Official 1:18 Military Toys Thread (21st, BBI, FOV, etc)

[Jesse James]

It's here, but not restocked.

A guy did find more paint variations on D-Day figures though.  Blonde Officer and Parade Dress Germans, which is great because the parade guy has the cap, which is "rare".  I'd like more of him...

Bleach blonde hair dids, great for swapping onto some of those DAK guys IMO, but good regardless.  I just wish we'd get the original D-Day US guys back out.  I need more riflemen, officers, Rangers, and BAR Gunners.  My ranks are thinner than the Germans these days.

[Nirvana]

I picked up the new wave of the Elite Force BBi figures minus the new WW2 Paratroopers- Marine Force Recon (1 Forest Camo, 1 Desert, 1 Sleeveless Desert), Delta Force (1 operator, 1 paratrooper), and Navy Seals (1 Para Diver). I can take some pics tomorrow and put them up if anyone's interested. Excellent, excellent figures, better than all the other 1/18th military figs out now and I love the one Delta Force figure more than a SW one.

[Jesse James]

I think I posted photos of those somewhere...  That wave includes the British Red Devil (in jump gear), marking the first time a Brit figure's been made from WW2.  Hopefully a sign of great things to come.

I saw a Camo PAK-40 tonight too...  I want one, but at the TRU price I'm iffy on if I'll get it.   I have a number of grey ones, so I just don't know if I wanna commit to a camo repaint at inflated prices.

[Jesse James]

New stuff... 

A camo Quad-gun US half-track, which is perfect for N. Africa if I am not mistaken, as well as other fronts...


And now, "Versus 2-packs", which look incredible. 


I know for a fact I've requested just this kind of item from 21st in the past, so could we be seeing something I had some influence on?   Well, I like to tell myself that anyway, but who knows.  I'm sure I'm not the only one probably who'd asked for something this cool.  Not sure on price for the 2-packs yet either, so I am hoping they come in fairly cheap since they're repaints of existing figures.

The Pea-Dot camo (I think that's pea-dot, do you know Paul?) is quite slick on the German, and the US guy's a good basic grunt.  If you have extra M1's he's cool, or with the sachel he makes an ok squad leader with a tommy gun.  Either way, sharp set I think, so long as the price is right of course.  Figures are only $5 each as it is, so anything $10 or under is ideal on these really.

Army builders dream...  Imagine SA Stormtroopers packed with SA Fleet Troopers, with maybe slight deco changes.  Or imagine SA Hoth Rebels and Imperials packed together.  Ewoks and AT-ST Drivers?  Endor Rebels and Scout Troopers?  There's a lot of possibilities there I think for Star Wars too.

I saw the camo PAK-40, and hopefully can nab that soon if I see it again.  And I can't for the life of me find the friggin' Quad-.50 trailer.   I wanted one to set up with my Bulge figures so they're using it as anti-infantry emplacement, but so far it's been scarce.

[Paul]

The Pea-Dot camo (I think that's pea-dot, do you know Paul?) is quite slick on the German, and the US guy's a good basic grunt.  If you have extra M1's he's cool, or with the sachel he makes an ok squad leader with a tommy gun.  Either way, sharp set I think, so long as the price is right of course.  Figures are only $5 each as it is, so anything $10 or under is ideal on these really.

These sets are a great idea.  The headsculpt on the GI looks decent for a change as well if they would just stop "Washing" them with orange or rust colors.

Ok...just so that everyone can decipher my terms without the need of an Enigma machine:
Wehrmacht (this is a term used for all German Forces..Army, Navy (Kriegsmarine), Air Force (Luftwaffe), Armed/Combat SS (Waffen SS))
Heer is the plain old Army
Waffen SS is the Elite Combat Arm and separate from the Army/Heer completely.

