Editions Du Barbotin

Minitracks Focus No. 2 Somua S35

by  Pascal Danjou

Reviewed By  Kip Rudge, IPMS# 40597

MSRP: $14.95 Web Site: www.minitracks.fr Modeling French armor must be an acquired taste. I mean, let’s face it, the newsreels rarely show columns of French vehicles advancing, or retreating, across Europe. Add to that a relative paucity of French subjects in the armor modeling catalogue, and the words "niche market" spring to mind. Within the last several years a French "blip" occurred in the armor modeling world as Dragon briefly offered a Panhard 178 armored car, Trumpeter and Bronco kitted the Hotchkiss variants and Tamiya chipped in with a landmark Char B1 bis and the cute little UE tractor. But while these kits were welcomed with open arms (I don’t know a single modeler in my peer group who doesn’t own a Char Bis), there are still a couple of huge holes in the French armor catalogue. One of which is the subject of this review – the Somua S35. The only kits of this vehicle are the ancient Heller mold and a resin kit by Airedale Castings. Upgrades include track sets from Fruil and Modelkasten, photo-etch by Eduard and On the Mark Models and a resin turret upgrade by Airedale Castings. The Somua S-35 was one of the most prevalent French combat vehicles when the Germans came a knockin’ in 1940. The Somua was the technical equivalent of the predominant German tanks at the time – the Panzer III and IV. However the French tactical, operational and strategic command was nowhere near the equivalent of the Germans during the same period. Decent designs such as the Somua and the Char Bis were squandered in penny packet support of infantry and rearguard actions. After the French folded, the Somua was one of the few French tanks taken into service by regular Wehrmacht units. The big knock of the Somua, as with all French tanks of the period, was the one-man turret. The Focus volume on the Somua is a great companion to Editions Du Barbotin’s earlier Trackstory book on the Somua. The Trackstory book is getting rather difficult to find these days, but perhaps a reprint could come soon. The Focus series is… ummm .. well… focused on the technical aspects of the Somua. A short development and operational history begins the book, and while it is interesting, I’d recommend the Trackstory Somua book for more details. The meat and potatoes in this book are the pages of very sharp color detail photos of the Somua preserved at Saumur. This section of the book is very reminiscent of the Modelart reference books. Each section of the vehicle is highlighted for a couple of pages. The pictures are clear, in color, and just what the doctor ordered for perking up that ancient Heller kit sitting in your stash. Also included are some great interior photos that will enable the scratch builder to finish that knocked-out, abandoned Somua diorama. That’s the good news. The bad news is that none of the pictures are captioned. A definite downer when you realize there just isn’t much reference on the Somua to help fill in the gaps. This is really noticeable when you take into account the version preserved at Saumur is one the Germans modified. It would have been very helpful if author Pascal Danjou could have elaborated on what aspects – beyond the commander’s cupola - were changed by the Germans. Also there are what appear to be colored (red and yellow) running lights on the fenders. Is that some French automotive requirement, or were French tanks really THAT easy to spot. C’mon guy, I need answers! Overall, this is a great reference for a sadly neglected, but very important, AFV from the early war years. Get some captions and this, coupled with the Trackstory book, could be the Somua bible. Thanks to Minitracks and Editions Du Barbotin for this sample copy.

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