Martin Philpott
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RPmodels Lord Lovat 100mm Limited Edition Bust WWII Series.
Catalogue Ref: RPM-B-08-0006.
Number of Parts: 14 resin.
Price: £45.
Availability: (UK) Historex Agents, El Greco and SK Miniatures.
The Launch Video. RPmodels have produced a seriously amazing launch video to mark the release of this bust. To get you in the mood for what follows in this review I have included the video below for your pleasure, beautifully put together I highly recommend its viewing…..
Forward, A Brief History. I do not intend to give an in depth written history of Lord Lovat’s military history here, more of a quick introduction. There is already a huge amount of information online, there is also a good deal included on the authentication certificate that comes with this kit and I want this review to focus on the kit, not the subjects biography.
Sword Beach, Normandy, France. 6.50am on June 6 1944, “Shimi” Lovat led his men into battle on D-Day, all of them buoyed by his personal piper, Bill Millin, playing Highland Laddie and Scotland The Brave.
The mission of 1st Special Service Brigade, as it was known in June 1944 was to break through German defences on the eastern side of Sword Beach. They were to fight their way four miles inland to Pegasus Bridge and bring reinforcements to the 6th Airborne Division, relieving the glider-borne troops who had taken the bridge at dead of night.
Shimi and his commandos arrived just after the appointed hour of midday, to the swirl of pipes. He famously apologised for being two minutes late. The bridges were crucial; at the push of a detonator, the Germans could have destroyed them. With the Allied supply lines cut, the invasion could have foundered.
(photo below) An archive photo of the great man, Lord Lovat.
(photo below) The impressive memorial sculpture of Brigadier Lord Lovat, Commander 1st Commando Brigade. Situated at Ouistreham, on Sword Beach, Normandy France. The statue is in a small memorial garden, no bigger than the German bunker that stood on the spot 70 years ago.
First Impressions. As ever the kit arrived in pristine condition with no damage or missing parts. Presented in the usual high quality packaging the artwork looks excellent. Inside the box and the parts are very well protected being placed inside clear plastic re-sealable bags and surrounded by polystyrene nuggets. While the authentication certificate is left loose, it too arrived in great shape with my own personally designated serial No 199. Remember this is a limited edition piece of just 200.
The Figure. This is a kit that requires assembly and painting to complete. Included in the kit are a total of 14 high quality individual resin pieces and a certificate of authentication. The casting is quite simply superb with a huge amount of detail captured in each piece. What truly sets this kit apart is the textured surfaces that add so much realism to the finish. In this review I want to dispel the myth that the photos of individual parts used by RP Models are somehow misleading the customer by applying those textures to surfaces in post production photo editing. As you will see from the comparison photos I use throughout this review nothing could be further from the truth, what you see is indeed what you get, lets take a closer look ……..
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages these photos clearly show the beautiful high resolution textured surfaces that have been achieved in the sculpting and casting process.
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages, more of the same stunning high resolution textured surfaces are seen in the uniform and individual pieces of equipment.
Torso. The single largest piece of this bust is obviously the torso with the rest of the kit being built up around it. Precise engineering allows for a perfect fit of the various pieces that will be added during the assembly process. The torso holds a wealth of incredible detail that has held up exceedingly well in the moulding with very little required in the way of clean up.
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages. The uniform, webbing and rank insignia are well highlighted here. We will see further down from my own photos that all of this wonderful detail remains true in the casting.
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages, this time it is the distinctive high neck collar of the jumper worn under the uniform that is the highlight.
(photo below) Full of exceptional detail the torso looks sensational. One of the stand out features is the distinctive high neck, white woollen jumper that Lord Lovat wore under his uniform. The ribbed pattern of the jumpers collar is the key feature shown in the photo from RPmodels above. In my photo below, you can see all of that glorious detail is no mock up, the shape, texture and depth of detail is all there, no trickery, just sublime casting techniques from RPmodels.
(photo below) Side view of the torso. Once again the successful concept of using locating lugs and recesses holes works incredibly well, ensuring a neat snug fit of the other pieces. Nice detail can be seen in the moulded on rucksack straps and buckles along with some well detailed stitching in the uniform. The straps lay very nicely across the uniform in a realistic manner.
(photo below) Not an awful lot to see from the back as this is where the rucksack will eventually be located. However the shoulder straps of the rucksack and the webbing straps all look well detailed and authentic in their appearance. Nice creasing and natural folds of the jacket help create a realistic look.
(photo below) Seen from the opposite side detail remains positively superb. Again the folds and creases, the various straps and stitching all look wonderful.
(photo below) Just beautifully defined details everywhere you look on this piece. The open jacket collar looks excellent, the jumper worn under the jacket, the texture on the clothing and equipment, the webbing, lanyard and binoculars strap….. the list goes on.
(photo below) This photo very clearly highlights the texture found on the surfaces of the pattern 37 webbing straps and pouches. If you take a look at the photo below of some genuine pouches you will see the textured canvas material has been replicated to perfection in the kit parts.
(photo below) A genuine pair of pattern 37 webbing pouches. That textured canvas material looks so good on the kit pieces.
(photo below) The belt of the pattern 37 webbing shows great detail and definition especially with the textured surface and clasp. Also worthy of a mention is the lanyard , the weaving of that material is simply outstanding.
(photo below) A genuine pattern 37 webbing belt, once more the textured surface is beautifully emulated on the kit part.
(photo below) The rank of Brigadier is indicated by the crown and 3 pips. Our figure has this insignia on both epaulets and has been wonderfully highlighted as can be seen in the photos below, great attention to detail.
(photo below) The rank insignia of Brigadier, crown and 3 pips, replicated on the epaulets of our figure in superb style.
