Introduction

MiniArt continues to release the diorama items that the modeller needs, but in many cases had not considered. One of the latest releases provides steel trash receptacles which have been largely replaced with plastic now and these were the subject of a previous release. This is one of those sets that add an element that is largely overlooked in life, but catches the eye when provided in scale settings.

Review

This offering from MiniArt is packed in one of their end opening cartons, something I am not a fan of as they are easily crushed when stored and it makes keeping the parts in impossible during assembly; with that said this carton type can be visually appealing. Inside is a single plastic bag containing the parts for the set; this can slop around in the box but is unlikely to be damaged that way. A look over the contents reveals no areas of concern as the parts have good access and are well moulded.

The set provides you with two dustbins/trash cans and two dumpster containers. The dustbins are moulded in two halves and so two seams, but only hide one of the seams as the over will replicate the join of the real thing. The pins inside the bins are a bit of a pain as they do stand out unless hidden by some contents you may add. Scale wise they are acceptable but it would require photo etch to be closer to scale thickness.

The two dumpster bins have a very good level of detail for an item most of us seldom consider. Scale thickness wise they are a little thick due to being plastic, but I find it acceptable all things considered. The wheels of the bin are locked in the position you place them and so consider their use before setting them. The handles are separate and so will look good, but a further improvement would be to replace them with wire; this would also enable them to be shown beaten up a little. The lid is workable if desired should you be undecided in how you want it, but this is not indicated in the instructions.

Conclusion

This is another nice item from MiniArt to dress up a vignette or diorama. Scale thickness is the only issue due to being in plastic, but I can live with that rather than messing with photo etch. As with the previous set I would have liked to see some rubbish mouldings that could be used if desired and I would have liked to see rats or such in the set (Perhaps with its paws up and a weapon aimed at it.) All told a great offering.