MiniArt US Army G7107 4x4 1.5t Cargo Truck (35380) 1:35

[Mike]

US Army G7107 4x4 1.5t Cargo Truck (35380)

1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd

 

 

The Chevrolet G506 truck formed the basis of a range of 4x4 load-carrying vehicles that were capable of carrying up to 1.5 tonnes of cargo, men or equipment.  They were initially made under the 4100 code, then were renamed as the 7100 series, and usually had a standard enclosed cab, with a 3.9L straight-6 engine under the bonnet, and a four-speed “crash” (non-syncromesh) gearbox putting out a little over 80hp through all four wheels.  It rapidly became the Allies’ standard light truck, and served in substantial quantities on the Western Front, the Soviets on the Eastern Front, and the forces fighting Japan in the Far East.  There were plenty of variants, some in US Army service, others in USAAF service, with almost 50,000 of two specific types, the G7107 and G7117 sent over to the Soviets in large numbers under the Lend/Lease program.

 

The G7017 had a cargo bed with canvas top, while the G7117 was the same except for the addition of a winch to give it some static pulling power.  They were well-liked by their drivers and crews from all the Allies forces, and were adapted to other tasks due to their ubiquity.

 

 

The Kit

This is a brand-new tooling from MiniArt, and is the first kit of a range that is coming to your favourite model shop very soon.  It’s a full interior kit, with engine, cab and load area all included along with some very nice moulding and detail, particularly in the cab and those chunky tyres.  It arrives in one of MiniArt’s medium-sized top-opening boxes, and inside are twenty-nine modular sprues in grey styrene, a clear sprue, Photo-Etch (PE) sheet in a card envelope, a tiny bag with some metal chain within, a wide decal sheet and glossy instruction booklet with colour profiles on the front and rear pages.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Construction begins with the ladder chassis, which has leaf-springs fore and aft, cross-braces and rear towing eye fitted to create the structure, then has the fuel tank, PE rear bumper irons folded around a styrene jig, and axles installed, before the brake drums/hubs, battery and external brackets are added to the chassis rails.  The transfer box and drive-shaft join the two axles together, and a steering linkage and box are inserted into the front of the chassis, then the engine is built up based on the straight six-cylinder block, with carburettor, dynamo and transmission added, plus the pulleys and fan at the front.  The engine and substantial front bumper iron are fitted to the chassis, and at the rear a short additional chassis rail and stowage area are attached to the frame at the rear behind the fuel tank.  The exhaust and its manifold slip into the underside of the chassis from below, with linkages and axle brackets fitted to the rails.

 

The crew cab is next, beginning with the firewall and forward sidewalls.  The roof and windscreen frame are moulded as one, with a headliner insert and rear-view mirror that are inserted within, and the three-part radiator housing is made to be used later.  The firewall and roof are joined with some of the dash pots fixed to the engine side of the firewall, while the doors and their interior cards are assembled with their handles and window winders, plus the clear window glass that can be posed open or closed at your whim.  The dashboard inserts into the front bulkhead with seven decals for the instruments and stencils on the glove box.  The diagonal foot panel is joined with the firewall and decked out with three foot pedals and the steering wheel on a long column that slides through a hole in front of the pedals. The driver and co-driver share a bench seat that is made up on the floor from back, cushion and a C-shaped surround that fits round the rear of the cab back wall, with small ovalised window and PE mesh grille fitted later.  The roof and firewall assembly are fitted, with the doors installed within the frame in the open or closed position.  The windscreen is two panes of clear in a styrene frame that is posed open or closed later on.  The cab and radiator are both placed on the chassis and the engine cowling side panels fit between them with a choice of two styles of front wing/fender included on the right side and just one on the left, which needs a hole drilling in the rear.  The aforementioned windscreen has a pair of PE brackets and styrene wingnuts that are installed either vertically for closed, or at an angle for open, with a scrap diagram showing the correct orientation of the various parts.

 

The spare tyre is placed on a bracket near the exhaust, and the front of the vehicle has its headlights with clear lenses plus sidelights fitted to the wings, and PE windscreen wipers hung from the top of the frame, then the front grille is built.  You may have noticed that this doesn’t appear on the sprues, and there’s a good reason for that.  It is constructed completely from PE, and two jigs are included on the sprues to assist with obtaining the correct shape.  The lower rail and curved side panels are made up on one jig from a single piece of PE, while the centre panel is folded up on another, then they’re joined together ready to be attached to the front of the engine bay.  There are two brackets stretched across the front of the radiator, and another small curved section is added to the left of the grille as it is glued in place with the help of some CA.  The hood/bonnet is able to be fitted open or closed with two styles of clasp and in the open option, a PE stay is provided.  Two tie-down hooks are fixed to the front bumper iron too.

 

The load bed floor is a single moulding with a ribbed texture on the underside, and a thick rear section with hooks, separate rear lights and moulded-in reflectors.  The shallow sides and front have separate frames and a series of tie-down hooks fixed along their lengths, with PE closures and chains on the rear gate that can also be fitted open or closed.  The four rear mudguards are kept at the correct angles by PE brackets, and on one side a pioneer toolkit is lashed to a frame with PE fixings holding an axe, pick axe, and spade.  The load bed is joined to the chassis along with the toolkit on the right side of the flatbed.  It’s time for the wheels to be made up, with singles at the front, each made from two parts each, and twin wheels at the rear, made up much earlier in the instructions for some reason.  Each wheel slips over its respective axle, with the hub projecting through the central hub.

 

The kit comes with a stack of eight barrels to be made up of two types, both of which are made from two halves with end caps that are glued in with the embossed writing on the inside, and adding a separate filler cap for some of them.  In addition, an American Army driver/loader figure is included on his own sprue, wearing overalls and a shoulder holster, wearing a woollen cap on his head and leather spats over his boots.  He is made up from individual legs, torso, head and arms, plus the holster with the handle of his pistol showing round the retention strap.

 

 

Markings

There are four markings options on the decal sheet, all of which are green, but one is covered in sand coloured bean-shaped camouflage over the top.  From the box you can build one of the following:

 

• 12th Air Force, 86th FBG, Kobra North, Cape Bon Peninsula, Tunisia, 1943
• 1st Sig Battalion, 1st Armoured Corps (7th Army), Sicily, Italy, 1943
• US Military Police, 7th Army, France, 1944
• US Army Service Forces, 9th Service Command, January 1945

 

 

 

Decals are printed by MiniArt’s usual partners 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

We seem to be blessed with new kits of the Chevrolet G7107 truck in 1:35 recently, which was ubiquitous during WWII on the Eastern and Western fronts as well as the Far East, where it played an important but unsung role in the defeat of the Nazis and the Axis, lugging weapons, ammunition, men and supplies to the front and sometimes back again.

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of

[Yorkshire man]

This is a good book to accompany this kit

https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/U-S-Army-Chevrolet-Trucks-in-World-War-II-by-Didier-Andres/9781612008639

[Julien]

14 hours ago, Yorkshire man said:

This is a good book to accompany this kit

https://blackwells.co.uk/bookshop/product/U-S-Army-Chevrolet-Trucks-in-World-War-II-by-Didier-Andres/9781612008639

We did actually review that book direct from the publisher. Its also cheaper direct from them ATM