Jim Rae provides an overview of a very welcome release from the Ukrainian manufacturer, MiniArt Ltd - their Dingo Scout Car in 1/35th scale.

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Thanks!

Thanks for the review Jim, that one joins the wish list!

Thanks for the sneak-peek Jim! One question nags though - does the Driver Figure fit into the Dingo?

I like MiniArt's little AFV's, but for the life of me, the Driver Figure included in the Bantam Jeep kits will not fit without some serious surgery or relocating the seat. It's a great Figure to use on other projects, though!

Thanks for the review Jim !
Certainly looks like it time to put the old Tamiya kit out to pasture !!
Knowing MiniArt, they're bound to do a German version and it would be interesting if they did a Autoblinde Lince and maybe a Canadian built Lynx scout car.
Cheers

jjumbo

Hi Guys,

It's good to have both the Mk Ib and the Mk III. I will certainly get one of each.

I have their 5 figure set that arrived last week but haven't had a chance to look at the figs yet.

Thanks for the reviw and the pics Jim, Murphy's Law I just revamped an old Tamita one a few months ago

The prospect of a wider variety of Armoured Cars is great news, You weren't able to interest them in any trucks by any chance

Cheers

Al

Thanks for the review Jim.

I have a Tamiya Dingo build with Eduard PE on hold for a while, but probably this one will never be finished as I now see the review of the Miniart kit. This is truly a have-to-buy-one!

:-H

Jelger

Just a note about availablity. The Mk. 1 (the 'Desert' version) should be available VERY shortly. The subject of this Review, the later, Mk.3, will be avilable later. I'll be getting a production copy of the latter at the end of this month...

We have been told by Miniart they are just waiting for the boxes on the Mk I and that we should receive the first deliver in the UK around the 30th - 31st March.

Creative Models Ltd

Please excuse my ignorance, but I have to ask: would this be the right version for Dieppe raid?

Thanks

-A-

The Mk.1 Will be...

great to see this reviewed. I've read about Tamiya's offering .

I will have to pick this one or the desert one up. Any news when the desert one is due out?

I wouldnt mind doing a Bronco Staghound Mk. 3

Thanks, Jim!

Thanks, Jim! I've been anxious to see a review of the MiniArt Dingo kits.

James, two of us posted Release Dates (2-3 posts before your own).

Jim,

Many thanks for this review. As soon as I heard this was being released, I knew I had to add it to my collection. Your review has confirmed this to be a wise decision on my part!

No criticism Of Jim Rae particularly, but I must say- anyone who REALLY BUILDS these things shouldn't depend on "first look"- type reports. All they manage is to verify whether a few dimensions are accurate, whether the wheel is the proper type for the variant, etc. NO WHERE CAN THEY SPEAK TO HOW HARD OR EASY THE KITS ARE TO BUILD!

Some years back, on the strength of a "first look", I was induced to build AFV Club's M10 w/17 lb. gun "Achilles." Oh, it's accurate, but it was a NIGHTMARE to assemble- so many heavy sprue connections, and the instructions had to be vigorously interpreted to avoid errors. Further, it lacked much interior detail- something not possible to realize just by perusing the frets. Likewise with the Dingo I built, though the sprue connection points were easier to clean up.

The killer is that AFV Club, MiniArt, Dragon's "smart kits", Tristar, and others are highly regarded companies that routinely boast value-added detail, but brother! If it isn't quick, shoddy engineering, it's unintelligible instructions. Small wonder Tamiya continues to rate so highly- sure, we'd all like to see more from them, but what we get practically falls together on its own, by comparison.

I appreciate that there's been an explosion of new kits in recent years- so many that it'd be hard to cover them adequately by traditional build-and-review. It's naturally tempting for the expert to comment on the parts as viewed on the frets. But I respectfully assert this is no service to the modeler. Nothing personal, Jim, I say this everywhere. If we don't speak up, the companies will inevitably throw us anything at any price- hoping the boxes stay unopened in our collection closets.

Kristoffer

Hi Chris

As a "In-box Review" this is exactly what it is intended to be, a look at the parts contained within the box, outlining the details, parts, etc.

At armorama you'll also find "Build Reviews", and blogs which many reviewers such as Biil Plunk has done recently.

I don't disagree with the main point of your post though, and agree that I wouldn't buy a kit based on an in box review, unless its one I'd set my heart on, but its certainly valuable and helps to come to an informed decision if you think the kit is worth buying.

As regards builds, whilst I'm in no doubt kits can have poor engineering, bad fit and misleading instructions, to be fair you must also factor in modellers come in varying degrees of skill and capability, so somebody may find a kit difficult or challenging whilst another might find it detailed and straight forward.

Alan

Kristoffer, I take your point completely. The build was something that, before I left for England this month, I had to put it on the back-burner as there were other items which were simply more pressing. That IS going to be rectified next month and i'll be adding in the Review of the Mark I as well. I had started some construction of the interior, and there are issues which I WILL be covering. Particularly important, are some details/omissions in the interior details which I had to get some good reference sources on. Bear with me. On the other hand, a lot of other people have the model. A build from them would be more than welcome?

Please accept my apologies. I am new to this forum and was unaware of the "dual review" process here.

That said, please consider all that I said as rescinded. I would like to note, further, that you, Jim, and the other posters are obviously first-class gentlemen- a real rarity on the internet!

I look forward to visiting again shortly. Thank you all, again.

Chris