Search the Community

I feel I'm in the wrong place because STGB's are for experts and from the other threads it's obvious you're all way over my head; this is OOB, nostalgia for the 21st century. Nostalgia- because as a youngster I loved the Bandai 1/48 series with full interior. Never knew or cared if they were accurate it was just super cool. But you can't get those kits without selling a grannie nowadays and I've not got any grannies left (for the avoidance of doubt I didn't sell them). But the new kid on the block is Rubicon. 1/56 scale so a tad smaller but a wargaming scale. Some of their kits come with full interior; no idea why a wargamer needs a full interior but it suits me. So it's nostalgia updated. OOB because, well that's just what it says on the box!!! Here then is a box Instructions, decals and indeed P/E - again can't help but think that this is a level of detailing unnecessary for wargaming. I did Rubicon's Hetzer for the 38(t) GB so I know what's coming up. The instructions are beautifully printed but prone to lacking clarity; that was a bigger problem with the Hetzer because truly every variant was included, but I'm expecting some befuddlement along the way. The decals are 'there' but the marking guides are so vague as to be useless. Might need a lot of help with that section, but I do like the box art so might go for that- assuming it's remotely genuine? Guess I'm a bit more interested in authenticity then when I did those Bandai kits. Lots of part sprues Which to my mind is a lot of kit for £25 Long time since I'd looked at a Tiger II, so I'd forgotten that even in this scale it's a big ole beast! Now the retro with a twist bit (and why it's an exploded Tiger II), The one thing about those Bandia kits was that I loved the interior but could never see it. So, this time around the plan is to build it as an 'exploded diagram' with various elements elevated on some alloy rod that I have to hand- got to love a scraps box! And time for another question - I see Mig Ammo do a Tiger II interior paint set- is it worth getting or is it simpler to just use as a guide and look in the paint box? I have a lot of paints, but being married to an artist I'm always open to buying more paint. Currently got 3 stalled GBs hoping for some Bank Holiday love, so this one will be a slow burner for a few weeks- but there weren't very fast to start with were they?

Another lightning build while I summon the courage to get on with my scratchbuild figures. My kit builds seem to be getting quicker and quicker. Whilst my plan was to move to smaller scales to save display space, the rate I’m popping them out kind of defeats this idea. Ho-hum…. This Rubicon kit is a mixed bag really - nice moulding and very hard plastic which is identified on the box as being ABS, but I’m not so sure. I’ve had no luck in the past gluing ABS with Tamiya extra thin, but this stuff glued really nicely with it. Detail wise, it looks pretty good, but there are some oddities. For instance, the tracks (moulded in one piece with wheels attached) only have the finer detail included on the front run around the idler wheel. The rest of the track has the basic pads/links, but no fine detail. Odd. With only a few parts, it didn’t take long to get together so I didn’t bother with a WIP. I elected to replace all the handles with thin wire, drilled out the floodlight to replace with my usual Molotow liquid chrome and clear glue lens, and added a homemade tow rope to the front. Parts are included to make early and late wartime machines as well as a post war version. I went for the post war, because I liked the fishtail exhausts (which I drilled out) over the wartime cowls. I also wanted to do a bronze green finish. This was done using a 50/50 mix of Tamiya XF-5 and XF-67 over a bit of black preshading. I followed up with a Klearcoat, decals (very nice, and including lots of options; even individual numbers to make up your own registrations), and a black oil pinwash. I wanted to keep this one fairly tidy, with no heavy chipping or dents and rust, so just ground up pastels for dirt. I really struggled to get the canvas mantle cover Matt - I tried Tamiya flat and then Humbrol Mattcote varnishes, but there was still a sheen. Now I recall why I’ve used W&N Matt varnish in the past…. I had a failed attempt to remake the little lantern sight on the turret, but it was just too fiddly, so came up with the idea of a draped camo net to cover it up. The net was made from a piece of elasticated bandage which I teased out a little, soaked in diluted PVA and painted a variety of brown and green shades and sprinkled some dried parsley onto – yum. Although a bit overscale for this one, I think it looks ok, and should certainly look reasonable on 1/35 scale. I made a second, rolled one for the back deck too. The little commander figure is pretty nice and fun to paint. So all-in-all, whilst not exactly challenging miniart detail wise, a super quick build, and a pretty nice result. I may do some more of these kits.

