the top to ease exit. The commander’s cupola is a complex raised part with five clear vision ports around it, and a choice of open or closed outer parts holding the clear lenses in place, sliding into the ring like the real thing. A ring of pads cover the interstices, and stirrup-shaped parts are fixed under each lens, with a single circular hatch with latch and handle glued into the top ring in open or closed versions, lifting and rotating round the pivot to open, rather than the earlier two-part clamshell hatch. A blade-sight from PE is sited at the front of the cupola with a machine-gun ring around the base, and the turret can now be closed up with the lifting hooks each made up of two parts. The gun has a flattened faceted sleeve made up with a choice of lower section, and the muzzle brake gives you a choice of four styles that differ slightly from each other if you look closely. Pick the one suitable for your decal choice, and you can begin to put the gun tube together. A choice of two outer mantlet sections is offered, with the sleeve slotting into the front, and a single-part styrene barrel fitting into the front with a key ensuring correct orientation, with the muzzle-brake having the same feature. The bustle stowage box is formed from a hollow body with a choice of open or closed lid, with the open variant having stiffening ribs moulded-in for detail. While the hull schurzen are mesh for lightness, the turret has curved metal sheets applied to the styrene brackets that glue to the roof and sides, that has a gap for the side hatches that are filled by a pair of hinged doors for more complete protection, and if you were wondering, you get open or closed variants with PE latches, and a group of additional PE parts dotted around the panels. The space between the bustle and the schurzen is filled at the top by two shaped sheets of mesh to protect against satchel charges or other explosives lodging there and damaging the fighting compartment or jamming the turret. Because of the complexity and realism of the turret and its ring, it drop-fits into position as the final act, as bayonet lugs aren’t present in the real thing. Markings A generous five decal options are included on the sheet, and they have a wide variety of schemes that are appropriate for late war tanks, from winter distemper to highly camouflaged vehicles with a base coat of dunkelgelb (dark yellow) the common element. From the box you can build one of the following: 31 Pz.Rgt. 5 Pz.Div. Eastern Front, Prussia, March 1945 Unidentified Unit, Jedwabne, Poland, Spring 1945 Unidentified Unit, Germany, Spring 1945 Unidentified Unit, Germany, Spring 1945 11 Pz.Div., Germany, May 1945 Decals are by MiniArt’s usual partner, DecoGraph, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion This is one well-detailed kit that should keep you occupied for a good quantity of modelling time. The complete interior is depicted with a glorious level of detail, which should allow all but the most detail-focused modeller to build it out of the box. Careful painting will bring it to life, and leaving some hatches open will show viewers just how claustrophobic going into war in these iron beasts would have been, and likely still is. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Austin 3rd Series Armoured Car (39007) Czechoslovak, Russian, Soviet Service 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd After the start of WWI the Russian Army started to form armoured car units. Due to Russia's limited industrial capacity at the time they looked overseas for vehicles. One delegation was sent to the UK for this. Initially they failed to find a source for the car they wanted with twin machine guns, however Austin designed a new vehicle based on a civilian chassis. Two guns would be mounted in separate turrets towards the rear of the vehicle with a driver and commander up front. The Russians ordered 48 of these first series vehicles. A second order would follow of 60 series 2 vehicles using a light truck chassis. A later order of 60 series 3 cars was to follow. These vehicles were similar in to the 2nd series, but had a modified rear hull with driving post, and gun shields. The large windows were deleted and bullet proof glass fitted to the remaining ones. At the end of the Great War some were returned to the UK and repurposed, but many that were formerly in Russian possession found their way into the inventory of other Eastern European countries, and even the Soviet armed forces after the civil war. The Kit This is a re-boxing of last year’s newly tooled kit, with new parts to accurately portray this mark, and the users. The kit arrives on 17 grey sprues. a sprue of clear parts, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE) in a card envelope, a decal sheet and the instruction booklet that has colour profiles inside the front and rear covers. It’s an Interior kit, so some of the sprues are small, but you get a lot of detail moulded-in, thanks to MiniArt’s diligent designers that make full use of techniques such as slide-moulding, which helps improve detail without creating too many additional parts in achieving this goal. Construction begins with the ladder chassis, which is built up from two longitudinal rails held apart by various cross-members, some of which have mounting points and pass-throughs for other parts such as drive-shafts for the rear wheels. The engine has its own bearer rails, and it is built up on the sump with a good number of parts, plus a note of where the high-tension leads should go, which you’ll need to make yourself. You are officially an “experienced modeller” if you go to those lengths. The transmission fits to the rear of the rails behind the engine, then they are dropped into the chassis as a unit, and joined by a number of ancillary parts, controls and a chunky radiator. Exhaust and leaf-spring suspension along with bumper irons are glued to the inverted chassis, and the rest of the driver controls are attached to the topside, even before the cab is started. The rods that turn control movements into actions are threaded through the chassis rails, or can be replaced by 0.3mm wires of your own stock, with PE tensioning mechanisms supplied if you choose this option. The big rear axle with drum brakes and the front axle with steering arms are fabricated and attached to their relevant suspension mounts, with more control linkages for the handbrake and steering joining things together. Finally, a some bodywork is attached, initially with the armour at the sides of the engine compartments in preparation for the gluing of the front arches, then each axle gets a wheel at both ends, made up from single-part hubs at the front, and mated double hubs at the rear onto which the tyres are fitted, different tyres are provided for the different cars, so take care here. Now standing on her own wheels, the floor of the fighting compartment and the crew cab plus the firewall and various small fittings are placed on the top of the chassis, with another insert providing the bases for the two turrets that have pivot-points in the centre for the machine gun mounts. Various stowage boxes are made up and sat next to the rear steering wheel assembly, which also has a simple seat for getting out of hot water and dead-ends just that little bit easier. Two more substantial crew seats are attached to the front along with steps at the sides, then the somewhat complex upper hull is built sensibly in a step-by-step fashion that stops the modeller from being over-faced. Additional rivets are shown being added in various other locations, which you can slice from the flat section of the two Ck sprues. The crew flap can be posed open to give a wider view of the battlefield for the drivers by using two styles of rods, and when in battle it can be closed down, restricting the driver to a letterbox view of the world. Plenty of scrap diagrams show the correct orientations of all the parts, so there’s little room for error unless you rush at it and don’t plan ahead. The hull has a number of doors that can be posed open and closed too, with vision flaps for additional situational awareness, and again there is a lot of hand-holding to get things in the right place. A number of small lights are dotted here & there, all with clear lenses for realism. Even the radiator has a remotely operated armoured cover, as engines overheating could become troublesome if the flap stays closed too long. The side-cowlings for the engine compartment can also be posed open or closed, and have small PE straps holding them closed. With the addition of the rear fenders, the hull/body is lowered over the chassis. Next up we have the twin turrets. You build up a pair of mounts for the machine guns, including a tractor-style perforated seat for the operator and a large ammo can to feed the gun, which is fitted onto a mount under the gun. A few more of those slice-off rivets are glued to the top of the turret walls, mainly for detail purposes, as adding moulded-in rivets to a curved part is pretty challenging for moulding. Armoured side plates are fitted to the gun opening The roof is detailed with latches, searchlights on PE brackets and other small fittings, each one fitted open or closed as you see fit. There are two identical turrets included, and these drop into the circular cut-outs in the roof of the fighting compartment, held in place by gravity unless you fix them into position with a little glue. Markings There are a generous seven decal options on the smallish decal sheet (these vehicles did not carry a great deal of markings) , with their five-view profiles printed in full colour on the glossy pages of the booklet, and while they all share the same basic colour, there is enough variety created by the unit markings to offer plenty of choice. From the box you can build one of the following: 2nd Armoured Car Div, Imperial Russian Army, Eastern Front 1917 Czechoslovak Legion in Russia, Irkutsk, Dec 1919 4th Armoured Car Div, Volunteer Army, Spring 1919 Armoured Car Div, Don Army, Armed Forces of South Russia, Summer 1919 26th Armoured Sqn, Red Army, Summer 1919 Red Army, Early 1920s (winter camo) Red Army, Early 1920s (summer camo) Decals are by MiniArt’s usual partner Decograph, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion This peculiar early armoured car isn’t as familiar as others due to the area of its use, but is still an interesting model in the history of armoured cars. Detail is exceptional as we’ve come to expect from MiniArt. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

