With two new Scammel Pioneers in 35th scale entering the market in close proximity from two different manufacturers, we thought it only proper to build both of them and show off the virtues of each of those kits for you all. Today Andy shows us his IBG Models Scammell Pioneer SV2S before he starts cutting the plastic…
In-Boxed: Scammell Pioneer SV2S
Manufacturer – IBG Models
Kit Number #35029
Scale - 1/35th
Product Link on the IBG Website
Price - ¥6,160 • $56.50 • £44.50 • €50.50 from Hobbylink Japan
Build Guide Pt I: IBG's Scammell Pioneer SV2S
Build Guide Pt II: IBG's Scammell Pioneer SV2S
Build Guide Pt III: IBG's Scammell Pioneer SV2S
The last couple of years have seen a slew of kit releases of subjects that, up until now, have either been unavailable in model form, or only available as expensive and often complex, resin kits. The interest in more left field subjects, rather than the usual Tigers and Shermans, certainly seems to be growing, and that's great for modelling in general, and definitely great for me, as I love kits of big, dirty trucks.
And that's exactly what IBG have given us here. A new tool release of the Scammell Pioneer SV2S, a British heavy breakdown truck, or wrecker for all you colonials. It's a very popular machine in historic military vehicle circles, but hasn't been available as a mainstream injection moulded kit, until now.
Scammell first developed the Pioneer back in the mid-1920's, and it was intended for use in the far-flung corners of the British Empire, where paved roads were rare, and its heavy duty, long travel suspension was invaluable for hauling timber and other loads over rough ground. First designed as a civilian truck, it wasn't until the mid-30's that the British Army started to see the potential of the vehicle, first in the form of the R100 artillery tractor, and later as a recovery truck and a tank transporter.
The recovery/breakdown version entered service in 1936, with the first models designated SV1S and SV1T. Most of these examples were subsequently lost or abandoned during the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from Dunkirk in 1940. The later SV2S was first produced in 1938, and featured a redesigned, and more versatile crane. This version would stay in production until the end of the war, with a total of 1975 produced, with many remaining in service after the war. Many ex-army SV2S's also ended up in the hands of civilian haulers, where they received distinctly non-military paint schemes.
The Kit
IBG's new release comes in one of their standard, top opening boxes, albeit a smaller one than I'd expected, given the relatively large size of the subject. All the parts are well protected though, with individual bags for the sprues, and a separate resealable bag for the clear parts. You get 16 sand coloured sprues in total, plus an additional bag containing the outer tread sections for the tyres. In addition to the plastic parts, you get an amply sized photo-etch fret, a length of thread for the crane, a well-printed decal sheet, the instruction manual, and an A4 print of the box artwork.
Sprue A
First up we've got the sprue holding the rear bed and the rear wall of the cab, together with other smaller details. At the top of the sprue, there's a nice slide moulded cable drum for the winch. Everything is cleanly moulded, with some nice rivet detail on the cab wall. No flash to be seen, and the sprue gates are small, so clean up should be straight forward.
Sprue B
Here we've got the remaining parts for the rear body, made up of flat panels with crisply moulded plank detail. There's no wood grain texture added to the panels, but that's probably a good idea. Moulded wood grain often looks unrealistic, and the grain isn't that apparent on the painted panels of the real truck, let alone a 1/35 version. There's also no inconveniently placed ejector pin marks on panels that will be seen from both sides, which is good to see.
Sprue C
This holds the main chassis rails, and the parts for the crane arm and support frame. Again, no issues with flash, moulding lines or pin marks.
Sprue D
This one's mainly detailing parts, with the steering wheel, gear stick and other cab controls. There's also the rear diff, and another slide moulded cable drum.
Sprue E
Here we've got the main cab panels. The cab itself can be built up as a separate unit, then dropped into place on the chassis, which will make painting much easier. The doors are moulded integrally with the side panels, and aren't designed to open. That's a shame considering the amount of detail included in the cab interior.
Sprue F
Parts for the bonnet (hood), radiator and front suspension. There are also two very nice front mudguards. The sprue gates attach to the top of these parts, so you'll need to be careful when removing them to avoid any scarring. They are however free of pin marks on the underside, so no awkward filling/sanding to be done there.
Sprue G
This holds the main engine parts, and IBG has included a pretty full representation of the six -cylinder Gardner engine. You could still add a few extra details like cabling and such if you want to super-detail it, and since the side panels can be left off you'll be able to show off all your hard work.
Sprue H
Mainly small details here. The rear leaf spring suspension, and transmission parts together with some internal details.
