ICM Infantry Weapons & Chevrons (35749) 1:35 Armed Forces of Ukraine

[Mike]

Infantry Weapons & Chevrons (35749)

of the Armed Forces of Ukraine

1:35 ICM via H G Hannants Ltd

 

 

Since the invasion of Ukraine by Russian forces in early 2022, the brave people and armed forces of Ukraine have been fighting to preserve the integrity of their young country, and as such many of their number have been engaged in combat, something many of them would never have expected to experience in their lifetimes.  Ukraine has a historic cache of arms from the Soviet era, and has also received a great deal of new hardware from other nations to bring up their level of equipment to more modern standards, as well as increasing the numbers that are needed to effectively defend their territory, and to reclaim those areas that have been unlawfully removed from their stewardship by the invader.  They are coping well with the disparity of types of armaments that they have at their disposal, making effective use of them in their operations.

 

The Soviet era gear includes AK47 and AK74 variants, heavier machine guns such as the PKM, various RPGs and MANPADs, with similar equipment from the US and other countries finding their way into their inventory, such as the devastating Browning .50cal, AR-15 derivatives, and even an updated MG42 variant manufactured by Beretta, which is still an effective weapon that is the basis for the German MG3 machine gun found in Bundeswehr service today.

 

 

The Kit

This set contains dozens of weapons such as those mentioned above, plus more of varying sizes and usage cases, which can be found on eight sprues of grey styrene in various sizes.  There is also a large decal sheet that has a huge array of unit badges, flag patches, rank slides and so forth that are separated between units and arms, and an instruction booklet that is printed in spot colour, with a full-colour cover that has the badge/chevron key on both sides of the rear cover.  Detail is excellent, as we’ve come to expect from ICM, and the instructions for each type of weapon has a key that gives the names/designations for those that aren’t familiar.  The following are supplied in the box:

 

• AK-74 Assault Rifle with GP-25 Grenade Launcher
• Malyuk Assault Rifle with Silencer
• Malyuk Assault Rifle
• AKS-74 Assault Rifle
• AKS-74 Assault Rifle with Silencer & Telescopic Stock
• AKS-74U Assault Rifle
• AK-47 Assault Rifle
• AK-47 Assault Rifle with GP-25 Grenade Launcher
• RPG-18 Grenade Launcher
• AK-74 Assault Rifle
• FN FAL 50.61 Automatic Rifle
• SOG Knife in Sheath
• Glock Knife in Sheath
• FORT Pistol in Holster
• Beretta Pistol in Polymer Paddle Holster
• UAR-10 Sniper Rifle
• UAR-15 Automatic Rifle
• FIM-92 Stinger Man-Portable Anti-Aircraft Missile System
• RPG-7 Grenade Launcher with Grenade
• PKM Machine Gun
• M2 Browning Heavy Machine Gun
• AGS-17 Automatic Grenade Launcher with Drum Mag and Tripod
• SPG-9 Tripod Mounted Grenade Launcher
• Beretta MG42/59 Machine Gun with Bipod, link ammo & box
• Stugna-P Anti-Tank Complex on Tripod with Remote Controller
• 2 x FPV Drones with Pelican Carry Boxes
• Maxim Machine Gun on two-wheeled carriage, with ammo can and link

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Construction of the weapons are straight forward, whilst some are single parts.  A few have multiple parts, which are shown either in one step, or up to eleven simple steps for larger items such as the Stugna-P and its associated equipment.

 

 

Markings

The weapons colours are called-out in red-boxed letter codes on the instruction diagrams, and the box art shows some examples of camouflaged rifles, but checking the many references from this ongoing conflict should give you plenty of choices.  The decals are for the many units of Ukraine’s armed forces, and can be used for figures, checking your references for the correct locations.  They are as follows:

 

 

 

The decals are printed using a digital process and have good registration, sharpness, and colour density, with a thin gloss carrier film cut loosely around the printed areas.  This means that the carrier film on their decals can be coaxed away from the printed part of the decal after they have been applied, effectively rendering them carrier film free, making the completed decals much thinner and more realistic, and obviating the need to apply successive coats of clear varnish to hide the edges of the carrier film.  It’s a great step further in realism from my point of view, and saves a good quantity of precious modelling time into the bargain.

 

 

Conclusion

A perfect accompaniment to any Ukrainian-themed model or diorama, either for background equipment, or to re-equip figures that have been re-assigned to fight for Ukraine from other figure sets.  The decals will also be a huge benefit in terms of authenticity and realism, as the carrier film can be gently peeled away after application, leaving a conformal decal that’s in-scale with the model.

 

Highly recommended.

 

Available in the UK from importers H G Hannants Ltd.

 

Review sample courtesy of