Although slow to begin development of the tank Germany more than made up for it during the 1920s and 30s, and the excellence of German tanks by 1940 both in technical and strategic terms needs no repeating here. Preiser’s considerable range of World War II German subjects naturally includes several for the Panzerwaffe, and in this case we find figures that are out of the battle zone.

The set contains two of each sprue, making a total of 20 figures. For our photographs we made up a set of sprues following the guidelines on the box, but most of the figures are in several parts (typically body, head and two arms), so there is some scope for variety and in theory 20 different poses could be obtained from each set. The poses are a mixture of men apparently working while others are relaxing, including a card game, and all are fine – the accordion player is particularly nice.

All the figures wear the kind of variety of clothing that you would expect to see at a tank base. Some have overalls, others the familiar tank jacket and some are simply stripped to the waist enjoying the sunshine. Apart from a solitary extra head there are no additional options here other than to mix and match the parts, but we found no problems with accuracy.

Sculpting is an area where Preiser are usually very consistent, and this set is no exception. The proportions are very realistic and detail is fine although not as deep or exaggerated as often seen in soft plastic sets. All the parts fit together well enough and there is virtually no flash to worry about, although none of the figures have bases so you do have to provide your own if required. The table and chairs are exceptional good, with delicate legs that are probably only really achievable because of the hard plastic material.

Another unspectacular but very fine set of figures that further expands the possibilities for depicting the armed forces of the Third Reich away from the battle front.