Jumbos lead the way! - Flames of War review

Jumbos lead the way!

The next few months are a banner time to be an American player in Flames of War. The release of the new Army book, Blood, Guts and Glory(BG&G), is the first in series of Army books covering the Winter of '44 and the Battle of the Bulge.

Blood, Guts and Glory give the US, and especially US Tank forces, a much needed shot in the arm in the form of new tanks and rules. One of the most anticipated new units from the new book is the M4A3E2 Jumbo Sherman. The Jumbo was, in essence, an up-armored Sherman. Covered with thick Armor the Jumbo would lead advances into enemy territory and hopefully draw out any enemy fire, which would then bounce of it's thick hide.

Battlefront Miniatures has released a box set of 4 of these tanks even though most lists may only require 1 and very few lists will need all 4! Why they didn't release these as individual Blister packs I am not sure. Being released as part of a box does have some advantages. Besides the 4 tanks you get a decal sheet and set of magnets for the turrets.

Tracks, not quit symmetrical but once assembled I couldn't tell 

The Model itself is typical Battlefront fare, with metal tracks and a Resin Hull. Detail is crisp and looks great.

The Tracks represent the weakest part of this model

Hull Detail

 I love the jagged edges of the additional Armor Plates

One unique feature of the Jumbo is the heavily armored Turret. It also has great detail.

All the parts needed for 1 Jumbl

The assembly is pretty quick. The only area that caused me any trouble were the tracks. They had a mold line that, when removed, destroyed some detail on the track. I considered this insignificant as these areas will be covered by mud and/or snow at some point.

Once put together the tank looks pretty good. The metal and resin give the model a reassuring weight.

Overall I recommend this box set. There are a few very minor issues with the tracks but otherwise the set is excellent.

The only other nit-pick is the decal sheet. The box  and images on Battlefront's website have 5 large stars on each tank. The (single) decal sheet only provides 10 of these stars when you need 20!

I painted my tanks with a black base-coat and Brown Violet. A simple Future floor wax dark wash followed by some minor highlighting

Guns and tracks are German Grey.

My tanks are ready to go bounce 88 shells off their armor!

Front Armor!

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