German Tank Crew Kharkov 1943 (35354) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd The Battle of Kharkov began in 1941 when the Germans took the area from the Soviets, with two more substantial battles where the area changed hands once again, then the final battle in 1943 when the Soviets finally kicked the Germans out for good. The damage to the area was severe both in terms of civilian and military casualties, with the infrastructure heavily damaged in the process. By the time of the last battle in 1943, the Germans were struggling with lack of resources, poor equipment and even lack of man power, so the happier times of their initial steamroller advances of 1941’s Operation Barbarossa were well behind them. This set depicts a tank crew of four from the penultimate battle that was in February 1943, with winter gear on to keep them warm despite the biting cold that would have been the norm at that time of the year. It arrives in an end-opening figure box with a painting of the four figures on the front, and building/painting instructions on the rear along with a paint chart in Vallejo, Mr.Color, Life Color, Tamiya, AK, Mission Models, plus a swatch of colour and names in English and Ukrainian. There are four sprues of grey styrene inside, and a casting block with four resin heads attached in a separate bag-within-a-bag for their safety. Casting of the heads is excellent, but if you are resin-phobic there are also styrene heads on the sprues, so you don’t have to use them, even though they do provide extra detail. The largest sprue contains the four figures, only one of which is sitting down nursing his headset in thick sheepskin mittens. The two other crew members are standing, one with his hands in pockets, the other carrying an MP40 in a cautious manner, with the barrel pointing downwards, but his finger inside the trigger guard. The commander appears to be leaning against the side of the tank or a tree, or could be inside the turret with his elbows resting on the hatch edges, holding a pair of binoculars at chest height. The seated figure has his torso made up from a front and rear section, as the moulding would otherwise have been prone to sink-marks due to the thickness of the part. As usual with MiniArt figures their sculpting is exceptional with crisp detail and sensible parts breakdown plus loads of extras across three sprues to add some detail to their vicinity if you use them in a diorama. The MP40 has either a folded or open stock as shown on the rear of the box, while ammo pouches, map cases, pistol pouches and plenty of spare weapons can be found on the sprues. Conclusion A good set of battle-weary figures that will bring a human element to any tank model, and the inclusion of the resin heads helps with realism, as does the generous supply of weapons and packs that are also included. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

M3 Lee Mid Prod. Interior Kit (35209) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd In the years before WWII America realised that they were lagging behind in respect of armour, a fact that became especially clear when Germany came out from under the Versailles treaty to show off and then use their new tanks and Blitzkrieg tactics. The M3 Lee was conceived in 1940 as a medium tank carrying a powerful 75mm gun, partly for manning by their own crews, but also because Britain had requested a large number of tanks to make good their losses from Dunkirk. The Lee was a decent tank but suffered from a high silhouette and limited traverse of the sponson-mounted 75mm gun, but was still widely used. In British service it was known as the Lee if it was fitted with the original American turret, or the Grant when using the lower-profiled British specification turrets. The Lee was used primarily in Africa and the Pacific theatres where the 2nd line equipment seemed to be fielded (for the most part) by the enemy, and against the Japanese who were far behind with their tank designs and tactics. It underwent some substantial changes including cast, welded and back to riveted hulls plus changes in the power pack and loss of the side doors to stiffen the hull. The riveted hulls suffered from rivets popping off and becoming projectiles when hit, which could be just as lethal as a penetrating round and was never fully eliminated. The Kit MiniArt began 2019 with a new tooling of the M3 Lee and are expanded their range by adding new parts as they go along. We've come to expect great things from MiniArt's new kits and of course this one is no different with a ton of detail included both externally and internally, as it is a full-interior kit with the increased part count that comes with that. The box is standard MiniArt fare with an attractive picture from their usual artist, and inside are a huge number of sprues of varying sizes with 68 in grey styrene, a single sprue in clear, a fret of Photo-Etch (PE) brass, decal sheet and the instruction booklet with painting guide at the front and rear completing the package. Construction begins with the vehicle floor onto which the transmission and final drive assemblies are fixed along with a long drive shaft. The front crew stations are installed around the final drive, and in the centre is the ammo storage with a tread-plated top with the engine firewall behind it. The ammo bin can be posed open or closed using the same door parts, exposing the striking plates moulded into the assembly, and more shells are added to the firewall in racks. Just in case the tank isn't quite flammable enough, a spare fuel can is strapped to the firewall, as are a couple of radiators which I'm hoping can be switched off or redirected in the desert! Moving to the lower sidewalls, these are separate parts and are fitted out with equipment such as fire extinguishers, ammo and a Thompson machine gun with plate mags with the bow gunner's bench seat added to the starboard side as they are joined and the sponson floor fitted at right-angles using slots and tabs. Take care here to clamp them firmly against the bottom of the firewall to prevent them from drooping while setting, which would open up a world of pain if they set-up out of position. The rolled lower glacis part is also added, and the final drive bell housings that are incorporated into the sidewalls mate with these to complete the shape of that area. The Lee/Grant and to an extent the Sherman were powered by radial engines that sat vertically in the hull and can be blamed for their slightly tall hull shapes. This is provided in detail with the kit with all the cylinders, push-rods and exhaust tubing, plus the tin-work that helps cool the engine all mounted to a sturdy lateral mount that goes around the ancillaries at the rear. Two cheek parts are added into the engine compartment first, and the engine rests on the brackets protruding from the walls. Various tanks and reservoirs are squeezed into the remaining space along with piping for the twin airboxes and the general "spaghetti" that's seen on this kind of engine. The supports for the engine cover are fitted to the sides and the aft bulkhead with access hatch and twin exhaust stacks close in much of the hard work, with twin doors (open or closed) at the back and a PE mesh grille completing the top of the area, allowing the rising heat to escape. The lower hull is finished off with a pair of short arches over the drive wheels and a host of additional equipment filling up the interior with more shell storage, tanks and auxiliary generator. The big 75mm gun and substantial casemate are built up next for fitting into the hull front and the curved splinter shield that allows 14o of traverse to either side to counter any errors in position from the driver or enemy movement. The breech is surrounded by a shield and has the manual traverse wheel and other driver controls plus his seat and sighting gear included, as well as another box containing the 75mm shells peculiar to his gun. Before it can be installed the super-structure must be built up to accommodate it, including the sidewalls, the curved surround and the angled front panels of the glacis. The various hatches can be posed open or closed, and an instrument panel is fitted to the inside of the glacis. The bow machine gun is actually a twin mount with two .30 cal M1919s firing through a hatch near the port sponson. The rest of the hull is then built up in much the same manner as the real thing, but with glue and the rivets only there for show. Fuel caps and another Thompson are added along the way, and when we reach the engine deck there are two large panels, the smaller of them having PE grilles and more filler caps, with both of them covered in small PE tie-down lugs. The rear of the deck overhangs the hull and a small armoured "skirt" protects the tops of the exhausts from stray rounds where PE brackets are used to hang the aft lights. The completed deck is then covered with pioneer tools and their PE tie-downs, plus the towing cables that you need to source yourself to go with the plastic eyes at each end. A scrap diagram shows their location and how to fix the PE straps to the tie-downs and eyes, with a length of 145mm suggested. At this stage the majority of the hull is built, but it is likely to fill with rain until the roof is fitted. Before that the surround to the turret basket is completed with stowage space for six canteens moulded into the parts. The stiffening plates to the lower glacis are also glued to the hull and then the roof is made up from a large main part that is stiffened with more ribs, and a small periscope in the roof of the main gun mount. The three square access doors for the crew can all be posed open or closed with latches and small viewing hatches within that can also be posed open. A short break has you fitting the driver's hatch and optional clear window with a PE wiper blade, plus a couple of towing eyes with shackles under the glacis and some truly tiny parts in plastic and PE between them. After fitting the armoured cover to the main gun's periscope, the main gun in short or long version, two large stowage boxes for four of the decal options, and a few grab handles, you get to build up the running gear. Aren't you lucky? The Lee's suspension is very similar to the Sherman's with two fat wheels on a bogie with a return roller at the top, and there are three of these assemblies per side. The wheels with their moulded-in tyres are attached to the bogies via swing-arms that pivot inside the cast bogie with an additional arm linked to the compressible rubber towers. Before the front of the bogie is fitted the return-roller is installed so it is trapped between its two bearings. Repeat that six times and then make up the idler wheels, which have PE edges and separate hub caps. The bogies are attached to the sides of the hull on their mounting plates, and two stiffeners are added to the top of each one, while the idler wheels are attached to their axles on the adjustable tensioners. At the front the drive sprockets are made up from two parts with an internal collar allowing them to remain mobile if you're sparing with the glue. Tracks. Love 'em or loathe 'em, they're a necessary part of most tanks and you have to do them eventually. There are 79 track links per side, and each link is made up from four parts. The pads are split to accommodate the links between them, and this is a little fiddly. I built a test section up with the earlier interior kit, and each link is good looking with fine detail at the ends, flexing well as per the real thing. It'll take some time to complete them, but they will be excellent as long as you're careful with preparation and the glue. Now you can start the turret, most of which is held within the upper part, and that has some very nice casting texture moulded into it that should look great under a few coats of paint. The frames for the small hatches are first to be added, then the hatches themselves are fitted in the open or closed position with small stays holding them at the correct angle for the former. The sighting equipment, racks, and fume extraction equipment are then fitted before the breech is built up and fitted, making adding parts after that more fiddly. The breech is started by joining the two main parts together, adding the surround, the coax machine gun, then setting it aside while the mantlet and elevation mechanisms are made up. This all fits in the back of the riveted mantlet cover and includes a periscope next door to protect the viewer from being injured by direct small arms fire. The breech is slid into the mantlet and an ammo box is attached to the starboard side then the completed assembly is inserted into the turret from the outside. More equipment is fitted into the lower areas of the upper turret and into the lower turret part, including the increasingly important radio gear and their aerials once the two halves are joined. The turret basket is bucket-shaped with a cut-out to one side to allow entry and exit, plus stowage space for more ammo for the guns and the machine guns, fire extinguisher and small button-seats for the crew. Additionally, there is an opening door to the basket that widens the aperture and contains a pair of tanks for the electro-hydraulic rotation equipment. A studded bezel is installed in the top rim and the rest of the traverse equipment is put in place along with a bit more wire that you'll need to provide, then one more seat on a pedestal is put in the centre of the basket which is then set aside while the little machine-gun turret is made. It has its internal structure added along with some PE vents then the upper gun with its tiny mount, vision port and a short length of ammo on a top hopper is made up and inserted from the inside into its slot, then closed in by the turret ring underneath, and on top the bi-fold hatch, which can be posed open or closed. A pair of armoured covers for the PE vents can be posed open or closed on the outside, completing the assembly. The three sections are joined together, then dropped into the turret ring to complete the model. Markings The decal sheet is quite large for an AFV model and you can make one of five options from the box, as shown below: 2nd Battalion 13th Armoured Regiment, 1st Armoured Division, Tunisia, Souk Ek Khemis, Nov.1942 2nd Battalion 13th Armoured Regimennt, 1st Armoured Division, Tunisia, Sened, Feb. 1943 2nd Battalion 13th Armoured Regiment, 1st Armoured Division, Tunisia, Souk El Arba, Nov. 1942 Combat Command A, 1st Armoured Regiment, 1st Armoured Division, Bizerte Tunisia, May 1943 2rd Battalion 13th Armoured Regiment, 1st Armoured Division, Tunisia, Spring 1943 The decals are printed by DecoGraph as usual for MiniArt, and have good register, colour density and sharpness, with thin matt carrier film cut closely to the printed areas. Conclusion The parts count is large thanks to the inclusion of the interior and engine, which will keep you modelling for a good while, and the temptation to leave the doors open to show off the innards that you slaved over off to your viewing public. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

