Hi guys,

I'm thinking of buying Dragon's modern US Rangers, mainly because I like the poses in the boxart.

http://www.dragonmodelsusa.com/dmlusa/prodd.asp?pid=DRA3004

Unfortunately, I couldn't find a review of these figures anywhere. Can anybody tell me for which conflict these figures can be used?

Also, what i did found out is that they have been released as Desert Storm troops as well. Does the kit contain the helmets, or where these added for this special re-release?

thanks a lot,
Harry

They're useful for the 1980's, no body armor or helmets in the kit. IIRC the helmets were added for the Desert Storm issue of the kit, but again, no body armor. It's one the Dragon's first figure kits so it has its' issues.

Not one of Dragons best efforts Harry, would leave alone better chance of converting the special forces set.

Thanks for this feedback! I was already in doubt about the US special forces set, which is also on the shelves of my local hobby shop, but I guess I will just pick that one up then. I’ve read a review somewhere saying it’s a great set, so there’s no going wrong on that one.

Let me then ask the same question again for these figures: what is their timeframe / for which conflict can these be used? Would it be appropriate to paint them in 3 or 6 color desert camouflage instead of woodland?

Best regards,
Harry

I'm not sure about that.
I have a set on the shelf downstairs somewhere and in my memory the DS1 set was the Ranger figures 3004 and Desert Storm era body armor torsos and helmets. I'll have to check later this afternoon.

Harry, you've hit the nail on the head.
I've got a LOT of DML figures that the box art (thanks Ron V) is better than the execution of the figures inside.

The Soviet Tank Crew and that one guy peeking around the side of a vehicle with the shorty AK really got me excited.. but the physical execution of the plastic was less impressive, even before my medoicre painting skills came to bear.

The patrolling rangers poses are generally what you get from the boxart, but early DML figure arms did not always line up well with holding or sighting a weapon.

I built them back in the day and for what they were and when, they were the best (and only) game in town. They are certainly nothing like the Generation2 sets now.

If you're interested and motivated and they are not charging collectors prices, it might be worth it to practice on.

My US$0.02
Mike

I actually like the older Dragon "Modern" figures. They are acceptably molded and are still some of the better figures that represent late '80s to early '90s US troopers.

The Rangers set is pretty nice. The original boxing came with no body armor or helmets. The ODS reboxing added torsos with PAGST body armor and Kevlar helmets. They represent ODS infantry pretty well. They can be painted in either woodland or 3 or 6 color desert camo.

The Special Forces figures represent '90s SF troops well. This set also contains a nice M249 with a solid buttstock. They do not have on body armor or helmets though. The molding on them is very good and they come with lots of accessories and add on pieces. They can be painted in either woodland or desert camo as well.

I recommend them both.

Here is one way to present them............When my unit trained in the States we sometimes wore kevlar and vests and sometimes not. Scratch build blank firing adaptors for the weapons and portray them in a training scenario. Woodland camo would be ideal. Just my two cents worth...........Al

The figures aren't bad. Not having vests they do have a limited uses. For example, I used the set for a short-lived dio set in the mid-80s....and I've used it for the basis of some of my what-if projects...great if you need legs for a figure casually walking. You can always add vested torsos from other sets. The set has standard early DML weapons. It does have a head with night vision goggles. You should be able to pick up a set pretty cheaply though. I've seen them go for around $5-7 (USD).

The Special Forces set is also quite nice. It suffers from the lack of vests but has alot of toys in the set.

Bear in mind when making this statement that this is one of DML's oldest figure sets. Having been released in the 1990's, DML's early days, it is 15-20 years old.

Like Mike I also build this set back then, along with the Speznaz team, the Soviet Naval Infantry, and Desert Storm Anti-tank team. I think I still have that Soviet tank crew