This is a 1/6 scale ( yes that’s correct, 1/6 scale ) DORA Railway Gun by a guy in the US called Peter Shaw. Try talking your wife into letting you build one of these in the spare room.

You can check out his photo build log on this monster HERE.

1/6 scale peter shaw dora

The mighty German “88″ or Acht-Acht is probably as well known as the Tiger Tank which is why it’s somewhat surprising that there are not that many kits of it available compared to some of the lesser known WWII vehicles. For many years in fact only the old Tamiya kit was available but over the past few years the selection has been padded out a little, but still not hugely.

So here is a look at the rather short list of the kits available.

Tamiya German 88mm FlaK 36/37 with Trailer :

The oldest of the available Flak 18/36/37 kits and although it shows its age in the lack of finer detail it still makes up into a very nice kit and with a little care and attention will turn out very nicely. You get the gun with full shield, the trailer wheels, a motorbike and nine figures in this kit. You can build this in either the deployed position with the trails down and wheels removed or in the travel position with the trails up and the wheels attached. The gun is also able to be moved up and down and turned on the base.

The gun itself has a reasonably good level of detail though it’s showing its age these days when compared to the Dragon kits.  The figures are older Tamiya figures so very simple in mould detail with rather dull faces, not really up to today’s standards. The included motorbike Zundapp KS750 is the old ( see HERE for more on the bike ).

Tamiya German 88mm FlaK 36 “North Africa Campaign” :

 A recent re-release of the above kit with some new parts to provide 8.8cm shells and four wicker ammo cases. You also get eight new figures dressed in DAK uniforms.

The moulds look to have been cleaned up with nice sharp mould detail. The figures faces are very well done now, the uniforms are better and up with current Tamiya offerings but still a little lacking in fold and crease detail in mu opinion. You still get the Zundapp KS750 which oddly still comes with the same rider in a greatcoat as the original kit which doesn’t really fit with the new DAK theme.

This is basically the original kit with new livery, though in this version you do lose the trailer bogeys so it can only be displayed deployed. Other than that like the original it still builds up into a very nice model and shouldn’t be overlooked.

AFV Club FlaK 18 :

The only kit available of the FlaK 18 which was later to be upgraded into the FlaK 36/37. Overall the gun has the same appearance but there are differences, most noticeably in the older Sd.Ah 201 wheel dollies which only had single wheels on the front.

This is a beautiful kit, very nicely moulded with a great level of detail. You can model it in either the deployed mode or the transport mode with the wheels removed and the trail arms down. The gun is fully traversable and can be elevated. The trail arms can also be folded up and down if you’re very careful with the glue when assembling them. The shield is moulded a slim as possible and has a great deal of detail. You get an aluminium barrel with rifling in this kit as well as metal parts for the balancing equilibrator cylinders. Also included are some lengths of chain and vinyl tubing t use as cabling.

The only negative if you want to call it one is the rubber wheels which have the usual mould seam around the middle which is a real pain to remove from rubber wheels. No figures are included but you do get a nice collection of decals.

Being roughly the same price as the Tamiya kit if you don’t have a preference between the FlaK 18 and the later model FlaK 36/37, and you don’t care about the figures, then this is definitely the better choice.

Dragon Models FlaK 36 with Crew :

Dragon’s first take on the mighty 88 and a very good one at that. This has a very high level of detail, the Sd.Ah 202 trailer bogies in particular having a lot of parts to them, the wheels alone being moulded in five slices each to get the maximum level of tread detail. The moulding are all very good and the level of detail is terrific. As with the others this can be displayed in either the deployed or travel mode.

You get three barrel options, the plastic barrel, an aluminium FlaK 18 barrel and an aluminum FlaK 36 barrel.  I always say you can never get too much in a kit and Dragon obviously agrees as you also get three turned brass shells, six live and six empty plastic shells,  two wooden ammo crates, four wicker ammo crates, a photo etch fret, vinyl tubing for use as cabling and decals for six different options.

That’s a lot of bits, and to top it off you also get a crew of six figures who are dressed in winter gear ( which may limit your options ) which are well moulded with good detail.

If you’re looking specifically for a FlaK 36 and you like the idea of the winter crew then this is the pick of the bunch.

