Introduction
As I have said many times, when it comes to items for dioramas MiniArt leads the field as regards options and affordability. Quite often they release items you never even realised you needed or items you had not considered for a scene. Well MiniArt now tackles street signals in the Middle East.
Review
This offering from MiniArt arrives in one of MiniArt’s end opening cartons, with the artists impression of the product on the front, and guidance for assembly on the rear. Upon opening you find a single plastic bag, containing six sprues, a good decal sheet and a paper sheet. The only real critique I can lay at their door at the moment, is the packaging is easily damaged and so offers little protection to the contents.
The sprues in this offering, provide four identical ones covering the sign boards and a pole on each, the remaining two are identical to each other, which again offer some sign placards and seven poles on each. Moulding quality is high, and I like that the clamp detail on the rear of the placards is present. Examining them closely, reveals no areas of concern at all, and will look the part in any diorama in a modern setting.
I was very pleased with this release to see that MiniArt has moved away from cardboard placard detail to decal offerings. This will enable the modeller to easily replicate damaged signage, without fighting the detail of the sign. The print quality of the signs is of a very high standard, as they are thin enough that I cannot feel them on the carrier paper, and there is no bleeding of the colours - so you get crisp detail. The paper signs provided in this offering are appreciated for what they cover, but I still would have preferred them to be decals. The other issue with this type of inclusion is that it also encourages duplication.
Conclusion
This is another very nice offering from MiniArt, for the dioramist who is interested in recent conflicts, and it is pleasing to see these modellers being catered for, with the number of releases from MiniArt on this occasion. The decals are of particularly high standard in this release, with just the paper insert being a little disappointing to me.