It's the fall/winter/spring of 1944-45.
There's some downtime, but danger isn't far away. The American tank crew stands outside of their vehicle -- relaxed -- but with weapons at the ready. Who knows what danger could be lurking....

That's just one possibility that is opened up by a new two-figure set of 1/35th figures from Alpine Miniatures depicting two US tankers standing in cold-weather gear somewhere in Europe, 1944-45.

Overall impression

Alpine has produced two crisp resin figures that build easily and look great when they are done. Both contain delicate molding in the clothing and faces that bring a very lifelike appearance to the set or as individuals. Both of the figures are available as individuals or in a set (35011).

I did a quick build on both of these figures, but did not paint them. Like the Kursk 1943 German (35008), both of these guys are really nice offerings. Both went together quickly and well with very little flash and with minimal clean up.

Both figures offer two heads for selection by the builder.

Figure #1 (35009)

Decked out in winter gear, this figure is in a standing position holding a .45. He wears a cold weather tanker jacket with the division patch molded on to the front of the jacket and his stripes molded on to the arms.

His holster and straps are sculpted as part of the jacket and really look the part. He is also carrying something inside his back pocket (A wallet, smokes, rations?) which is nicely done.

This guy seems to be the loud one on the crew; both of the head choices have him in either a yelling or speaking role. The builder is given the choice between a head wearing just a knit hat or a helmet with a knit cap underneath.

This guy builds up well and his right arm fit nicely around the holster on his chest. The arms will take just a dab of putty where they meet the torso, but it’s really minimal.

I encountered no major building issues with this figure and found the resin parts were easily removed from the casting blocks.

Figure #2 (35010)

This figure has gone for a little different look. He wears the winter combat trousers over his tanker jacket. The bulky bib overalls look bulky on this figure like they do in real life. The figure is also wearing a web belt with a holster and medical pouch attached to it.

A scarf tied around his neck fills out his ensemble (“What every well-dressed tanker will be wearing this winter in the Ardennes“) . His stripes and armored division patch are molded on to the figure. On both figures these are nicely done, but they look easy to remove if the builder so chooses.

The right arm is molded as part of the torso. The left arm fits well, but could use a tiny spot of putty just to smooth things out. Again this is really a small point on a great figure.

This figure is wearing gloves and carrying an M-3 grease gun. The gun is well done with a very delicate barrel. I had no problem getting mine off the casting block, but be VERY careful doing it, the barrel is extremely delicate.

The grip and trigger assembly of the gun is molded into the right hand. The reminder of the weapon fits over that area with a small seam that could use a little filling, but once painted gunmetal it shouldn’t obvious if you chose to leave the slight seam there.

The builder is given the choice of either a head wearing a tanker helmet or one that’s decked out in a steel pot with knit hat underneath. the tanker helmet looks good when compared to photos in Windrow and Hawkins book on GI uniforms of WWII.

Conclusion

Here’s another nice set of figures from Alpine, and it’s a set that should be welcomed by Allied builders. At this point I’m trying to work these guys into a Dragon Wagon vignette or dio somehow but I‘m going to have to find some other figures that are on par with these guys too keep everything balanced! I’m really looking forward to painting these guys up as it looks like it will be fun.