Alpine Miniatures has released a very intricately detailed pair of 35th scale Waffen SS figures from the late WWII period this month, they both have the usual choice of headgear and top-shelf details in their features, we thought we would take you for a walk around them in our preview...
Alpine Miniatures has delivered again it seems. We had been keeping an eye on these two figures of Waffen SS of German Grenadiers from the late war 44-45 period during their sculpting by Taesung Harmms on the Alpine Miniatures Facebook site.
The details on the uniforms, the weapons, the equipment and the faces looked pretty good so far, but today we saw the first pictures of the finished and painted figures by the box artist Toshihiro Sano - we thought we might show you how good these new figures can be under a skilled painter's hand.
Three new 1/35th scale releases from Alpine Miniatures
WSS Grenadier G43 Rifle
Kit No #35244
1/35th scale
The pictures show the figure with 2 different heads.
Sculpture by Taesung Harmms / Boxart by Toshihiro Sano
This first figure of the pair comes in 1/35th scale, he is sculpted by Taesung Harmms. He has two head choices supplied with the kit - one wearing the camo cloth covered M 43 helmet, and the other with the same face being a bare pained helmet.
The two helmet choices in real life.
This soldier is a pretty well equipped late war soldier - with the SS camo smock the loose fitting SS Camo smock with drawstring secured chest opening. These tie up at the wrists and gather at the elbows in tiny seams that defy the eye in their delicate detail. You can see the SS runes on the soldier's collar with the cloth ties to secure the tunic and save on making zippers.
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This Grenadier carries in his hands the Gewehr 43 semi-automatic rifle with a short mag clip. A popular weapon for soldiers of the German forces after it's inception in 1943, the Gewehr 43 is a 7.92x57mm Mauser calibre semi-automatic rifle developed to counter the need for more firepower for the often outnumbered German troops at that time of the year. The development of a multitude of semi-automatic weapons and fast firing light machine guns especially by the Soviets meant that these rifles were well received by their users.
Both wear the SS Enlisted men belt and buckle which is delicately detailed – it attaches to their combat "y-harness straps". (Koppeltraggestell für Infanterie) on which all of their equipment is attached.
He carries the M31 canteen & cup. (Feldflasche 31 und Trinkbecher) as well as the M31 bread bag. (Brotbeutel 31)
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Lastly of note, the soldier wears a pair of latter war short boots with galoshes covering the tops of them that gather his baggy camouflage printed pants.
WSS Grenadier MP40
Kit No #35245
1/35th scale
The pictures show the figure with 2 different heads.
Sculpture by Taesung Harmms / Boxart by Toshihiro Sano
Both of these soldiers have the choice of two helmets, just like his comrade, he wears the M43 steel helmet, again with the bare helmet choice and the cloth covered helmet with camo pattern favoured by the troops of the SS when available.
This second Grenadier in this set carries some earlier war equipment that is not out of place as the war carried one, but two bits of kit that were a little rarer by this time of the war. firstly his Mp 40 machine pistol.
Heavily used by infantrymen (particularly platoon and squad leaders), and by paratroopers, on the Eastern and Western Fronts. Its advanced and modern features made it a favourite among soldiers and popular in countries from various parts of the world after the war.
Experience with Soviet tactics, such as the Battle of Stalingrad where entire Russian units armed with submachine guns outgunned their German counterparts in short range urban combat caused a shift in tactics, and by the end of the war, the MP 40 and its derivatives were being issued to entire assault platoons on a limited basis. Starting in 1943, the German Army moved to replace both the Karabiner 98k rifle and MP 40 with the new, revolutionary StG 44. By the end of World War II (which ended in 1945), an estimated 1.1 million MP 40s had been produced of all variants.
He wears the dotted SS smock over his uniform and on the rear his torso, he carries his gas mask in the round canister.
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WSS Grenadiers 44-45 Set
Kit No #35246
1/35th scale
The pictures show the figure with 2 different heads.
Sculpture by Taesung Harmms / Boxart by Toshihiro Sano
Kit No #35246
1/35th scale
The pictures show the figure with 2 different heads.
Sculpture by Taesung Harmms / Boxart by Toshihiro Sano
The new figures are also sold as a pair in a set. The sculptor has tried hard to make these figures look like they are from a similar time but really are almost dressed in completely different gear. This means you can make them look similar but different, and that draws attention to a small group like this. I like the fact that Alpine always manage to do this.
These figures are now available From the Alpine Miniatures site in the USA and from their distributors in the rest of the world
