Introduction
When it comes to MiniArt, I still consider figures to be their bread and butter offerings. One of the latest figure sets from them is titled German Tank Crew Kharkov 1943.This set displays well how poorly the German military was equipped for a winter war in the east, and that is with this group being better supplied than many to cope with the cold. So let’s take a look at what is provided in this release.
Review
This offering from MiniArt, arrives in the standard end opening card carton, with an artwork on the front, and assembly and painting instructions on the rear. This type of end opening carton is one of the few things that I do not like about MiniArt figures, as they are not very robust. Inside is a single plastic bag that contains all of the sprues, and there is a further bag in there with the resin heads in it.
This offering from MiniArt provides four figures, three of these are stood upright and one is sitting. The figure kind of makes me think of the German version of the Fury tank crew, and also says ‘I do not care what I look like as I am warmer than you’. This highlights how poorly looked after the German soldier was during Eastern Winters.
All of the figures are wearing the reversible trousers and so can be white or field grey depending on what the modeller wants rather than what the instructions indicate; all of the figures also have scarfs that can be seen to various degrees.. Only one of the figures is wearing the cold weather reversible jacket; the jacket is bulky and makes the figure look out of scale but that is not the case. I believe that beneath this the figure has the standard German jacket with the long folded pleats down the front that has been fully closed up making it look unusual. Finally this figure is wearing a Ushanka which is an aspect I really liked to see.
The officer in the group is the most presentable of them all while still offering a lived in look. The figure has a nicely replicated lamb’s wool lined leather Gilet/Jerkin; I cannot help but think the painting of this item will make or break this figure. Finally the peaked officer’s hat is being worn and has all of the needed detail replicated. The stance is a little odd with this one as the left leg is bent at the knee and the toe of the boot is higher than the ground would be.
The next figure I looked over is one that suits a tank crew best of all as it is in a sitting position holding a headset in his hands. This figure is wearing the standard jacket with the lapels in the orientation we are familiar with seeing. This figure has the bulky winter mittens that I believe would have been obtained from Soviet forces. The forage cap makes a showing here and as with the uniform the Insignia is present on the needed locations, but I wish MiniArt would take the step of supplying decals with their figure sets.
The final figure is stood in a semi relaxed guard pose and of all of the figures in the set this one would make a great stand alone figure. This one has the standard uniform jacket under the lamb’s wool lined leather Gilet/Jerkin. Binoculars are hung around the neck and the figure is holding an MP40. This figure has the standard steel helmet and is the one item I would not want to wear in cold weather conditions
The hand and finger detail meets with my approval even though all of the figures are wearing gloves and one mittens. The faces in plastic are fine in my opinion and will only need to be given a clean up. The resin heads are not hugely superior to the plastic ones but will not need the clean up judging by the contents of this sample, as such the choice is yours.
Weapons and Equipment
MiniArt has supplied some great extras with this offering that any modeller would be glad to have to hand. You get two identical weapons sprues cover personal weaponry that provides the modeller with hand guns, machine guns and rifles. Along with the weapons you also get the ammunition pouches for the weapons and in the case of the hand guns holsters. I like the detail on the parts provided, but I would have liked the muzzles of the weapons to have been slide moulded as the binoculars are.
The last sprue in this offering is a true bonus that only uses one of the steel helmets of which there are several supplied; however there are also items such as:
Entrenchment tools
Bayonets
Bread bags
Gasmask cases
Mess tins
Water canteens
All of these items have value to the vignette, diorama and figure modeller; even the modeller that sticks to vehicles will find these extras a great plus for many uses.
Conclusion
I have read a number of books written from the words of soldiers fighting on both sides in the east during World War 2; one thing that is common on the German side is that Soviet winter uniform was a prized resource. The quilted trousers and jackets were taken from the dead with troops even risking creeping out between the lines to obtain the items. One of the most prized items was the winter footwear of the Soviet forces and it is this aspect of the winter battles I would have liked to see more of in this offering. With that said there is some of the detail included.