Skip to content
Welcoming back Sluban!
Thank you for the great response we have received from relaunching Sluban recently, these kits are at a lower price point and great value for money. From our customer feedback so far, the quality of Sluban sets has come a long way since 2022, however please note they are still using stickers. We think these kits are perfect for those looking to start their own collection of brick military models but find COBI a bit outside of their budget.
Sluban are based in The Netherlands and the products are made in China. They create many themed model kits, including army (land, air and sea) WWI and WWII as well as modern jets and helicopters. We have brought this brand in as a lower cost option to cover all budgets so please send us your thoughts on our new Sluban range to admin@bricktanks.co.uk or leave a product review on the page to help others decide. In the meantime, we have collated the first of hopefully many reviews below.
We're going to continue to search for brands of brick military construction kits to add to the site. If you have any suggestions for brands that you find are good quality and offer something a bit different, let us know!
Warmest wishes,
Sluban are based in The Netherlands and the products are made in China. They create many themed model kits, including army (land, air and sea) WWI and WWII as well as modern jets and helicopters. We have brought this brand in as a lower cost option to cover all budgets so please send us your thoughts on our new Sluban range to admin@bricktanks.co.uk or leave a product review on the page to help others decide. In the meantime, we have collated the first of hopefully many reviews below.
We're going to continue to search for brands of brick military construction kits to add to the site. If you have any suggestions for brands that you find are good quality and offer something a bit different, let us know!
Warmest wishes,
Zoë
Customer reviews
"Kickin' Kamov" by Mark C.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
"Over the years I have built many Lego sets, and, possibly, even more Cobi
sets, but I have never before ventured beyond the ‘Bamboo Curtain’. I
have, however, always been fascinated by Kamov’s solution to the rotor
torque problem with helicopters, no tail rotors here, just
contra-rotating main rotors! It’s a Kamov signature design; so, I was
tempted to venture to the ‘Dark Side’ when Brick Tanks offered the
Sluban KA-52S for a very reasonable price. How did it go?
Things I like:
It’s a big and substantial model with very few visible studs unlike some
of Sluban’s other models. Something I love is the ingenious mechanism that allows one, at the turn of a wheel, to set the rotors in motion in the proper fashion, very
clever. The printed MDC and other canopy markings. Two mini-figures that are, in the great tradition of block models, somewhat idiosyncratic. Very good detail in the cockpit with both collective and cyclic controls, not just a single joystick.
Well detailed undercarriage. Well represented sensor turret under the nose.
Strong weapon load – if only I could have fitted it (see below for details). Amusing and useful crocodile shaped brick separator.
Things I like less:
The most disappointing thing was two missing bricks. The model was
almost complete but when I came to build the weapons pylons two of the
vital blocks were missing. I did the usual, going through all the bags
again but they definitely weren’t there. Now I know that some people
have recurring missing brick problems with Cobi, but I have been lucky
to not have experienced this too often. I have contacted Sluban EU so let’s see what their replacement service is like. The old bugbear of stickers! One of the best things Cobi have ever done is use pad printing instead of stickers. To be fair, most of the stickers with the Kamov weren’t too troublesome as they covered their
entire location when applied, so no nasty transparent surrounds. The
only exceptions being the red stars on the tail and under the fuselage.
Sluban can, clearly, print, witness the cockpit canopies, so why they
still use stickers elsewhere I don’t know.
In summary, I’ll start by saying that I was more impressed with this
model than I expected, so I may have a go at the Mi-24, but I can’t see
me entirely transferring my allegiance from Cobi. It’s a mammoth build, 913 pieces (or 911 in my case) that took many hours of my Saturday, but the result was worth it. As mentioned above, I am particularly impressed with the rotor mechanism.
On the negative side, I found a couple of the large plates appeared to
be slightly warped so didn’t quite sit flat, but these are internal so the small gaps don’t show. Being unused to Sluban’s instructions I did find that the bag numbering didn’t help much, and I found it a bit difficult at times to differentiate between flat plates and half-block thick plates until I got my eye in, then it was no longer a problem. I should imagine that one would get used to the instructions after
building the first set, I’d know what to look for now. I did make one small modification, I fitted the rotor blades so that when they rotate the swept tips are facing in the right directions.