US Soldiers At Rest (35318) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd It has been said war was 90% boredom and 10% terror. There is no doubt that in a lot of situations solider find themselves sitting around waiting for things to happen. Inside the shrink-wrapped box are eight sprues, two containing the figures, the others containing their equipment (there will be some spares here). Also printed on the instructions are a newspaper, magazines and plying cards to use with the figures as needed. The figures seem to be in quite natural poses for troops at rest, smoking, sleeping, reading and playing cards. As usual with MiniArt figures their sculpting is exceptional with crisp detail and sensible parts breakdown plus the there are many extras to add some detail to their vicinity if you’re using them in a diorama; or to put in the spare box. Its good to see figures being provided like this instead of the more favoured action poses. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

German Tankers Refueling (35348) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Tanks of all types all ways seemed to need re-fueling, in fact it was German General Heinz Guderian who famously said the Logistics was the ball and chain of Armoured Warfare. This set from Miniart gives us two crewmen refueling though they could be for any vehicle scene not just tanks. Inside the shrink-wrapped box are eight sprues, two containing the figures, the others containing fuel drums and jerricans. There is also a small PE fret. The two figures are posed in refueling positions. The modeller will have to source their own hose for this. Enough parts are provided for two fuel drums and three jerricans and two of the smaller triangular cans. As usual with MiniArt figures their sculpting is exceptional with crisp detail and sensible parts breakdown plus the extras to add some detail to their vicinity if you’re using them in a diorama. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

German Tankmen Painting Camo (35327) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Tanks needed to be painted in the field for a variety of reasons, change of terrain, season, battle damage, or just plain wear and tear. Inside the shrink-wrapped box are six sprues, two containing the figures, the other three with equipment and ladders The two figures are posed in classic painting positions with both a spray gun and a brush. There is a small ladder and a large one, a couple of buckets and a compressor. The modeller will have to source their own hose for this. As usual with MiniArt figures their sculpting is exceptional with crisp detail and sensible parts breakdown plus the extras to add some detail to their vicinity if you’re using them in a diorama. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Werkstattkraftwagen Typ-03-30 (35359) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Ford’s AA light truck was license built in the Soviet Union from 1932 to 1950 by GAZ as their GAZ-AA, or GAZ-MM as it was sometimes known, with over 150,000 being built in various configurations including Anti-Aircraft, and buses based on the same chassis. Some of these were of course captured by the Nazis during the successful early stages of Operation Barbarossa in WWII, and as usual with their regime they were pressed into service, sometimes in their original form, but others were butchered around to suit different purposes. The Werkstattkraftwagen was based upon the Typ-03-30 bus, with the passenger seats stripped out to be replaced by benches and storage to become a mobile workshop for the repair of equipment and vehicles in the field. The Kit This is a substantial reboxing of MiniArt’s GAZ-03-30 bus (35149), containing the majority of the sprues therein, with the exception of the additional seat sprues that won’t be needed. Instead there are a raft of new sprues, some of which have been brought together from other sets and kits to provide a huge amount of detail that will result in a highly detailed kit once complete. The kit arrives in a standard top-opening box with fifty-eight sprues in grey styrene, two clear sprues, a fret of Photo-Etch (PE) brass in a card envelope, a small decal sheet and the glossy instruction booklet with colour painting instructions to the rear. MiniArt’s standard is excellent, and this kit meets it, with the bus parts originally produced as recently as 2015, so up to date as far as detail is concerned. The quantity of accessories and tools included in the box almost doubles the volume of plastic in the box, and the nature of the kit will keep you busy for a long time if you treat all the sub-assemblies as separate little kits to do them the ultimate justice. It is a full interior kit, and this extends to the engine, cab and former passenger area, so it leaves the modeller with a wide palette to make this model their own. MiniArt have included four of each of the wheel frets, when only two are needed and documented in the instructions. Spare wheels will be the result. Construction begins with the engine, which is a four-cylinder license-built Ford unit that is built up around the four-part block with transmission and accessories bringing the part count to 20. The ladder chassis is made up from the two side rails with the inverted rear suspension springs fitted to the outside, and numerous cross-braces added to prepare it for the engine, drive-shaft and rear axle with differential housing, which is installed at the rear end of the springs. The wheels are built up at this time too, the tyres laminated from seven tread parts to form eight tyres for the eight hubs. It will be important to be careful with the amount of glue used here, as excess could ooze out and melt the tread pattern, spoiling MiniArt’s hard work. After that little jaunt, attention returns to the chassis, which is further detailed with brackets, front suspension and steering, plus rear anti-roll bars and linkages. The spare tyre is stowed under the rear of the chassis, and the brake hubs with their tyres (twin tyres at the rear) are slotted into place along with the radiator with a PE badge for the top, brackets for the front fenders, and front bumper. The exhaust is installed on the left, then the earlier stamped fenders with foot-plates are added to the front, and the driver’s foot plate is inserted between them aft of the engine with 3-speed gear shifter and hand brake in the centre. The foot pedals are inserted too, projecting through the plate and attaching to the transmission for complete realism. The large floor panel with anti-slip strips and rear fenders covers the rest of the chassis, with short 2nd steps over those on the front fenders, and after that, the crew cab is begun, starting with the instrument panel, which slots into the scuttle with filler cap in the centre and firewall at the front, joined by two small side panels. This, the steering wheel with stalks, and the driver’s seat on curved rails are inserted into the cab, and the front windscreen is glazed with a clear panel, with a solitary windscreen wiper on the driver’s side. The front of the cab receives the window in either closed or tilted positions for ventilation, using a pair of curved PE sliders from days of yore. A strip with clear lights and destination display slot are fitted above the screen, offering a clue to the vehicle’s original purpose. A pair of braces link the radiator housing to the firewall, while the windscreen surround is slid down over the dash, and a set of steps with retraction links are added to the rear. The cab is left for a while to concentrate on the main body of the “bus”, with the two sides glazed and the large multi-drawer bench made up along with a short bench and pillar drill that has a PE belt and base plate, the latter set to one side for later installation. The left body shell and the aforementioned benches are fitted to the floor panel, and roller-blinds are attached to the headers of the windows, then a large number of tools and benches are made up as follows: Double-end bench grinder Bench vice Bench vice with clamp Hacksaw Closed expanding toolbox Open expanding toolbox with PE tools Chair Stool Shallow bench with drawers Mobile compressor with receiver Wooden toolbox Anvil Blow torch large Blow torch small G-clamp Angle-poise light Coping saw Bucket with large wrench & axe Small cupboard The starboard body panel is similarly glazed and fitted out with roller-blinds, and the double rear doors have glass, roller-blinds and handles added before they are glued in open or closed positions, with the single cab door made up similarly and having a stay provided for the open option, and an alternative folded-step for the rear in the closed position. The roof is prepped with a central line of clear lenses, not to be confused with the raised ejector pin marks nearby, which you may want to deal with if you think they’ll be seen. The engine cowlings are the usual 30-40s style with louvered sides that fold up with the split top panels on hinges that are outfitted with brackets and PE handles on each side. The large headlights fit either side of the radiator on a curved bracket and a rod that fits between the fenders, with the horn attached on another bracket below the left headlight. The front number plate glues to the front bumper to complete the actual vehicle, but there’s more to come. There is a large roof rack that covers the majority of the top of the vehicle, which is folded up from PE and glued in place, with a pair of PE brackets for the port side ladder also fitted at the same time. Then a cornucopia of stowage etc. is made up to fill it, and fill it completely. The sub-assemblies are as follows: Wooden ladder Wooden boxes in three sizes 40gal drum with alternative tops Triangular-shaped can with PE handle Hand pump Axle-stand 2-man saw Heat-exchanger/radiator (not sure which) Oxy-Acetylene bottles with bases (2 of) Oxy-Acetylene trolley Box-plane Handsaw Hessian bags in three styles with various contents 6 x jerry cans with PE latches and centre ribs Large bin with tools inside Spare tyre with hub 11 x posters printed on the back cover of the instructions The figure that accompanies the set is only mentioned on the back page of the instructions, in much the same style as their figure sets. There is a painting of the completed figure with arrows pointing out the various parts and colour options. It is a Wehrmacht soldier in a side cap leaning against the vehicle with one hand in his pocket, the other nursing a cigarette. It is up to MiniArt’s usual standard of sculpting, and I’m pretty sure I’ve seen it in another of their boxes, but can’t quite place where. Markings There is only one option in the box, and that one is painted in German Panzer Grey, but its Russian heritage shows under the fenders, which remain Russian green. The decal sheet is small, and includes a few stencils, a pair of numberplates and some dials for the instrument panel. Decals are by DecoGraph, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion It’s a great reboxing of this kit with a new purpose, and the sheer volume of sub-assemblies will keep you at your workbench for a long time. Treat each part as a separate model and you will end up with an excellent, highly detailed finished article that will have visual interest out the wazoo as our American chums say. Very highly recommended. Currently out of stock at Creative, but they're sure to order more in, so check back. Review sample courtesy of

