ICM has released two new soft skins onto the market in the form of their Kapitän 2-door Saloon, WWII German Staff Car and L1500S LLG WWII German Light Fire Truck.

Link to Item

If you have comments or questions please post them here.

Thanks!

Someone, anyone, feel free to make a 1941 Ford US command car in 1/35. Do not understand why there is one in 1/48 but not in 1/35. Now-a-days with CAC, 3D printers and digital prototyping I do not understand why any manufacturer would make a model in one scale and not in another????

I concur....

I heartily agree! Couldn't someone put forth the US-made 2x4 and 4x4 trucks built on the various Chevrolet chassis in 1/35 as well? Happily, (I hope...) MIRROR MODELS will be doing other 1/35 US, Brit and Commonwealth softskins, such as the up-coming Diamond-Ts, Indian Motorcycles, Caterpillar D7, HUPs, HATs and Morris Commercials. Can't wait for the HOBBY BOSS M19 Tank Transporter w/Trailer and the White 666 Hard Cab, either! We could also use the HUGE (2-piece, in travel mode) US M1 240mm Artillery Piece, based on the pre-war Coastal Gun? Hey! AFV CLUB!!! How about doing a WC54 Dodge Ambulance? Aside of the ancient PEERLESS MAX/TESTORS/ITALERI/BILEK kit, no one else has done it. There are CERTAINLY enough real WC54s out there, and AFV CLUB CERTAINLY has a leg up with A LOT of the parts for a WC54 that can cross over from their other WC-series Dodges. All that's needed basically, is a longer frame, a new body with interior, and a few other odds and ends, such as longer drive-shafts, etc... Yeah, I know- Kit-bash an AFV CLUB donor-kit with the old PM/T/I/B kits... Been there, done that TWICE for my personal collection- But still, it WOULD be nice to have a new, state-of-the-art WC54... Also, it would be nice to have some new CCKW352/353 kits, as mentioned AND BUILT by MIKE KOENIG (165thspc), 1/35 WWII US truck-builder extraordinaire!!! What do you think, guys?

it will be nice to have it in 1/48. How many of us could use it in dioramas....

Well, it was nice of ICM to do those German softskins anyway.
I just wanted to say that, considering this thread was nearly completely hijacked!
Cool looking stuff, but I have to agree that I would buy a Dodge or Chevy that was new- molded and not a jacked-up ebay price.
-Sean H

Sorry this just seemed like the right time to mention the 41 Ford.

On another topic; Thanks Dennis.

p.s. I already own two of the ICM vehicles currently under construction and will be buying the fire truck when it gets to my #1 local hobby dealer; Scale Reproductions in Louisville, KY

Welcome subjects all the same!

Just razzing you, Michael. You're right-- a '41 Ford would match nicely to the German staff cars, and you must think highly of ICM products to buy them all. I'll give them a look.
As for a '41 Ford in 1/48, remember that that's a common model railroad scale (O Scale) and also the popular late steam era, so any Ford sedan would be quickly bought up by that crowd too.
-Sean H

Hi, All! The ICM Daimler-Benz G4 kits are really worth looking at- I was very impressed by the petite and sharp detail that I found in my G4 1939 Production kit! Mike, I was VERY IMPRESSED with your various Deuce-and-a-half projects. Great job on the Mack NO and the M1 240mm! I've got both the WESPE and ADV/AZIMUT Mack NO kits, and I find them to be disappointing- I will probably wind up kit-bashing my WESPE, ADV/AZIMUT and one of my spare TAMIYA M26 ARV kits to come up with a half-way reasonable Mack NO- Just "SOMETHING" about that particular vehicle that really intrigues me... Good ol' American brawn, I guess... Before I forget, I think that a nice, state-of-the-art Scammel Pioneer done in plastic by a manufacturer like MIRROR MODELS, would do us quite nicely. Sean, if you like German softskins, the ZVEZDA L4500s Truck and "Maultier" kits do not disappoint...

PS- A couple of M-29 (Early & Late) Weasels, an M5 High Speed Tractor and an M8 Artillery Tractor might be nice in plastic, as well. Also, it might be nice to have a Dodge WC-series in the not-so-successful 37mm AT configuration..? I'll probably wind up buying ICM's version of the 3-ton Opel "Blitz" when it comes out- The TESTORS/ITALERI kit wasn't bad, TAMIYA's was much better. I never got around to buying a CYBERHOBBY/DRAGON "Blitz"- Did anyone ever do a comparison review?

