US Navy PBR31 MkII Pibber Boat

I really enjoyed putting this kit together. Unlike a lot of plastic models, the parts actually fit together, the instructions were fairly clear, and the result was outstanding.

I am currently building this model. It is a great build and it is a beginning to my riverboat collection. So far the directions are very simple to follow. This model fits together well and has been an easy build so far

I built the kit many years ago and found it to be fairly accurate with the nickname being totally off the mark for what the actual crewmen called this boat. As a member of the Naval Special Warfare Group assigned to boats such as the Light SEAL Support Craft(DML does a fine model) and the larger Medium SSC of which there is no kit I did run across many PBR operations and worked with the crews often. I even witnessed the destruction of one PBR and the way they were molded into the basic shape as they are nothing more than fiberglass over plywood. The kit represents any one of hundreds of crew modified boats and no the crew did not typically live on board but for missions only. The model is wrong in the sense of weapons and official USN equipment. No crew used the grenade launcher for very long because it jammed all of the time and the single shot shoulder fired launcher, the M-79, was the popular weapon. All of the machine guns in the kit should be replaced by more updated kits and the crew as well is out of date, but with some detailing could be rendered to look better. Shirts off the crew meant awful sun-burning which should be part of the makeup of the figures. The exact name for the boat does exist; Mark 2 would be the official title followed by glass boat or plastic boat Never Pibber which is almost insulting to those of use in the Brown Water Navy.