Introduction:

Live Resin recently offered Polaris MV850 ATV in 1/35 scale. The company also released a bunch of accessories, upgrades and figures for the vehicle, many of which have been reviewed on Armorama (link). This review covers: US Military ATV quadrobike upgrade set - SA 1 Swing Arm mount with Mk48 7.62 machine gun (LRE-35319).

Review:

The set is packed in a zip-lock bag secured between cardboard backings. The CAD box art images show the contents of the set and display two slightly different options how to use the set on ATV model.

The bag contains 21 pieces cast in grey resin:

- weapon parts: Mk48, bipod (open/closed), carrying handle, heat guard, ammo belt (2x)
- swing arm parts: arm 1, arm 2, weapon mount (2x)
- mounting bracket (3x).

The set includes pieces to assemble two complete swing arm systems w Mk48, and three slightly different vehicle mounting brackets. The pieces look fantastic, perfectly cast and full of superbly delivered details. Large casting blocks feature thin pour stubs and very small attachment points, thus minimizing cleanup of the pieces.

The kit depicts SA 1 Swing Arm system, a double articulated gun mount support providing an exceptional field of fire. The SA 1 system is designed to accommodate the H24-6 machine gun mount; one end of the swing arm is attached to a vehicle mounting bracket while the H24-6 mount pintle is inserted in the socket on the other end of the swing arm, with locking pins securing each end of the system. The H24-6 Machine Gun Mount accepts both the M240 family of medium machine guns and M249 family of light machine guns. The resin pieces in this kit are very impressive. All the tiny swing arm details, like locking pins and tightening screws, are wonderfully rendered in scale. The H24-6 mount features number of fine points as well. I wish the set included ammo box cradle and 7.62 ammo box as well. These parts are supplied in the SA 1 Swing Arm (LRE-35018) and various other Live Resin sets featuring M240 variants on a swing arm… I plan to use these parts from the spares box for my ATV build.

As for the Mk48, it is a real gem and a great proof Live Resin weapon sets are the most detailed on the market today. The Mk48 in this set is actually Mk48 Mod 0, an M249 scaled up to fire 7.62x51 mm NATO round. The Mod 0 uses modified rail interface system and hinged heat guard, and the weapon in this set also features an adjustable M4-like buttstock. The carrying handle, two bipod options (open and closed), heat guard and ammo belt segment are provided as separate pieces.

The assembly of the machine gun mount support is pretty much straightforward. The SA 1 swing arms are cast separately allowing modelers to position the support system to their own preferences. Small protrusions help in aligning the two swing arms properly while the far end of the SA 1 features a small groove which serves as an anchoring point for the H24-6 mount. Easy! Three different mounting brackets are supplied in this kit. These provide three slightly different options of mount position on the vehicle. Fitting the mount to ATV front exoskeleton should also be fairly easy.

Altogether, this is a very impressive upgrade set for ATV from Live Resin. If you’d like to model an ATV with an additional punch, this set is a must.

Conclusion:

US Military ATV quadrobike upgrade set - SA 1 Swing Arm mount with Mk48 7.62 machine gun (LRE-35319) is an amazing set. It provides two complete swing arm systems and two Mk48, together with three different ATV mounts in 1/35 scale. The pieces are perfectly cast in resin and feature loads of sharply defined details all around. The set is easy to assemble and should be easy to install on the ATV.

EDIT: I have Live Resin ATV kit in the works. Once the build is complete I plan to include photos of the swing arm installed on the vehicle to this review.