Hi folks, just started on my next build which is the Miniart T-60 late series tank, produced by the Gorky Automobile Plant. This is a Interior kit consisting of 38 sprues, photo etch sheet and decal sheet. This looks like a nice little dinky model with lots of parts giving good detail throughout. There are four variants to choose to build from, the one that i will be doing will be the one shown on the box art which is the Red Army, February-March 1942. I'm going to attempt to do a white washed finish on this, at the moment i think i will use chipping fluid to do this and also use the fluid to chip the interior as well. The box cover is shown below: This is the version that i will attempt to do, Red Army, February-March 1942 I have started to build the baseplate which is straight forward, Views showing the baseplate with painted transmission which is not fixed at the moment as i will remove this so that once the two sides of the base are attached the base can all be painted in one go, then i'll attach the transmission etc. when the base has been weathered. I have also started to build the GAZ-202 engine, which has lovely detail, i will attempt to add wiring to this soon, then paint all details in. I still need to add exhaust manifold and fan blade, but this will be painted separately and added at the end. As it's an interior build i will attempt to have as many hatches and openings open to give a good view of the interior. thanks for looking Ed

Good day, comrades!) A couple of days ago, I started building the AEC MK.I am from MiniArt and as soon as I approached the interior painting, the question immediately arose. MiniArt on the instructions suggests the interior color is white and the engine color is black. Do you guys have any information about the correct AEC interior color?

Cargo Tramway X-Series (38030) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd. Trams have long been used for mass transport within built-up areas of larger cities, using rails set into the street and making a familiar dinging noise just before they run you over. They’re making a comeback in some cities recently, but were far more numerous pre-WWII, and some operators took advantage of the lines to carry cargo deep into cities where the standard railways couldn’t reach. Soviet Russia operated these trams in their cities, carrying the daily necessities around, and probably pressed into service as munitions carriers when war came to town. The Kit This is new boxing is based upon the passenger X-Series tram, with new parts to fill the gutted centre-section where the passengers would otherwise be. These parts replicate the beaten-up look that would result from the rough handling of heavy items in and out of the cargo area. The kit arrives in a shrink-wrapped heavy box with typical MiniArt painting, and inside are twenty three sprues in grey styrene, nine in clear, an A4+ sized vacuum-formed cobblestone base with suitably gauged tracks travelling along the longest side. The package is rounded out by a decal sheet and instruction booklet that has the painting options laid out on the covers. Detail is excellent as we've come to expect from any new tooling from MiniArt, and the instructions are printed on good quality glossy paper in their usual manner. Construction begins with the sub-frame bogie, with two sets of motors and axles sandwiched between the brake actuators and wheels, then slipped inside the long frame along with their leaf-spring suspension mounts and cross-braces. The two axles are then integrated in the frame by adding end-plates and more cross-braces to stiffen up the assembly. The brake actuators are joined to the rest of the armature by a small cage and long rod that is connected to the driver’s cab later on. The body is made up on a two-part base with a laminated bulkhead with windows at each end and a framework wall with badly beaten and dented low side panels that can be posed up or down as you please. Two control uprights and a seat are made up and added to each end of the floor that makes them instantly reversible, then the two cab surrounds are fabricated with glass panels and interior panelling added along the way. The sides are added first, then the front is fixed in place, repeated at both ends and accompanies by a pair of two-panel folding doors on each side of both cabs, totalling eight panels made up into four doors that are handed, so take care when assembling them, their bars and handles. Crew steps are added to each door at each end (there’s a lot of repetition), then the big soviet star with integrated headlight that includes a replica of a bulb in the centre is plonked front and centre in the nose at each end – unless you’ve opted for the simpler and less ostentatious headlamp of course. Underneath the floor the linkages are extended with plastic chains to holes on the underside of the cabs, a receiver for the compressed air and small leaf-suspension mounts are fixed to each corner ready to receive the sub-frame that was made up first. A folded cow-catcher grille is attached under the front/back along with a single buffer, then it’s time to turn it from a cabriolet to a hard-top. The roof is made of two mirror image sections with panelling moulded into each cab end and on the curved sections where adverts would be placed on the passenger version, with a pair of lighting bars running along the rest of the length next to roof-mounted handrails. Upstands are glued to each side of the flat section of the roof and have a nicely detailed heat-exchanger unit fitted front and rear (front and front?). Lights, placards for route numbers and the big pantograph loop is assembled then fitted in the centre of the roof, angled toward the rea… whichever direction it has come from. If you’re not a diorama fan you can end it there, but it would be a shame to waste the base and accompanying catenary posts that suspend the wire above the track. The base is vacformed, so will need some method of support underneath to prevent it from sagging under the weight of the model, such as balsawood, which can be glued to the underside of the base with epoxy. The two posts have a four-part base and single riser part, with a choice of a simple or decorative arm for each one. They are held taut by wires that you will need to supply yourself, and you will need to do a little research to correctly wire in the rest of the cables to your tram’s pantograph. Markings There are six decal and markings options out of the box, with a wide choice of colours but only a few decals for route numbers and vehicle identification. From the box you can build one of the following: Cargo USSR 40-60s Repair USSR 40-60s Repair USSR 40-50s Emergency USSR 40-50s Cargo USSR 40-50s Service USSR 30-50s Decals are by DecoGraph, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion A well detailed model of a cargo tram that was used in Soviet Russia for more than just hawking goods around. There’s plenty of scope for dioramas with the included base a healthy start, and lots of opportunity to practice your weathering techniques to depict a well-worn example. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Dear Colleagues Here is the Miniart T-60 Factory 264 kit. To my mind it is their most successful interior kit to date. It has the right balance of part number and fit to make it a really enjoyable build. Factory 264 was based in Stalingrad so production came to an abrupt end in September 1942. This factory pioneered the use of steel wheels due to the rubber shortage. Yes, the machinery and tracks lasted much less but then they did not expect a tank to last more than a day or so of combat at the front. Very different outlook to German manufacturers. For weathering I relied largely on the MIG oil brushers Hope you like it? Andrew

