1/35 Verlinden, German Tank & SS Officer, WWII (No: 797)

NEW: (Old Stock), unused, unopened, undamaged item (including handmade items). See the seller’s listing for full details. Boxes are not in perfect shape.   

This is a resin figure kit from Verlinden Productions. Kit consists of unassembled and unpainted resin parts. May not be suitable for children under 14 years of age.

Please Note: This is new old stock. Boxes are not in perfect shape.

Verlinden Productions is is the granddaddy of the aftermarket parts and resin figure manufacturers. The company was the brainchild of Belgian modeler François Verlinden, who gave up a career in the scrap-metal business in the late 1970s to pursue his love of armor modeling and creating dioramas. He opened a hobby store in Lier and, dissatisfied with the limited products available for the serious diorama builder, began to create and sell his own line of merchandise. It wasn’t long before Verlinden Productions quickly expanded to aftermarket sets consisting of resin and photoetched brass to correct and upgrade plastic kits.  As the popularity of his aftermarket sets grew, he added dry transfers and publications highlighting particular AFVs and planes.

In the 1980s Verlinden met American modeler Bob Letterman and the two started a business relationship with Verlinden’s other Belgian partner Josef Stok. The new company, VLS, imported Verlinden Products into the U.S. and offered other product lines.

By the 1990s it became clear that Verlinden Productions and VLS would economically benefit if the Belgian company relocated to the U.S., Verlinden packed up shop and moved to the St. Louis, Missouri area where Letterman was located. Soon after, differences in philosophies and personalities among the owners led to a rather acrimonious split. Verlinden Productions remained in Missouri, directly competing with VLS until the latter was bought up by Squadron in 2007.

In September of 2016 François Verlinden decided to close production and retire. Though there is a multitude of aftermarket manufacturers today producing product for model kits; it was François Verlinden who set the stage for all those who followed.