MiniArt 1:35 Scale British Tank Crew Winter Uniform Building kit (Multi-Colour),Small

Product Information

On the 19th of February 1943, the II SS Panzer Corps and two panzer armies under the command of Field Marshal Erich von Manstein launched their counterstrike on the Eastern Front, aimed to recapture Kharkov and Belgorod. With extensive air support from Luftflotte 4, in two weeks the German Army defeated the Red Army south of Kharkov and was able to directly engage the city on the 11th of March. After four days of house-to-house fighting, Kharkov was recaptured by the 1st SS Panzer Division on March the 15th. This series of battles is known as the Third Battle of Kharkov, which cost the Red Army over 80,000 casualties. Bevin Alexander, a military historian, called the Third Battle of Kharkov "the last great victory of German arms in the Eastern Front". Around the waist the figure wears a 37 pattern belt with a RAC Corps Mk I pistol holster. This is the style with the long thigh strap and the leg tie down and open toped pistol holster. The strap and a pistol lanyard are moulded to the right leg, as is the tie down. The holster and pistol handle come as a separate item and are quite well depicted and a small ammo pouch is once again included.

There are some differences between the Box Art and the Figures. Figure A is shown with his sleeves slightly rolled up, but the figure actually has full length sleeves. Three of the crew have the early style Mk I pistol holster with the long thigh strap. Although still used by some individuals, this style had by 1944 given way to the shortened thigh strap of the Mk II holster. One kayak was damaged while being deployed from the submarine, and it and its crew therefore could not take part in the mission. Only two of the 10 men who launched from the submarine survived the raid: Hasler, and his number two in the kayak, Bill Sparks. Of the other eight, six were executed by the Germans and two died from hypothermia. To complete the figure is a separate head complete with beret and goggles. The face and beret are well done, and this chap sports a moustache, the box art showing him with Officers brown boots. In the period between 1943 and 1945 the Feldgendarmerie were infamously known for chasing and executing deserters, many of which were wrongfully convicted. This gave the units a bad name "Kettenhunde" or "Chained Dogs" after the gorget they wore with their uniforms. The figures are contained on 2 sprues that come sealed in a clear plastic bag. Also in the box is a small paper insert depicting the sprue parts and numbers corresponding to the build instructions on the reverse of the box.

This figure depicts a crewman in the process of mounting a tank via the front glacial plate. The example I’ve see him used on was a Sherman. The figure consists of 9 parts; arms, legs, upper body, head and beret with pistol holster and pouch. This product is available in two scales, 1:35 and 1:24 and was painstakingly designed from scratch as a digital model.

I hope I was some help. A couple of years ago I painted the two Alpine British Tankers and I was happy with the way the colors came out. To complete the figure is a separate head, tankers helmet and goggles. The head has quite good facial features, the addition of a tankers helmet and goggles a nice touch, as are the earphones. Following on from that, here is an In Box look at the first set of 1/35 plastic injection Tank Crew figures, the first generic set of British/Commonwealth plastic Tankers ever as far as I know. This figure depicts a crewman in a sitting position with the left leg designed to be inside a tank and the right leg bent resting on the cupola edge. The example I’ve see him used on was also a Sherman. The figure consists of 10 parts; arms, separate left hand. legs, upper body, head complete with beret, with a pistol holster and separate earphones.

In-Boxed: 35th scale Jagdpanzer 38(t) Early Production w/Interior from Takom

Around the waist the figure wears a 37 pattern belt with a RAC Corps Mk II pistol holster. This is the style with the holster flap. This set contains 56 parts moulded in light grey plastic. Depicted on the box top is a nice colour image of the 5 painted figures signed A Kapawyk (Andrey Karaschuk) 2008 whom I assume sculpted the figures, but that is a guess on my part. On the bottom is a very clear colour building and painting guide. Painting suggestions cover 8 of the more well know paint manufacturers paints which is a nice touch. The box measures 10” by 6 1/2” approx which is quite large and seems the standard size used by MiniArt for their figures. To complete the figure is a separate head complete with beret. This head also has reasonably good facial detail, and to add to the head you get 2 separate earphones. Whether you are building a stand alone vehicle or a small diorama these figures should prove very useful for the British/Commonwealth modeller and are a great plus to the range of 1/35 plastic figures currently available. Dissolved after the First World War, the Feldgendarmerie were reintroduced in 1933 when Hitler seized power. Personnel were trained in a special military school in Potsdam. Due to strict training conditions and high demands placed on the candidates, only a small number of soldiers managed to graduate and join the force.