Molded in light gray resin, the figure (#35017) represents a DAK NCO dressed in tropical attire taking a look at the scene in front of him either before -- or after -- looking through his binoculars.
The legs and torso are molded as one solid piece and the builder is given the option of two heads. One featuring a peaked field cap, while the other is wearing a Panzer Feldmutze. Detail on both hats is crisp and the hair is nicely textured.
Like the hair, both faces are well done and should look good when painted. My sample of the head wearing the field cap had a small bubble on the chin that will need to be filled, but it shouldn’t be too much work.
Uniform detail is very nicely done and stands up well even under a magnifying glass. Items like the tanker badge, buttons and eagle all look good under magnification. A pair of gloves and a flare pistol are tucked into the figures belt. Both are molded onto the torso as is a pistol holster.
The arms fit nicely to the body, but will require a little bit of putty or superglue to fill a few minor gaps. Like all other Alpine figures however, fit isn’t an issue that will keep builders awake at night.
Hands/binoculars
I was really impressed with the engineering of the hands and binoculars which are molded as one piece, giving the impression this guy has a really good grip on his binos. The ends of the hands fit snugly into small wrist sockets sculpted into the arms.
Care is needed when attaching the arms to make sure they will line up with the hands/binoculars. With a little bit of patience and pressure from my fingers, I had no major problems in getting things to line up. The hand/bino combination is really a slick bit of molding/engineering that I really found impressive.
Conclusion
Nifty engineering and solid sculpting combine to make this a very nice figure that should keep painters happy. It also serves as a nice compliment to Alpine’s DAK Panzer Officer (#35016). Both figures can also be purchased as a set (#35018). Due to the delicate nature of resin and cost associated with these figures, a fair amount of modeling experience will be helpful in building and painting them.
Photos of the finished figure on the right are taken from the box art. They are painted by Jaume Ortiz Forns (Homellop)
Thanks to Alpine Miniatures for providing the review sample.
SUMMARY
The second of two 1/35th figures from Alpine Miniatures representing a dismounted Afrika Korps tanker is yet another outstanding product from this upstart company. Crisp molding along with some really nice details make this a figure that is as much at home in a vignette as it would be standing in front of tank in a diorama.