Dragon Models FlaK 37 3-in-1 :

Most of this kit is the same kit as the Dragon FlaK 36 except in this kit you lose the crew and gain the parts to make a FlaK 37  ( the main difference between the 36 and 37 being the sighting equipment ). You also get three different shields to choose from, hence the 3-in-1 part of the kit. As with the FlaK 36 it can be displayed in either the deployed mode or in travel mode.

You still get the two alumium barrels ( a new version of the FlaK 18 one which is more accurate ) and all the extra bits and pieces that come in the FlaK 36 kit plus you get two metal empty shell cases, metal recuperators and equiliberators, and a bit more Photo-Etch. The wheels are also done differently in this kit, forgoing the multi slice approach for slide moulded ones that are equally good.

So the same level of detail and quality as the FlaK 36 but no crew with this one. If the crew makes a difference and you don’t care if it’s a 36 or a 37 then get the 36, otherwise if it has to be a 37 this is the one to go for.

Dragon Models FlaK 37 mit Behelfslafette :

Quite posibly the best to date. This kit takes the FlaK 37 kit above as the start point and then improves on it by adding a completely newly tooled cradle and a slide moulded barrel with rifling. That’s right, a rifled plastic barrel. You still get all the original bits so there is now two types of gun cradle and several barrels to chose from including the FlaK 18 and FlaK 36/37 aluminium ones as well as the new slide moulded version. Also still there from the earlier FlaK 37 kit are the working equilibrator mechanism and the authentic recoil action. There’s also a new travel lock and a few other parts have been updated as well.

You only get the pressed steel shield in this version but it can be configured three ways ( or left off completely ). Being mounted on a Behelfslafette cruciform platform there are no wheels or boggies in this kit, and again no crew. But what you do get is superbly moulded, beautifully detailed and accurate. And you do also still get all the accessories like the ammo and ammo cases.

If you don’t have your heart set on the boggies and you’re looking for a good late war variant then this is definitely the one to pick. In fact if price isn’t an option and you wanted an early war FlaK 37 I’d still buy this one and the FlaK 36 with crew and combine the two using the gun and cradle from this one and the carriage from the FlaK 36.

.

NB : If you know of anything we’ve missed please let us know so that we can update the list and keep it as accurate as possible.

.

1/35 flak 18, 1/35 flak 36/37, 1/35 flak 88, afv club flak 18, dragon flak 36, dragon flak 37, tamiya flak 36/37

The Shizouka Hobby Show in Japan is in two weeks time so it will be interesting to see what appears. I would be surprised if Tamiya doesn’t have anything new there as it would bve the perfecr opportunity to unvail it. As it stands they look to have their new BT-7 there so hopefully that means we’ll have images and details on it soon. Some of the Asian mainland manufacturers like Dragon should also be there too, though no idea on anything new that might be seen. Whatever there is though if it’s 1/35 scale military we’ll pop up a news update once we’ve seen what there is that’s worth mentioning.

.

shizouka hobby show

One of the things that always seems hardest to find in 1/35 scale plastic kits is a good MG and team. If you don’t believe me try finding one of the British Vickers water cooled HMG. Tamiya have given us a number of options for German MG34 and MG42 MGs but the kit they do with the Lafette tripod isn’t the most detailed. Enter this kit.

Coming in the standard Dragon open-ended box this kit comes on four sprues, one containing the four figures, one containing the Lafette tripod and MG accessories, and two containing weapons. You aren’t shortchanged on gear in this set that’s for sure.

Moulded in a light grey plastic these are all very well moulded with clear, sharp detail and a variety of faces with good expressions. Three of the four figures have moulded on straps for the gas mask containers which is something I don’t personally like as I prefer to make my own, but for those who don’t these ones are nice and thin and look very good.

Personal equipment includes the usual gas mask containers, mess tins, entrenching tools with bayonettes, canteens, bread bags and ammo pouches. You also get a MG42 maintenance kit pouch, a holstered pistol, a pair of binoculars and of course four helmets.

The Lafette tripod is very delicately moulded so care and sharp cutters are essential. It consists of seven parts including a very nicely detailed sight. On the same sprue is an ammo can made up from four parts which gives you both end and lid detail of the handles and hinges. There is also a range finder, a carry case for the scope ( Zielfernrohr 34 ) and a double case for spare barrels.