I believe CGM (?) did some resin kits of various Ford and Chevrolet 2 x 4 and 4 x 4 vehicles in 1/35. Anyone out there know if they're still in business?

Unfortunately, they've gone out of business some time ago. They had also released some trailers and IHC trucks :

http://www.usarmymodels.com/MANUFACTURERS/CGM/cgm.html

Talking about the MB L1500S LLG, here are some Luftwaffe ones on a airfield :



(the weird-looking aircraft on the left is a Gotha Go 242 glider with its cargo bay open)

H.P.

Here's the 41 Ford look'n good in the small scale.

Just say'n; a 1/35th scale version would be very nice!

I couldn't agree more, Fred! The current trend within ICM with softskins IS VERY MUCH APPRECIATED!!! There are definitely some of those Henschell and Krupp Trucks in my future, along with the various cars as well. I'd like to see ICM do Patton's 1939 Cadillac Limo, and Ike's 1941 Packard, with perhaps a figure of Ike himself AND of Kay Summersby, his driver! Personally, I LOVE ALL SOFTSKINS! They make a great counter-point to all the Armor out there... And Mike, You're Very Welcome! I'll be using your Mack NO post as an inspiration for my own NO project.

Hi, All! It's good news as far as softskins go! How about some pre-war and WWII vintage US Fire Engines as well- Lot's to choose from: Ahrens-Fox, American La France, Seagrave, Buffalo, various Fords and GMCs, Macks, Internationals- WAIT! How about some 1880s-1900s horse-drawn steamers..? They might be nice in 1/24... You know, it just occurred to me- There isn't a single example of a WWII-vintage 1/35 US Army 2-8-0 Steam Locomotive out there, yet there are 4 or 5 different German ones done by TRUMPETER. I haven't checked BALUARD, because those resin locomotives are pretty pricy... I've got a lot of HO steamers in Brass, and no one makes the US Army 2-8-0 in HO, either- I forget the actual US Army Designator... These steam locomotives were definitely not USRA (US Railroad Administration, WWI) types, but they were specifically built for the US Army to operate in Europe during WWII...

Sorry all, I guess I ended up hijacking this thread none-the-less. However we must have hit a nerve her on the 41 Ford and some others. ICM please take note but still many thanks for the recent GREAT releases.

Cheers

Hi, Fred! You being a Managing Editor at Kalmbach, what do you think of my thread concerning a 1/35 WWII US Army 2-8-0? (It wasn't a USRA type) Maybe from someone such as TRUMPETER, to counter-point their 1/35 WWII German Locomotives?

Being also an S Gauge, HO, HOn3, O, On3 and G scale modeler at one or another time I second the motion on a very good idea!

Thanks, Mike! I was pretty sure that you'd support my idea on the 1/35 US Army 2-8-0, in view of the fact that we both love the WWII US and Allied stuff. I'm into HO stuff in a big way; I'm a dedicated New York Central and New York, Ontario and Western fan! No layout as such, as I'm strictly a collector- All of my models (HO, 1/35 Military, 1/48 Aircraft, 1/24 & 1/25 Classic Cars, 1/35-120mm Figures and 1/350 Ships) are displayed behind glass and in specially modified plexi display cases. I'M RUNNING OUT OF ROOM!!!

My all time favorite is HO & HOn3 logging operations. (You might have figured that out from all the disconnect log car photos under "Waiting for a New Deuce".

I have always loved the geared locomotives plus all the steam winches, loaders, cranes and other special equipment

Standardized US WWII export locomotive: 2-8-0. This one build by Baldwin Locomotive Works. If we can have four plastic German kits in 1/35th (counting the armored and unarmored diesels) why not one from the US?

This engine would be at home anywhere from the West Midlands of Britain to Moscow and on to Istanbul. (Yes they were also available in 5 foot gauge!)

We seem to keep hijacking this thread without meaning to. To possibly help relieve the strain a bit I have started a separate steam locomotive topic of its' own at:

https://armorama.kitmaker.net/forums/208814

I have a couple of Matchbox versions of these firetrucks. They were a good chassis, so I hope that we will see more emergency response variants based on this kit. Will be looking for this one.