A round-up of the latest news and releases in 1:72 and 1:76

DRAGON

1:72 SAS BUSHMASTER KIt No. 7701

Following on from the Australian Army version, Dragon has now provided us with a Bushmaster in British service. As befitting an SAS variant, there is a new sprue provided containing the bull bar mounted on the nose of the Bushmaster, additional side and rear armour, new weapons station and other bits and bobs. It can be used to depict a vehicle in Afghanistan, Syria or Iraq. Coming in a standard box with a picture of the real thing on the top, there are four sprues in total comprising of 62 plastic parts, a clear sprue with a further nine window parts, single-piece upper & lower hull sections, four vinyl tyres, two metal axles for the wheels, a small photo-etched fret for the windscreen wipers and one set of decals. First impressions are very good. The upper and lower hull are single slide-moulded parts with an excellent level of detail represented. The additional armour parts are very nicely done, but a stand-out for me is the grille and headlight detail on the bonnet (or hood for our American cousins). The suspension is moulded integrally with the lower hull, but it doesn’t matter as it is mostly hidden behind the wheels. The main gun is moulded as one part and isn’t moveable, and all hull hatches are moulded shut although the turret hatch can be posed opened. No figures are included. A test fit of the upper and lower hull, rear plate and turret halves reveal no issues at all. In fact the upper and lower hull fit is exceptional. The wheels can be made to rotate as the inner hub is affixed to the hull by a metal shaft that push fits into place. The tyres fit snugly to the rims and the tread detail is good. The instructions are clear with no errors and model is built over six steps. As with all 1:72 kits, this would benefit from things such as the aerials and wing mirror mounts being replaced with brass wire. This is a straightforward and simple kit with a level of detail that is very good and fit of parts even better. At a UK price of around £25 between different vendors including eBay, I do feel that it is expensive for what you get, but the final choice is down to the buyer. Overall, I would give an 8/10. Recommended. Thanks to The Hobby Company Limited for the sample www.hobbyco.net