GHQ

Micro Armor WWII

by Bill Rutherford

I’ve just received seven new WW II releases from GHQ: Commonwealth Sikh infantry with and without heavy weapons (UK73 and UK74), Australians/South Africans with and without heavy weapons (UK75 and UK76), British 7.2” howitzers with Scammel tractors (UK72), the Italian Sahariana recce vehicle (IT24), and last, but not least, the Polish Schneider 105mm gun w/C7 tractor (P9).

The Sikhs are all wearing shorts and long-sleeved tunics, and of course, puggrees. The Aussies/South Africans are dressed in similar clothing but with their distinctive brimmed hats. UK74 and UK75 include 15 Bren gunners (or, depending, Vickers-Berthier gunners), 12 Vickers HMG operators, a dozen Boys ATR gunners, six light mortars with 2-man prone crew, 12 medium mortars with single kneeling crew, four kneeling pointing figures, and six prone figures with field glasses. The Australian/South African pack differs only in that one of the prone mortar crew has his hat laying on the ground next to him, and the medium mortar crewman is cast separately from the mortar’s base. The prone Bren-gunners even have spare magazines laying on the ground beside them! All are up to GHQ’s usual standards; I had to use a loupe to see some of the detail, but it’s all there, right down to bayonets on some of the rifles, distinct SMGs, etc.

The Saharianas are, in a word, beautiful, finely cast with extra fuel cans and sand channels. There are five to a pack and include four 47mm guns and four 20mm AA guns (for two of the Sahariana variants) as well as a strip of eight pedestal-mounted MGs. The Schneiders are two-piece castings and come four to a pack and include a pair of C7 half-track artillery tractors, again, up to GHQ’s usual standard. The 7.2” guns also come four to a pack (also two-piece castings) with recoil ramps for two, with a pair of Scammels (OK – two pieces, too). The vehicles and guns are up to GHQ’s usual high standards, finely detailed, and simply cast, with just as many parts per model as necessary to enhance the detail, but no more…

Recommended to anybody who games in 1/285 – 1/300 scale. Get them at your local gameshop for $8.95 per pack. If they don’t have them, go directly to GHQ at 28100 Woodside Road, Shorewood, MN 55331, or go to GHQ’s website at http://www.ghqmodels.com to see a complete catalog. GHQ’s entire line is illustrated, including everything in this review – pay special attention to the infantry pictures and what one can do to them with a bit of paint. -

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