FOV 1:32 Scale Schwimmwagen Review
Posted: Fri Apr 04, 2008 2:50 pm
Forces Of Valor Action Series 1:32 German Schwimmwagen Type 166, Eastern Front 1943, purchased at Toys-R-Us for $9.99 plus tax, minor assembly (attachment only) of included accesories, otherwise completely assembled, painted, and ready to go.
The Good: comes with a large number of accessories including a "canvas" top, a "rolled up" top, a "tarp" that covers the spare tire, a driver figure, a paddle & shovel that attach to the vehicle sides, a machine gun, and a variety of other small items, plus the "collectors" card normally found in Enthusiast Series boxes. The vehicle features a windshield that lowers, front wheels that turn left and right, and a swimming propeller that pivots up or down. One thing I found especially noteworthy is the steering wheel.... it's constructed of a soft rubber which allows for easy insertion of the driver without fear of snapping off this otherwise delicate piece.
Oh yeah, almost forgot...the body is diecast and has a nice hefty feel to it for those that prefer this to all plastic pieces. 
The Bad: The MG mount does not pivot in it's base, and the ends of the tarp for the spare tire do not contact the tubular front bumper, so they appear to be sort of "floating" in air, but I don't consider either of these to be major flaws, and they could probably be easily corrected by anyone who really wanted to do so.
The Ugly: Nothing really, except for sparse weathering which is pretty much limited to a light coat of dust on the tires, and the camo paintjob, which is first rate, but difficult to appreciate on such a small vehicle.
In summation, this is simply an outstanding model in terms of detail, functionality, paint, and the included accessories, especially when you consider the price of $10 bucks, and the fact that it comes with all the items you would normally expect to get with the Enthusiast Edition. You really can't go wrong with this great little model, and it would be equally at home on the Russian Front or the Normandy hedgerows, and I highly recommend it for 1:32 collectors. My apologies for the motley collection of figures and the slightly off scale dio piece, they were all I could get together on short notice for the pics. Hope you guys enjoy this review. Click on the thumbnails to enlarge.
The Good: comes with a large number of accessories including a "canvas" top, a "rolled up" top, a "tarp" that covers the spare tire, a driver figure, a paddle & shovel that attach to the vehicle sides, a machine gun, and a variety of other small items, plus the "collectors" card normally found in Enthusiast Series boxes. The vehicle features a windshield that lowers, front wheels that turn left and right, and a swimming propeller that pivots up or down. One thing I found especially noteworthy is the steering wheel.... it's constructed of a soft rubber which allows for easy insertion of the driver without fear of snapping off this otherwise delicate piece.
Oh yeah, almost forgot...the body is diecast and has a nice hefty feel to it for those that prefer this to all plastic pieces. The Bad: The MG mount does not pivot in it's base, and the ends of the tarp for the spare tire do not contact the tubular front bumper, so they appear to be sort of "floating" in air, but I don't consider either of these to be major flaws, and they could probably be easily corrected by anyone who really wanted to do so.
The Ugly: Nothing really, except for sparse weathering which is pretty much limited to a light coat of dust on the tires, and the camo paintjob, which is first rate, but difficult to appreciate on such a small vehicle.
In summation, this is simply an outstanding model in terms of detail, functionality, paint, and the included accessories, especially when you consider the price of $10 bucks, and the fact that it comes with all the items you would normally expect to get with the Enthusiast Edition. You really can't go wrong with this great little model, and it would be equally at home on the Russian Front or the Normandy hedgerows, and I highly recommend it for 1:32 collectors. My apologies for the motley collection of figures and the slightly off scale dio piece, they were all I could get together on short notice for the pics. Hope you guys enjoy this review. Click on the thumbnails to enlarge.