Hallo The Panzer III D from MiniArt in 1/35 is different to many other companies. Details are very nicely done. Especially the track chains are a different matter. Nicely molded and wonderful to assembly. The easiest chain assembly from plastic I ever had. The wheels and the suspension also wonderful done. The interior is concentrated on the main parts in the turret and some down in the hull. A nicely engineered kit. Painted in standard grey! Happy modelling

Happy Christmas all, i built this festive Sherman as part of the STGB earlier this year, thought I'd post it in the ready for inspection on Christmas Day. As it didn't seem right to do it any other time of the year.

Soviet LAP-7 Rocket Launcher MiniArt 1:35 The GAZ AA 1.5 ton truck was a licenced manufactured version of the Ford AA truck for the Soviet Union, where more than 950,000 were built. There were many body styles, but the most recognisable version was the flat bed truck as depicted in this kit. The difference with this kit though is the fact that the flat bed is fitted with a large frame work fitted with rockets, and big ones at that. The model is contained within a very attractive, bright and colourful box that MiniArt have started using recently. Inside, there are forty four sprues in grey styrene, one of clear a single sheet of etch brass and a small decal sheet. The build starts with the nicely detailed engine with the block, head and sump being glued together followed by the addition of the starter motor, alternator, water pump, auxiliary drive belt, cooling fan, cooling pipes, oil filler pipe. The gearbox is then assembled from three parts and glued to the engine assembly, along with intake manifold. The two, chassis rails are fitted with an extra beam where the truck bed will sit. These are held on the rails by three “U” bolts and thir associated clamps. The rear leaf springs are then attached via their support links. Four cross members are then used to join the rails together, as well as the rear chassis end piece, to which the towing eye spring is attached. There is a three piece box attached to the left hand rail, near the front. The wheels are assembled, and in this, MiniArt have deviated from the norm, by making the inner tyre half made up from four individual rings, while the outer section is made up of three rings. The wheel itself is then sandwiched between the two tyre sections. Whilst this sounds odd, I think it’s to make a realistic tyre with the type of radial tread used at the time. The rear axle and differential is made up from six parts, if you include the drive shaft. This assembly is then fitted to the rear leaf springs, while the front suspension is made up on a single leaf spring assembly mounted laterally and fitted with the front axle, steering rack and support arms. The rear differential is then fitted with a triangular support structure which also supports the brake rods. The front chassis end cap is attached as are the two bumper side arms, while to the rear there is a choice of towing hook styles, one, just a single piece unit, the other is made up from five parts. The spare wheel, mounted under the rear chassis is held in place by a support large clamp. The front and rear brake drums are then attached to the axles, followed by two wheels per side on the rear axle and one per side on the front axle. The engine assembly in then glued into position, followed by the two piece radiator, two piece front bumper and two support brackets on chassis rails. The five piece exhaust is the attached to the right hand side. The two front fenders are each single piece units to which a small hook is attached before being fitted to the chassis, as are two of the lateral truck bed beams. The cab floor is also attached and fitted with the bench seat, gear stick and panel support. The three piece wiper/wiper motor is fitted to the front screen surround, once the clear screen has been fitted. The screen is then fitted with two small arms, these can be glued in either the stowed position for a closed screen, or down, so that the screen can be posed open. The rear of the bonnet section is then glued to the front of the screen support, along with eh two side sections and engine bulkhead which has been detailed with several small parts. Inside the foot pedals are attached lower bulkhead, part of the floor panel fitted earlier, before the front cab assembly is glued into place, along with the steering column and wheel. The three piece rear panel and roof of the cab are then glued into place, as are the two bonnet supports, between the bulkhead and the radiator. Each door is made up from five parts, including clear section, door handles, latches and window winders. The doors are then put to one side. The bonnet halves, split longitudinally are each made from two sections, which can be posed in either the open or closed positions, allowing the modeller to show of the engine should they so choose. The doors are then attached; again, they can be posed open or closed as the modeller wishes. The three piece horn is attached to a rail, which in turn is attached to the front of the vehicle between the fenders. The two, three piece headlights are then fitted, as is the single, two piece wing mirror, on the drivers side. The truck bed is then assembled from five parts, bed, with two cross beams fitted underneath, sides, front and rear sections, and glued into place, completing the truck section of the build. For the rocket launcher frame, there are two large beams that are slightly longer than the bed, the overhang being where the handles used to raise and lower the framework into firing position is attached. There is a smaller plank that runs crossways from this elevation beam, which is also fitted with th hinge points or the rear of the frame. The modeller ahs a choice of building the frame in the firing position or transport position by the use of alternative actuator parts. The raising mechanism is made up from nine parts. The main frame is made up from ten parts while each of the six rocket containers are each made from sixteen parts, while the rockets themselves are each four parts. With the rockets slid into the containers, each assembly is then glued into position on the frame. If the frame is to be modelled in the transport position, the right hand side and rear flaps of the bed are fixed up with the relative catches fitted. In the firing position these flaps are lowered and the catches fitted in the down position. Decals The decal sheet gives the modeller only two options for same truck, one in a summer paint scheme, and one in a winter scheme. The decals are beautifully printed, are clear and in good register with a slightly matt finish. Conclusion I just love these trucks from MiniArt, they are so evocative of the period and can be used in so many situations, whether on their own, or in a diorama. The rocket frame gives this normally benign truck a certain menace and goes to show the ingenuity of the Russian forces to get as much use of these types of vehicles as possible. Review sample courtesy of

Dear Colleagues After much fiddling and fettling I have finished the Miniart 1/35 Panzer IIID, yes the one with the funny suspension system. The Germans trialled a number of different suspension systems for their Panzer III, this had paired wheels on bogies with leaf springs and dampers. I think only 15-30 B to D types were built before settling on torsion bars in the E. Nevertheless although a trials vehicles they were pitched into the invasion of Poland. The figures are from Miniart too. Hope you like it? As many of you know, Miniart does not consider structural strength in their assemblies and tolerances here can be as little as 0.2 mm. But to their credit things do in deed fit! Andrew

