Copyright 2003 T. Sheil & A. Sheil All Rights Reserved
Sometimes you find a set that borders on bizarre. This set of clones turned up in a discount store on July 27, 2003. Sold under the name "Army Tech" Action Play Set by Midwestern Home Products, it includes cloned figures of Airfix Russian Infantry and two Timpo swivel soldiers. The odd thing is that both the Russian troops and the Timpo figures are relatively obscure. In fact, the Timpo figures should have disappeared from store shelves by the mid-1970s at the latest! One has to wonder how these two figures turned up now, to be cloned in a factory if China.
It is the unusual that makes this hobby interesting, and this bag of troops fits the bill. They have their uses, though. These 45mm figures come in silver, pale green and a dark hunter green. The different colors makes them excellent for different armies in a game of Operation Sandpit. This set would likely be used as mechanized infantry or Soviet-type "tank riders", as they are predominantly armed with light automatic weapons.
The standing figures on either end are copies of Timpo swivelling paratroopers from the 1960s. It is strange that they turn up nowadays as clones. The other figures are clones of Airfix Russian Infantry. |
These are the prone Russians. One fires a Soviet World War II light machine gun, the other throws a stick grenade. |
The kneeling and standing Russian infantrymen carry PPSH submachine guns. |
On the original figures, the heads, torso, legs, ammo belts and helmets were all separate pieces. Originals were in very dark Olive Drab green with grey helmets. Note the crudeness throughout. The weapons are best described as "generic." The officer's pose is awkward. We wonder how these turned up recently enough to be cloned. |
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