The two weapons sprues consist of two Kar98K rifles, two MP40 SMGs, two spare MP40 mags, an FG42 and mag, an MP44, a G43, an MG42 with optional open or closed bipod, and a panzerfaust. There is also another four piece ammo tin, a drum mag and a length of ammo belt.

This is a great little kit packed full of goodies, and the MG42 and Lafette make up into what I believe is the best 1/35 scale plastic kit of its kind. Definitely should be number one on the list if you’re shopping for an MG42 setup.

You can also check out a series of walkaround photos of MG42s and MG34s including a Lafette tripod HERE.

Click thumnails to enlarge image.

1/35 lafette tripod, 1/35 mg42, dragon Mg42, dragon MG42 gun team review

For those who have never browsed the Masterbox Website I thought I’d throw up some Work-In-Progress images of some of the more unique kits that Masterbox is working on. Some of these kits may take as much as a year from the first sculpts to on the shelf so there is no known release date for any of these yet, but one hopes we’ll see them within the next year.

First up is a couple of sets which depict the universal soldier’s art of foraging for food.

And then we have a couple of sets with civilians in them which are always welcome.

masterbox future releases

A reboxing of the very nice Vision Models BA-64(r) Panzerspahwagen armoured car together with the Miniart ”German Tank Crew, Winter 1943-45″ set of five figures.

miniart ba-64

Two new related kits from Bronco which are slated for release sometime in May. These will be good news for fans of Russian gear or Anti-Tank guns.

Soviet 76.2mm Ammo and Crates ( which presumably to go with the above ).

bronco new soviet gun, bronco soviet anti tank gun, bronco soviet m1936 76.2mm gun

In the pecking order of nationality popularity when it comes to kit subjects it seems to go German, American, British, Everyone Else. So finding good sets of British figures that aren’t 8th army used to be quite difficult. Of late Dragon and Tamiya have given us a few new sets and not so long ago we got this one from Masterbox which depicts a group of British Infantry meeting up with a British Commando post Normandy landings and having a ciggy break.

Coming in the usual Masterbox end-opening  box is this single dark yellow sprue containing the four figures. The mouldings are sharp and the faces have good clear detail, though a couple of the legs seem to lack enough detail in the folds and creases to my eye. There is a small ammount of flash and some minor mould seams to clean up. Fit is good with a little filling and sanding required to completely remove all join lines.

The four figures consist of three British Infantrymen ( an officer and two enlisted men ) and a single British Commando. Each figure is the usual six pieces ( head, torso, two arms, two legs ) and comes with a weapon and personal equipment.

The officer wears a beret and comes with a holstered sidearm and binoculas. His collar is moulded as a separate piece so that it can be modelled turned up and he holds a cigarette in his hands.

The Commando comes with a Sten, backpack, coiled rope, small pouch and ammo pouches and wears a soft knit cap. In his left hand he holds what is meant to be a cigarette lighter with which to light one of the other’s cigarette.

One infantryman wears a beret and comes with a Bren gun, ammo pouches, backpack, coiled rope, small satchel, and ammo pouches. He is posed holding a cigarette up to his lips.

The other infantryman wears the traditional British tin hat and comes with a SMLE rifle, backpack, bedroll, ammo pouches and canteen. Oddly he is the only one of the four with a canteen.

There is also a pick axe and a shovel which can be included in the load of either infantryman or the commando figure.

The kit also includes a sheet of decals with British/Commonwealth uniform ranks and insignias which is a handy little set to have around as it includes multiple options so nowhere near all of them will be used on these figures.

Assembly and painting instructions are provided on the reverse of the box giving the paint numbers for Vallejo, Tamiya, Lifecolour, Humbrol and Agama paints.

This kit is nicely detailed despite the need to tidy ip the mouldings a little, and as with many kits of this ilk it could do with minor details added such as weapons slings, lanyards and bag straps but neither of those points should detract from what makes up into a nice little vignette that would look good in any post Normandy setting.

Click thumbnails to enlarge image.

masterbox british troops caen review

This set of individual link tracks is intended to replace the kit tracks supplied with the recent Tamiya Matilda II. Whilst the link and length tracks that Tamiya provide are good, these are better with the Tamiya links having knock out holes on all the track parts and solid guide horns where-as this set from Bronco has the proper hollow guide horns and no knockout holes anywhere.

