Modelling US World War II Armoured Fighting Vehicles

This is the latest book from prolific small-scale model maker Tom Cole, a former Tankette editor.What surprised me was the incredible amount of information that the book contains, for what is a modelling book.Starting with a potted history of the U.S. tank development which lays the track, Tom then moves on to describe modelling techniques and tools, looking at the different levels, from basic to advanced. This is followed by in depth analysis of painting and finishing techniques, again looking at all options. I was interested to read a sub-section on Olive Drab, a colour whose shade is often disputed by model-makers. The next section looks at building diorama bases to display your models, an excellent way of protecting them from too much handling.From chapter six Tom works through Light Tanks, Medium Tanks and Heavy Tanks, Tank Destroyers and other S.P. guns, Half-tracks and other AFVs. Each section works through the major types and goes to fine detail on those with myriad variations (such as the Sherman), emphasizing that further research is always warranted. A selected bibliography at the back of the book aids this.As well as the technical information on the tanks, Tom describes the various options on sourcing kits to build models from in various scales, including kit-bashing and the use of add-on conversion sets.To illustrate these techniques and source kits, are a series of modelling projects describing how to build the models and complete them, amply supported by detailed photographs.I would advise both experienced model-makers and ‘newbies’ to invest in this book, as so much information is crammed into its pages in a very readable style.