Italeri / Warlord Games

Italian Tanks - Semoventi

 M13/40, M14/41, M40, M41

1/56 scale 

 

In 2014, Italeri and Warlord Games teamed to provide plastic kits of tanks in 1/56 scale to enhance and complement 28mm gaming figures in the Bolt Action range.  The first two tanks were a Sherman and Panther.  This is the latest tank Italeri has issued and is the first Italian subject in this line.  The kit is for one tank, but can be built into any of four different types as listed on the box.

WHAT IS INSIDE!

The box contents include two sprues of desert yellow colored injected plastic parts, a decal sheet with a boatload of options, and a 16 page fully illustrated instruction manual.  All of this is sealed in a plastic bag and contained in the well illustrated box. 

The Instructions:

 

As seen, it is important to decide whether a light battle tank or Semovente will be built before starting.  

The sprues:

 

 The Decal Sheet:

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS PENDING FULL BUILD:

The kit is marketed as a hard plastic kit for gamers and collectors.  This means that the finished tank will not have delicate parts that will easily break off during wargaming play.  It also means that simplified details will be present.  A common simplification is the running gear.  Real tanks have double road wheels.  The kit here has a single fat wheel for each axle:

During the build I will explore the possibility of drilling the centers to create the impression of two wheels.

The kit is listed at 1/56 scale.  Overall, the vehicle looks to scale out properly. A quick comparison of the hull and other parts with a built 1/48 resin Semovente I have indicates that this is to scale and not a 1/48 scale vehicle listed at 1/56. 

Figures are usually scaled in millimeters.  Since the kit contains two separate commander figures, it is also listed at 28mm scale.  Many wargaming figures are made in "heroic" scale rather than true scale.  "Heroic" figures are not in true proportions, but have oversized heads, hands, and weapons.  The crew figures here are in "heroic" scale.  Below is a 1/48 resin Italian tanker next to the full body on the sprue, obviously much taller.  However, the head of the 1/48 figure is the same size as the kit figure heads.

 

 

Conclusion:

This is a welcome kit adding Italian vehicles to this scale of wargaming.  It appears to provide sufficient detail for a presentable tank on the field of battle, and provides a huge selection of decal options, even though only four tanks are pictured.  However, this may be too simplified to satisfy a true scale model enthusiast out of the box; and to detail it into an award winning model may be too challenging. 

Highly Recommended for Beginner to Moderate builders and any wargamer.

Thanks goes out to Model Rectifier Corporation for this review kit.

Reviewed by Jim Spellmire, SoCal AMPS

 

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