You get enough links to make up the two runs of 71 links for each track plus another 26 spare links, each link being made up of two parts. For those not of a mathematical bent that means a total of  336 parts which arrive on six matching dark yellow sprues. That’s a lot of parts, but well worth the offort because these are designed to be workable which gives you the look of real tracks when mounted. Though I should point out that care with the glue is essential during assembly so as not to glue up the pins that keep these movable when assembled.

Instructions are provided on the revese of the box with a combination of exploded line drawings and computer generated images.

These are a great little set of tracks which not only cost a lot less than Modelkasten or Friuls but also look the part in enhancing the Tamiya Matilda II.

Click on thumbnails to enlarge image.

bronco matilda tracks review

Late in 1944 to address the issue of allied air superiority the Germans looked for a replacement for the 3.7cm Mobelwagen and came up with two variants, both built on the Pz.Kpfw IV chassis, the Ostwind mounting a single barrelled 3.7cm FlaK 43 and the Wirbelwind mounting the four barreled 2cm Flakvierling 38. The prototype Wirbelwind saw action during the Ardennes offensive with 1st SS LSSAH and returned afterwards to the factory unscathed.

This kit of the Wirbelwind from Academy comes in a tray and lid style box containing five sprues, upper hull and hull tub all moulded in a sandy yellow plastic. This kit is essentially a direct copy of the early Tamiya Wirbelwind kit, right down to the mountings for the remote control motor, and as such has the same level of detail. In fact the only immediately noticeable difference between the two kits is the lighter coloured sprues of the Academy kit. The detail is sharp and although the level of detail provided is a little simplified in places and missing in others ( open sponsons for example ) the quality of the moulds is good.

The hull is a simple assembly, the driver’s and Radio Operator’s hatches are separate, the engine hatches are moulded in place with open slatted grilles which means you’ll need to block them out underneath to prevent being able to see right through to the empty engine bay. There is no interior to the tank which can be seen through the bottom of the turret which will require this area to have some sort of basic floor scratchbuilt, or at least have the interior painted black to avoid it being easily seen.

The turret is overscale in thickness, though this is more a case of injection moulded plastic not having the capability to mould these thin enough to be true to scale. Thinning the exposed edges will at least give the illusion of scale thickness. There is no interior detail to the turret ( not that they had a lot of interior detail ) other than the ammo stowage racks for the guns which as mentioned are relocated from the gun kit which is sort of cheating as the gun should still have eight a side plus an additional two racks of eight mounted to the turret walls.

The 2cm Flakvierling 38 gun being a copy of the Tamiya gun has a reasonable level of detail with a few minor issues such as the ammo bins on either side ( which in this kit have been mounted on the turret walls rather than the gun platform ) having room for seven mags rather than the correct eight.  As the sprues for the gun were just the standalone kit of the Flakvierling 38 when Tamiya included them in their Wirbelwind kit, and as this kit is a copy of that kit then you still get the gun shields in this kit even though they aren’t used.

The suspension set up is very simple with each suspension unit moulded as one piece so will require a little surgery if you with to reposition any of the wheels to be going over uneven ground. The tracks are single length vinyl “rubber band” style tracks. Academy do make an inexpensive set of individual link tracks suitable for this vehicle which are available separately.

You get a four man gun crew with this kit, a seated gunner, two seated loaders and a standing commander, all looking skyward. Again as with the rest they are a direct copy of the figures in the Tamiya version. As the Tamiya crew were one of their earlier offerings the moulds were a bit heavy and the faces lacked any form of individuality or expression and so it is with the Academy clones. They aren’t terrible figures but nor are they up with the current level of quality and detail we now expect. They all come dressed in winter gear which means you’re limited to a winter 44-45 setting, perhaps in the Ardennes as mentioned above.

The decals provided in this kit are a major let down, consisting solely of three standard German Balkankreuz crosses. I realise that finding unit markings for these vehicles would be difficult when this kit was first produced but a selection of optional possible unit insignias and markings would have been a nice touch that Academy missed.

The Dragon kit is definitely the best Wirbelwind kit currently available in 1/35, with the Trumpeter one second, but both of those will cost two to three times the price of the Academy kit so you get what you pay for. This one at the end of the day makes up into a nice model ( and being a copy of the Tamiya kit it makes more sense to buy this one if chosing between the two as it’s usually cheaper than it’s Tamiya twin ) albeit lacking in some of the finer details and with some of the detail that is there a little heavy in places.

