Jim Starkweather suggested I post it here. So here goes.
1/35 3ID Bradley OIF Storage Racks and K-Rail by Gary Johnson
Background:
Gary Johnson (garyj36 here at Armorama) has recently started a garage casting business. One of his latest pieces is a set of 2 storage racks seen on 2 BDE, 3ID Bradleys in OIF and a K-Rail style road barrier that is also a common sight in Iraq and all over the world. 2 BDE, 3ID drew their vehicles from Pro-Positioned (PrePo) stocks in Kuwait. These vehicles had locally made storage racks on them. The M2A2 Bradleys from 3-15 IN, 2 BDE, 3ID were the only ones to have these racks. The racks were very useful in carrying all the gear that was needed during the invasion phase of OIF (OIF 1). Gary sent me samples of these to build and see what I think of them.
Parts and Assembly:
The parts are cast in crisp, yellow-tan resin with a paper-thin layer of flash on them. This flash is easy to clean up with a sharp Xacto blade and some sanding. Clean up between the bars was a little time consuming, but not too difficult. The parts are broken down into the bottom frame, front frame, and two sidepieces. The green colored areas on the photo show the areas to be removed to properly assemble the racks. Simply cut the green parts off and assemble. There were a few small air bubbles in my sample on the inner parts of some of the rails, but none too large to fill with a little bit of putty. A few of these caused the part to break while sanding, but were easily fixed with a small amount of superglue. The rack assembled easily by attaching the front part to the bottom, then the sides. I had no issues with assembly. The K-rail only needed a little sanding on the bottom and it was ready for painting as well. It is cast as a solid block and uses a full ounce of resin for each piece. They have an appropriately solid and heavy feel to them.
The assembled rack is in perfect scale with ones I have measured and looks great. The K-Rail can accent any modern vehicle and is perfectly scaled to the size of commercial ones available.
Conclusion:
I highly recommend these items for anyone wanting to build a 3-15 IN, 2 BDE, 3ID M2A2 Bradley with the correct storage racks. The racks looks great and have the appropriate 3-D effect that cannot be achieved with the current PE storage racks on the market. The K-Rail can be used with almost any modern vehicle or figures in any urban setting. They will accent any modern diorama. Great items.
How to get them:
Gary will be making quite a few different items in the future. He already has a USMC BRE (I already reviewed one on Armorama, USMC BRE Review), 3ID BRE, a bustle rack APU, CIPs, and M113 storage racks are in the works. I will be reviewing those for you as well. He sells his products on eBay and the forums here and calls his company "Gulf War Armor" and sells on eBay as 53ggibeht. He can also be contacted at his email: [email protected]
The racks sell for $6.95 plus shipping for a set of two. The K-Rail sells for $2 each plus shipping.
Here are some pics of them.
Brad racks on 2BDE, 3ID Bradley:
Racks in the raw:
Assembled:
On an Academy Bradley model and with gear in them:
K-Rail in Iraq:
Cleaned up:
With a figure for scale:
Painted and weathered:
Hope you all like them. I do.
Thanks Gary and Jim.
