I am looking to add figures to a Tunisia 1943 Tiger dio, and I like the Takh/Tank Russian-made ones. They have a panzer officer labeled "1941."



I'm curious to know if his uniform was particular to that time period? I know there was quite a bit of variation in DAK and then Panzer Armee Afrika uniforms due to the supply variabilities, but would not want to spend the money on this pricey resin figure if he's "wrong" for the time period.

Bill,

He's fine. He's very similar in garb to some other figures I'm currently reviewing, so without actually seeing the figure, here's my quick assessment (these are excerpts from the review I'm working on - with slight modifications, they are applicable here as well):

He wears the tropical drill tunic manufactured in a sage-green lightweight material. The colour of all items of tropical dress varied sharply. Some batches were green, others a dark, nearly ‘mustard’ hue of tan, still others a light sandy shade. All weathered and bleached in short order subsequent to arrival in the desert, and any one unit might include uniforms of like cut although of shades ranging through every gradation from deep tan to mid-green. His belt is the webbing version, with what appears to be the all-ranks buckle.

Panzer officers fastened the small metal skull badges from the collar-patches of the black vehicle uniform directly to the lower collar. What appears to be the Tank Assault Badge is presented in the usual way [i]- I'll admit to not being able to see the badge properly, it may indeed be an iron cross class 1 - if it is he doesn't seem to where the class 2, so that would be wrong. Shoulder-straps are of the usual design, but the ground colour is a light sandy tan.

The NCO wears the light, comfortable and stylish desert field cap, predecessor and direct ancestor of the 1943 Einheitsfeldmütze, and was exceedingly popular and almost unanimously worn as the preferred dress.

Sun and sand goggles are std issue, but the scarf is a personal, though sensible, addition.

HTH

Rudi

Thanks, Rudi, that is VERY helpful.

DAK figures are hard to come by, they are usually an afterthought for most companies, with one or two. The Takh figures are superb in the photos.

Hi Bill,

No problem.

Before you go ahead buying the figures, I have heard that the Tank figures may be oversized, and also that their recent quality has been debatable. That said, I haven't seen any of their figures personally, so this is third hand info.

Are you after a figure in this particular pose? Or just DAK Panzer crews in general? Have you had a look at Alpine's DAK crews? (Incidentally I'm reviewing there latest DAK crew at the moment)

Rudi

Yikes! The order went out today. Ooops. I've heard resin molds don't last as long as styrene, so maybe the Takh stuff is getting long of the tooth? I've heard the figures may be oversized, but I figure I can't go too wrong with one.


I will be very eager to see your review. Some of the Alpine figures are very nice, but their DAK crew looks pretty ordinary. The Russian poses are so much more like photos or have a "spark" of life that most figure sculptors can't capture.

That's okay, we'd love a review of the figure. Even if the figure's not great, please feel free to share your experiences. Thanks for taking one for the team

Just kidding! Of course we would appreciate a review of the figure if you have time




I think on the surface many people think Alpine figures may look ordinary, but the thing is: they're not. When you look closely you'll always find that Taesung (whether himself or his commissioned artist) has included something different that makes the figure quite different from the norm. Sometimes it's quite subtle, in the case of the DAK crew it's the relative state of undress and the use of the tropical trousers worn loose and over the tropical sneakers.

Gosh... I sound like a salesman for Alpine!

Looking forward to the review, Rudi! I have some Alpine figures in my mental queue, but I need to guys who look like they might be on the Rollbahn after an engagement.

I can't speak to TANK's current castings, but the kits I have are very good. I don't think they scale out too large, they might be a tad larger than say Dragon, but are about the same size as MiniArt. BTW, I really like this that DAK figure as well, I just have wait to get an appropriate armor kit and space on the WB

Bill,

Just an quick additional note on DAK uniforms I read that soldiers would bleach their caps on ocassion to give the impression of a veteran of the campign , additionally verterans caps would bleach due to long periods in the sun and desert

hope this help add to your picture

regards,

Jerry

They don't work for me, I bought a set of TAHK Heads and tried to use them on Masterbox figures but couldn't because they were so big.

Pat,

I've not had the opportunity to see figures from either of these manufacturers, but would you say it was a case of the MB being too small, or the TAHK heads being too big (scale-wise)?

Rudi

Hey Bill,
This site should be of help:

http://www.afrikakorps.org/
http://www.afrikakorps.org/germanuniforms.htm

Cheers

jjumbo

Thanks, John!

Bill,

I keep forgetting about this list of sites on HF: Axis Resource Centre

Afrika Korps is near the bottom

And my latest review: German DAK Panzer Crew Set

Rudi