Onwards and upwards as they say ,
Lets get to the meat of the matter the model itself , this was received quickly and efficiently from Korea well packed in a very strong and well labelled courier box , on opening this up I found the Light Brown cardboard box I was looking for surounded by packing again ....the box it comes in is stout and strong , with the contents being vacumn sealed to prevent any possibility of damage whatsoever , the box has full colour picture of the painted model (wonderfully I might add...inspirtional work) on the top and the sides .
There are as I said 5 parts to the model , these being : Torso, Head, Cap, pistol and base .
Preparation needed on the torso was removal of a casting plug on the side ...apart from that this is super smooth , with no casting lines anywhere ...well done TGB , the head ...a casting plug to remove and super smooth again , the cap , Pistol Holster and base all have a small casting plugs to simply cut off and sand ...so little to do before you prime.
The Torso is as I said super smooth , he is wearing the leather coat wth shoulderboards under which he has the tunic with a stand up collar , he also wears a "Sam Browne" across his chest with a belt at the waist with a plae in the middle with the Soviet Star on it . The Folds are all done with the coat hanging naturally open revealing the tunic and belt underneath ..again this has good folds all over with the belts being well defined with good undercuts , the neck area has a very clean recess in which the head fits securely .
The head itself is an absolute gem of sculpting , this is an Officer who is in his 40's , he has seen so much during his service to Stalin and the Soviet nation , features are very well done with the chin being forward the look on his face is one of dedication and despair at the same time , he has a moustache , which like the hair is nicly done , the eyes are looking straight ahead and piercing ...perhaps he is standing on a boat with his very scared men crossing the river to meet the enemy at Stalingrad
.
The cap he wears is again a nice area of work , after removal of the casting plug fit onto the head is spot on ( as is the neck to the torso) , we have the Soviet badge sitting under the strap that is sculpted on ...again well defined , this is a cap that has been well worn and the edges have worked their way down ..personalising it as soldirs often do., the cap came in many variations and colours denoting the relevant arm the wearer belonged .
The Holtser he has is the leather version , no pistolis actually visible apart from the end of the grip itself ...it is likely he might have had the Tokarev semi Automatic pistol (there were other types) , this pistol was a short recoil , with locked breech weapon ..with NO safety catch ...so the only safe way to carry it was without a round in the chamber!!!!
Finally we have a very simple but styled base , in the shape of a foot , again only a casting plug to remove , smooth all over , fit into the recess on the Torso underside is fine ( I would recommend pinning as well)
My final thoughts on this subject s that it is a great sculpt well presented , giving the opportunity to create various effects due to the different materials he is wearing.
Quality is seen all the way from TGB and I have no hesitaion in sayig add this to the GA ...but not for long...get it on the bench!!!!
Lets now have another look of the painted bust from the box art:
TGB are available at various outlets (in the UK including El Greco)
For more information and if you want to see more pictures :
Please visit
http://blog.naver.com/mark761214/80188311468
If you need more Info , Please contact
[email protected]
I look forwad to seeing more from
TGB Minaitures and wish them all the sucess in the venture ...we all wait with baited breath for the next release .
Thanks for looking in
Nap
