Mars Next Offering Vietnam American Infantry. we have heard from our friend Andrey Buslov on what Mars has next. The next set will be Vietnam U.S. Army. The set will have eight new poses.
Mars Next Offering Vietnam American Infantry The Poses
As I mention there are eight different poses.
The first three poses are as follow. Pose one is U.S. Army infantry with heavy automatic weapon at waist. The second pose is U.S. Srmy infantry with flame thrower at waist. The third pose is U.S. Army Infantry kneeling firing a M16. Interesting on this figure he has a Law on his back.
Pose four is U.S. Army infantry standing firing a heavy weapon. (I know Greg will give us what the weapon is.) Pose five is U.S Army infantry with weapon and radio. Pose six is U.S. Army infantry walking smoking a cigarette. This pose is interesting as I think it is the first figure since the Auburn U.S. Army figure to be shown smoking.
Pose 7 shows U.S. Army Infantry with a rifle. Pose 8 is U.S. Army at the ready with a M16. The box art has not been one yet. The set will contain same amount figures are the previous sets.
Mars Next Offering Vietnam American Infantry Final Thoughts
It is amazing how in just a short time this period of history we are getting a number figures to use. Prior to TSSD announcing their Vietnam War Playset, we only the Processed Plastic figures plus some figures from China. Now we at the moment five different sets of figures. TSSD has released two sets U.S. Marines and North Vietnamese troop. Mars will have three sets. They are Vietcong. U. S. Marines and now U.S. Army infantry. There is word that Mars will be doing other sets for the Vietnam War. Initial reports have the figures selling very well. We wait and see what comes next.
Well, it looks like a M-60 But I’m not sure. Two guys look like they are carrying the M-14 at least it looks that way to me.
TSSD and Austin made figures with cigars stuck in their teeth and Conte one of the plug in arms for Travis was holding a cigar. Whether they were smoking or not can’t be determined.
Shows you what I missed on figures. Problem when I writing my mind brain freezes sometimes as I try to churn out at least 300 words. I was in a rush to get this news out and I did not have time to reflect . These days I get a figure I quickly look at it and put in a box as I have no time these days.
No flak jackets , all have long sleeves ( very hot in VN ),no ruck sakes on their backs ( heavy loads, knick name ” Grunts”.) Hope for better.
Untouchables Al Capone had a cigar in his mouth.
I knew they will go x it …
Made sence,fast sale,fast profit.
Logic move….
Aurburn did another smoking too…
The heavy weapon is an M60.
But I can said that the deatil in weapons is not too accurate.
Any how I consider them cheap figures x good price so we can not ask much.
Been critic.
I see too many M16 and M14 and not seen and CAR15,we need more with m21 and m40 as snipers too.
Also using theM20 SB and the M18,20 OR M67 RR that were the heavy puncher against jungle bunkers and caves else…
I hope these are samples as one advancing with m14 in waist looks like tip pf weapon is miss molded, the one with radio I do not see the aerial-antenna, and another has either a m16 too short or a CAR15!?
Hope they also do the 3 tanks in flamethrower as contrary to often wrong made 2 tanks in many figures before by other brands
my thoughts!!
Good point on the lack of ruck sacks or flak jackets. Both would not likely be worn together. If you’re humping the bush with your ruck on, you’re not in that jacket in that heat. If somebody can tell me their unit had that SOP, it would be news to me and I’d like to see the sick list of how many heat casualties they took just moving. The ruck doesn’t fit well over it either. You can’t do the waist strap up without making the flak vest rub like Hell against you.
One guy does have an M-14, apparently with some pistol grips added. I don’t know why.
My thoughts for the way I collect: I want a sense of uniformity and not in the way you may think. Not dress-right-dress uniform wearing, but as if the guys belong together. These guys carry the M-16 as the standard infantry rifle. They got their M-60 for the squad and there’s a guy carrying a LAW Rocket. Looks to me like they are on a short range patrol. If you start adding guys with abnormal weapons, only some with vest and some with the big ol’ ALICE ruck sack, then they don’t jive. Sleeves may be down because they are going into an ambush site and need to cover up from bugs and exposing sweaty, glistening skin that can get you spotted. Can’t figure what the M-14 with pistol and foregrip is for. I can imagine that away, I suppose…or convert it out.
