Model Art Co, Ltd

Panzergraph 12 – Spring 2008

Reviewed By  Mark Aldrich, IPMS #39295

MSRP: $19.90 USD ISBN: 9781846033285 Web Site: www.modelart.jp Sometimes I really wish I had taken Japanese as a second language in school instead of German. It definitely would have helped during this review. If my memory serves me correctly, this is my second Panzergraph issue I have reviewed. Like the first, I have no idea what the text entails. I can only review the pictures. This issue pays homage to 40 years of Tamiya Models and their 1/35 MM (Military Models) series. The soft cover book is 133 pages long. It is full of built models and, I assume, the story behind the builds. I am also assuming that because it is dedicated to Tamiya, all models in the book are Tamiya based kits. There are seventeen different articles. They have also included box art photos from all the different Tamiya kits they have produced. I am assuming they are all there but I do not truly know. Something makes me believe that Tamiya produced a T-55 before the excellent 2002 release. I have seen them listed on eBay before but can not vouch for any truths. I mention this because one of the neat articles covers the venerable Schwimmwagen. One page shows the vehicle parts break down for the 1970 release and the other one shows the same parts break down for the 1984 release. There is a two page English translation of four of the articles. Not the greatest translation but you get the gist of what the author is explaining. There is some really nice model work described photographically inside. The LVTP-7 recovery vehicle and M60 tank diorama was really neat as well as the M31 diorama. My favorite has got to be the "Shepherd" Diorama. The builder got the idea from watching episodes of Combat. It contains a jeep with trailer stopping to let a shepherd and his flock cross the road. The cute part is that, based on the fact that the jeep is a Willys and the dress is WWII or just post WWII, the trailer contains a box of Tamiya model kits and the passenger in the rear is reading a Tamiya catalogue! We as modelers and the fact that this issue celebrates 40 years of Tamiya 1/35 kits know that there were no Tamiya model kits in WWII. Maybe it was me, but I thought it was cute. This is a great book to pick up and I highly recommend it. I always love looking at other modelers work. If you are the same then you will enjoy this as well. Thanks to Model Art for the review sample and IPMS/USA for having a place to review it.

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