Bob Davis takes a look at a recent release from Master Box titled ''Hitching a Ride'' and featureing 2 paratroopers asking civilians on a picnic drive for directions.

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If you have comments or questions please post them here.

Thanks!

Hi Bob,
Working on this right now.
Quite disappointed in it for MasterBox.
The instructions are VERY vaugh.Most arrows point to nothing, a lot of guessing were parts should go.Like their figures it's a pain to have to refer to the sprue diagrams to find the right part.A lot of parts are insanely small,and yes go to the carpet monster or break cutting them from the sprue.I'm sure it will look Ok when finished.Just taking a lot of time to figure out.

Tom

Hey Tom, I started the building for this review yesterday. 2 and 1/2 hours for the engine which is only 19 parts. I'm a slow builder but it is rough going back and forth with the instructions. I cut off the parts page and taped it with a blank page to write down the parts #'s to my build surface to keep from turning pages each time I needed a part. Talk about tiny, how did you like the 4 cylinder distibuter cap? Very over enginered I would say so far. I really think M.B. could have done better with the instructions as you say, now that I am building it. And another thing is just how much of these very small parts will be seen when the body is in place. But to be fair, I will have to continue along and see as I go for now.

Hey Bob,

Also spent a ton of time on the engine and suspension.
Ended up leaving some parts out and decided to have the hood closed.will work on the body today.

Tom

Finally got through it.
Lots of wasted parts, nothing fit well, instructions call out wrong parts, if I hadn't paid $50 for this it would have been in the garbage a week ago. Last time I get a car from MB.My advise is to stick to their figures.
There is no detail on the seats.The dash decals just fall apart.No painting references.

Tom

I'm confused by the box art. Obviously it's still war-time, so why is there a civilian family out for a picnic in a German military car? Wouldn't they just be shot by the SS, or something?

VERY good point Biggles2.
Didn't look at it that way,but I couldn't figure out why the base colour seemed to be North African tan when it is obviously in Europe.Hence the white.
I suppose it may be a liberated part of France and the car was found and brought back to life????

Tom

Well the box art does say 1945,, and since the family does seem to be on an outing, it's probably summer. But still, you'd think that any German vehicle would have been confiscated by Allied troops. And the paras seem to still be wearing regular battle dress. Just doesn't make sense!?!

Sort of like MB's Market Garden set with the paras asking a local for directions to the bridge. The local has a shotgun over his shoulder (in Nazi occupied Holland?!), and there's a British telephone booth behind them! I suppose you could stretch reality a "bit" and claim the local is a member of the armed resistance, although, clearly, he's a hunter.

Biggles2,

You have great insight. Ironically that is the other set I've been working on. Right off I couldn't figure out the telephone booth. Did consider how people were treated in Holland at that time and thought it strange he could walk around with a gun. Now I'll have to relook at how all these figures are used.
MB should maybe start doing a little more research.

Tom

After all the reasoning from you guys, I have decided to scrap the MB versions of these sets.
The car will be repainted black and used with their French resistance set. The figures will finish up my Honeymoon Dio.
The British paras will probably be used added to the car.
The MB box art is always totally different to the instructions.That seems to be their big downfall.The find the part instructions I can live with.
Bob.Are you still attempting this.

Tom

Here's how it ended up.
Going to add rifles to the interior.

Tom

Looks like all the stuff is useful in other scenerios but not the one on the box top. Others have pointed out some of the issues with the history aspect but the glaring error to me is the title of"1945" while the paras are depicted wearing the jump suits used in Normandy. I can be fairly certain few,if any guys were still wearing these in 1945 after being pulled out of the line at least twice for rebuilding,etc.
J

Quite right Jerry.
I'm using their French Resistance set with the car.
The family went to my "Honeymoon"dio and the para's are put aside for something in the future.

Tom

Yea, I'm still trying to work this one out. A few parts I have to redo in copper sheet as the originals broke, too thin.+ Though the paratroopers are in jump dress and titled 1945, it could still be used as late 44. Many German vehicals were painted yellow as the pigment supply became hard to keep up with. As to the civilians, they could be driving an abandoned car also. Not a smart move during the times but, there are many pic's of German abandoned equipment being used by civilians and underground troops. So basicly, if you use this kit it is probably better off being parceled out. I was going to use the civilians if a horse drawn cart while the troops are still asking for directions. The car was going to be used as a backdrop for another set of figures. One thing I will say about the staff car is that is over enginered with parts that will most likely never be seen again. A lot of work to get it together.

Pretty sure that: after deployment in Normandy, paras were pulled back to Britain for R&R, and retraining and re-issuing of equipment. By Market-Garden (September) they should all have been wearing the new issue jump uniform.

There are pictures of guys from the 504th PIR in and around Nijmegen with the M42 jump suit, including one with Ross Carter who wrote Those Devils In Baggy Pants. So Holland would be the latest you could get away with for the figures.

Though already discussed in an earlier review of this set, the type of phone box never made it into The Netherlands.
But also timely there is an discussion: the southern part of The Netherlands were liberated in the autumn of 1944, but Al sorts of (temporary) ruling made hunting impossible. Which is logical in a front zone area! (Sourced by asking a hunter who lived in that time in that area,)
The rest of The Netherlands was liberated in spring 1945, not exactly the hunting season.
Therefore, the depicted scene can only be declarated as being in the UK, I guess.