Railway Gondola 16.5-18t (35296) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Railways are excellent for transporting large or heavy goods (yes, shocking isn't it?), and there are all sorts of wagons available to facilitate this, with the open wagon being one such option for goods that aren't susceptible to weather damage. This is the subject of this model from MiniArt, which arrives in a standard top-opening kit box, wrapped in shrink-wrap to prevent tampering and parts escaping. It is quite a heavy box, the reason for which becomes evident when you open it, as there are forty four sprues in mid-grey styrene of various sizes, a sheet of decals, small Photo-Etch (PE) sheet in a card envelope and the instruction booklet. As indicated on the box, there is a set of figures included and you also get a short length of track with sleepers to put in your own ballast, plus some barrels and such to liberally stash around the place. As you may already know, MiniArt utilise smaller sprues to compartmentalise their kits, so that parts can easily be reused in different variants or other boxings to add value to their models and the customer. This is a prime example, pairing the figures and fuel drums with the new gondola to create a really nice package. Construction begins with the central cross-member of the chassis which has hollow two-part timbers and the coupling "root" pinned between the H-frame. This is paired up with four more cross-braces that hold the two C-section chassis rails in place, with braced U-mounts hanging from the rails to accept the axles later on. Diagonal bracing rails are added under the bed with the end bars and side brackets, then the bed itself and two side rails are fitted before the assembly is flipped over to add the leaf-spring suspension and finally the axles with a choice of two wheel types, which are a spring fit between the posts in much the same manner as those of a traditional model train. Righting the model allows fitting of the four sides with their stiffening braces, and a pair of sliding doors on the sides with their runners and retaining rails completes the main structure, then the latches and padlocks are added from PE parts. Each wagon has a total of four buffers front and rear and two hitches, the latter being well-detailed due to the part count, and the eyelets on either side of the hitches have hooks hung on short lengths of chain, which you'll need to source yourself. The kit includes enough track to place your gondola on with a few inches either side that will come in useful if you are integrating it into a larger diorama. It is made up from five different types of sleeper with varying grain and ties moulded in and the clamp that holds the rail in place is a separate part for each of the 20 sleepers with two per sleeper. The rails are in two parts each with jointing strips on each side of the rail to turn the joint into a feature, rather than something to hide. You'll need to put the groundwork in yourself, but that gives you a lot of leeway to choose something suitable for your purposes and you can choose larger scale ballast from those available for railway modellers or make your own. Seven barrels are included in the kit for the figures to play with, and if you've seen any of my recent MiniArt reviews they'll be familiar. The drums are made from halves to which the top and bottoms are added, then two stiffening bands are fixed to the grooves in the drums, each made up from two parts. There is a choice of end-caps with different wording in raised lettering, and if you leave off the cap you can make up the hand-pump with nozzle at the other end of a piece of hose/wire that you supply yourself - that's if you feel it's appropriate to the situation of course, but it's there anyway. A separate diagram offers four colour schemes for the drums including light grey, dark yellow, red and white striped, and Panzer Grey. The barrels are shown being rolled up planks into the wagon with two soldiers pushing, one pulling on a rope from within the wagon, another rolling the next barrel into position and of course the officer looking busy with a notebook so he doesn't have to exert himself. The figures are typical MiniArt and are naturally posed with excellent detail thanks to careful sculpting and parts breakdown. Each of them have separate torsos, legs arms and heads with caps separate, plus the occasional separate hand where its position would be better moulded by removing it from the arm. The officer has a pistol holster and his book, with the pencil/pen moulded into his right hand for completeness. Markings Four decal/colour options are shown in the instructions, ranging from green, through grey/brown filthy mottle and two shades of brown, C is Russian in origin, and for the purists you will need to obtain some Russian Railroad Track (35565) for ultimate fidelity. The decals are almost all white stencils with a couple of black ones breaking up the monotone, and they are printed by Decograph with good density and sharpness. Conclusion A highly detailed gondola/wagon for use in dioramas, with your imagination the only limiting factor. Troops loading the wagon, soldiers fighting around it, or it being in the background of a larger scene, it will look great with sympathetic paintwork, and some good ballast. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

