Review: QRF Sci-Fi aliens

With my hand finally absolutely, completely healed from a modeling related injury (might be a good jumping off point for a piece on modeling tool safety) and the obscene heat that has been hanging around since mid-summer has finally broken I can end my largely unintentional hiatus. I have a few kits backlogged for reviews so I'll start with two that Ambush Alley's newly released Tomorrow's War got me working on this week, specifically QRF's Large Alien Bipeds (pack SF06) and Skullhunters (pack SF08).

The large Alien bipeds are Geiger-esq aliens which are pretty large for 15mm. Standing beside QRF's Deep Space Marines the Aliens do look quite menacing with the marines (and most other non-power armor humans in 15mm) standing about as high as the creature's shoulder. Details like big nasty teeth, claws, long spiky tail and crenelated chitinous hide are clean and well defined and the poses are dynamic and appropriately menacing.

The Skullhunters are, like Khurasan's "Vacation Alien" excellent stand ins for the classic Schwarzenegger alien baddie the Predator, QRF's offering has at least two advantages over the Khurasan figure in that for the price of 2.8 Vacation Alien figures you get a pack of 8 figures and while there is only the one "Vacation Alien" sculpt the Skullhunters pack contains 7 different sculpts with an assortment of equipment and poses including two with strange alien spears and one quite ferocious unmasked hunter roaring it's victory at it's vanquished trophy.

These packs along with QRF's SF03 "Alien Facehugger" pack are some of the cleanest cast sets I've recieved purchased in a long time. Both the "Facehuggers" and the Skullhunters only really need some light work with clippers and file to smooth out the underside of the integrated bases, the Large Alien Bipeds need only slightly more work to clean them up as I have found a slight propensity for light flash between the legs and under the arms but this is thin and easily removed with a #11 or #20 blade. None of them have any noticeable mold lines.

If you want to do some classic sci-fi action movie gaming these miniatures are great choices for stand ins for these classic movie aliens. Both sculpts scale well with each other and with QRF and Rebel human figures; they also have just the right look for your Alien and Predator themed war gaming.

Review: QRF Stryker ICV

The heat wave has receded somewhat which means I can actually enter my work area again which means I can begin working through the rather large QRF order that arrived last week.
The first item on the block is the set of five Stryker ICVs.

Strykers are likely to be pretty important for Force On Force and Ambush Alley players as they are a major component of current US Army mechanized infantry and have been something of a fixture of combat in Iraq. Regardless of the problems and shortcomings of the real world Stryker, they are likely to feature frequently in most modern and near future wargames just as they will likely to continue as the Army's first tier APC.

As is usual for QRF's vehicles all components are white metal although there is less appearant flexability to these parts but that is likely down to the thickness of the parts relative to the generally thinner parts of the HMMWVs. Of the three of these that I have assembled so far none have shown any significant pitting as I have found on some of QRF's other large components. There seems to be a fairly consistent flash seam running along the mid point of the hull which is easily removed with a #11 and a fine file but must be done so carefully as it runs across several detailed sections. There is also a rather annoying plug section on the starboard side of the hull near the front of the sand channel racks; I found it easiest to cut away as much of it as I can with clippers and then cover it over with kneedite ("green stuff") stowage (visible on the vehicle on the right in the photo). Attaching the wheels to the hull is fairly easy and doesn't require much more than dry fitting and gluing.

Although it lacks the slat armor and ridiculous amounts of stowage frequently seen on current Strykers in the field the detailing is very good with clean edged hatches and the various protrusions. Scale seems good, especially compared to most 15mm figures in my collection; comparison with the other vehicles will have to wait until I can dig up the dimensions of their RL counterparts but they appear appropriately large next to most of the other AFVs I have.

The models are good, construction and assembly is fairly simple and the model offers a good base for a number of conversions. Given it's role in the US inventory and how iconic it has been in Iraq since 2003 most collections should be able to find space for at least one or two.

Weather delays

Probably for one of the first times ever there is a weather related delay in miniature painting and reviewing. The heatwave in the US this week (and in my area, the week before) has put a bit of a hold on my ability to work on miniatures (when super glue starts boiling in the bottle and paint dries as it pours it becomes very difficult to get much building or painting done).

I will also be attending a security conference this month which between preparations and attending will take up most of what would be my normal productive (miniatures) time. I do have a few items for my USCMC project ready to be written up so I will try to put up something so that I can keep semi regular updates going.

My latest QRF order arrived (cleverly packed in an old Purina box) containing what should be the last models required for the USA Stryker Platoon and the c.2003 USMC for Iraq. Once the weather abates I should have plenty to share.

Review: QRF Modern US infantry M4 w/ Helmets (new range)

QRF recently updated their Modern US Infantry line, phasing out their old packs for new sculpts that have a more current look to them. These figures are definitely more 'modern' than the figures they replace, the helmets have more of a resemblance to the current MICH helmets than the PAGST helmets. The M4 carbines have been noticeably 'tacticalised' with suggestions of optics, laser/illuminator units and vertical fore-grips. The uniforms and load bearing gear have suggestions of Interceptor IOTVs and current MOLLE LBE systems. This puts these figures fairly solidly in the 21st century, GWOT era.

