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ITALERI BIBER MINISUB

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Italeri Biber
Its good to see Italeri trying something new & making 1:35th scale naval releases the backbone of their model output.

It’s true that naval subjects in this scale are an untapped source of inspiration & it is heartening to see Italeri’s range of excellent new releases. Not least the Biber.

Unlike the more expensive E-boats & Elcos that started the ball rolling, the company has seen that it's worth getting modellers to buy into the concept with cheaper, more accessible model kits.

Italeri, Reference number 5606 – U-Boot Biber - is a case in point. It is a great subject for a model. The Biber, or Beaver, was possibly the most famous of the German Navy’s range of pocket submarines.

Like many of the initiatives of an embattled & broken Kriegsmarine at war’s end, the Biber was a desperate last-ditch attempt to turn the tide.

Its development was lightning fast, reaching production in the summer of 1944 after just six months of testing. At 9 metres long, the submarine mounted two torpedoes (or two mines) externally, had a range of 240km & a submerged speed of 5.3 knots.

The unfortunate solo commander had an almost impossible mission & attrition was high. It was sadly a fruitless sacrifice & the Biber is little more than a footnote in the Kriegsmarine’s history. The weapons failed to make any serious dent in Allied naval supremacy.

By making this model, you can tell the story of this little craft & the desperate crews who tried to make the concept work.

Inside the box are 70 or so parts moulded in a pale shiny grey plastic that holds the detail well & looks easy to work. There’re also some photoetch on a single fret plus decorations for 6 Bibers (including one with shark’s teeth – nice!). Also included is some pre-cut transparencies for the glass work in the coning tower.

There is one main sprue (Sprue A) with the two hull sides & moulding is very good across the pieces. The other two sprues are duplicates holding all the torpedo parts. Again the moulding looks good. It remains to be seen how much of a join will be left when you join the two torpedoes together. Nevertheless, initial impressions are very favourable with smaller pieces been very delicately moulded.

There’s even a couple of crew members who are better than the usual fudged “gnomes” found in older Italeri offerings.

So we’re pretty happy with our Biber & would recommend it as a first step into the world of Italeri naval subjects in 1:35 scale.

Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
Italeri Biber 1:35th Review
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