B-Type London Omnibus 1919 (38031) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd After the invention of the motor car, it was only a matter of time before someone thought to apply it to carrying us proles around in groups, partly because the general populous couldn’t dream of affording a car at the time, but also because it cut down on traffic in the sprawling metropolis that was early 1900s London. The London General Omnibus Company – LGOC for short, developed the Omnibus X, the omnibus part relating to everyone or all. It was replaced by the improved B-type Omnibus which has seats for 16 inside and another 18 less salubrious seats upstairs that were open to the elements. It was capable of breaking the speed limit of the day and could do a staggering 16mph on the flat, with headlights being introduced just before WWI began. Up to 900 buses were shipped to the continent to bus the troops around the battlefield from trench to trench, with up to 24 fully-equipped men being carried on the two decks. Of course, the word Omnibus didn’t last long and gave us the Bus that we know and don’t really love today. At the end of WWI, the remaining operational buses were also used to ferry the soldiers back to the UK, but it can’t have been very comfortable or quick on balance. Those that were still in decent condition resumed service with minor changes before they were finally retired in 1924. The Kit This kit is a recent tooling with a number of kits in the range, beginning with the militarised version in olive drab (39001), and now we’re looking at the second (third in terms of kits), later iteration of the civilian version with a new portrait-style box painting. A number of the original sprues from the earlier variants are carried over, and another new sprue is included to portray the updated areas around the radiator and front axle. There are unused parts on the new sprue in the form of lights and wing mirrors, which hints at an even later version being in the works. The decal sheet of course is brand new, and the Photo-Etch (PE) sheet has been further re-organised to accommodate the curved advertising hoardings on the staircase and new number plate choices. Detail is excellent with a full chassis, engine and interior included in the box, giving you just about everything you need to build a detailed replica of the 1919 omnibus. In total there are nineteen sprues in grey, three in clear, a PE fret, large decal sheet and of course instructions with painting and decaling guides in the front and rear covers in full colour. Construction begins with the engine, which is well detailed and even has diagrams showing you how to wire up the spark plugs with some of your own wire if you wish. The exhaust manifold and big clutch flywheel is added to the block along with a load of ancillary parts and hoses, then the gearbox is made up with its short drive-shaft to link it to the engine later on. The chassis is made up from the two side rails and cross members, then the engine is inserted from below while the fan belt and blades; starting handle; leaf springs for the suspension, and a large rear axle are all added, then flipped over to begin work on the engine compartment. A wood-textured bulkhead is installed aft, and at the front the newly tooled radiator is assembled and fitted to the front of the chassis, then linked to the feed hoses that were added earlier. A small linkage is made from 0.3mm wire and joined with an end-piece that completes the link, which has a couple of scrap diagrams to assist you, one at 1:1 scale to ensure you have it right. The chassis is flipped again and the new front axle is built then inserted into the leaf-springs, while brake rods are threaded along the length of the vehicle to provide the meagre braking force to all wheels. The gearbox gets a guard fitted to its bottom as it is inserted into the chassis, at which point it is also linked to the back axle with another drive-shaft that is bracketed by a piece of PE. The chassis is flipped again, and the gearbox is linked to the cab, with steering wheel, Toot Toot! style horn plus the cab floor with foot board and cut-outs for the steering wheel, foot brake and other pedals (right-hand drive of course). Now the front and back of the engine bay are linked by the fixed centre panel, and you can build the cowling in either open or closed positions with PE plates attached to the vertical panels. The chassis continues again with the exhaust pipe and muffler, which has a PE lip added to each end of the welded cylinder. This and the remaining driver controls are fixed into the chassis, which is then set aside while the passenger compartment is built. The passenger compartment starts as a U-shaped floor with duck-board flooring, which receives end panels that are first fitted out with glazing. Seats are added along each side with back cushions fitted later, and the sides of the lower floor are made up with glazing and long narrow openers at the top of each pane, capable of being posed open or closed by choosing different glazing parts. The front of the passenger box is also the seating area for the crew cab, with seat board, a thin cushion, and a cylinder in a pair of PE restraints installed ready for the later joining of the two assemblies. Long advertising hoarding brackets are fitted on the window frames outside and the lower floor is set to one side while the upper floor is made up. This has a slightly curved floor, solid sides, front and back, and four rows of double seats facing forward with a central walkway. Various rails are added to the top, beginning the handrails for the winding stairs, as well as ceiling-mounted grab-rails for the floor below. The two floors are joined together, and the staircase is begun at the bottom with the step-on platform at the rear, which allows access to the lower floor and leads to the stairs winding up the back of the vehicle. These steps are curved and have two parts added together, then strengthened by a side panel, and two curved sections on the outside that are combined safety rails and adverting hoardings that have three PE panels fitted to the outside ready for the included adverts. A number-plate and more handrails finish off that area. Underneath, the double length mudguards are glued to the cabin by brackets, and then the whole assembly is installed on the chassis along with front mudguards, crew steps, set of lights and a front number plate. The wheels were built up earlier from a central hub surrounded by two tyre halves, and with drum-brake for the rear wheels, and simpler wheels for the front. Now that she’s stood on her own four wheels for the first time, the side-mounted people catchers are installed under the chassis between the front and rear wheels, preventing anyone unlucky enough to fall between the wheels from getting squished by the heavy back end. Markings The bus is painted in a dull red overall, with various accent colours from wood, metallics and brass colours, while many of the standard markings such as the destination and general stencilling are applied as decals. The adverts are all printed on the rear page of the instruction booklet and must be carefully cut out and pasted onto the hoarding boards in the top floor sides and rear of the bus, taking care to use a non-marking glue. The reverse of the adverts are gloss white, so glue absorption shouldn’t be a major issue. The standard decals are shown applied to the bus inside the front cover of the booklet, while various new advertising options are shown there and on separate pages at the back of the booklet next to the adverts themselves. This gives a pretty wide range of options to the modeller who takes a mix-and-match approach, but there are four options from London in the 1920s provided to get you going. Decals are by DecoGraph, with good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion This highly detailed kit provides you with everything you need to create a great replica of the 1919 version of this early bus. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Repairing on the Road (35295) Mercedes Typ 170V Cabriolet with Figures 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd The Mercedes 170 was based upon their W15 chassis, which was their first with all-round independent suspension, and was available as a bare chassis for coachbuilders, as a saloon, cabriolet or as a light van, debuting in the early 30s with sales affected by the worldwide depression that started in Wall Street. Sales picked up after the recession eased, and later versions had internal boot/trunk-space and sleeker lines, moving with the times. The cabriolet option was sporty and offered the well-to-do buyer luxury and wind-in-hair fun on dry days, and a slightly less windy experience with the fabric roof deployed. It shares many of the panels of the saloon version, although with no pillars behind the windscreen for a sleek look. It was often used as a staff car in the German military throughout WWII, and like all cars it broke down from time-to-time. The Kit This is a reboxing of a partial re-tool of the original 2012 saloon (35095), with new sprues and parts added to create the necessary changes, plus a set of four figures, two of whom are doing their best to get their officer’s car up and running again. The original kit is highly detailed, and this one is no different, showing just how far MiniArt have come in their design and moulding technology. There is superb detail throughout, with slender racks, realistic-looking fabric door pockets as well as a full engine and interior to the cab. This boxing has sixteen sprues in grey styrene plus a bodyshell part in a protective box, clear parts, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE), and decal sheet. The instruction booklet completes the package and the cover is printed in colour and covered in profiles to assist with painting. Construction begins with the 1700cc engine and transmission, which is made up from a substantial number of parts that just need a little wiring to do it full justice, and in fact the brake hoses are shown in diagrams to ensure that you obtain the correct bends, but you’ll need to find your own 0.2mm wire to begin with. The X-shaped chassis is prepped with a few mounts and a PE brackets, then the rear axle differential and driveshafts are fitted on a pair of very realistic styrene springs that have hollow centres and individual coils thanks to some clever sliding moulds. Drum brakes, straps and brackets finish off the rear axle assembly, then the completed engine and drive-shaft are installed in the front to be joined by a pair of full-width leaf-springs from above and below with a stub-axle and drum brake at each end. The exhaust is made up with an impressively neatly designed four-part muffler, a pair of PE mounts, straight exit pipe and a curved length leading forward to the engine. With the addition of the bumper-irons at the front, the lower body can be fixed to the chassis after drilling a single hole in one of the front wings. The front firewall is next to be made up, and the pedal box is installed one side, with a set of tools and another neatly designed cylinder, this time the fuel tank, which is curiously situated in the rear of the engine bay. This fits over the transmission tunnel that is moulded into the floor, with more driver controls such as the gear lever, hand brake and steering column added at this time. The dashboard is put together with decals within the instrument housings, then covered over with clear faces for realism and put to one side while the twin font seats with PE fittings and the simpler rear bench seats are installed onto their supports in the cab area. The exquisite little rear bodyshell is retrieved from its protective box, and it is immediately evident that it would never survive shipping without this, so it’s a godsend. The rear sides of the cab are fitted with interior and windows on each side, indicators on the A-pillar, the dashboard, rear lights and bumpers/fenders, while the wheels are made up. Each wheel is made up from a layer-cake of three middle parts to create the tread around the circumference, and two outer faces that depict the sidewalls of the tyres, with marker’s mark and data panel moulded into the sides. The hubs are inserted into the centres of the tyres, with a cap finishing off the assemblies. They are built up in handed pairs, and the spare has a different hub to differentiate it, and it fits on a boss at the centre of a recess on the boot/trunk later on. The main wheels are added to the corners, and the radiator with a PE grille and three-pointed star added to a surround is assembled, then the radiator core and rear slam-panel with filler cap are added at the rear. This is put in place at the front of the body at an angle, with two cross-braces reducing body flex along with a central bracket that forms the hinge-point for the folding hood. Small PE fittings are fixed first on the louvered side panels, then added to the top parts in either the open or closed position. The new bodyshell is lowered into place, the steering wheel and PE horn ring are installed, and the windscreen is assembled from frame, PE wipers, clear glazing and other small parts inside the frame, then slid down between the two arms moulded into the bodyshell. The suicide doors are made up from outer skin, door card and clear window, with an optional window stub if you are posing them wound down. Handles and winders finish them off, and you can install them closed or any angle to allow egress. If you are leaving the hood down, the folded hood is provided as a single part that has the mechanism added to each side. In the up position the complete hood is one piece, with the mechanism applied to the sides and an ovalized window filling up the hole in the rear. The main headlights have clear lenses, a wing mirror is attached to the left wing, and an optional luggage rack is provided for the rear, made up from two layers of boxes, a delicate frame and PE straps to give it extra realism. The final parts to be used are the four figures. The officer is of course watching his men work with impatience, while his driver leans idly on the side of the car. The lower ranks are working on the car, leaning into the bonnet twiddling things, hopefully with some idea of what they’re doing. Sculpting is up to MiniArt's usual high standard, with realistic poses, sensible parts breakdown and location of mould seams along natural folds. Markings The decals extend to number-plates, military emblems and a white circular area for the bonnet of one of the decal options. You can build one of the six options below: III./JG52. Luftwaffe, Eastern Front, Ukraine, Summer 1943 272nd Infanterie Division, Wehrmacht, Normandy, France, Summer 1944 Wehrmacht, Eastern Front, 1944 German Police, 1942 Wehrmacht, Eastern Front, Winter 1942-43 Luftwaffe, Italy, 1943 Decals are by DecoGraph, with good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion It’s a highly detailed rendition of a rather slick cabriolet from the pre-war/WWII era, with the figures adding a little humanity and an example of mechanical frailty to an already great kit. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Road Signs WWII Italy (35611) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd During WWII many road signs were removed in case of invasion to hamper the exploits of the invading forces and slow them down while they decided where they were. When substantial military activity was underway, the need to know where you’re going arises, so any signs removed need replacing if you're attempting to marshall your troops, and new ones are required to stop your men and materiel from becoming lost. This set is full of signs of this nature, and includes military signs to guide their troops to rally points, service areas and so forth as they didn't have the luxury of GPS and satnav back then. The set arrives in a shrink-wrapped figure box with a painting of the contents on the front and brief instructions on the rear. There are three medium-sized sprues in grey styrene in the box, plus a decal sheet on thick white paper that contains all the painted descriptive fronts of the signs. As well as the signs themselves there are a number of posts on which to hang then, one of which is a lamp post with detailed base and simple light fitting. Each sign is meant to be either metal or moulded with a restrained wooden texture that will show through the decals if you use decal solution during setting. Some of the larger signs are also made from a few planks, so the joins will also show through the decal. There are fifty-one signs, so there will be a few decals left over, and on the back of the box you can see a few examples of these make-shift signs pinned in groups to the various posts, but it's entirely up to you how you lay them out. Conclusion Dioramas rely on the minutiae of the background to give that "lived in" look to the terrain, and signage is essential for all but the straightest of roads. The addition of the lamp post gives extra height to any road scene, and the painting guide helps with painting the plastic parts. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Musical Instruments (35622) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Humans are a creative species, as well as a destructive one. We’ve been making music since prehistory and with our penchant for using tools, we’ve been making instruments for just about as long. This set is brim-full of instruments, and contains enough to make an orchestra, although it would be a fairly odd one. It arrives in a shrink-wrapped end-opening figure box, and inside are two identical sprues in grey styrene, plus a small piece of white paper with sheet music printed on it for you to cut out and use. On the sprues you can find the following instruments: Accordion – open (Piano Accordion) Accordion – in case (Piano Accordion) Harmonic – closed (Button Accordion) Harmonic – open (Button Accordion) Marching bass drum with sticks Trumpet Guitar Violin in open case Violin & bow with closed case Mandolin Banjo Construction of the individual elements is simple, as you can see from the instructions, and they will stand or fall on their painting. Treat them as individual models and you’ll be good to go. As there are two sprues, you should have plenty of instruments for a number of projects, and the detail is just right, needing only a few additional straps where appropriate on the accordions and drums for example. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Focke Wulf FW C.30A Heuschrecke Late Prod (41018) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd There was a time when the Autogyro was looked at with great promise but the never materialised, The Avro licence built the Cierva C.30 designed by Juan de la Cieva. This was built from the fuselage of the Avro Cadet biplane and used an Armstrong Siddeley Genet Major engine. Lift was provided by an 11.3m diameter 3 bladed rotor. In Germany the Air Ministry thought as well that the Autogyro was the future for aviation. These were produced under licence by Focke Wulf using the AVRO pattern. The main difference between the early production models is the fuselage front of the pilots and the engine. The fate of these machines is not known. The Kit Until now I don't think there has been a kit of this in 1.35 scale. The kit is upto Minart's modern standards; there are 4 main sprues, 3 smaller sprues, a small clear spure and a sheet of photoetch in the box. Even in 1.35 scale this is not a large kit. Construction starts with the front mounted radial engine. The cylinder bank is made up fro individual cylinders, with the exhaust and collector ring being added. Ancillary parts are then attached to the engine and it is put aside for later. Construction then moves to the interior/cockpit. The two seats are made up complete with PE seatbelts. These then attach to their mounting frames. Onto the cockpit floor are mounted the rudder pedals and control column. Additional controls are added to the side frames and then these frames can be attached to the cockpit floor. Front and rear control panels are then added. The seats are added in and then the side frames added. The cockpit can then be closed up inside the main fuselage, Next up the mount for the rotor blades is made up and attached to the fuselage. The tail wheel assembly is added as are the tailplanes. The engine and its propeller are then added. The landing gear struts are made up and the wheels are added. Lastly the rotor blades are made up and added, these can either be in the flying or stowed positions. Markings There are two decal options provided on the sheet From the box you can build one of the following: D-EELA - Germany mid 1930's D-EIRO - Germany mid 1930s DE-TAX - Germany mid 1930s (Though the insignia would suggest Austria) Decals are printed by DecoGraph and have good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion This is a really nice rendition of this unusual but important civil aircraft. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