Catalogue Ref: RPM-B-08-0006.
Number of Parts: 14 resin.
Price: £45.
Availability: (UK) Historex Agents, El Greco and SK Miniatures.
The Launch Video. RPmodels have produced a seriously amazing launch video to mark the release of this bust. To get you in the mood for what follows in this review I have included the video below for your pleasure, beautifully put together I highly recommend its viewing…..
Forward, A Brief History. I do not intend to give an in depth written history of Lord Lovat’s military history here, more of a quick introduction. There is already a huge amount of information online, there is also a good deal included on the authentication certificate that comes with this kit and I want this review to focus on the kit, not the subjects biography.
Sword Beach, Normandy, France. 6.50am on June 6 1944, “Shimi” Lovat led his men into battle on D-Day, all of them buoyed by his personal piper, Bill Millin, playing Highland Laddie and Scotland The Brave.
The mission of 1st Special Service Brigade, as it was known in June 1944 was to break through German defences on the eastern side of Sword Beach. They were to fight their way four miles inland to Pegasus Bridge and bring reinforcements to the 6th Airborne Division, relieving the glider-borne troops who had taken the bridge at dead of night.
Shimi and his commandos arrived just after the appointed hour of midday, to the swirl of pipes. He famously apologised for being two minutes late. The bridges were crucial; at the push of a detonator, the Germans could have destroyed them. With the Allied supply lines cut, the invasion could have foundered.
(photo below) An archive photo of the great man, Lord Lovat.
(photo below) The impressive memorial sculpture of Brigadier Lord Lovat, Commander 1st Commando Brigade. Situated at Ouistreham, on Sword Beach, Normandy France. The statue is in a small memorial garden, no bigger than the German bunker that stood on the spot 70 years ago.
First Impressions. As ever the kit arrived in pristine condition with no damage or missing parts. Presented in the usual high quality packaging the artwork looks excellent. Inside the box and the parts are very well protected being placed inside clear plastic re-sealable bags and surrounded by polystyrene nuggets. While the authentication certificate is left loose, it too arrived in great shape with my own personally designated serial No 199. Remember this is a limited edition piece of just 200.
The Figure. This is a kit that requires assembly and painting to complete. Included in the kit are a total of 14 high quality individual resin pieces and a certificate of authentication. The casting is quite simply superb with a huge amount of detail captured in each piece. What truly sets this kit apart is the textured surfaces that add so much realism to the finish. In this review I want to dispel the myth that the photos of individual parts used by RP Models are somehow misleading the customer by applying those textures to surfaces in post production photo editing. As you will see from the comparison photos I use throughout this review nothing could be further from the truth, what you see is indeed what you get, lets take a closer look ……..
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages these photos clearly show the beautiful high resolution textured surfaces that have been achieved in the sculpting and casting process.
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages, more of the same stunning high resolution textured surfaces are seen in the uniform and individual pieces of equipment.
Torso. The single largest piece of this bust is obviously the torso with the rest of the kit being built up around it. Precise engineering allows for a perfect fit of the various pieces that will be added during the assembly process. The torso holds a wealth of incredible detail that has held up exceedingly well in the moulding with very little required in the way of clean up.
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages. The uniform, webbing and rank insignia are well highlighted here. We will see further down from my own photos that all of this wonderful detail remains true in the casting.
(photo below) Taken from the RPmodels pages, this time it is the distinctive high neck collar of the jumper worn under the uniform that is the highlight.
(photo below) Full of exceptional detail the torso looks sensational. One of the stand out features is the distinctive high neck, white woollen jumper that Lord Lovat wore under his uniform. The ribbed pattern of the jumpers collar is the key feature shown in the photo from RPmodels above. In my photo below, you can see all of that glorious detail is no mock up, the shape, texture and depth of detail is all there, no trickery, just sublime casting techniques from RPmodels.
(photo below) Side view of the torso. Once again the successful concept of using locating lugs and recesses holes works incredibly well, ensuring a neat snug fit of the other pieces. Nice detail can be seen in the moulded on rucksack straps and buckles along with some well detailed stitching in the uniform. The straps lay very nicely across the uniform in a realistic manner.
(photo below) Not an awful lot to see from the back as this is where the rucksack will eventually be located. However the shoulder straps of the rucksack and the webbing straps all look well detailed and authentic in their appearance. Nice creasing and natural folds of the jacket help create a realistic look.
(photo below) Seen from the opposite side detail remains positively superb. Again the folds and creases, the various straps and stitching all look wonderful.
(photo below) Just beautifully defined details everywhere you look on this piece. The open jacket collar looks excellent, the jumper worn under the jacket, the texture on the clothing and equipment, the webbing, lanyard and binoculars strap….. the list goes on.
(photo below) This photo very clearly highlights the texture found on the surfaces of the pattern 37 webbing straps and pouches. If you take a look at the photo below of some genuine pouches you will see the textured canvas material has been replicated to perfection in the kit parts.
(photo below) A genuine pair of pattern 37 webbing pouches. That textured canvas material looks so good on the kit pieces.
(photo below) The belt of the pattern 37 webbing shows great detail and definition especially with the textured surface and clasp. Also worthy of a mention is the lanyard , the weaving of that material is simply outstanding.
(photo below) A genuine pattern 37 webbing belt, once more the textured surface is beautifully emulated on the kit part.
(photo below) The rank of Brigadier is indicated by the crown and 3 pips. Our figure has this insignia on both epaulets and has been wonderfully highlighted as can be seen in the photos below, great attention to detail.
(photo below) The rank insignia of Brigadier, crown and 3 pips, replicated on the epaulets of our figure in superb style.