After some major setbacks in the GB sector recently, I need a simple OOB mojo restorer. But the self-harmer in me, can't accept my limitations so... Yep it's an OOB Hetzer but from a manufacturer I know nothing about (Rubicon) in a scale 1/56 or 28mm which I've never worked in but apparently is very popular with wargamers. With wargamers in mind, they're (allegedly) quick and easy to build , with a low parts count, which should be ideal The grey has come out a lot bluer than it really is, but what I do notice is that the parts count isn't that low. 2 sets of tracks, different mantles, idler wheels and barrel if you want early, mid or late version or the limited production flamethrower variant. And different sets of tracks for the different variants. Talking of track, not sure you like rubber bands but don't want to be fiddling around with individual links? How about a single moulding? Following the @Bobby No Mac approved standard the alcohol based sizing guide is a wine cork this time out! So, plenty of choice for what is basically a wargaming token. The disappointment is in the decals and instructions department I appreciate that with complete runs of digits for number, and various size crosses and some Czech marking as well, there's no shortage in wither variant or colour scheme but the weakling is that instructions. These do a good enough job of showing what goes where and the variants but not the combinations. And the painting guide is can be hyped up to minimal at best! Hence it's going to be out of the box! Mojo, prepare to be resuscitated

Hi All. Recently completed is this Panzer IV Ausf H in 1/56 by Rubicon and was completed as part a model club group build where the kits were donated by our LMS. An odd scale and a manufacturer that I've never encountered before. I am no panzer officiado so I couldn't tell you if it's accurate or not but the instructions will tell you that F, F2, G and H versions can be built. The kit built up well with only a little filler needed. There is a jig in the kit to help you fit the turret armour. I added a scratch built box to the rear and removed one of the hull side plates to make it look a little different. Painted with AK paints. Kit decals are supplied but it's up to you to decide what and where to apply them. I think the scale of 1/56 is 28mm, so I think it's aimed at the wargamers(?) Sorry, no WIP. Stuart

Branching out a bit in my 1/56th scale vehicle collection with a 3-D printed Dorchester from these good people: https://www.ebay.co.uk/str/3dprintingvalley Nice detail and not too much obvious stepping: First thing is a base coat of good old Humbrol 33: More shortly. John

I'm waiting for some brass Besa barrels for my Comet tank so there's a gap for a quick, simple build. A Jeep seems to suit the bill: This is another of my small collection of Rubicon 1/56th scale kits. It's a wargaming miniature but nicely detailed. The kit consists of one sprue of parts and individually bagged body and canvas top parts: There's also a nice sprue of optional crew figures suitable clad for the Western Desert: Usual Rubicon high quality instructions: Generic decals: Looks like fun. John

I've been building up a small collection of Rubicon 1/56th scale models, mostly wheeled transport but including their impressive Crusader II/III. Seems like a good time to add something from the opposition: TigerTiger1 by John Walker, on Flickr I bought it especially for this GB, and also acquired the Panzer Commanders figure set. I'll be going for a Tunisian or Italian campaign vehicle. They are safely tucked away in my desk drawer at work, so I'm not tempted to jump the gun. Just hope I remember to bring them home tomorrow... John

After 3 years I’ve finally finished this 😀 Blood Pact AT70 Reaver (1/56 scale) My take on this chaos tank and infantry from the WH40K universe; specifically the Gaunts Ghosts novels. Base tank is a Bolt Action KV1 with added plastic card and brass tube; figures are Bolt Action Russians with resin bits from Victoria Miniatures, spares from the scrap pile and green stuff (grotesque masks). Tried out lots of new techniques on this - some have worked better than others but overall im pleased with how its come out

I really like these little Rubicon 1/56th scale kits for a quick and stress-free build. I've been watching out for their new M3A1 White Scout Car, one of my all-time favourite military vehicles ever since Airfix boxed the Max 1/35th scale kit back in the 1970s. One piece body moulding: 2 well detailed sprues featuring early and late styles of 0.3in Brownings and US crew figures: French, US, Chinese and Soviet markings: Rubicon's trademark high quality instruction leaflet:

We have just taken delivery of a large range of Rubicon Models 28mm (1/56) military vehicle kits. Perfect for wargamming, each kit allows for mulitple variants to be constructed. Click here to see the full range https://www.wonderlandmodels.com/brands/rubicon/

Having enjoyed building the Rubicon CMP truck I decided to try one of their armour kits and settled on the Crusader, which has long been one of my favourite tanks. You get a load of options in this kit, late MkI, MkII, MkIII, MkI/II close support or MkII/III anti-aircraft so there's a lot of parts in the box: Lovely well produced instruction leaflet: Finally there's a generic British armour decal sheet: What to build? Decisions, decisions... I might do some minor conversion work and try to build a first batch MkI with the open mantlet and Caunter camouflage. John