HASEGAWA Ma.K SCI-FI SERIES ‘NUTCRACKER’ HOVER-TANK FLOATS ACROSS OUR MODEL SHELF

David Jefferis discusses

Long-term readers will know how enthusiastic we are of science-fiction models, and in particular the Hasegawa kits featuring the Ma.K (Maschinen Krieger) sci-fi universe, first created in the 1980s by Japanese artist Kow Yokoyama. Ma.K is set in the 2800s, with a storyline based on the fighting between various factions as the Earth repopulates after a nuclear war.

Hover-tank ahead

Thanks to Hasegawa, Ma.K models continue to be released, and now we have one with real appeal for armoured fighting vehicle fans. The 1:35 scale PKH 103 Nutcracker hover-tank is a neatly crafted addition to the Ma. K range, and a delight for all sci-fi buffs, with bolts-and-rivets steampunk overtones into the bargain. As envisaged, the Nutcracker (once named ‘Nutrocker’ btw) is a robotic AFV with no humans aboard - but to make up for that lack, Hasegawa supplies a pair of new-tool troopers wearing armoured Battle Suits. These are works of model art in their own right, and will reward extra care with the brushwork - and like the Nutcracker, are an absolute natural for the war-weary scarred and weathered look.

Nutcracker or Slave-1?

Under the hover-tank are a bunch of vents, which presumably represent the downthrusters that allow it to hover above the ground. From this angle the Nutcracker looks remarkably like Boba Fett’s Slave-1 bounty ship from Star Wars, which is available as an EasyKit from Revell. I posted an unboxing of this and I stick by my later conclusion: that the kit has fine potential, but with enough assembly issues to make the EasyKit moniker read more accurately as ‘not-so-EasyKit’.  Still, it looks great these days, brooding belligerently on the display shelf in a mean and moody midnight-black stealth colour scheme. More on that kitbash in the near future...

Back to the Nutcracker, and our conclusion is that if you like this subject zone, then making the 1:35 scale Hasegawa kit will bring big rewards. Like other products from this company, it’s a very carefully prepared item.  

Our friends at HobbyLink Japan have this kit at 20 percent discount at the moment, here.

See more on Maschinen Krieger here.

Star Wars unboxing is here and Star Wars kits are here.

Nutcracker pix courtesy Hasegawa. Boba Fett’s Slave-1 from the SMN Studio. 

ITALERI MAS MOTOR TORPEDO BOAT TO 1:35 SCALE

The World War II era MAS - from the Italian ‘Motoscafo Armato Silurante’ (literally, motorboat armed with torpedoes) - is becoming widely available in stores now.

MAS boats were used by Italy’s navy, the Regia Marina, and this very substantial 55 cm (21.6 in) long model is well up to the usual Italeri standard: packed with detail, a neat set of well-printed decals, and a biggish metal-etch fret for super-detail parts. The hull is a one-piece component, always a relief in marine kits, as any trace of warping can make assembly a pain. 

The crew

The real thing typically had anything up to a 10-man crew, so what do they look like in this kit? Well, there aren’t any, and it seems to be standard procedure for Italeri to offer humanoids separately. In fact, so far as ships go, it’s not a bad idea, as many marine modellers prefer to show off just the boat, and nothing but the boat.

However, in SMN’s view, the Italeri Crew and Accessories pack really makes the difference, adding a sense of scale, drama and life to this already excellent kit. You don’t get any below-decks crew - there are just six chaps included in the box - but they are nicely sculpted. You could always add another box-full of sailors, though we doubt the MAS needs two captains!

MAS boat in service

The MAS had a displacement of up to 30 tonnes, depending on the model, and could reach up to 45 knots (52 mph) with power coming from Isotta Fraschini engines. Armament was a pair of 450 mm (18 in) anti-ship torpedoes, with a deck-mounted machine gun for anti-aircraft protection and surface fire. In 1940 there were 48 MAS 500-class units in service.

The Italeri MAS boat is available here.

The pictures show:

1-4 Italeri MAS boat.

5  Crew and accessories pack.

6  MAS in action, finished in WWII ‘disruptive’ camouflage markings.

Just click the SMN logo at top left to return to the home page.

UNDERSEA ATTACKER - THE GERMAN BIBER MIDGET SUB FROM ITALERI

SMN report
Italeri’s latest 1:35 scale nautical kit is the neatly produced Biber (‘Beaver’) one-man midget submarine from World War II. To this big military-model standard scale, even the Biber works out to a fair size in model form, in this case some 186 mm (7.3 in) long. It comes with two well-sculpted figures, as well as decals for three different subs, and a small etched-metal fret with super-detail parts.

Biber on view at the Imperial War Museum
There are quite a few Bibers on display in military museums across Europe - the one pictured above is on view in the UK’s Imperial War Museum, London. It’s a place well worth visiting, and if you build the Italeri Biber kit, seeing the real thing complete with its quota of lumps, bumps, scrapes, dings and dents, will allow you to add those extra details to take the Italeri sub from smooth-but-a-bit-dull ‘stock’ to knocked-about-and-real ‘superb’.

Biber armament
In service, the Biber could carry two 530 mm (21 in) torpedos or a pair of mines, but the tiny U-boat was introduced late in the war and never became a big threat to its primary target, Allied coastal shipping. It had a limited range of some 185 km (115 miles) and could manage a speed of less than 10 km/h (6.2 mph) underwater. Over 300 Bibers were built, but they met with little success in combat operations, and most were damaged or sunk by Allied forces.

One-man Biber operations
Spare a thought for the man at the Biber’s controls - military operations generally lasted for one or two days, and the pilot-operator had to stay on combat-alert throughout the mission. To help do this, he refuelled on a diet of caffeine-boosted chocolate, or downed tablets of D-IX, a cocaine-based drug brewed up by Nazi scientists to keep him wide-eyed and awake. Apparently, earlier tests with D-IX on full-pack carrying troops had resulted in non-stop marches for anything up to 90 km (55 miles) before total collapse.

SMN note - A couple of the pictures look somewhat squashed, which is a software issue... we'll see what can be done. Meantime, if you click on any pic, the usual enlargement will show it undistorted.

Visit IWM London here.

See the Biber here.

View other Italeri military kits here.

The pictures show, top to bottom:
1  Italeri kit box.
2  Cleanly-pressed injection parts.
3  Italeri supplies details for three different subs.
4  Accurately printed decal sheet.
5  Biber mini-sub in the Imperial War Museum, London.
IWM picture courtesy Conny Liegl.