Merkava Siman 3 - Merkava Mk3 in IDF service Part 1
SUMMARY
ISBN - 0-9788844-2-6
Media - Soft cover, A4 format, 79 pages all colour, 210 photos
Review Type - Full review
Advantages - Superb photography - detailed photo descriptions. Great modelling reference
Disadvantages - none
Recommendation - Highly Recommended
I was quite apprehensive on receipt of Desert Eagle's second volume in their IDF armor series. Would it be as good, and improve on the first book? Well, my first flick-through of the book allayed my fears. This is going to be a very special series.
DESERT EAGLE PUBLISHING
As I outlined in my review of the first book, Magach 6B GAL, the team at Desert Eagle are right on the money when it comes to understanding the modellers needs. I'll elaborate more below, but here I will point out that this series of books is collaborative effort between Desert Eagle and Legends Productions, who produce undoubtably the best IDF resin conversions that I have used. This is a fantastic collaboration as not only are we treated to an on-going series of superb reference books, but we also get a state-of-the-art resin kit to apply all of this reference material to. IDF modelling has never been better.
PHOTOGRAPHY
Again, the paper used is high-quality, glossy stock, just the thing to showcase the brilliant photography within. There are quite a few more photos here than in the first volume (see the photo counts in the summary). This is mostly due to the greatly expanded "in detail" chapter. Reading the photo descriptions again is a must. The text really is written by a modeller for modellers. I have been looking at pictures of Merkavas for years, but Michael's text pointed out detail that I knew nothing about. The written text is a real education.
CONTENTS
The chapter breakdown is similar to the first book. This in my opinion is a very good idea and will aid in finding the information/photo required when the series becomes larger. Consistancy of layout in a series like this is a must.
The Merkava family, names and derivatives - 6 pages
The first chapter in the book outlines the "heritage" of the Merkava. All the derivatives are named and described. Simple and effective. Also in the chapter, we have photos and descriptions of the Merkava concept demonstrator as well as the Namer Fitter and ARV, Merkava-based vehicles. As an added bonus at the end of the chapter, we have some examples of Merkava unit badges.
The Merkava Siman 3 in action - 12 pages
Here we have a series of photos of the Merkava in action. Of special interest are the shots of the machine both pushing and pulling different attachments, showing how versatile the Merkava is. Photography here is crystal-clear and this allows the modeller to make out many details, like the normal IDF practice of mixing-up the road wheel types on a single machine.
Man and Machine - 14 pages
A chapter of similar quality to the previous Magach volume. Of special note are the detailed photos of the crew uniforms including the Nomex overalls and the different style helmets in use. The roles and position of the crew members are clearly described. There are some great shots of the Merkava's main ammunition and it's track system. Both these items are clearly illustrated with CAD drawings to supplement the written text. The last part of the chapter details how the Merkava is loaded onto a tank transporter.
The Merkava Siman 3 in detail - 31 pages
Here we have a chapter that in my opinion exceeds the previous volume. Not only are there a lot more close-up photos, but we are treated to the first real look inside the Merkava 3. This is how tank walkarounds should be - every detail is singled-out with a clear photo, with some assemblies explained further with CAD "exploded" drawings. There is a superb 2 page spread detailing the Merkava's interior with all the major operating equipment explained. Turret-mounted machine guns, front-of-tank attachments and the instructor's chair are all highlighted.
In detail - Powerpack - 2 pages
The first photo here, is in my opinion the best photo in the book - a brilliant shot of the Merkava having its engine removed by a crane mounted "REO" truck. Some great shots of the powerplant follow.
Tactical signs - no one alike - 3 pages
Again, a chapter of huge interest to me as it descibes clearly the complexities of IDF tactical markings. Some photo examples are included and we have a large, dimensioned illustration of the standard font used with its "shadow".
Modelling the Merkava 3 - 7 pages
The last chapter of the book is a detailed description of the construction and painting of the new Legends Productions Merkava Mk3 BAZ kit. This is a newly-tooled, state-of-the-art kit that fills a huge gap in the IDF modelling world, sure, there have been previous Mk3 kits available, but none have come close to the accuracy of this new release.
CONCLUSION
Merkava Siman 3, the second volume from Desert Eagle is even better than the first. That is saying a lot as volume 1 was in my opinion, the best publication on IDF armor that I had seen. It receives my highest recommendation. A must for all IDF enthusiasts.
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