FOV 1:72 Stug III and 1:48 UH-1D Huey

[tmanthegreat]

I got both of these yesterday and will post a quick review. Webstores like the FlyingMule have excellent pictures of the actual products.

UH-1D Huey (Vietnam 1968)
The FOV UH-1D Huey is fantastic. Very, very pleased with it. The model is certainly the most detailed of their 1:48 helicopters with a detailed and complete interior, exterior finishings such as the delicate antennas, correct colors, decent amount of diecast in the construction, etc. It has the four crew (pilot, co-pilot, 2x gunner/crew chiefs with mounted M-60s. The engine panels open and the main rotors turn. None of the doors work.

Just lots of little details I like about this model: the M-60s have the ammo belts detailed, the interior is fully painted with seats, rails, textured padding/insulation in the cabin. Cockpit is fully detailed with painted instruments, flight controls, and the side windows are even lowered. I really wish there were 1:48 scale soldiers in a sitting pose that I could stick inside.

Only negative points for me on the Huey are the lack of "UNITED STATES ARMY" (or at least "MARINES") stenciling along the tail boom and the fact that the main rotor tips are not painted yellow. The lack of the service stenciling seems odd, since its on found on every picture of a Vietnam Huey I can find... But it doesn't detract from an otherwise quality model.

Stug III (Normandy 1944)
This newest piece of FOV 1:72 armor continues their Normandy campaign obsession and gives us a duplicate vehicle in 1:72 armor (Dragon, at least has long since made the Stug III), but its a nice first for Unimax. I think the upper hull is plastic, while the lower hull may be diecast (as it was cool to the touch). The main gun elevates and depresses and has a little traverse motion to it, just like the 1:32 Stug model. Tracks roll as well. I really like the gunner figure and the side skirts are a nice touch. The yellow and green cammo scheme looks good too.

There is little to no weathering on this vehicle. It looks very much like the old "Action Grade" series of vehicles without weathering. Heck, my S1 FOV 1:72 Panzer IV is Action Grade and has more weathering. The lack of diecast is also troubling. The FOV 1:72 Hetzer, for example, has more diecast and feels heavier. There were no other accessories with the model apart from the vehicle. The tooling is decent (very much like a minnature version of the FOV 1:32 Stug III), but the Dragon 1:72 models have sharper details.

The lack of weathering, limited diecast construction, the fact that there are other Stug III models out there with better detailing, make the $28 price harder to accept, especially when there are models available that cost $4-$5 less. The saving grace, to me, is the gunner figure because this helps give the model some livelieness that the Dragon vehicles often lack.

So, do I like the FOV Stug III? Yes, I do, however, there are cheaper and better detailed alternatives available.

[dragon53]

TMANTHEGREAT:

Thanks for the great reviews. My complaint about the FOV UH-1D is I wish they would put a real unit nose art on it such as the 1st Cavalry Division instead of a generic Huey.
As for no "United States Army" on it, FOV's original UH-1D release had it.

link: http://www.flyingmule.com/products/UM-84057


Apparently, no "United States Army" on the UH-1D is another cost-cutting attempt by FOV like little or no weathering on their latest 1/32 armor.

[Rowsdower]

I wish they still had these at TRU. Super easy to dirty them up a bit with some paint.

[tmanthegreat]

I wish they still had these at TRU. Super easy to dirty them up a bit with some paint.

I wish they did too. The Action Grade items were, for the most part, great! Same vehicle, just with less weathering and fewer accessories and cheaper. Then there were the times FOV shipped out the Enthusiast grade items with the Action Grade, which made for a steal. I got a number of Enthusiast items that way.

Its sad to see the new FOV vehicles start lacking in better paint jobs and inclusions of accessories. The new items are pretty much like the Action Grade items used to be, but cost a lot more. I look at my old T-34 and Panzer IV, and other vehicles from 2004-2005 and they are like professional models. The new tanks just have a light brown spray, if anything.