MiniArt’s new (don’t call them D7) with an upgraded armoured structure to take on not just dirt but
the enemy as well. See if this kit made the earth move for Andy in his review before he gets to build it.
In-Boxed: U.S. Armoured Bulldozer
MiniArt
Kit No
#35188
Scale –
1/35th
This kit
contains 767 parts
Cheapest we
could find: $USD 38 from HobbyEasy.
MiniArt have never
been a company to shy away from left field subjects. While some manufacturers
are content to bring us yet another Tiger, Panther or Sherman, MiniArt have
given us Soviet buses, German Fire Trucks and lots of other “behind the lines”
vehicles that are often far more interesting than their more famous front line
counterparts. I've always been a sucker for these unsung heroes of the
battlefield, and MiniArt's new line of Caterpillar bulldozers fits that mould
perfectly.
The D7 tractor was an
unglamorous, but essential presence on the battlefield, clearing a path through
debris and destroyed vehicles, to allow troops and heavy armour to advance.
They saw widespread use during the war, but really came into their own during
the D-Day invasion, helping to clear the French beaches and roads of obstacles.
MiniArt have released
four versions of the D7, all built on the same basic chassis, but all with a
distinctly different look.
The one we're looking
at here is the armoured cab version. This would have been a pretty essential
modification while operating in a hostile environment, where German snipers
would be taking pot shots at you, while you were trying to clear a road. The
heavy armoured cab certainly gives the D7 a very menacing and purposeful look.
From past experience
with MiniArt's kits, I was expecting a lot of plastic to be squeezed into the
box, and I wasn't disappointed on that score. With 767 parts spread across 30
sprues, plus a small P.E. Fret, this will certainly be an involved build.
The plastic's been
moulded in a medium grey and, although some of the sprues exhibit a little
flash, the parts themselves look clean with good detail. Many of those parts
are very small and a good deal of care will be needed when removing them from
the sprue. In fact, one of the hydraulic lines was already broken on my example,
so be extra careful when removing the sprues from the cellophane bags they come
in, to avoid catching fragile parts.
There are a lot of
parts to get through, so let’s get started with a quick look at the sprues,
before we take a closer look at the details.
In addition to the
main sprues, you get one clear sprue for the headlight lenses, only two of
which are needed, giving you two more for the spares box (always useful, for
models that don't include clear lenses). You also get a small P.E. Fret and
finally, the decal sheet. In addition to the US stars and other external
marking, this also includes instrument dials and some placards for the engine
and gearbox.
The instruction
manual is in an A4 portrait format which should prop up nicely at the back of
your work bench. The rear cover shows the other versions of the D7 available.
The build steps are
clearly drawn and labelled, but the sheer number of parts means there's quite
lot going on in each step, so pay extra attention to ensure you don't miss
something. Construction of the engine block covers the first 17 steps alone.
This build will keep you busy for quite a while.
In all, there are 80
build steps, the final one being the attachment of the main dozer blade. A full
colour 5-view painting guide is provided, and it's a case of “any colour you
like as long as it's olive drab”. Just the one marking option, but at least
it's for a named vehicle, which will give it a little more personality. The
colour call-outs are for AMMO paints but, as seems to be increasingly common
these days, there's no colour info provided for detail painting during the
build, so you'll need to check references for that.
So now let’s have a
closer look at some of the more interesting details in the kit. Construction
starts with the engine, so we'll look at those parts first. The main block has
some lovely detail on it, including the CATERPILLAR branding. There are A LOT
of parts that go in to the engine (I haven't counted, but I'd guess it's well
over 100), so this will be a time consuming part of the build. The finished
engine should be well worth the effort though.
The radiator and
grill are also beautifully detailed. A panel line wash will really bring out
the texture on the grill.
Unfortunately, on
this build, the engine grill is obscured by a large armoured shroud, which is a
shame. Fortunately, the shroud itself is also nicely detailed and, if you're
feeling motivated, you could always drill out the holes (come on, there's only
795 of 'em)
The side covers for
the engine bay also feature the CATERPILLAR and D7 branding. Normally
manufacturers tend to avoid brand names because of licensing issues, but
MiniArt seem to have got round the problem.
Moving on to the cab,
we get some sharp tread plate detail for the floor. Not much of this will be
seen of the armoured cab version, but it should enhance the look of the other
models in the range.
The seat pad has some
subtle creases and maybe a hint of texture, although it's hard to tell if
that's intentional. Again, this is more relevant to the open cab versions.
The armoured cab
itself comes as a flat pack, which is built up separately, before being dropped
into place on the cab floor. The doors and forward vision hatches can be
modelled open, which will at least give a glimpse into the interior.
The tracks are
described as fully workable, with each link being made up of a single piece
track plate and two connecting plates, and are linked together by pins which
need to be kept free of glue during assembly to ensure the tracks remain
articulated. Fortunately, they aren't long runs, with only 36 links per side,
so construction shouldn't be too laborious.
These are nice. Two
beautifully moulded, hollow coil springs, which go on the main frame for the
dozer blade.
After glancing
through the instruction manual, I initially thought that moulded cables were
supplied for the two winches on the rear of the tractor, but sadly not. The
star symbols next to the two cables indicate parts you have to supply yourself.
Part 1 on sprue H
(what I assume is a hydraulic line) is meant to come in three pieces, so don't
assume yours is broken. Unfortunately, mine was in more than three pieces and
was definitely broken, having been slightly crushed in the box. Hopefully it
should be relatively easy to repair.
Apart from that one
broken part, the only other issue I've found was on the same sprue H. Part 3
(the box that the hydraulic line attach to) was badly moulded and appeared to
have partially melted. Presumably this happened during the moulding process,
but it's odd that it's only affected this one part. Some of the damaged area
will be covered with other parts, but some remedial work will be necessary.
Hopefully these issues are restricted to this example.
So, what are the
impressions of this new kit from MiniArt. Well, it's certainly going to be a
complex build, the sheer number of tiny parts ensures that. But from my
previous experience of MiniArt kits, as long as the parts are cleaned up and
dry fitted before gluing, everything should go together relatively well. Having
said that, this isn't going to be a quick build. It's definitely one to take
your time with, but the end result should be a fantastically detailed model. It
will also be a very versatile model, and could be incorporated into a diorama,
either on its own or with another vehicle, or could simply be a display piece
in its own right. If you looking for a challenging build that you can enjoy
over a few weeks (or months), then this comes highly recommended.
Andy Moore
Available from MiniArt’s
Distributors Worldwide - Thanks to Miniart for sending us this kit to
review and build.