The camo looks to be an attempt at Pea-Dot or Erbst or 44dot (keep in mind it is militaria collectors mostly who have named the camo's, several of the vets we have spoken to over the years oddly enough just called it "Tarnjacke" or camo jacket)

The only problem I see with this one (and stop reading now jesse if you don't want to know) it appears to have Heer (Army) insignia and this pattern is most definately a Waffen SS camo only. (the paratrooper smocks that have been made of this material were either made post war or were from Skorzeny's group who were attached to the WSS, the one in the Bulge Museum in Europe is even a fake)..back to the jacket...breast Eagle, Collar Litzen (collar tabs) all indiciative of Heer.  Silver Buttons on this uniform also wrong (should be green or gray).  Kudos to them for not making the helmet cover in "Pea-Dot"...That camo was ffor Tunic, Pants and Winter suits only.  Keep in mind these are only "ARMY BUILDING" rules.  I am not saying that 1 of the 20 million Heer soldiers in the war did not snag a pea dot tunic, but it is unlikely.  The two branches liked to differentiate themselves from the other.  By the time the Americans made it to mainland Europe, German soldiers were trying to avoid any association with the Waffen SS, even many WSS troops had a second set of ID papers in case they were captured.  Heer (Army) tank troops wore all black uniforms with Death's Head insignia (and had been since before the Waffen SS existed) and were often treated as SS troops by GI's who captured them.

On the American...M41 Jackets don't have Elbow Re-enforcements.  Must be the Sleeves from a paratrooper.  He is wearing a cartridge belt for an M1 Garand (and they seem to be BROWN they should be Khaki canvas) yet carries a Thompson.  Hope he only needs 30 rounds or that his haversack is full of them.  He is decked out for D-Day for sure, so hopefully they don't call it a battle of the Bulge set.

But despite all that some good figs for sure.  If hasbro would do Vs 2 packs of a SA Rebels vs SA Imperials..it would be great...

Sorry for the History Channel episode on German uniforms....

[Jesse James]

Yeah it's being touted as a D-Day pack...  Not Bulge.  His articulated set of arms and things are right for his jacket though, so that doesn't bother me.  I'm assuming his pack is also there as his "clip bag" too.  The pack is the same one that came with the D-Day 82nd Airborne figure that was just out, and he had no clip bag either... 

Those arms are most definitely that same D_Day Para's arms too, except the articulated ones.  They're the right set.  Which sucks because the non-poseable arms have the "trigger" hand on them but it's gloved.   Not right at all, and good trigger hands are in short supply.

Interesting on the German...  A true "Nazi" figure... sort of, but probably not intentional by 21st. 

I would go so far as to say that the collar tabs indicating he's regular army were intentional, and that the camo pattern was just trying to satiate collectors who like all the different camo's the Germans were rolling with in the war, and wanted to see the variants made.  That's my guess anyway.

German Tankers are in short supply...  The two in white and autumn reversible camo suits came and went, but a simple black suited Tanker on the card hasn't been done.  One with a peak cap and one with an officer's cap would be great though.

[Paul]

Sadly if they had made the Camo on the German's Jacket in "Splinter" which was one of the Camo's unique to the Army and it would have been totally correct (except for the Army Building part..it was a field made item that only a few would have gone to the effort to have done)



I think for trigger fingers you are going to have to snag them off the Nam guys, almost NONE of those guys should be wearing gloves.


I have several of the Tankers.  Good figures, I just wish the head sculpts were more crisp...

[Jesse James]

I wanted more winter white ones to do headswaps and make infantry out of them.  Have one or two like that, but the winter German Tankers were short supply here.   As were BotB figures in general.

[Jesse James]

Oh my...  [/end George Takae]



German King Tiger (Tiger II), in late-war camo, all decked out for the battle of the bulge!  That's one big-assed tank right there.  Can't wait to pick this up.  My only hope, and likely my only gripe, will be if there is no interior to it, which I don't believe there is one.  I miss the full interiors on the tanks like the Tiger I got. 