What’s with all the poses showing guys man handling that 23 lbs. M-60 like it was a BB gun?!
Greg I guess like me the artist had not fire one(M-60) and see too much RAMBO movies…
I think I will look to fire one soon and see how goes..
I agree and complete pass it in my critic ,the lack of ruck sacks or flak jackets.
Also every body in long sleeves shirt!?I think a lot either cut or else have short sleeves in jungle warfare eternal hot years around.
The pistol grip in M14 it is representing the M15 or M14 modified version that was supplied with it, it was detachable too …
Pose #1 appears to be an M14A1 squad automatic rifle version of the M14 (at least from the vertical foregrip, can’t see if it has a bipod), pose #8 is a regular M14. The first Marines and Army infantry to go to the RVN had M14s but those were switched out for M16s as time went on.
I agree on the comment that a number of figures show a GI or Marine firing the M60 off hand. The “pig” got its nickname from its weight.
It will be interesting to see if the MARS “Viet Nam” series look appropriate next to TSSD’s figures.
The M14 variant with pistol grip was known as M14E2
The M15 was a modified M14 developed as a replacement for the .30-06 M1918 Browning Automatic Rifle for use as a squad automatic weapon. It added a heavier barrel and stock, a hinged buttplate, a selector switch for fully automatic fire, and a bipod. The sling was from the BAR. Like the M14, it was chambered for 7.62×51mm
Firing tests showed that the M14, when equipped with the selector switch, hinged buttplate and bipod, performed as well as the M15. As a result, the M15 was dropped and the modified M14 became the squad automatic weapon. Accuracy and control problems with this variant led to the addition of a pistol grip, a folding rubber covered metal foregrip and a muzzle stabilizer. However, it was a poor suppressive fire weapon owing to 20-round magazines and it overheated rapidly.
M14E2 -links
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ground/m14-pics.htm
http://www.dogfightink.com/armory.html
http://www.smallarmsreview.com/display.article.cfm?idarticles=2434
M14E2- with pistol grip model
http://www.globalsecurity.org/military/systems/ground/m14-pics.htm
Brief History of the US M-14E2 stock .
From Vietnam military veteran blog, extracted.
The problem began when the M-14 was touted to replace several weapons in the Army’s inventory, including the BAR. Firing a full power cartridge like the .308 Winchester full auto in a firearm half the weight of the BAR guarranteed stability problems. The first attempt to finesse a solution was to put a heavier barrel, along with a bipod, on the T44E5 (M15), with the extra weight of the barrel damping recoil as well as tolerating heat buildup. The Marines discovered that sustained fire capability could be obtained with the regular barrel if the handguard was ventilated, so the idea of a special heavy-barrel M15 was set aside in 1959 and a bipod and ventilated handguard adopted for the squad automatic role.
Continued problems with difficulty in control in full auto led to development by the Army Infantry Board of a pistol-grip straight-line stock with rubber recoil pad and muzzle stabilizer which offered hopes of finally taming the M-14 in full auto fire. Springfield Arsenal took the idea further with the M-14E2 rifles delivered for trial in November, 1963. This design was adopted in 1967 as the M-14A1. Most of the production birch stocks were made at Long Branch, Canada by Canadian Arsenals Limited, and are marked “CAL” on the stock under the buttplate.
Comparison testing against the M60 demonstrated the superiority of the machine gun over the M-14A1, which was, with the termination of M-14 production in 1963, something of a limited issue item anyway. Only about 10,000 stocks were made, and most of these saw hard service in Vietnam. (In fact, a much-reproduced captured photograph of VC guerillas shows them posed in front of captured US firearms. one of which was an M-14A1) Most of the E2 stocks were birch.
