Vodnik's Blast Humvee doors review

Armored doors for OIF Hummer
(for Tamiya kit)

Blast Models BL35052K
1/35

The set reviewed here is the smallest of three resin detail sets for Operation Iraqi Freedom Humvee trucks released recently by Blast Models. This set contains new uparmored doors for Tamiya Humvee kit and several additional armor plates. The set is packed in a small clear plastic container with a paper insert on one side, with pictures of included parts attached to the unpainted model. After opening the container (which can be then easily closed again and no cutting is necessary to open it) inside we find eighteen resin parts in a small resealable zip-bag, mentioned earlier "cover" paper insert and a small instruction sheet. Photographic instructions are only necessary to determine what four thin strips of resin are for, as all other parts are very easy to identify.

Contents of the set.
Click on picture to enlarge it.

    Resin parts included are:
        - four highly detailed uparmored doors,
        - four additional upper armor panels for doors,
        - Humvee body side armor panels (6 parts),
        - four detail parts for inner side of doors.

Molding is completely flawless. No air bubbles are present at all and some minimal amount of thin flash was only inside door windows. Resin pouring channels are small and very easy to remove - actually they are so small that it is hard to believe that it is possible to mold parts this way...

Additional armor plates on doors are molded integrally with doors, but they were sculpted in such a way that they look like separate parts bolted to original vehicle doors - just as they should. Only upper armor panels, welded to doors at window height, are molded separately. Body armor panels are molded with a pronounced texture on their surface. The texture looks a bit like some textile. I'm not sure what kind of material Blast wanted to represent this way. Photos of OIF Humvees I have show two types of panels - smooth metal ones and ones made of diamond tread steel plates. Two photos in my collection show Humvees with exactly the same type of door armor as the one in Blast set and these vehicles had the body armor panels made of diamond tread (anti-skid) plates, so my guess is that this is the kind of texture Blast wanted to replicate. If that's the case then they were not quite successful I'm afraid. I may replace those panels in my model with photoetched "floor plates" (available from several PE manufacturers in different patterns and sizes) cut to shape using resin parts as templates. But resin parts in the set look very well and it is quite possible that Blast actually used some other type of armor panels as their template, than those I'm familiar with.


Instruction sheet. Click on picture to enlarge it.	Details of inner side of doors. Click on picture to enlarge it.

Note that the extra armor is molded so it looks like a separate part. Click on picture to enlarge it.	Texture on Humvee side armor panels. Click on picture to enlarge it.

I dry fitted resin parts to Tamiya kit and the fit was just perfect. Resin doors have exactly the same dimensions as original plastic parts. Body armor panels also preciselly fit the shape of Tamiya Humvee hull.


Only doors were attached for this photo. They fit perfectly to Tamiya kit parts Click on picture to enlarge it.	Upper door armor panels added. Click on picture to enlarge it.

Humvee body side armor attached. Click on picture to enlarge it.

FINAL VERDICT

This small set is very well designed, nicely detailed and flawlessly molded. Highly recommended!

Review sample was purchased and quickly received thanks to excellent service from Blast Models.

Reviews of other Blast Models detail sets for Tamiya Humvee:
- Humvee Wheels, Aggressive pattern with new rim - BL35027K
- Late type weapons ring with OIF modifications and smoke dischargers - BL35050K
- OIF Hummer Accessories - BL35051K