I have this kit here, probably two decades old now!




Please, can it be used OOB as a D-day figure? If not, what I would need to change?


Many thanks in advance!

Hello Nuno!

Unfortunately, the image you included in your message doesn't show up, so I had to search the web for a picture. Now as far as I can tell, that figure is wearing the M1943 field uniform, which I don't recall seeing in pictures dating from the Normandy period, except maybe for some senior staff officers. Most ground troops involved in Operation Overlord appear to have worn either the so-called M1941 style uniform (Parson's jacket with OD wool trousers and shirt) or the later M1942 HBT (herringbone twill) fatigues - or any combination of the two. So I don't think you could turn this figure into a Normandy-era GI without some major surgery, as the old Parson's jacket was quite different from the M1943 model.

Shoes are also an issue, as this guy appears to be wearing lace-up boots that look like the Corcoran jump boots worn by paratroopers, whereas most troops back then still wore the short (ankle) service shoes with the long canvas gaiters.

You could try to convert him into a paratrooper, but that too would require some extensive remodelling of the jacket's pockets and the addition of cargo pockets on the trousers.

Sorry to disappoint you.

Hervé "Charby" Charbonneau
Chicoutimi QC
Canada

You should never underestimate the predictability of stupidity. (Bullet Tooth Tony)