[Right: Old QRF US modern infantry in three color desert camo, New QRF US modern infantry in my first attempt at desert MARPAT]

Material quality and casting is good as most of QRF's small and medium sized parts with no noticeable weakness, bubbling or other impurities. Small amounts of flash are present on the ends of gun barrels and on the underside of the integral bases while there were some noticeable mold lines or pits on some of the figures these are generally only present in areas where they are either easily disguised or removed.

[Left: Old QRF US modern infantry in three color desert camo, New QRF US modern infantry in three color desert camo]

Poses are nicely varied and not only cover all of the common ones (running, kneeling, standing) but have some nice variations. Some of the poses are a little stiff but strongly resemble photographs you will see from military training and combat.

Now we get to the difficult part for me. I had very high hopes for these figures and had been very happy with the previous line. The detail on the equipment had been excellent and some of the best I have seen in this scale; there were some shortcomings, such as the lack of facial detail (not a huge problem for most of them as you could paint them as wearing shemaghs or balaclavas). I'm sad to say that unfortunately these figures don't represent an improvement over the level of detail and sculpt quality. The body and uniform equipment is well sculpted and appears sufficiently detailed and authentic as to stand up to even close inspection. Weapon detail, extremities and the head are where there is a recognizable step backwards in detail and fidelity. Many of the faces and hands are distorted and weapons don't hold up well to close inspection.

[Right: Rebel Minis US modern infantry in UCP ACU, New QRF US modern infantry in an attempt at MultiCam]

I've been thinking about how to conclude this review for a few days now. These figures are no longer particularly appropriate for operations prior to 2000. While they would mix reasonably well with Rebel Minis' Modern US line the way the two lines are packaged generally don't give you a particularly compelling reason to do so. They do look pretty good at table distance though and at those distances mix pretty well with QRF's old line. If you want to get a bit more variety or fill a couple of gaps in your modern US collection they are pretty good choices and the line does include a few options that most of the others don't have like M16DMR armed marksmen. We'll see in a few weeks how those line up.

New arrivals

An order from Scale Creep (comprising a QRF M1A2 Abrams MBT and a gaming mat) arrived late last week and today I discovered a parcel containing review copies of QRF's new Modern US M4 armed infantry (codes MAI01 and MAI02, photos on the right).

The figures look pretty good on a quick examination and I've started cleaning, prepping and mounting a few of them to try to paint them tomorrow and do some comparison and detail photos. Look for a full review in the next few days (provided work and home issues allow me enough time)

The Abrams is painted up and is awaiting basing for some comparison photos which I hope to get done in time for a post late in the week.


As a disclaimer Geoff of QRF provided me with these models for review after reading my original review of QRF's old line of US infantry figures. I also place an order with QRF over a week ago for, amongst other things, all 8 of their new Modern US Infantry packs.

Review: QRF Modern US infantry (OLD RANGE!)

EDIT Important Note: Geoff from QRF contacted me about an hour ago to inform me that the miniatures I have reviewed here are from their recently retired range (appearantly Scale Creep was still cleaning out their back inventory) and that these figures and packs have been replaced with new ones. I will be trying to get some of the new figures soon and will review them as well.

Original Post:
So, I've shown you some recently painted examples of QRF's (recently replaced) US infantry from their 15mm Modern line but just how are the sculpts and where do they fit into the 'modern' timeline (given that the US military has gone through at least three major combinations of combat utilities and load bearing gear in the period often refered to as the 'modern' era)?

First, the quality and detail of the miniature and the sculpt. The minis from QRF are generally very well cast with few significant seams and generally minimal flash, much better than I've seen from even GW's vaunted metals. The detail varies depending on which part of the miniature you are concerned with; Helmets, webbing and packs are well detailed for the scale even going so far as to have a sculpted on helmet band, similarly the uniform is well sculpted with well executed folds and creases. Weapons hold something of a middle ground, they are well proportioned to the figure and are reasonably detailed overall but as you get to the figure's hands there is a noticeable loss of detail and verisimilitude. Hands and faces are noticeably poorly sculpted, although definitely an improvement of the quasimodo-esq visiges of their "Deep Space Marines" their lack of certain prominent features has led me to paint many of them as if they were wearing kaffias or hoods to help hide their lack of a discernible lower face, hands are rather varied from sculpt to sculpt from a well rendered gloved hand to something that is either a bizarre mitten or a flipper. At table distance though these flaws are not noticeable and only detract from the miniature under close inspection, at table distances and even somewhat closer they look just like they are expected to and are generally identifiable as what they are (riflemen are distinguishable from automatic riflemen and grenadiers). While probably not recommended for someone that expects a Michelangelo masterwork a wargamer looking for a solid entry in this era won't be disappointed.

