MiniArt Road Signs WWII Italy (35611) 1:35

[Mike]

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

[JohnT]

No ubiquitous sign  -  "arrow points left BERLIN 1502km  arrow points right NEW YORK 6891 km" etc  

 

Still a handy wee set for the diorama enthusiasts and for the Italy campaign.  Mind you Mark Clark certainly knew the road that lead to Rome right enough.  Couldn't get there fast enough with the press pack.  Me bad and being naughty again.  Where is that naughty step?

[Mike]

1 minute ago, JohnT said:

Where is that naughty step?

I think you know...