About
“TRACTORS, Modelling Eastern European Civil Vehicles” is the first book of the reputed modeller Grzegorz Krawczyk, a specialist in civil construction vehicles and tractors in scale. His works are acclaimed worldwide and in this book you will discover how he works and what techniques he uses.
The book
As soon as I saw this book advertised (on Facebook I might add), this went straight on my wish list, and as soon as it was published it was bought, and sent from sunny Spain. Delivery even in these uncertain times was only a couple of weeks, so all credit to PLA Publishing on a fast turnaround.
This soft cover book is 108 pages with full colour photos throughout, printed on nice glossy paper.
All the pictures are beautifully photographed, with quite a few full page spreads of the various vehicles.
Over half the book features the various builds with handy tips and tricks on painting and weathering the kits.
Although not in-depth, the guides give you a good starting point on getting that weathered look.
A variety of paints and products are used, so not one particular manufacturer is preferred over another.
Each build starts with a little history on the chosen subject, then proceeds through a little walkthrough starting from the build, painting, weathering and any final stages.
Caption boxes are found with all the relevant details on how to paint and weather the vehicle. The last few pages of the build are taken up with full page photos of the finished vehicle.
The chapters are as follows
Page 4.- T-100
Page 16.- T-130B
Page 32.- T-16M
Page 44.- KRAZ 255 Truck
Page 58.- KAZ 606A
The gallery chapter has photos of other builds the author has done, with a little history, and some tips on the build at the start of each subject.
Eight further vehicles are shown in this section, and are as follows -
DU-11 (D-469A) Road Roller
Kirovets K-700
CAT No12 US Motor Grader Auto Patrol
ZiL-MMZ-555 dump truck
C-432 Mule
Ural Crane KS-2573
SMK-10 Crane
MAZ 543 Crane KS-6571
Page 68.- GALLERY
The last chapter that covers eight pages, is a handy reference image guide of a variety of work vehicles in thier natural environment, with a few close ups of tracks, dozer blades, buckets and engines.
Page 100.- REFERENCE IMAGES
Conclusion
This is a beautifully printed and presented book, with handy tips on mainly weathering civil vehicles.
Although this book only covers this type of model, the techniques can be carried over to other genres, and is a handy guide on getting a great and realistic model.
I suppose the one nit pick for me is the lack of how the builder created the superb look of the rollers on the Road Roller.
I would definitely recommend this book if you really wish to weather your model to an inch of its life.
Manufacturer - Abrams Squad
Product code - ASQS09
ISBN - 978-84-122304-5-1
Author - Grzegorz Krawczyk
Suggested Retail - £17.46
Related Link - https://www.plaeditions.com/en/abrams-squad-specials/534-tractors.html
Please remember, when contacting retailers or manufacturers, to mention that you saw their products highlighted here - on AUTOMODELER.
