Review: Rebel Modern US Infantry Command Pack

Now, the second part of the Rebel Minis Force onForce Platoon Box, the US Command Pack.
The sculpts are on par with the figures from the regular infantry pack, largely because they are the same sculpts with a handful of exceptions. The medic is simply one of the riflemen with a modified pack and leg bag, the difference is subtle so look closely! The RTO is okay, seemingly based on one of the 'leader' sculpts but showing some noticeable differences (Personally I rather prefer the QRF RTO sculpts from the old US modern command pack but I'm not sure about the accuracy of either one's equipment).

Then there is the last of the unique sculpts, the medium machinegun teams. These are the ones that have given me the most trouble; they are sculpted in pairs as an emplaced two man team operating a medium machinegun. At least that's what it's supposed to be, what you actually get is the same two men from the sniper teams but the rifle has been replaced with what looks like a M249 SAW and the spotter scope has been cut down for binoculars, still wearing their 'boonie' hats and rolled sleeves taking cover behind some boxes and a couple of fist sized rocks. Now I realize why the Rebel SAW gunners seemed to be holding such large weapons compared to my QRF SAW gunners, Rebel's sculptor seems to have confused the M240B and the M249.

The US Infantry Command pack seems to have quite a few extra figures, compared to standard Army Infantry TOEs and USMC Infantry TOEs. You get five MG teams (listed as M240G teams), a SAW gunner, Medic, RTO, Platoon leader, three Squad leaders (one which is expected to act as Platoon SGT), Javelin gunners, six riflemen, and a Grenadier. This seems a lot even for a TOE that calls for a three MG weapons squad and several superfluous riflemen.

Since the sculpts are largely the same (the Platoon Leader and PSGT/Squad leaders are the same figures as the Squad Leader and Team Leader figures from the regular sets I don't think I need to go over the sculpting of the figures and the casting quality is on par with the regular infantry packs I've reviewed before although I think the one I received had slightly more flash.

Unfortunately I really don't think the Medic and RTO sculpts justify the purchase of the entire pack and the mis-equipped and out of uniform MG teams are definitely a point against it. I would probably just purchase an extra one of Rebel's standard US Infantry packs and do some work with a knife and putty. Which would also mean that I would have an actual FO figure.

Rebel Minis 15mm Modern US Infantry

I managed to make some time to sit down with my Force on Force US Army Platoon Box from Rebel Minis, starting with one of the Infantry packs. If you use the commonly found 9 man/2 fireteam squad organization you will get two full squads plus a few extra riflemen and a pair of Javelin gunners which you can swap in if you are building a Stryker platoon or organize them with the Javelins from the other packs in the 'Box' as a weapons squad. These are definitely the most modern US 'moderns' I've seen, obviously wearing the IOTV body armor system and mounting optics on their carbines.

Above: Just finished fireteam and squad leader, first try at ACU's UCP camo pattern.
Below: QRF Modern US (old range) on left, Rebel Modern US on right

The sculpts are clean, well executed and seem well proportioned; some are quite active and dynamic. Uniform detail is good with major features well defined and even some small details sculpted in (one of the few times I've seen sculpted in seams on the boot panels). Weapons are well sculpted and fairly detailed but seem a little bit large compared to the figures (and are definately a larger than the QRF modern US figures), and some proportions or deatails are a bit off this is particularly appearant with the SAW gunners with their rather long barrels and exaggerated bipod and some of the carbines with their oddly short and sharply angled magazines.

Casting quality is somewhat mixed. While the mold lines on the outward facing surfaces of the figures are minimal, flash and mold lines on inward facing areas like between the legs or between the arms and chest can be quite prominent during painting and are difficult to remove without significant care and some very small tools. The packs I received had almost no bent or transit damaged parts but one or two in the pack I looked at today did have miscast details like the SGT who was missing the front sight post and barrel from his carbine. The metal used in the casting is quite hard but not so much that small adjustments of thin parts will cause damage but it can make cleaning and removing flash difficult.

