Eduard etch sets for Trumpeter 1:200 DKM Bismarck final lot.

[Shar2]

DKM Battleship Bismarck

1:200 Etch sets Eduard

Eduard have now released the last of their sets for the big Trumpeter 1:200 Bismarck. These are sets 7 and 8 plus a set of Kriegsmarine officers. Set 7 is in the large format, with the fret being about 210mm x 134mm, whilst the other two are have smaller frets of 140mm x 78mm and 114mm x 70mm.

Part 7- (53-086) provides fittings for the ships AA guns, including the 105mm, 37mm, both types of single 20mm and the quad 20mm mounts. The 105mm mounts receive new hand rails all over, new fittings for the fuse setting machine and details for the breech block. The 37mm cannon receive new footplates, traversing and elevating wheels. The amount of detail for the 20mm varies, the single standard 20mm mount receiving replacement pintle magazine rack, expended cartridge basket, hand wheel, sight and shoulder guards, whilst the flak 20mm C/30 style mount has replacement hand holds, hand wheels and ammunition box holder. The quad flakvierling C/38 20mm mounting receives a new gun shield, cross bracing on the top and a new gun sight.

The set also includes crew for each gun with the exception of the quad 20mm, the majority being for the 37mm guns with two men manning the mount whilst two men carry shells to load the guns. The single 20mm guns each get an operator and there is a spotter with a pair of binoculars.

Part 8 – (53-090), this set consists of just one of the larger format sheets and provides all the railings for use on the superstructure for the upper deck and above. Some are plain whilst others have a canvas dodger fitted. They up to the usual high standard that Eduard seem to consistently achieve and will add greatly to the look of the completed model.

Kriegsmarine Officers (53-087), is another small fret of pre-painted self adhesive figures which will help with populating the ship along with the deck crew set. They still look very odd on the fret, but once they are folded and stuck, at least they will have some scale thickness, although as mentioned with the deck crew set I still not convinced of their effectiveness.

Conclusion
With these sets Eduard have now completed the releases for detailing and manning the mighty Bismarck kit. How much the modeller uses is entirely up to them, although you will need to buy at least three or four sets for a reasonable job. I may be a bit cynical with the way Eduard have approached this in releasing so many sets, none of which can do the job on their own. I would have liked to have seen more targeted and fewer sets, which may have been larger, but the modeller would only have needed to buy one set to achieve their desired level of detail. They may do this in the Big Ed series. I can still recommend them highly as they are really well produced and will make quite a difference to the completed model, even though the workload will go up exponentially.

Review sample courtesy of