German Delivery Car Type 170V (35297) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd The Mercedes 170 was based upon their W15 chassis, which was their first with all-round independent suspension, and was available as a bare chassis for coachbuilders, as a saloon, cabriolet or as a light van, debuting in the early 30s with sales affected by the worldwide depression that started in Wall Street. Sales picked up after the recession eased, and later versions had internal boot/trunk-space and sleeker lines, moving with the times. As well as sharing a chassis with the saloon, the van was essentially identical in the forward section and inside the crew cab. The bodywork from the doors backward were designed with the same ethos but different due to the boxy load area behind the drivers. Of course, some of them found their way into military service with as saloons, or as the van for carrying small loads. The Kit This is a rebox with new decals of their recent Lieferwagen kit that has the same new sprues and parts added to create the necessary changes for the wagon. The original 2012 kit was highly detailed, and this one is no different, showing just how far MiniArt have come in their design and moulding technology. There is superb detail throughout, with slender racks, realistic-looking fabric door pockets as well as a full engine and interior to the cab. Inside the shrink-wrapped box are twelve sprues of grey styrene, one in clear, a decal sheet and a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE) brass for finer details, protected in a card envelope. Construction begins with the 1700cc engine and transmission, which is made up from a substantial number of parts that just need a little wiring to do it full justice, and in fact the brake hoses are shown in diagrams to ensure that you obtain the correct bends, but you’ll need to find your own 0.2mm wire to begin with. The X-shaped chassis is prepped with a few mounts and a PE brackets, then the rear axle, differential and driveshafts are fitted on a pair of very realistic styrene springs that have hollow centres and individual coils thanks to some clever sliding moulds. Drum brakes, straps and brackets finish off the rear axle assembly, then the completed engine and drive-shaft are installed in the front to be joined by a pair of full-width leaf-springs from above and below with a stub-axle and drum brake at each end. The exhaust is made up with an impressively neatly designed four-part muffler, a pair of PE mounts, straight exit pipe and a curved length leading forward to the engine. With the addition of the bumper-irons at the front, the lower body can be fixed to the chassis after drilling a single hole in one of the front wings. The front firewall is next to be made up, and the pedal box is installed one side, with a set of tools and another neatly designed cylinder, this time the fuel tank, which is curiously situated in the rear of the engine bay. This fits over the transmission tunnel that is moulded into the floor, with more driver controls such as the gear lever, hand brake and steering column with PE horn-ring added at this time. The dashboard is integrated into the windscreen frame after being fitted with decals within the instrument housings, then covered over with clear faces for realism. There is also a nicely clear curved windscreen inserted before this is dropped over the firewall, joined by a rear cab panel that has a small rear window and the back of the bench seat applied before fitting. The base of the bench seat is also fitted on a riser moulded into the floor. Vehicles need wheels, and this one runs on four with a spare one lurking under a false floor in the back. Each wheel is made up from a layer-cake of three central sections to create the tread around the circumference, and two outer faces that depict the sidewalls of the tyres, with maker’s mark and data panel moulded into the sides. The hubs are inserted into the centres of the tyres, with a cap finishing off the assemblies. They are built up in handed pairs, and the spare has a different hub and no cap to differentiate it. The flat floor for the load area is a single piece with the pocket for the spare tyre to fit inside, and this sits over the rear arches and is supported at the front by a lip on the rear of the cab. The load area is then finished by adding the slab-sides and roof to the body, with a few ejector-pin marks that will need filling if you plan on leaving the door open. Speaking of doors, there are two options for open and closed, with moulded-in hinges and separate door handle, plus the number-plate holder above the door in the centre. The front doors are handed of course, and have separate door cards with handle and window winders added, and a piece of clear styrene playing the part of the window, which is first fitted to the door card before it is added to the door skin. Both doors can be posed open or closed as you wish, and are of the rearward opening "suicide door" type. At this stage the front of the van needs finishing, a job that begins with the radiator with an angled PE grille and three-pointed star added to a surround, then the radiator core and rear slam-panel with filler cap at the rear. This is put in place at the front of the body at an angle, with two cross-braces reducing body flex along with a central rod that forms the hinge-point for the side folding hood. Small PE fittings are fixed first on the louvered side panels, then added to the top parts in either the open or closed position. A pair of PE and styrene windscreen wipers are added to the windscreen sweeping from the top, a pair of clear-lensed headlamps, wing mirrors and indicator stalks on the A-pillars finish off the build of the van. To differentiate this from the previous kit, MiniArt have included a PE roof rack that is folded up and fitted to the exterior drip-rails around the roof, with a whole page of the instructions devoted to a set of card boxes of period German products that are folded up and glued together to give the truck something to carry. Markings There are four decal options in the box, including two military and two civilian vehicles, the latter belonging to the Railways and post departments. From the box you can build one of the following: Deutsche Reichsbahn, Germany, 1940-43 Reichpost, Germany, 1940-45 Unknown platoon Sanitary Vehicles, Wehrmacht, 1941-43 Unknown unit, Wehrmacht, 1943-45 Decals are by DecoGraph, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. The boxes are printed on glossy paper with tabs printed to facilitate gluing, so you may want to matt them down after construction, as most packing boxes tend to be of a matt finish. Conclusion This is yet another well-detailed kit of the old Merc van, and if you’re not a vehicle modeller you have the two military types to choose from, or the civilian types would make for great background fodder for a Defence of the Reich diorama, either intact or in a semi-demolished state courtesy of the ongoing fighting. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Car Maintenance 1930-40s (38019) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models ltd Cars were still really in their infancy during the 30s and 40s, and thankfully for their owners were quite simple compared to today’s standards, having mostly mechanical systems with only the lights and carburettors using electricity in general. They would frequently break down at the side of the road, where a well-prepared owner could often fix them, at least well enough to enable a dash to the nearest garage for a proper fix. If the repairs were more serious, a scheduled appointment at the garage would be in order anyway. This set depicts two repair scenarios on the box, and that’s what you get. Inside the shrink-wrapped box are five sprues, four containing the figures and one containing the accessories and tools, with some of the smaller flat tools to be found on a tiny Photo-Etch (PE) fret in a card envelope. There is a lady in a knee-length skirt pumping up a tyre using a foot-pump, a man in shirt-sleeves lying on his back under the car with PE tools around him, while the two other mechanic-types are cleaning the car with a cloth, and twiddling something under the bonnet whilst leaning over the fender or radiator. In addition, a track-style pump and an old-skool car jack with PE handle are included as staging for your diorama. As usual with MiniArt figures their sculpting is exceptional with crisp detail and sensible parts breakdown plus additional parts if you wish to use them in a diorama. Conclusion The cars featured on the box art are of course not included in the set, but if you were to aggregate one or more of these figures, plus a pack of the various garage forecourt sets released by MiniArt together with some of your own buildings either bought or scratched, a detail-packedd peacetime diorama could be put together. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of