These miniatures stand out as one of the only 15mm offerings to depict current US infantry kit such as prevalent carbine optics, IOTV body armor, radio headset, MICH helmet etc. If you want current or near future troops these are one of the best non Sci-Fi offerings. Having gotten these has gotten me tempted to pick up some QRF Strykers and some supporting armor for Force on Force.

Below: Rebel Modern US Infantry left, QRF US moderns right

Rebel Minis 15mm Insurgents review

I finally got started on actually doing some OPFOR, starting with Rebel Minis' 15mm Insurgents. These little guys are ready to make your MOUT a whole lot more exciting with four RPGs and 16 AK armed gunmen.

First, When and where are they appropriate? Given their armament of AKs and RPGs there isn't any real technical reason why they can't show up anytime in the last 50-60 years. Their clothing (boots, cargo pants/utility trousers and tee-shirts or tactical shirts topped by a scarf around the head and the classic AK magazine pouches over the chest) poses few limitations either as there have been various rebels, insurgents, reactionaries, terrorists,guerrillas, kidnappers and random pissed off Arabs/Muslims/Christians/Jews, etc running around dressed like that since the 50's all over Europe, Central Asia and North Africa.
The only real shortcomings I can see with this pack is that it lacks light support weapons which are called for in many Ambush Alley! scenarios and the limited number of poses (4: RPG, AK firing, RPK firing, RPK running; the firing RPK and AK figures ar nearly identical except for slight differences in the gun barrels). Otherwise it fills a very important gap in the availability of good insurgents/guerrillas for your 15mm gaming.

Now, Quality check. The figures are rather sturdy and stable. Mold lines do not pose any major issues but you will find yourself spending a lot of time checking for bits of flash in hard to reach places, if your batch is like mine. The poses are a little stiff looking but have a good sense of movement about them. Clothing detail and overall figure proportions are both good while weapon detail is acceptable.
Compatability with other ranges: Their height and proportions fit well with Rebel's other 15mm figures and with QRF's moderns line although if you are going to put the two side by side I would suggest using something to increase the height of the Rebel figures as QRF's integral bases are somewhat thicker.

Conclusions, I have one or two slight misgivings about this set but over all they work well for their intended purpose and getting them as part of one of Rebel's Ambush Alley Battle Boxes makes them a good deal.
I'm somewhat tempted to get another pack and convert some to carry some Al-Quds machine rifles so that these guys will have some support weapons other than RPGs.

Rebel minis have arrived

Earlier this week I placed an order with Rebel minis for their Force On Force US Army Platoon Ambush Alley Battle Box, Modern US Sniper pack and 15mm Fedayeen pack. The package arrived earlier today. I also received the books I had purchased from my good friend Panzerfaust 150 to help him out with his "spring cleaning" (help him out, he's got some good stuff up there and he is a very reasonable man).
But, back to the miniatures... Over the next week I will post reviews of each of the Rebel minis sets, starting with the US Sniper team pack (next will be the Insurgent/Fedayeen as they are higher on my to do list, my US troops are getting a bit bored with no OPFOR around).



The pack consists of four sniper teams, two armed with M24/M40 style bolt action rifles and two armed with M107 "Light Fifty" SASRs. Each team has a spotter using a spotting scope and a sniper with a rifle, both are in a prone position, they are modeled as a single piece.
Figure detail is good with 'boonie hats', basic belt gear and scale appropriate uniform detail.
Weapon detail is a little loose but it is pretty easy to tell the two different rifles apart (the slight differences in bases helps) and for table use the detail is quite adequate. [Photo: Left to right, M24/M40 team and M107 team]

Both flash and mold lines were pretty much nonexistent on the pack I received, only requiring one or two nubs to be removed by clippers and file from the side of the base.

Now, what are they good for? Well, they won't work as Squad DMs but any time you have call for a sniper team they should work just fine. The M107 team is only really usable from about 1990 onward as the weapon didn't enter US military service until then but the Bolt action armed teams are usable for a significant period (the M24 entered service in 1988), at least from the late 1980's and might, depending on the rest of your collection, even be passable as Vietnam era snipers since the uniforms are generically Modern US.
Size-wise they appear to be in line with the rest of Rebel's Modern US line and look fine laying next to my old QRF US troops.