| KIT: | UM 1/72 |
| KIT #: | 322 |
| PRICE: | $9.98 (8.96 at Squadron) |
| DECALS: | options |
| REVIEWER: | Scott Van Aken |
| NOTES: |
| HISTORY |
Allow me to quote from the instructions on this one as my luck in getting information from Google on these unusual vehicles has not been good! So, without further ado, here it is, lumps and all.
"The most widespread autogun in Red Army in 30th years became self-propelled plant SU-12. It was used for support by fire of the mechanized units of the army. On the truck GAZ-AAA have established a platform on which have mounted a curbstone with pumping part of a 76.2mm regimental gun (sample 1927) and panelboard covering. Number of a crew together with the driver - 4 persons. The ammunition consisted of 36 shells. The machine in weight of 4 tons had the maximal speed of 60 km/h. SU-12 could conduct shooting from a place and straight off; back along the machine through the right and left board. The sector of bombardment made 270 degrees."
| THE KIT |
If
you have seen or built other UM kits, then you know pretty well what to
expect. They are probably one of the best values for the money in terms of
small scale military kits. UM's molding is really very good. There are
ejector pin marks and a few sink areas, though all the pin marks are either
invisible when the kit is done or easily filled. Only one sink area will
really need attention and that is on the truck bed piece. From what I can
see, it looks like you get a standard GAZ truck with a flat bed and a sprue
with the gun that is to go on the back.
Overall construction of the kit looks pretty normal and though it is a tad fiddly appearing, should present no real problems. UM does not rely on etched metal bits to complete their kits so that will be appreciated by those who don't like P.E. As with most 1/72 military vehicles, this is a curbside with just a block representation to fill the void where the engine goes. The wheels and tires are separate with the tires in a sort of semi-hard vinyl. At least you won't have to worry about painting the tires! Acetate is provided for the windows.
Instructions are very well drawn and provide 13 construction steps. Color information is by Humbrol paints and the generic name is also given. There are no decals and the lone example provided is just like the box art truck in overall Olive. I'm sure that those who wish can add other paints as research may show them in a winter wash or other schemes.
| CONCLUSIONS |
Overall this looks like a really nice kit. It is a subject that you won't see very often and if you like soft skins, but want something with a bit of punch, then this one will definitely fill the bill. It is also nice that it is most reasonably priced.
You can find this kit and many others at
If you would like your product reviewed fairly and quickly by a site that has nearly 300,000 visitors a month, please contact me or see other details in the Note to Contributors.