I want now to get some cremen for the damn thing!  That's a behemoth toy though right there.  Can't wait!

[Paul]

That thing is very nice.  Of course it comes at a time when I decide that vehicles are no going to be part of my collecting.

What you need for that is a Waffen SS Tank crew (if those markings bear out it being WSS) in those Italian Leather jackets they stuck on those Heer troopers earlier this year.  And on the back deck you need some Fallschirmjaeger hitching a ride..you know the picture I'm talking about.. I'll find it and post it.

[Jesse James]

That would be very cool...  I'd like some German tankers, period, at this point.    I wanted so many of the white outfit ones to convert to infantry, but really at this point I could use probably 16 (at least) tankers just to flesh out my current pile of tanks...  I've got the S1 Panther, 2 Tiger I's (steel and plastic), and this baby...

Of course, I'm neglecting that I also have a regular Panzer, and the snub nosed grey RC Panzer.  So, yeah, I guess add 8 more to that list.

[Paul]

Take that Panzer Guy with the Sidecap stick his head on that one with the closed leather Jacket and from the Waist up you are rocking the Italian Leather U Boat look that the 1st SS (LAH) and 12 SS (HJ) were throwing down in Normandy.

Don't forget you have 251's to crew too...

Surely some company out there can get some German Tankers out there....maybe the new Bravo Guys if they do WWII.

[Paul]

Just saw the Forces of Valor Bravo Force Tiger (camo) at Target, they showed pics of the 6 Germans and 6 GI's that we can expect on the back/side of the box.

Good that we are getting more soldiers from both sides ....bad that they didn't bother to pick up any of a number of books on uniforms to even get the camo and uniforms remotely correct.  $11 worth of research and development is all it would have taken.  The GI's are an interesting green as well (yes oddly enough there is a WRONG color Green for Army Clothing Circa 1940-1945 and they came real close to it)

Oh and more bad news Jesse...not a tanker in the bunch and the Tiger did not appear to come with one either.  It did not have an MG for the Commanders or Gunners hatch either.  But the price was the same as the Bradleys/Abrams.

[Jesse James]

The price is what's right for me, plus I can add a gun...  A Tiger I with zimmerit is cool unto itself.

Paul, did you happen to snag one?  That's the first sighting I've heard of a FOV 1:18 WW2 item.

I'd love to see it...    Nothing like that up here so far...  Hell, I'd love to own it.

On the German crewmen, would the Hano's require Panzer crewmen, or no?  I was under the impression that a Hanomag didn't really get anything more than a unit attached to it and a regular old infantryman tasked to drive it, more or less. 

I'd love to slap the Italian coats onto guys, but what's underneath would bug me if it's inaccurate I'm afraid.  

I'm really stoked to hear about your finds on the FOV front though.  I really want to see the figures...  If they're anything like the S1 modern, I'm sure even inaccuracies can be overlooked.  Plus perhaps the actual product will be more accurate.  I'd be shocked if they're horribly off in detail.

[Paul]

It all depends on how the 251 was "attached" to the unit.

Alot of them that were Infantry vehicles did have just plain uniforms that were issued to their branch, but the Germans who were assigned to them for the most part liked getting the Armored Crew Uniforms, which were basically the Panzer Uniforms (pocketless double breasted looking "Wrap") but in Gray or camo or even reed green summer weight.

I did not snag it...my wife and daughter were with me and we are trying to convince my daughter that this close to Christmas you don't get stuff when you are out shopping, so i tried to be a good example.  There was only 1, I doubt it will be there long.

I'd love to slap the Italian coats onto guys, but what's underneath would bug me if it's inaccurate I'm afraid.  

That is what bugs me about the figure to begin with.  At least in a tank (hiding his legs) with a Tanker head w/ headset he would look "more" correct.

I am hoping the images are wrong too.  The modern figs are pretty nice....but these Germans looked very much like those InToyz figures from several years ago.