EXTRA-TECH from the Czech Republic
makes this 1/72 resin kit of the italian WWII Autoblindata 41 armored car.
The vehicle carried a turret similar to the L6/40 light tank, and served
in Africa, the Balkans, and Italy. This kit has seen quite a bit of internet-exposure,
having appeared previously in our "On Loan" wing with German Wehrmacht
markings, and is also currently on review at Doug Chaltry's "On
the Way" website.
The kit consisted of nicely cast resin parts and a sprue of brass photo-etched pieces. To be honest, I have mixed feelings about these parts. While some are nice detailed additions, I would rather see others as plastic parts. For example, the on-board tools seem too flat; Doug scratchbuilt replacements for his model!
I added the antenna, and a small ledge which protrudes from the vehicle's rear under the grille (a casting block obscures the affected area; removing it leaves the surface too flush). To make the kit stand even, I lightly rubbed it over fine grain sandpaper until all four wheels had a small flat area touching the surface. Note that in the photo the car's front is facing away from the viewer, with the main gun facing starboard. An interesting aspect of the kit is that the spare tires have more pronounced treading, making the in-use tires look worn. detailed instructions and nice thin decals round out the package; overall a very nice model.
Vehicles initially sent to the Afrika Korps were painted in the European Theater scheme of overall Panzer Grey. Eventually many vehicles were overpainted with Desert Yellow. On this armoured car, the original color still shows through in some places, notably under the Palmtree insignia.
FUJIMI makes this SdKfz. 222 in 1/76 scale. Almost 1000 vehicles were produced, were armed with a 2cm cannon, and served on all fronts throughout the entire war.
This model of the SdKfz 231 six-wheeled armoured car is really a straightfoward modification of the MATCHBOX SdKfz 232 model: remove the antenna, fill in the mounting holes, add a commander's handrail, done.
This version of the 231 was built between 1932 and 1937. Seeing action in Poland and France, the six-wheeled vehicles were withdrawn from front-line service in 1940 (due to poor performance of the wheel configuration; they were replaced by the eight-wheeled vehicles). This model shows the field modification of painting the interior of the Balkan Crosses with sand or earth color; the conspicuous white insignia had proven to be excellent targeting points for Polish gunners!
The Schwerer Panzerspaehwagen (7.5cm) (SdKfz 234/3) was the third version of the eight-wheeled 234 series. 88 were produced from June to December 1944. They were employed in platoons of six vehicles together with SdKfz 234/1s in Panzerspaehwagen companies within Panzer Aufklaerungs battalions of the Panzer and Panzergrenadier divisions. They were also issued to armoured reconnaissance companies.
This 1/76 resin version is produced by MILICAST; the detailing is very
nice and there are lots of parts, including interior pieces. The casting
is relatively free of flaws; getting the gun mount to fit right did require
some fiddling and filing.
Daimler-Benz produced 147 of these Maschinengewehrkraftwagen (Kfz 13) on
chassis made by the Adlerwerke from 1932 to 1934. They were used in reconnaissance
units of non-motorized division, mostly in the Polish campaign, and were
withdrawn from service by 1941. The vehicle was armed with one 7.92mm MG,
and had armor 8mm thick.
MMS makes this nice 1/76 metal model. Detailing is great and there was very little flash or flaws to be worked on. I built the kit as is; the figure is also made by MMS, but is available separately in an accessories pak.
Here's a 1/76 scale Japanese armored
car in metal from SKYTREX/HINCHLIFFE. It depicts the HoKoKu-GO Type 2592
vehicle (2592 corresponds to Western civilization's year 1932 A.D.), which
served with the Japanese Navy. It weighed 7 tons, had an 85hp six-cylinder
engine, and carried four MGs. Four crewsmen operated the car, which also
carried a set of auxiliary wheels behind the front wheels; these prevented
the car from getting "belly-stuck" in soft or rough ground.
The kit is rather simple (8 pieces); I added headlights and a pair of "anchor" decals. The paint scheme approximates the olive green/dull sand/dark brown colors of Japanese AFVs, although the Navy often operated with vehicles colored in a monotone green paint scheme. Some details of the kit are oversized, such as the rivets and the fender thickness.
Questions? You can e-mail me at Contact the Curator.
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