Introduction:

Sergey Traviansky, one of the most talented figure sculptors today, has a soft spot for producing figures depicting Russian soldiers from wars in Chechnya. After sculpting number of 1/35 scale figures of Russian soldiers for different companies, Sergey continued the Chechnya theme under his own label, Evolution Miniatures. This review covers one of the latest releases from Evolution in the series… Russian Soldiers, Chechnya (EM-35126).

Review:

The kit is packed in a typical Evolution Miniatures hard cardboard box which features nicely painted box art picture. The box contains a zip-lock bag with 7 resin parts for assembling a single figure. The pieces include:

- full body with legs,
- left arm,
- right arm,
- head,
- weapon ( left hand),
- RPG-7,
- RPG-7 rocket bag.

The pieces are cast in grey resin and are almost completely clean of casting imperfections. I did found several seam lines, not very pronounced but still annoying to get rid of, especially the ones along the intricate folds of the uniform. Careful sanding should do the trick, but patience is required not to ruin the details. Some of the carrier blocks on the smaller pieces have already been removed, facilitating the cleanup procedure. The fit of the parts is absolutely perfect. Although I reviewed numerous figure sets from the company, I’m still amazed by the ingenuity of Evolution Miniatures figure part breakup… due to the indentations and protrusions in corresponding pieces, the parts are easily aligned and the putty work can be kept to a minimum.

The figure depicts a Russian soldier in a sitting posture, riding on a tank. The figure is wearing Russian winter uniform consisting of lined jacket and trousers. The jacket is made of cotton and has four pockets on the body and one small pocket on the upper part of each sleeve, and reinforced elbows. Removable jacket lining can be attached for additional warmth and has a fur collar exposed over the collar of the jacket. The trousers are also lined and made of cotton; they have a pocket on each thigh and have draw-in ties on each cuff of the leg. Over the uniform, the figure wears 6B5 fragmentation body armor which features 4 integrated AK ammo magazine pouches and grenade pouches on the back of the vest. Along with the high top boots and gloves, the figure is also sporting M-60 helmet over knitted cap, a usual Russian soldier practice during the cold winter months in Chechnya. The large RPG-7 grenade bag designed to hold rockets and prop charges is carried on the back.

The figure is armed with AK-74 assault rifle, and carries RPG-7 rocket launcher slung on his shoulder. The slings for both weapons should be scratchbuilt by the modeler.

Finally, I really like this figure. It is nicely sculpted, with the perfect anatomy and well balanced pose. The uniform and equipment are thoroughly researched and accurately represented in scale. The level of details on the figure is absolutely amazing, from the realistic rendition of fur collar and superbly detailed large RPG bag to the shallow folds on the uniform representing the heavy winter garb perfectly. Well done Evolution Miniatures!

Conclusion:

Russian Soldiers, Chechnya (EM-35126) is a great figure. It is sculpted really well with ton of details all around, nicely delivered in resin. The pieces fit perfectly and the figure is easy to build.

One of my dream projects is a 1/35 scale Russian Army BTR-80 in Chechnya, complete with a crew and a full pack of Russian soldiers riding on top of the vehicle. So far, I have about 10 riders, all sculpted by the same artist, complementing each other really well. This figure presents a very welcomed addition my collection and should prove interesting to all modelers with a similar diorama concept.