IPMS Kit Review: 1/35 1/4-ton 4x4 Utility Truck

Italeri

1/35 ¼-ton 4x4 Utility Truck

Kit Number: 6468

Reviewed by Mark Aldrich, IPMS# 39295

MSRP: $21.95
Website: www.modelrec.com

Wow!…when I got this kit and found out what the retail price was, I was floored. I knew price increases were on the way but it never hit home like this. Let me explain a few of the issues I found when I opened the box. Back when I built my first Italeri jeep kit (I believe they were hooked up with Testors then…it was kit #314) it included a trailer, two figures, and an optional canvas top. It also came with a full front set of radiator guards. This was not what I was expecting -- it was not even close to that earlier kit, other than the base vehicle is a jeep. It appears Italeri has been in the lab working to create this new/old utility truck (thanks, I’m sure, to the money-hungry, lawsuit-happy trademark owners) that can’t be called a JEEP anymore.

In this kit, you get Italeri’s basic jeep -- the same basic vehicle used for their jeep and trailer, commando car, and ambulance jeep. They have added a bumper-mounted wire cutter, .50 caliber machinegun and some different alternate front fender additions. I am going to have to tool around downstairs in my boxes to see what they did differently to make this kit different from earlier versions. [...after a few minutes tooling around downstairs...] Well, I can’t find my jeep and trailer but I did find my commando car and medical jeep. This vehicle gets its body and grill from the commando car. The other stuff (i.e. MG mount, wire cutter, fender additions) could be off the jeep and trailer sprue but until I can find mine, I won’t know for sure.

For the purposes of my build, having the grills removed is no big deal. The Israeli Defense Forces may have done the same thing the SAS did in Africa. I should be good to go either way. There are numerous sink holes over many parts and will require fixing before you get too deep into assembly. With only two olive green sprues making up 84 parts and another four in clear, this looks to be an easy build if you don’t care about the sink marks. However, if you plan on doing a grilled jeep, you are going to have to fashion seven bars from sheet stock. The biggest issue with the ejector pin marks is on the tires. There are three on each tire and go from groove to rim.

Assembly started by building as much of the larger pieces as possible. I didn’t bother with the engine as it wouldn’t be seen. As engines go, it isn’t bad and, with wires, would turn into a nice representation. I drilled out the exhaust end of the muffler for a realistic look. I had heard that the shovel and axe on this kit were terrible. Well other than the fact the axe handle is slightly malformed at the end, it looks pretty good compared to the photos I found on different websites on the Internet. In fact, I found two photographs where the axe handles were shaped almost identical to the Italeri ones. I did change out the rear five-gallon fuel can. The mount and can came from the spares and the strap is tape with a plastic buckle added for realism. I am still not sure about the spare tire. The vehicle I am trying to copy shows one mounted on the hood and you can’t see enough from the rear to know if one is mounted there or not. I will probably make a copy of a tire to use.

I filled the two side holes that are used to mount the canvas top frame. My photo does not show the canvas frame or the mount to use it. If you build this kit, be wary of the exhaust. I broke mine four times during the build, but most of it was my fault for poor handling. I now know why people complained about the fit of the tools. I do not think it was the tools as much as their mounting locations. The shovel had to be bent out of shape to mount it. I sanded both troughs where the handles sit as much as I dared and it still had a terrible bend to it. The axe was the same but without as much of a bend to it. The .50 caliber machine gun mount was used but I substituted an ESCI .30 machine gun pintle since I was going to be arming mine with two MG-34s. The passenger machine gun mount is also an ESCI item slightly modified to not be too long in the armature. I cast the spare tire and I am having a few issues with bubbles in my resin. I made a styrene t-handled mounting device to secure it to the hood. I think I will be covering it with an aerial recognition marking device, mostly because the bubble issue. I also made valve stems for the tires at this time.

I painted the vehicle a base Model Master Field Drab with a little yellow added to give a different shade. I then airbrushed the parts and waited for them to dry. While the vehicle was drying, I pulled two Tamiya MG-34s from their German Weapons set and cleaned them up. These were painted and dry brushed and set aside. The vehicle was then airbrushed with Future and set aside to dry. This, of course, prepares the vehicle for washes, decal application and the addition of dry transfers.

The markings are all from the scrap box and are a mix of decals and Verlinden items. I added the aerial recognition device for two purposes. The first was to break up the color of green and the second was to hide the flaws in my cast wheel. Once the markings were in place and dry, the vehicle was given a coat of Model Master Flat. This created a mild disaster. This is the second time I have used the flat from a bottle through my airbrush and this is also the second time that it has left a white milky finish. Usually that means too much flat built up. I barely sprayed any on. Anyway, extra time was needed to clean that up. The instruments were picked out and then Varathane varnish was installed on top of the marker lights and instrument dial faces. The radio was covered with tissue paper and also coated with Varathane to make it look more realistic. Then this was painted with field drab and dry brushed. I added an antenna wire and attached the machine guns and called it finished.

Overall this is really not a bad kit. I personally didn’t like the lack of the grills. The wire cutter and .50 caliber mounts are nice additions but I still would have preferred a canvas top and trailer more. Thanks to Italeri for making the kit, MRC/Academy for providing the kit and IPMS/USA for allowing me to review it for others to see.

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