Introduction
The following introduction is as supplied by ICM:
The full-scale fighting that began in February 2022 had several stages. One of the most difficult was the summer of 2022, when the Armed Forces of Ukraine held back enemy strike groups in the South and North-East. The territories where direct clashes took place were actively mined, as a result of which the places of hostilities were saturated with hundreds of thousands of anti-personnel and anti-tank mines. Besides them, aircraft bombs, mortar shells and ammunition that did not get stuck and did not explode remain in the ground. Demining, engineering intelligence and installation of mine-explosive barriers are engaged in combat engineer units of the Armed Forces of Ukraine. Most Ukrainian sappers are universal specialists who are able to perform a wide range of tasks. Their work is needed everywhere, they work in different areas of hostilities and provide engineering support for many units. Sappers perform assigned tasks not only in the second echelon of defense, but also on the line of direct clashes, in front of combat positions. Also to find explosive objects sappers help dogs.
Review
ICM have provided a rigid flap lidded cardboard box with an additional separate card lid with the box art; this approach has resulted in a packaged model that should survive any reasonable handling the world’s postal services throw at it. The contents of the model are inside a single re-sealable plastic bag with the clear sprue and tyres in their own bags but packed inside the main bag and with all these in the same package it does result in some bowing of the sprues. It does however prevent movement of the parts and so avoids damage in most cases. The figures released with this offering are packaged separately , also a driver for the Zil is provided with some mines and wooden boxes.
A good look over the various injection moulded parts is pleasing for the most part. I did not locate any short shots or broken parts here, there are a lot of flow lines present on the larger mouldings, but none of these look or feel to have caused any issues that will need to be tackled. One thing there are quite a few of are ejector pin marks that will ideally be addressed by the modeller. One positive on the ejector pin marks is that most of them are recessed rather than proud and so easier to deal with in my opinion.
Shock horror the chassis is a multi-part assembly; this is an ICM kit and so what did you expect. In truth I really like how ICM tackles the chassis of their models as it allows this area to be faithfully replicated and provides the modeller an easy way to add any upgrades or scratch work they wish. There is of course a down side to this approach, and that is that care needs to be taken during assembly to insure that the chassis is square when finished, get this wrong and the rest of the build will be a real pig. ICM always put a lot of work into the mechanicals of their models or if you prefer oily areas and this offering is no exception. The engine and gearbox is well represented here despite ICM not providing photo etched detail parts, but ICM do a pretty good job of providing quite fine mouldings where needed and for those who wish I am sure a photo etched set will be available. One thing I recommend the modeller tackles to lift the engine further is to add some wire to replicate cables and piping detail as that will be eye catching. The fuel and air tanks are well represented in the model only requiring some seam lines to be dealt with, but I again advise the fuel and air lines are replicated to lift the detail to a higher standard.
The leaf spring suspension units are the weak area of this section, this is due to the front set being moulded as part of the chassis and both front and rear sets requiring some careful clean up to remove mould seams without damaging the detail. The axles and drive shafts have very nice detail present throughout, but again careful clean up of parts will be needed. One thing I would have liked to see offered here would have been the ability to show the front wheels turned as I feel it adds interest to the look of the finished model. Taken as a whole and despite my concerns this should look like another nice area of the model.
The truck cab looks the correct shape to me and so I see no issues there of which I am aware. The few recessed panel lines that are part of the mouldings are nicely done and realistic in appearance. The cab interior is pretty basic, but then again what did you expect of a Russian truck. The instrument panel is lifted via the use of decals and I suspect that the after-market companies will offer alternate options in time. The doors have been supplied separately to the cab, and this is an aspect I approve of. In addition to that ICM have also used separate door cards and door furniture; again these are aspects of which I approve as they look better than moulded on features and give the modeller options. The glazing for the cab is of a nice thickness and I see no issues with their use. The step plates and mudguards look good with the tread plate being nicely replicated. The lights are supplied with clear glazed lenses which look quite good; however if SKP Model release a set of lenses and taillights for the model they will lift this aspect to a good degree. The bonnet or hood if you prefer is again a separate moulding and this will allow the work that ICM and the modeller puts into the engine and bay to be displayed. Another aspect I like about this release is that the grills of the front grill are open rather than being moulded as a solid piece of plastic. The only downside to the cab area is that there are a number of ejector pin marks that will need to be addressed; however it is my opinion that this area of the model has been very nicely done by ICM.
The bed of the truck is a wooden offering with good detail replicated and that will benefit from careful painting and weathering to breath life into the model. Wooden bench seating is along the sides of the bed and these can be shown folded or deployed plus a combination there of. The rails for supporting a canvas are present but only as stored and cannot be shown deployed.
This release offers four figures with these being a driver and the other three conducting search for mines. The figures are suitably equipped for the role with the mine detecting crew all involved in different procedures. We are provided with a figure using mine detection equipment and a pole with a spike for marking a location or checking around the device located. We then have a figure engaged in the uncovering of a mine prior to deactivating it. The last of the mine hunters is using a dog to sniff out explosives, a role commonly conducted with dogs in the modern military. The dog is supplied with what looks like body armour, goggles and ear defenders which gives this dog a very interesting look.
A single finishing option is provided that is a generic one and listed as Armed Forces of Ukraine, Summer 2022. I do like that digital camouflage decals are provided for those who wish to use them on the truck or cut out and use as masks. A small square showing the uniform camouflage is also provided which I like. A dedicated paint set is available from ICM for the uniform making life easy if wished.
Conclusion
This offering is a nice combination of items that just needs adding to a setting. The digital camouflage decals will help those that need it regardless of how you decide to utilise them. The figures are very well tackled and I like the mix of tasks being conducted. When looking for negatives I can only really say that some will not be happy with vinyl rubber tyres.