The G4 personnel car was designed for the Wehrmacht, but was deemed too expensive and complex for mass production. Only 72 were produced for use by high-ranking state and military officials.
Some notes that will make the assembly steps easier:
The American response to the German Tiger tank was the M-26 Pershing. It had good armor and its 90mm gun finally gave the Allies a weapon that could handle the Tiger. However, its engine was too weak and the vehicle suffered in mobility, so after the war a start was made on a replacement, designated the M-42 (not to be confused with the M-42 light tank design). But that vehicle would not be available for years, so the engine problem in the M-36 was addressed by fitting a new engine, which resulted in the M-46. It was better, but not really "new". Work continued on the M-42, which would have a similar hull and engine, but a new turret with a better ballistic shape and heavier armor in the front.
PlusModel, out of the Czech Republic, has released a 1/48th version of their German Heavy Generator, previously released in 1/35th. The all-resin kit contains some extra goodies to detail this unique and welcome addition to their product line.
The first thing apparent when opening the box is the high quality of the resin parts. The parts are clearly labeled with part numbers and contain very little flash. What’s more, the connections to the pour stubs and resin blocks are kept to an absolute minimum, simplifying removal and making clean-up a breeze. Most of the parts can be (carefully) snapped off using just your fingers. A couple of swipes with a sanding stick and you’re ready to go.
The contents of this box include:
From Osprey’s website:
In the early days of World War I, Germany unveiled a new weapon – the mobile 42cm (16.5 inch) M-Gerät howitzer. At the time, it was the largest artillery piece of its kind in the world and a closely guarded secret. When war broke out, two of the howitzers were rushed directly from the factory to Liege where they quickly destroyed two forts and compelled the fortress to surrender. After repeat performances at Namur, Maubeuge and Antwerp, German soldiers christened the howitzers ‘Grosse’ or ‘Dicke Berta’ (Fat or Big Bertha) after Bertha von Krupp, owner of the Krupp armament works that built the howitzers. The nickname was soon picked up by German press, which triumphed the 42cm howitzers as Wunderwaffe (wonder weapons), and the legend of Big Bertha was born.
This is the second of a series of reviews of the MiniArt AEC Mk. II Armoured Car kit. Part 1 previously reviewed the kit contents and assembly of the driver’s compartment. This review includes the chassis, engine, and exterior. A subsequent review will include the turret and gun. Model Rectifier Corporation (MRC) has generously provided the review sample to IPMS.
This is an excellent, highly detailed kit. The molding is very crisp with great detail, and the fit is excellent. There are a few difficult areas that will make the kit challenging for less experienced modelers, but it results in a nice, fun to build kit for more advanced & expert modelers.
Roden continues with their line of 1/72 Opel Blitz truck kits in 1/72 scale. The Opel Blitz was one of the most popular three ton trucks produced by the Germans during the Second World War. Manufactured in a 4x2 and 4x4 version, this kit represents the last production model of the truck. Rather than using sheet metal throughout the vehicle, the cab was manufactured from wood. Production continued until 1948 with a production run of 11,000 vehicles.
The kit is molded in light grey plastic in three sprues with 115 parts. There is a sheet of Mylar for the three windows and there are decals for one vehicle. The parts are crisply molded and there are many small and fragile parts that must be removed from the sprues very carefully. Try as I might, the drive shaft, snapped and flew across the room. I was able to retrieve the two broken pieces. The kit does include an engine with many small components.
This is the first of a series of reviews of the MiniArt AEC Mk. II Armoured Car kit. Model Rectifier Corporation (MRC) has generously provided the review sample to IPMS. This part reviews the kit contents and assembly of the driver’s compartment. Subsequent parts will include the engine, chassis, exterior, and turret.
The AEC Armoured Cars are a series of heavy armored cars built by the Associated Equipment Company (AEC) during the Second World War. The first example, Mk. I, was demonstrated in early 1941 and an order was placed in June of that year.
The Mk. I version carried a Valentine Mk II turret with 2-pounder gun. Vehicles of later variant designs carried heavier armament. The Mk II version has a heavier turret with a 6-pounder gun, redesigned front hull, and 158 h.p. diesel engine. The weight of the Mk II is 12.0 tons.
A bit of research on Wikipedia reveals that the British Mark I tank entered service in August 1916, becoming the world’s first combat tank. It was developed during World War I to combat the trenches and machine guns that dominated the battlefields of the Western Front. Despite the primitive nature of the first “tank,” a designation chosen to maintain secrecy, it was able to deal successfully with the various tasks found on the battlefields: small-arms fire, fortified enemy positions, challenging terrain, and the need to carry supplies. The Mark I’s first combat usage was on September 15, 1916, during the Battle of Flers-Courcelette, part of the Somme Offensive.
When I first saw this model kit as being available to review for IPMS/USA, I must admit I was ignorant of its importance in the history of tank development and warfare. Developed from the British Vickers 6 Ton tank of the late 1920s, the T-26 series of tanks was one of the most important of the 1930s, and together with the Soviet BT series, provided the backbone of Soviet tank forces in the interwar period. The T-26 was the most numerous tank of the Spanish Civil War, provided a large component of Soviet tank forces during the Finnish/Soviet conflict of 1939-40, and despite falling behind in design compared to improvements in anti tank gun development, was the most numerous tank in the Soviet arsenal when Germany launched Operation Barbarossa in June 1941.