One note on materials: As I noted above, there isn't much in the way of flash of major mold lines but there is always some little bit that needs to be removed or some excess material in a crevice to facilitate molding and casting and the metal QRF uses is probably the easiest metal I've worked with in about 17 years of scale modeling and miniature wargaming. However, this may well be a related to the warning label on the QRF packaging cautioning me that the product contains lead. So, just be careful how you breathe and clean up your work area if you have kids around; the rest of the time just enjoy the easy workability and smooth cutting you will have when working on these.

Now, where do they fit in time and space? While it likely isn't noticeable at distance it is appearant that they are wearing Load Bearing Vests (hard to tell if it's IIFS or MOLLE) instead of the older ALICE LC series of webbing so they might not be appropriate for invading Grenada but would fit right in with the initial invasion of Iraq and the earlier conventional force's operations in Afghanistan. Weapons are M4/M16 series rifles with the traditional carry handle on top, M249 SAWs and M203s) Some of the figures (primarily the "Leader" pack) are noticeably wearing PASGT style body armor (with the prominent shoulder pads no less) but that detail is difficult to pick out unless they are painted to emphasize it. In fact, some of the sculpts appear remarkably similar in appearance to the soldiers on the cover of the original Ambush Alley! cover. So, if you need some troops for your 2003 drive to Baghdad or to drive out the Afghani Taliban, these might be what you need.

The first completed squad. There will have to be a few changes though.
First on the list is figuring out how I'm going to mount 9 men in a pair of vehicles listed as accomodating 1+3. No matter what I can't find a way (outside of converting them to a Stryker unit) to fit them in less than two vehicles, (that requires one of the vehicles to be a transport HMMWV) and using three vehicles means that either the fire teams are broken up unevenly (and each vehicle possibly having a dedicated driver) or each fire team completely fills one M1025 each and the Squad Leader drives himself, which doesn't seem right.

Second matter is that of the sculpt I'm using for the SL himself. Though it isn't terribly appearant from the photo I think my chosen SL figure bears too much of a resemblance to Captain Dave 'Captain America' McGraw from HBO's series "Generation Kill". This leads me to think he might be better suited to scenarios where he can be placed as the leader of incompetent/demoralized contractors or weekend warriors awaiting rescue or relief (not intending to comment on anyone, more that it seems like there is always a group of badly led/supplied/trained troops or wannabes getting pinned down or lost when the main cast of a military drama program needs something heroic looking to do and the lasting impression I have of that character* is that he would be perfect for that role). The alternative I had selected from the QRF US Infantry Command set seems inappropriate now that I've painted him as well; the lack of a pack, the way his rifle is slung on his back and the way he is holding what looks like a compass and a dispatch case makes me think he is more suited to commissioned rank as well.


*I don't mean to cast any aspersions on the REAL Capt. Dave McGraw, I have never met the man and have no knowledge of him. The TV character based on him though makes me want to punch things though.

USA OIF/OEF/Zombie hunters fireteam

The first fireteam of my planned US Army platoon for Ambush Alley and Ambush Z is done, including bases. From left to right we have the Assistant Gunner, Gunner with M249, team leader, and Grenadier.

In related (but likely not of interest to any of my readers) I finally managed to free the height adjustment bolt on my painting chair so I can lower it and stop hunching over so much. Should help out my back considerably.

First USCMC units and some US Army zombie hunters/counter-insurgents

Mortar team with M402 Multi-Launch Mortar on the right, on the left Platoon Leader with Synthetic advisor and Civilian Alien-Hunter.

First USCMC fireteam with Squad Leader, Smartgunner, Incinerator, and two Marines. Basing will have to wait until I figure out what I will do with the table. Both this squad and the units above are made by combining QRF's "'Deep Space' Marines" Alpha and Beta from their Sci-Fi range.

US Army light infantry with M1025 HMMWV gun truck mounting an M2HB HMG. Ready for some zombie hunting! Both are QRF sets from their Modern US range.
I'm going to have to pick up some good references for markings and such, Osprey looks like it should have what I need.

Preview of the AA turret I converted for the converted Cafferta. Twin 20mm gatling cannon should prove nasty to those Xenos.

Work continues on the resculpting of the Cafferta's wheel wells, although it has been slowed somewhat by the significant drop in temperature here which has made the kneadite more difficult to work with. after this stage all that should be left will be rebuilding some of the detailing lost during the earlier stages and the construction of the new turret (have to decide on what that will look like).

In terms of the other parts of the USCMC project hopefully my order from Scale Creep will ship tomorrow or Wednesday (still no word on when QRF will ship the orders I placed with them.) The Scale Creep order includes a number of QRF's Unarmed Civillians/Zombies and some of their Modern US range for my second project, World War Z. Between Ambush Alley and Ambush Z I should have enough to tide me over until Tomorrow's War is released.