Two companies, in particular have given new life to 1/35th scale WW2 Soviet Armor -
DML with their excellent T34s and
Trumpeter with their recent decision to produce the KV series. Added to that is the increasingly large selection of good reference material from Russia, Poland and the Czech Republic. In after-market material such as PE sets and replacement barrels, these countries are also turning out some superb material. This set (the first of two reviews) comes from the Polish AM producer
ARMO..
Armo's Decal Sheet...
Armo 35408 - KV tanks family vol.1 is a 13 X 18cm sheet which contains markings for a total of twenty vehicles. Not all however are KV tanks, one is for an SU-152. The contents of this sheet are as follows:
1. KV-1B late. Unit unknown. Stalingrad, 1942.
2. KV-1 C. 73rd Guard Armoured Regiment. Karelian Front, Spring 1944.
3. KV-8. 503rd Independent Flamethrower Battalion. Volkhow Front,Summer 1942.
4. KV-1 B. 3rd Guard Armoured Brigade. May 1942.
5. KV-1 s. 5th Guard Heavy Tank Regiment. Stalingrad, December 1942.
6. KV-1. 8th Armoured Division, 4th Mechanized Korps.South-Western Front, Juni 1941.
7. SU-152. 1539th Heavy Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment. 2nd Baltic Front, Spring 1944.
8. KV-1 A. Pavlov’s Armoured Group. February 1943.
9. KV-1 E. 1st Armoured Division. Allakurti, Northern Front, July 1941.
10. KV-1 s. Tank Column “Aleksandr Serafimovich”. 1942.
11. KV-1 B. 116th Armoured Brigade. Voronesh Front, Summer 1942.
12. KV-1. Unit unknown. Leningrad, Autumn 1942.
13. KV-1 C. 52nd Armoured Brigade. Trans-Caucasian Front. September 1942.
14. KV-1 C. 12th Guard Armoured Regiment, 1st Motorized Division. Western Front, February
1942.
15. KV-1 s. 260th Guard Armoured Regiment. Leningrad Front, Karelian Isthmus, June 1944.
16. KV-1 s. Unit unknown. Summer 1943.
17. KV-1. 104th Armoured Division. Western Front, Luga area, Juni 1941.
18. KV-1 C. Unit unknown, 1942.
19. KV-1 C. 135th Armoured Brigade. Tsimlianskaya, North- Caucasian Front, Summer 1942.
20. KV-85. 1452nd Self-Propelled Artillery Regiment. Crimea, April 1944.
Unfortunately, not all of the variants covered in this sheet are availble yet in kit form (or at least to
Trumpeter 'standard') although there are an increasing number of conversion sets available which will keep the 'twitching' at bay until the
Trumpeter KV-85s & KV1s' make their appearance.
Print quality and definition is excellent on the sheet is excellent with just the smallest 'excess' of carrier film. Color definition is good and the 'whites' are excellent (my poor-quality images notwithstanding)...
What
IS something of a letdown are the instruction sheets. These consist of two (photocopied) A4 sheets which, although they show the positioning well enough, simply don't add anything to what is otherwise a VERY well produced sheet. The numeration of the vehicle variants also uses the German designation (B,C, etc.) which although easy enough to follow is
not the correct designation...
Conclusions....
Twenty KV variants is a lot, however as this works out at 30 cents or so per vehicle, the conclusion is that this is a bargain. Admittedly, we are talking only turret markings, but it is still remarkable value. Having checked my references, the vehicles are well-documented as well and I have little doubt that these will stimulate the modeller to do something a little different from the basic kit markings. Apart from the instruction sheets, this is a superbly executed and high-quality product. The quantity of vehicles acts as an added impulse to Bulid, Build, Build those KVs!!!
VERY Highly Recommended...
Availability etc...
Armo's products are distributed from
Jadar Model in Poland, from where I purchased these. Their excellent website/on-lijne store, can be seen:
Jadar Hobby Store
The other review (part 2), can be seen:
HERE...
