Small Scale Military Headquarters

Just picked up a couple of models from FOV in 1/72 scale, a US Army deuce & a half truck, and a German Panther tank. I know 1/72 is not an especially popular scale around here, but I thought this was worth posting, given the overall "downsizing" of offerings from virtually all manufacturers in basically every scale that we as collectors desire... Considering what I classify as the absolute crap that FOV is selling in the brick & mortar stores like Target nowadays, it's nice to see that they still offer items for the collector and model enthusiast, even if only from online sources. The Panther in particular is a clear improvement over their previous releases in 1/72 armor IMO, and while not quite up to the Dragon standard, it represents a great value for about half the cost of a similar Dragon model in 1/72. Both these models run just a tad under $13 from Flying Mule who btw, gave me fast service with reasonable shipping. Click thumbnails to enlarge.....

i think the Panther is pretty good. but the truck is great! its nice to see FOV starting to change it up a bit.

the truck is great! its nice to see FOV starting to change it up a bit.

Glad you like it... I must confess, the truck is not entirely stock.... out of the box the "canvas" canopy was the same dark green color as the truck body, and it looked kinda "plasticky" so I gave it a light coat of Testors Model Master flat Olive Drab paint, and I think it looks much better now. For $12.99 ea. I think these are a pretty nice little model.

1/72 and 1/32 scale AFV are my favorite.

I really like that truck. I know there is no comparison between FOV and Hobby Master. But, how is the detail of FOV US truck compare to HM DAK truck?

I also like the farm in the background. Is it an IMEX model?

tparkhere

how is the detail of FOV US truck compare to HM DAK truck?

Don't know...I never owned an HM DAK truck, but the detail on the 1/72 FOV deuce seems pretty good to me, basically it's a miniaturized version of their 1/32 scale deuce model from what I can see.

I also like the farm in the background. Is it an IMEX model

Yes, they're Conflix buildings which are made by Imex, those are from the 22mm-28mm "Medieval" series which are intended for the "middle earth" fantasy wargaming crowd, but they have a nice "European" look to them and go very well with WWII 1/72 stuff IMO.

All three of the newest FOV 1:72 vehicles (Panther, Elefant, Deuce-and-a-half truck) are some of their best work yet. The Panther is my favorite of the bunch and I like how it has a bit of diecast in the construction, but sharp detailing. The zimermitt is especially well done. The Elefant is also fantastic. I like the zimermitt detailing, yet oddly enough, the tow cables are my favorite detail. The truck is equally well done and even has a working tailgate. The FOV armor compared to the Bravo Team 1:72 junk are like night and day. Frankly, I'm glad to see Unimax still has it in them to turn out professional collector pieces

The last 1/72 FOV tank I bought was about a year ago. Even though they are reasonably prices, around $10, I was not impressed with details. Especially Tiger tank with rubber track that looks like a toy.

After buying 13th Dragon Armor Tiger tank, I will take a look at three new FOV models. I might be pleasantly surprised.

tparkhere

The last 1/72 FOV tank I bought was about a year ago. Even though they are reasonably prices, around $10, I was not impressed with details. Especially Tiger tank with rubber track that looks like a toy.

Here are a couple side-by-side closeups of the 1/72 FOV & Dragon Tigers. Detail wise, I honestly can't say I see a tremendous difference, though I'd give a slight edge to the Dragon. Where the Dragon has the clear edge IMO is in the weathering, which is pretty much absent on the FOV, but to be fair it's also about one-third the cost of the Dragon, and for that kind of coin I can live with it, plus it can be largely remedied by anyone who has the time and some paint. I agree with you on the tracks, but again it's not so much the level of detail or what they're constructed of as the lack of weathering, and again it's a pretty simple fix. The Dragon model may be superior overall, but it comes at a significant premium, and to me it's sort of an apples-versus-oranges comparison. For my money the FOV Tiger is a good value and well worth having a few for customizing etc.

Loads of comparison pictures between different 1/72 tanks at the link below...

http://www.diecast72.com/compare.asp

Thank you for the comparison for FOV and Dragon Armor Tiger.

The view that will tell THE DIFFERENCE is the side view where you can see the tank number and track. FOV details are OK. BUT, that rubber track where the top part is stretched straight is the deal breaker. The top part of Dragon Tiger track droops like a heavy metal track. I prefer a realistic-looking tank.

Regarding the price, I have 13-15 Dragon Tiger tanks (Yeah, I know. It’s ridiculous that Dragon keep releasing the same model with different scheme. But, since I like the tank, I keep buying them.). I bought one FOV Tiger for $12. 10 Dragon Tiger tanks, I paid for less than $10. Some are as cheap as $6. Remainder tanks, I paid $11-$13 range. I never buy new tanks when they are released at $17-$21 range. I wait until when they are on sale. My philosophy is whether I buy it now or later, they are still new to me. There are so many sales. Every month, I allocate my budget to the best sale.

I will still buy new FOV tanks. Seems like their new models are much more improved.

tparkhere

Loads of comparison pictures between different 1/72 tanks at the link below...

Cool, thanks. The fov in your pic must be an ethusiast I presume..?? Can't see the tracks on it, but based on your pic it looks every bit as good and perhaps better than the Dragon. The FOV in my comparison shots is a plain Jane version I got at Target about a year and a half ago, cost me $10.99 plus tax IIRC. As for the tracks laying down, I can see no real difference on my two, and the sideview pic of the Dragon one at diecast72 is only marginally better IMO, perhaps the tracks on the other guy's Dragon tiger is an anomaly. I hope FOV continues to put out 1/72 armor and vehicles of similar quality to the recently released Deuce, Panther, & Elefant in the future, I'll definitely add a few to my stable.

Double post...hate it when that happens

Here is the link of what the real Tiger should look like: (Sorry, please copy the whole url and paste to you browser to see the Tiger, from “http; to .htm”)

http://ww2drawings.jexiste.fr/Files/1-V ... (late).htm


I am certainly not a rivet-counter. As long as the model has the look-and-feel, I am fine with it. However, if you look at FOV Tiger, there are glaring errors that even I noticed. Middle 8 wheels are too small. The last wheel on the back should not be flush with the ground. Also, the last wheel is also too big. With these major errors, the FOV Tiger tank do not have the look-and-feel. If you compare FOV Tiger to Dragon Tiger, Dragon Tiger has crisp details, better paint and correct look-and-feel. I have 160+ 1/72 Dragon tanks and 10 FOV tanks to compare them. I am not here to criticize FOV. 1/32 FOV tanks are my favorite, otherwise I would not have bought more than 50 of them.

I am only comparing Tiger tank. Since people are saying FOV has improved quality, I will get them.

tparkhere