A very few, however, were walnut, manufactured in very small quantities at Springfield, Rock Island, and Anniston. Quantity production was ruled out because of the expense, so that only a few were made. Much later, less than 100 walnuts were used to make up M21 sniper rifles at Anniston and Rock Island. These were marked “AA” or “RIA” and were glass-bedded. The Army was seeking a sniper rifle that was both accurate and, when the need arose, could fire duplex rounds in the full auto mode for self-defense and remain controllable. Needless to say, these are the “rare of the rare” when it comes to E2 stocks, themselves something of a rarity.
While the military never succeeded in taming the M-14, they did create a dream stock for the civilian shooter. The straightline design minimizes recoil while the pistol grip stock enhances controlability. These dtocks are a shooter’seam. But be aware that shooting the pistol-grip demands a different technique from the regular stock in that the bullet impact is sensitive to changes in hand pressure on the pistol-grip. To maximize your accuracy, keep that hand on the pistol-grip in uniform position and grip from shot to shot. If you already shoot an AR15 well, you are already used to the pistol-grip and will have no problem at all.
Removal of the buttplate should not be needed, but is easy, so long as you remove the rubber screw hole plugs with a thin screwdriver inserted between the plug and buttpad until the blade touches the screw, almost an inch, and then “pop out” the plug. Plugs can be gouged if you try tp pry them out with the blade not fully inserted to the full depth of the plug.
The E2 stock is not only an authentic military collectible, a real piece of history, but would also make a nice platform for a superlatively accurate sniper rig.
The sculpting looks better & the molding looks crisper than the previous figures. I love the figure in boonie hat smoking. I think the person sculpting is improving with each set. Let’s see what the NVA & ARVN look like when they are released?
Erwin, thanks for the update. It’s been a while since I looked into the M14 history and I was using Dale Dye’s recent “Small Arms Of the Viet Nam War” where that squad weapon was referenced as M14A1.
Your welcome.I happen to follow Greg’s observation as I was to curious and after some research I found out more and post it for everybody.There are too many details hard to remember out there in weapons
With only 10,000 made, I had never encountered it although I knew of the select fire versions of the M-14. The ones I saw had no modifications to the furniture at all. The US was pretty slow to understand what a light machine gun was. Kept using auto-rifles until the SAW came out in the 80’s.
Agree in both points.
Any how I think what makers of figures sets does is create a most varied arsenal x multipurpose scene dioramas as need .Not to actual recreate a particular army/force unit-platoon else.
Is same case we see sets of Italian WW2 armed with the MAB 38 in every toy brand Italian army figure set done when in reality the MAB 38 (very good LSMG by the way ) was barely see in action and only given to special units and few per entire battalion.(RE battalion size 700-800 aprox)
I notice previews Viet Nam US marine set from Mars have one pose what appear to be a ( Carl Gustav m/45 , a M3 or else ) hanging in his shoulders.
Shot guns least 12 types were used and even not official were seen more often ,so I guess they have to be recreated too.
If doing Navy seals, rangers or any special force else I guess they can add more rare inventory such the MAC-10 only seen so gar in the Arco Hong Kong rare Rambo Viet Nam era set and other Chinese figures made.
My thoughts.
best…
Mars will be making 5 Vietnam War sets; Viet Cong, US Marines, US Infantry, NVA + Green Berets. Shipping was held up six days either at the Ukraine end or at the NYC end on the shipment of US Marines but they should be available this coming week. I would have ordered the US Infantry as well, but Mars wanted to wait for their boxes to be finished. TSSD should have some at the nonOTSN show.
TSSD will have the US Marines but not the US Infantry at nonOTSN.
Hi Kent, I thought they planned some ARVN too?
I’m glad Mars is doing what they know.
Hope they improve their quality and detail.
However I think there is going to be a discrepancy between scales in the two brands.
I see Mars does not look into to any collectors thoughts to do their sets as others such HAT,ITALERI,ACTA ..did.
I think unless a direct request from owner of companies speculate and ask do not make sence…
Makers rarely follow any body,included dealers ideas…
At the end they do their own desire …