Waltersons, the new owners of the Forces of Valor brand, has updated their Facebook page with more information regarding their 2020 range. According to their representative, any vehicle that was originally produced by Unimax and has undergone an upgrade that includes a removable engine will be part of their newly branded “Engine Plus” series. So, tanks such as the T-34/85, M4 Sherman, Jagdpanther, Jagdtiger and Tiger I fall under this heading. Newly tooled vehicles, such as the upcoming Sturmtiger, M10 tank destroyer and KV-2, will be part of their “Extreme Metal” series. These vehicles will feature fully detailed crew compartments and other interior detailing, as well as metal tracks, much like their larger 1:16 scale brethren. We haven’t decided yet if we will segregate all of the existing Forces of Valor vehicles into one category and the newly tooled vehicles into another since this may create some confusion for the collector. We’ll likely revisit this scenario once our web site has completed its migration to the Shopify e-commerce platform scheduled for January.

In other news, eight different Sherman variants are currently being worked on by Waltersons, the first one likely being an M4 mounting a 105mm howitzer. The manufacturer claims that the entrenching tools typically attached to a vehicle’s exterior can be detached while other accessories, such as sand bags and logs, are being developed for added realism.

Lastly, the Company claims to be getting set to announce their aviation line up and will likely be showing some of their models at the upcoming Hong Kong Toy Fair which is scheduled to open on January 6th. We haven’t seen any images yet so it remains to be seen how they plan to re-work the aircraft to bring them up to today’s standards. Rumor has it that the engines can be removed much like the vehicles, although we haven’t seen any evidence to support this assertion.

Some times a message can get lost within another message, especially when it gets stuck in the crevices of a castaway’s bottle. That’s the case with Forces of Valor when they recently discussed their upcoming 1:32 scale Tiger and Sherman tank variants last week. While reading through some of the ensuing comments and their own remarks it appears as if the Company is finally getting set to discuss their military aircraft line, which was hinted at well over two years ago but has seemingly laid dormant ever since. This December, Waltersons plans on discussing how they will re-purpose some of their existing aircraft tooling, which was never truly a hit with the aviation community. They’ve listened to the community, done their due diligence by researching the competition and believe they are now ready to discuss their plans in detail now that they are competing in a space long dominated by others.

In other news, the Company is hard at work touching up some of their existing tank toolings, particularly the M24 Chaffee light tank, which, according to consumer sentiment, was one of their fan favorites and required little work to bring up to date. New molds are in the offing too, including their first ever Leopard 2A5 and 2A6 main battle tanks, likely offered in German markings and paint schemes. We are hoping that the Stryker, which was cancelled by Unimax before its release, will be drawn out of storage while other tanks, such as the Abrams, gets a face lift to bring it up to today’s standards.

Lastly, pictures have finally posted for their upcoming Jagpanther tank destroyer, which models the earlier G1 variant complete with zimmerit anti-magnetic mine paste. Reading between the lines we’re willing to bet a G2 version will eventually be made, which featured, among other things, a two-piece gun barrel and the omission of any zimmerit. Finally, a pair of 1:32 scale T-34/85 tanks are finally en route, and should be ready for immediate shipment right before Thanksgiving. Gobble gobble!

Recently, Waltersons posted several comments concerning their upcoming 1:32 scale Tiger tanks to their Facebook page. According to the FOV rep, 24 versions will eventually be offered, although its not clear if all of them will come out in 2020 and how many involve repaints which the Company considers as a separate SKU. What is known is that the manufacturer has spent an inordinate amount of time and effort retooling the original mold which first surfaced way back in 2003, thereby ensuring that it will pass muster amongst the FOV community of 2019. Four versions of the Tiger I will be produced (initial, early, mid and late revisions) each with their own intricate features, characteristics and shortcomings that should sit well with discriminating collectors. For starters, all of the vehicles feature a reworked suspension enabling them to smoothly roll along a flat or uneven surface. Each will come with their appropriate road wheels, which ranged from the initial rubber rimmed wheels that tended to get bogged down in the mud to the more efficient steel rimmed wheels used in the latter versions of the Tiger I.

According to Waltersons, the Sturmtiger, which was never a part of the original Unimax line up of combat vehicles, will likely come out in mid-year and feature a fully detailed crew compartment, although its not clear at present if collectors will be able to remove the superstructure to peer inside the vehicle. Likewise, its not certain if the vehicle will come with stacks of ammunition stored inside the vehicle and/or a crane that was used to lower the ammunition into the gun’s breech. Since the manufacturer tends to take the high road when it comes to replicating armored fighting vehicles of World War II its more than likely going to occur, albeit at a slightly higher price considering all of the extra work, labor and material going into the effort.

Lastly, the Company claims that the first batch of Tigers will be completed some time in January. Even if this pans out, its not likely we will see any of the models before March, at the earliest, due in part to the upcoming Chinese New Year, continued tension in the streets of Hong Kong and trade war currently underway between the Peoples Republic of China and the US.