Click thumbnails to enlarge image.

1/35 Wirbelwind, Academy Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind review

Great kit with a lot of detail including a full engine, weapons, a driver and Rommel.

Was $179.95, website only clearance price $129.95

And don’t forget to check out our other “Website Only Sale Deals”  HERE

No tags

This is intended to just be a very simple introduction to using weathering pigments for those who are new to them, or never used them at all for that matter.

In simple terms weathering pigments are fine powders and pastes which are used to add final touches to the finish of completed models such as dusts, rust, oil stains, burn marks, dirt stains, water streaks etc. – or in other words weather and wear effects. Some come as a fine powder such as the best known MIG pigments, others like the Tamiya weathering sets are a paste like substance, which to quote my wife “looks like make-up”. If we were to be honest for a moment that’s almost exactly what it is, it’s adding make-up to your models to enhance them.

You can also make your own pigments using pastels and chalks but make sure you use good quality artists brands available from good art supply stores ( in New Zealand places like Whitcoulls and Gordon Harris are two that I know of ). These are simply ground up into a fine powder, I use a kitchen mortar and pestel designed for grinding herbs etc that came from Farmers for about $10. That’s it, you then have weathering pigments, cheap and easy.

BEFORE - Unpainted bare kit

There are three main ways to apply them. Brushed, rubbed, and painted.

Brushing involves simply applying the pigments with a soft brush. This gives a light covering so sometimes you may need to build up layers. This method is the least resilient and can be removed easily, sometimes unintentionally, but it gives the best result for light coverings of dust and dirt. Done this way the pigments will come off if handled too much and will also register fingerprints so careful handling is essential.

Rubbing involves using your finger tip or an applicator. Applicators can be earbuds ( q-tips ), pieces of sponge or even make-up eye shadow applicators. When using this method you are pressing and rubbing the pigment onto the surface creating a dark, more pronounced and more permanent result. This works best for things like rusts and burnt areas as well as ingrained dirt, soot, and dried oil streaks. Pigments applied in this manner are more resilient to handling but care should still be taken.

Painting on pigments involves adding a little water or artists turps to make a paint-like finish which is then applied with a brush or sponge applicator. This method is best for applying rain streaking, rust stains, oil stains and the like. When painting on pigments consider the type of finish it is going onto, use water to thin where turps will damage the paint finish. This allows you to remove the weathering easily if you’re not happy with the result.

AFTER - Very quick application of pigments

Whatever method you use, care should always be taken not to handle pigments too much as they are as easy to remove as they are to put on. This is actually one of their good points as if you think you’ve overdone it you can take it back a little, or if you’re not happy with it at all you can remove them completely and start again. Just make sure that when you remove them you use only a clean soft cloth or, if some kind of moisture is needed, try to stick to water so as not to damage the finished coat of the model. Earbuds are perfect for fine tuning, preferably the ones that have one rounded end and one pointed end.

If you’re new to it practise on some scrap parts or an old model, start light and build up, it’s always preferable to add more than put on too much and have to take it off. Play around with colours and combinations of colours, no amount of online advice can ever substitute for practising it yourself.

So that in a nutshell is the basics of using weathering powders. Give it a go, you’ll be amazed at the effect something as simple as a light rubbing or road dirt on a set of tanks road wheels can acheive ( the photos above were a before and after on a practice model that hasn’t been painted and shows a quick two minute application of dirt and mud using a mix of wet and dry MIG pigments ).

weathering pigments

An unusual and interesting subject and presumably much cheaper than the present resin offerings. And yes it is in 1/35 scale so you can start planning those wharfside and abandoned in a shallow inlet dioramas.

bronco seehund midget submarine

Taken at the recent MOTAT Military day. ( Click on Thumbnails to enlarge image ).

valentine tank photos, valentine tank walkaround

Miniart continues to delve into areas of small accessories that were previously only served by resin manufacturers like MK35 Editions and Plus Models, this time bringing us a basic little kit that will none-the-less be a handy addition for many a diorama.

1/35 farm cart, 1/35 hay cart, miniart farm cart, miniart news