This is one of Monroe Perdu’s latest kit releases. It is a
multimedia kit depicting a “Farm Gate”, and is designed to be
utilized in dioramas. Monroe Perdu label the kit as 1/35 / 1/32, and
the instructions suggest that the kit represents a structure found
throughout Europe, the Mediterranean, the Balkans and Russia.
Personally, Monroe Perdu’s Farm Gate reminds me of a Western
European structure. I think that it would be perfectly suited for a
Normandy or Ardennes scene.
The kit comprises of seven resin pieces, two frets of laser-cut
cardboard pieces, a sheet of instructions, and four reference
photographs.
The quality of the resin parts is
very good. My sample was very well cast with a few small air bubbles
here and there, particularly around the corners of the roof tiles.
The resin parts are very thoughtfully cast, there are no casting
blocks and the components are virtually ready for assembly straight
from the box. It looks like the kit will go together relatively
quickly. The resin seems to be slightly softer than the typical
resin, and lighter in weight too. Each side of the thicker walls are
cast as separate pieces, which allows for a solid wall structure
with detail on both sides. The smaller walls include detail on both
sides also, however they are cast as a single piece. The stonework
is beautifully sculpted and very realistic. Above the smaller
doorway a wooden support beam is sculpted, with wood grain detail
even engraved on the underside – A nice touch.
Click the
thumbnails below to view larger images:
The main farm gate doors and
smaller door are supplied as laser-cut plain cardboard components.
The door hinges and weathervane are again supplied as laser-cut
components, this time made of cardboard coated with a metallic
looking element. The detail on the laser-cut pieces is excellent,
the parts are very cleanly produced and certainly look realistic.
While I have yet to try working with these cardboard components,
they do look very user-friendly and they will add a lot to the
finished project.
The instructions are supplied as a
full A4 sized sheet, including some line drawings illustrating how
to go about assembling the laser-cut doors and fittings. Also on the
instruction sheet is a few paragraphs with direction on how to work
with and paint the kit components, and also a brief history of what
the kit is supposed to represent. Then we have four reference
photos, all printed on high quality photographic paper. The first
photo is of the completed kit, very skillfully finished. The other
three photos depict various structural details in French locales.
The photos show a variety of textures and finishes, and I’m sure
they’ll be useful to have on the workbench when it’s time to paint
the kit.
I only have one very minor gripe
with this kit, and that is the way that the smaller walls are
designed. If the walls are placed as per the kit recommendations, in
my opinion the kit looks too clean-cut. It would have been nice if
the smaller walls tapered off in a more natural manner, perhaps if
one wall was damaged or unfinished, rather than having both side
walls identical sizes and thus making the structure appear
symmetrical. Either way it will build up into an impressive diorama
piece, measuring about 15.5 inches in length.
Conclusion
This is a very high quality product
and I have no reservations in recommending it.
The kit retails for $44 USD. I
think that this is a reasonable asking price due to the fact that it
such a unique kit, and as I said it looks very user-friendly and
therefore enjoyable to build.