Sprue I (x2) & Sprue J (x2)
Only a few parts on each of these sprue pairs. A couple of rails, and two wooden panels for the equipment boxes on sprue I, and the counterweight bars that sit on the front of the truck on sprue J.
Sprue K (x2)
Here we've got two sprues holding the wheels. IBG have moulded the wheels integrally with the tyre sidewalls which are then slipped into the separately moulded treads. This is a very clever way of building up the wheels, and worked to great effect on the Rosomak I built earlier in the year. I'm very glad to see the same method used here, as it makes painting and weathering so much easier, compared to the rubber style tyres you find in other kits.
Sprue M (x2)
Wheel hubs and walking beams for the rear wheels, and the Lee Enfield rifles for the cab.
Sprue L
The clear sprue holds the glazing for the cab together with the headlight lenses. There are a few ripples in the smaller glazing panels, but the mouldings are clear and blemish free.
Tyre Treads
You get a 7 tread section including one for the spare wheel. These are very well moulded, with just a few faint mould lines running across the tread, easily removed with a sanding stick. There are no flat spots or pressure bulges moulded in, but you could sand a small flat spot yourself to give the completed vehicle a more weighted look.
Thread
IBG supply a length of thread to represent the cable on the crane arm. In reality, this is a bit on the thin side for what would have been a braided steel cable on the real truck and is probably best replaced with some thin braided wire. There's also no information in the instructions as to how to rig up the cable. It's simply shown already in place in the final assembly step.
Photo Etch
The PE fret is quite comprehensive, featuring parts for the chassis, cab, crane and engine. They should add a nice level of detail to the finished model.
Close-Ups
IBG's method for producing the wheels allows full sidewall detail to be moulded including the Firestone logos, and some nice bolt detail on the wheels, although reference photos do seem to show a slightly different bolt arrangement, with four holes spaced between the bolts. I'm no expert, and I have found photos with the type of wheel provided in the kit, but it wouldn't be a big job to drill the extra holes anyway.
The front axle is a nice moulding, but having the wheel hubs moulded in place means the wheels can't be placed in a turned position. The hubs are a fairly simple parts though, so it would be relatively easy to remove them and scratch build replacements that could be articulated.
The fuel tank has a couple of steps attached for access to the cab, and IBG have moulded these in place. Given the amount of photo-etch included with the kit, I'm surprised they didn't supply these as PE parts, as the real steps are only thin sheet metal. I'll probably remove the moulded steps and make replacements from thin plastic card. Sadly there's no decal supplied here in this kit.
Having the doors moulded in place with the cab sides means you can't have them open without some surgery to the kit parts. Just cutting the door away won't be enough, as the bottom edge of the door on the outside is moulded at a different level to the bottom edge on the inside. It can be fixed, but you'd need to remove and rebuild some of the framework on the inner door.
The mudguards are ready to go, apart from maybe thinning the edges down a little.
The Lee Enfield rifles are a little simplified, but you can't see much of them when they've tucked away on their rack inside the cab.
Instructions
The instructions come as an A4 booklet with 40 build steps presented in a 3D CAD style. There are a lot of sub-assemblies that are built in a seemingly random order, which are brought together later in the build process.
The illustrations are clear enough, but in some steps, the number of criss-crossing arrows indicating the position of parts can be a little confusing.
Decals
The decals are printed by Techmod, and look excellent, being thin with good colour density and perfect registration. There's also virtually no excess carrier film, and my previous experience of these decals is that they go down very well.
Markings
IBG has been quite generous with the marking options with five schemes from a variety of locations, including both captured German and Russian lend-lease options. Paint codes are given for Vallejo, Hataka, Mr Hobby and Lifecolor.
In order, the options are;
-German captured vehicle, Africa Korps 1942 in Desert Yellow-Russian lend-lease vehicle, Red Army Eastern Front 1943 in Russian Green
-British Army REME, 22 Armoured Brigade, Normandy 1944 in Green/Black mickey mouse camo
-6th South African Armoured Division, Egypt 1944 in Khaki/ Black camo
-6th South African Armoured Division, Egypt 1944 in Khaki/ Black camo
-1st Polish Armoured Division, England 1943 in Khaki/Black camo
This looks to be a great kit, and certainly a subject that many modellers have been waiting to see for quite a while. The parts appear to be well moulded, and I'm not expecting any issues during assembly. It would have been nice to have the option to pose the doors open and angle the front wheels, but all that would have added to the parts count and complexity of the build. Overall, I think IBG have got a good balance between detail and straight forward build-ability. The generous choice of markings is also a plus point, and I can foresee some Russian lend-lease action in my near future.
Stay Tuned.
Andy Moore
This kit is available from IBG's Distributors Worldwide - thanks to them for sending it to Andy to review and later to build.