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| The ZIL-131 is a general purpose 3.5 ton 6x6 military truck designed in the Soviet Union. Production began in 1967 and ended in 1994 after nearly 1 million vehicles were produced. |
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| The basic cargo model of the ZiL-131 is used to carry troops and military equipment, also tow trailers or artillery pieces. The cargo area can be covered with bows and canvas tarp. |
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| The ZiL-131 is full-time all-wheel drive, however the front axle is sometimes disconnected on paved road trips. Typical of most Soviet designed trucks it is fitted with a central tire inflation system. |
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| The Zil-131 was widely exported and remains in frontline use with many ex-Soviet bloc countries. |
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| I painted my Zil to match a vehicle used by the United Nations Interim Force in Lebanon (UNIFIL) in 1978 with it's wheels, tanks and bumper in black. |
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| I added spare resin accessories from various Verlinden kits to finish out the bed. The barrels are from a WWII allied aircraft base, the tarp and crate are from an M-2 Bradley storage kit. The tubing is coiled wire insulation. |
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| The molding on this |
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| The tips and fins of the M-13 rockets require careful sanding but they look pretty good when completed. Photos suggest that the rockets are most commonly all-black, but were also found in all-green, camouflaged and silver with black fins which I chose for contrast. |
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| Note that the cab has to sit as far forward as possible to allow for the rocket launcher bed to fit, this required me to relocate the front axle a couple millimeters forward. |
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| The undercarriage of the kit is very nicely done with everything well represented. This basic chassis is common on several other ICM Zil-131 kits including a fuel bowser, command truck and multiple launch rocket systems. |
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| Here is an early photo of my Zil on the workbench before weathering was applied. In the background is my URAL Command Truck also produced by ICM. |
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| Here are the various subassemblies before painting. No engine is provided but the radiator and fenders prevent seeing into the empty compartment so it's really not needed. |
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| This is the best ICM kit I've completed to date. The molding is cutting edge with tight fitting parts and no flash to speak of anywhere. A very enjoyable build. |
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Kit: ICM #72811 |
Scale: 1/72 |
Value:
This kit can be purchased online for approx. $12.00 (US) which is a very good value for a kit of this detail. |
Decals:
Decals provided for United Nations, Russian Federation, Soviet Guard, Soviet Army in Germany, and East Germany. Printed in register, opaque and on a thin carrier. |
Assembly:
The kit comes in an end-opening style box. Inside the box is 72 parts molded in gray, 14 parts molded in black and 7 clear parts, 1 decal sheet and 1 double sided instruction sheet printed on both sides.
The instruction sheet starts with a schematic showing all of the part numbers- this is critical since there are no numbers printed on the trees. Assembly is shown in five exploded view drawings which require careful study. Included are front, sided an back drawings depicting paint and decal locations to build a UN forces vehicle, and a generic Soviet Field Green vehicle.
All parts are flash free and very crisply molded with find details. The transparent parts are relatively thin and very clear. Some of the smallest parts such as mirrors, tow hooks and exhausts are very impressively molded and hard to imagine they could be done any better. All parts fit together remarkably well, I was especially impressed with how well the windshield fit.
Cab doors and engine cover are molded in the closed position. Cargo bed seats and gate can be positioned in open or closed position.
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| After Market Parts Used: Resin oil barrels from Verlinden WWII allied airfield diorama base, resin wooden crate and tarp from Verlinden Bradley AFV update kit. |
Customizations:
I made windshield wipers out of stretched sprue. The coiled hose in the bed is made from small gauge wire. The footstep rung on the front bumper is made from small gauge wire. |
Recommendation:
This is an excellent kit both in detail and fit. Although there are many extremely small parts, I highly recommend this kit to any braille scale afv enthusiast. |
