Unboxing the Sherman

Review

my Preciousssssss

 BAM!
Welcome to another unboxing for Warlord Games BOLT-Action products. This time I'm going with the tried and true method of a whole bunch of pictures to show whats up and see how everyone likes it. As always, comments and criticisms in the comments section below, so I can have some idea of how everyone prefers these reviews to be done (video or pictorials).
On to the review!


For those who don't know, I'm currently in a bit of a BOLT-Action (BA) craze. I recently discovered this game (kinda recently... ok it was a year ago... damn you Maqma!) and decided to pick up a Sherman Tank for my soon to arrive, HURRY UP MAIL!!! Assault on Normandy battle box demo set. As I want a tank for both armies (I'm in a bit of a toss-up between a STuG III and a Panzer IV for the Germans), I could hardly resist when my semi-local FLGS had a customer appreciation sale and put everything in store on sale for a minimum of 25% off. As I need to have BA only models, for reasons I'm not allowed to discuss as of yet, I closed my eyes and walked past the Tamiya, Italerie, Dragon and Hobby Boss plastic model kits and headed over to the virtually non-existent BA section. Lucky for me, the section hadn't completely been picked over and I got my grubby pig hands on a shiny new Resin M4A3 Sherman boxed kit.

Now for those not in the know, Warlord games produces most of their vehicles in resin, as you'll see in the following pictures, which presents a special set of issues: warped pieces are par for the course in most resin model kits (something easily fixable with a little hot water and elbow grease), chips and gouges can happen in shipment, and shattered pieces. Thus I opened the box with trepidation and the beading of sweat upon my brow.....

Note I'm not saying that Warlord games puts out shoddy product, I'm just saying that it has been my (notably limited) experience with resin kits in general (Forge-world, FAILcast, a few other sad occurances). This is, in fact, my FIRST EVER experience purchasing Warlord games product that isn't a book. Let's see how it turns out for our intrepid adventurer....

 WOW, What a relief. Everything seems to be in one piece! Each resin section came individually bubble wrapped in a sealed baggy, and the metal bits came in their own ziplock baggy as well. A pleasant surprise and a nice way to start off.

 The resin bits arrayed before me, unbagged. Everything seems in alright so far.... what about the other side? time to...

 FLIP THE BITCH (did you see the pool?). Hmm... not pristine, but hardly awful. A bit of filing on the underside of the tank and turret ring will sort that out no worries. Can't say as I'm a huge fan of the grounding line on the bottom of the tracks (you can see it better in the picture above this one), but realistically it's not a big deal and will only be seen is someone flips the tank over. I'm also thinking the Turret needs to be Magnetized, as I'd rather it not pop out whenever I'm transporting it or moving about the table. I also think I'll pick up a longer brass barrel for the turret as I'd like to be able to swap between a 76mm gun and the stock 75mm gun.

Hmmm, seems one of the tracks is a little bent. Not a problem at all since, as I stated earlier, all that requires is a dip in some boiling water, and it can be bent right back into place no worries. The resin used in this model is quite nice, I must say. It's got a bit of heft to it, which I like (the main reason I like metal models.... shut up, they're awesome), and seems pretty sturdy. It doesn't seems fragile or like it needs to be treated like porcelain either. I'm REALLY happy with this kit so far.

And here you can see all of the details on the hull of the Sherman. Really crisp and neat. Just how I like it!

LASTLY we have the metal pieces included with the kit. Standard fare for pewter bits as they need a bit of filing and cleaning, all par for the course. To be entirely honest these are my least favourite pieces of the kit as I feel they could be cleaner, with less flashing and mold lines, but I know thats unrealistic. I would very much have preferred a lovely brass/aluminum barrel for the turret as well, but I know that's asking an awful lot for any company (there's a reason things like that are premium pieces and sold separately), let alone one as relatively new as Warlord games.

So as you can see, the kit is actually rather exemplary (GW, you paying attention??) and I'm incredibly happy with it. Now to just put on my mask and get to cleaning.

Until next time,
HIGITIS FIGITIS (clean your models! soap and water!)
Bean out~