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In-Box Review
135
Lewis Gun Team
WW1 British Lewis Gun Team
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by: Alan McNeilly [ ALANL ]

Introduction

MasterClub are a new manufacturer for me to purchase from. This is a look at their only two WW1 British Figures. There aren’t that many 1/35th scale WW1 British figures to choose from. MasterClub do have quite an extensive range of other WW1 figures.

These were another Duxford purchase as I just happened to spot the MC stand.

The Lewis Gun or Lewis Automatic Machine Gun was invented in 1911 by Colonel Issac Newton Lewis of the US Army. Internal difficulties saw him resign and leave for Belgium around 1913 where he established the Armes Automatique Lewis. The gun was adopted/developed by the Armes Automatique Lewis Company in conjunction with the British Army using the British .303 round. The Birmingham Small Arms Company Limited (BSA) purchased a licence to manufacture the gun in 1914 and it was adopted by the British Army under the designation Gun, Lewis .303-Cal and officially approved for service by October 1915.

The figures

The figures come packed in a sturdy plastic MasterClub box contain the two figures in separate zip bags and a small black and white insert showing a picture of the troops and details of the product.

The figures are cast in a grey resin and depict a Lewis Gunner and his Loader in a standing position. Both come on a small plinth which will need removing or not depending on your needs. The figures stand approximately 42mm from heel to shoulder and have good body proportions.

The Lewis Gunner
The figure comes in 9 Parts. The body cast as a whole, separate head, arms and helmet and the Lewis Gun plus the stand and a drum magazine.

The figure is dressed in leather jerkin, trousers and putties with ammo boots. Over the jerkin on the front chest is a respirator and further equipment comes in the form of a leather belt, shoulder straps and 1914 open top pistol holster with pistol handle showing and small ammo pouch. A small haversack is attached to the lower left hand side of the belt and a spade head carrier and water bottle are attached to the lower right hand side of the belt. Missing is any indication of a belt buckle on the front of the belt. There are nice buckles and details on the remaining equipment.

The jerkin, trousers and putties all look nicely done with only a little flash to clean up between the legs. I could see no evidence of a seam that needed clean up so that’s a real plus. The ammo boots are also well depicted.

The head, arms and helmet are all separate items. The head looks nicely done, and comes with the chin strap attached. The right arm is designed to support the Lewis Gun against the right shoulder whilst the left arm hangs by the soldiers side. There is some flash to be cleaned up on the arms and hands and you need to take care removing the helmet from the pour plug.

The Lewis gun looks to be a good representation of the weapon and the magazine, which is also a separate item has nice detailing both top and bottom.

There are no build instructions for the figure so I am assuming two of the remaining straights are for the gun legs but not quite sure what the 3rd larger/thicker straight is for.

The Loader/Ammunition Carrier
The Ammunition Carrier consists of 5 parts. Again the body as a whole, separate head, arms and helmet. This time the soldier is dressed in a tunic, trousers, putties and ammo boots. The tunic has nice side pockets and looks to be a good representation of the kit. Over the tunic and again worn on the front chest is a respirator and under that a belt and braces supporting 2 x Lewis drum ammo pouches on the front and 2 x Lewis ammo pouches on the rear. There are nice buckles and details on the equipment. This time there is indication of a front fastening for the belt.

The face is nicely done and this time sports a fine moustache. There is no chin strap shown so you may need to add this either hanging down or around the helmet rim. The right hand is holding a fine pipe and the left arm appears to rest on the body side.
No weapon is provided for the loader, which seems a bit odd. The epilates on the uniform seem a bit large and square looking to my eyes.

Conclusion

The detail on the figures appears to be very good. There is a nice mix of dress with excellent detailed equipment, the missing belt buckle being the only niggle. Both figures should clean up fairly easily
and paint up well. The poses are not that exciting but facing each other would appear to perhaps be in conversation, but it’s hard to judge from a Black and White photo.

There is a little bit of overspill from the pour on the left arm of the loader and under the jerkin of the gunner under the left arms slot. There was a bit of work required on the joints of the arms and some seams to be dealt with on the arms, which look like the result of the pour.

It is always good to see more WW1 British Infantry in 1/35 scale. There is no indication of who sculpted them on the box but they have done a fine job.
SUMMARY
Highs: A useful if static set
Lows: None Not mentioned
Verdict: Highly Recommended
Percentage Rating
85%
  Scale: 1:35
  Mfg. ID: MCF35220
  PUBLISHED: Jun 19, 2013
  NATIONALITY: United Kingdom
NETWORK-WIDE AVERAGE RATINGS
  THIS REVIEWER: 88.73%
  MAKER/PUBLISHER: 89.79%

About Alan McNeilly (AlanL)
FROM: ENGLAND - EAST ANGLIA, UNITED KINGDOM

Greying slightly, but young at heart. I've been teaching adults off and on for most of my life. Left the services in 85 and first started modelling in about 87 for a few years. Then I had a long spell when I didn't build anything (too busy) and really just got started again during the summer of ...

Copyright ©2021 text by Alan McNeilly [ ALANL ]. All rights reserved.



Comments

Very nice figures. I had no interest in WW1 until I spotted the Tommys War figures and now suddenly have found myself looking for more. Have bought some beautiful figures from the Fusilier but they are also 1/32 or 54mm. As stand alones, the scale doesn´t matter too much, but I can see these in my collection soon! Cheers Alan & Darren.
JUN 18, 2013 - 09:25 PM
Really nice figures. They'll look right at home in your Somme dio Al "Set up there Smith" -"But its all wet there Corp"- "So is all of bloody France. Shut up and get set up"
JUN 18, 2013 - 10:26 PM
Hi Karl and Frank, Thanks for looking in. My only grumble is the casting of the upper arms. There was quite a lot of overspill so cleaning them up was a pain and I ended up replacing one of the hands that got damaged in the process. Gerard is working on a really neat WW1 Tommy at the moment (1/35 Scale) so keep an eye out there. Now I have them built up, they pair up well in conversation. I'll post a pic later. Frank, I've always had an interest in WW1. The Tommy's War figures look great for stand along works, but having started in 1/35 scale I prefer to stay there as it makes interchanging things much easier. Cheers Al
JUN 19, 2013 - 12:25 AM
Hi folks, These are the built figures. I think the interaction works well although I had though about giving them peaked caps? Kark, the Somme Dio hasn't seen the light of day since before Christmas. Work and life interfering with my modelling time at the moment. I did this Indian Officer though: and these 2 might fit well here: Cheers Al
JUN 19, 2013 - 12:57 AM
I dont intend to make dios in 54mm/1-32 scale .... except small vignette type scenes maybe. Got the TW motorcycle and also the new trench section ... add a figure or two ... and viola, enough. Because all I got so far is in this scale, Im happey confining WW1 to 54mm.
JUN 19, 2013 - 01:20 AM
Hi Frank, They are beautiful figures and perfect for what you have in mind. Enjoy. Cheers Al
JUN 19, 2013 - 02:10 AM
   
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