If, like me, you’ve never tried Sluban at all I’d say give one a go, I
was pleasantly surprised, apart from the issues noted above, hence the
loss of a star. I wouldn’t recommend this set for a novice builder but
if you like a bit of a challenge…"
KA-52S brick model helicopter - Sluban M38-B1138 - 913 bricks
"Over the years I have built many Lego sets, and, possibly, even more Cobi
sets, but I have never before ventured beyond the ‘Bamboo Curtain’. I
have, however, always been fascinated by Kamov’s solution to the rotor
torque problem with helicopters, no tail rotors here, just
contra-rotating main rotors! It’s a Kamov signature design; so, I was
tempted to venture to the ‘Dark Side’ when Brick Tanks offered the
Sluban KA-52S for a very reasonable price. How did it go?
Things I like:
It’s a big and substantial model with very few visible studs unlike some
of Sluban’s other models. Something I love is the ingenious mechanism that allows one, at the turn of a wheel, to set the rotors in motion in the proper fashion, very
clever. The printed MDC and other canopy markings. Two mini-figures that are, in the great tradition of block models, somewhat idiosyncratic. Very good detail in the cockpit with both collective and cyclic controls, not just a single joystick.
Well detailed undercarriage. Well represented sensor turret under the nose.
Strong weapon load – if only I could have fitted it (see below for details). Amusing and useful crocodile shaped brick separator.
Things I like less:
The most disappointing thing was two missing bricks. The model was
almost complete but when I came to build the weapons pylons two of the
vital blocks were missing. I did the usual, going through all the bags
again but they definitely weren’t there. Now I know that some people
have recurring missing brick problems with Cobi, but I have been lucky
to not have experienced this too often. I have contacted Sluban EU so let’s see what their replacement service is like. The old bugbear of stickers! One of the best things Cobi have ever done is use pad printing instead of stickers. To be fair, most of the stickers with the Kamov weren’t too troublesome as they covered their
entire location when applied, so no nasty transparent surrounds. The
only exceptions being the red stars on the tail and under the fuselage.
Sluban can, clearly, print, witness the cockpit canopies, so why they
still use stickers elsewhere I don’t know.
In summary, I’ll start by saying that I was more impressed with this
model than I expected, so I may have a go at the Mi-24, but I can’t see
me entirely transferring my allegiance from Cobi. It’s a mammoth build, 913 pieces (or 911 in my case) that took many hours of my Saturday, but the result was worth it. As mentioned above, I am particularly impressed with the rotor mechanism.
On the negative side, I found a couple of the large plates appeared to
be slightly warped so didn’t quite sit flat, but these are internal so the small gaps don’t show. Being unused to Sluban’s instructions I did find that the bag numbering didn’t help much, and I found it a bit difficult at times to differentiate between flat plates and half-block thick plates until I got my eye in, then it was no longer a problem. I should imagine that one would get used to the instructions after
building the first set, I’d know what to look for now. I did make one small modification, I fitted the rotor blades so that when they rotate the swept tips are facing in the right directions.
If, like me, you’ve never tried Sluban at all I’d say give one a go, I
was pleasantly surprised, apart from the issues noted above, hence the
loss of a star. I wouldn’t recommend this set for a novice builder but
if you like a bit of a challenge…"
KA-52S brick model helicopter - Sluban M38-B1138 - 913 bricks
"Sluban STRV 103" by Tony S.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
“Have just finished my first Sluban kit, the STRV 103. Found it a good solid build, easy to follow the instructions, all parts there and a good looking end result. Great value and very enjoyable. If I was nit picking. I'm not enthusiastic about stickers but mainly because I'm a bit clumsy at applying them! Have ordered more Slubans."
STRV103 brick tank model - Sluban M38-B1010 - 692 bricks
"Superb build" by Dave R.
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"I had so much fun building this helicopter. Great quality of bricks with clear instructions. Finished look is fantastic."
MI-24S brick model helicopter - Sluban M38-B1137 - 893 bricks
"Top build" by Dave R.
⭐⭐⭐⭐
"This was a fantastic enjoyable build that looks great. Excellent quality of brick and clear instructions. Only not a 5 due to the stickers being fiddly and a different method to what I am use to. They do look fab once applied."
Hummer H2 assault vehicle brick model - Sluban M38-B0837 - 265 bricks
"Could be even better than Cobi. . . 🫢" by KJGrieve
⭐⭐⭐⭐⭐
"Absolutely brilliant, completely on par with Cobi which I didn't think
possible, and even improves in a few ways: numbered bags just like
leading brands, very articulated minifigures, and a sprue full of
accessories. Final model is huge and such great value for the price.
There was one piece which seems to have come out of the mould a bit
messed up, but luckily it was still completely functional, and this is
the only minor issue I had."