This truck was designed for use by the Japanese military, using mostly parts for civilian vehicles. Production began in 1936 and continued until the end of the war.
The Orange Box Series kits from Dragon are basically previously released models that have been repackaged. The kit in this review is a combo of Dragon 6069 Schwerer Plattformwagen Typ SSY railcar flat top and Dragon Kit 9018 Pz Bef Wg III Ausf K.
The instructions are a composite of the two separate sets of instructions, so I’ll start with steps 23 and 24: the assembly of the railcar frame and top or deck. Make sure that you have a flat surface to place the 4 pieces of the deck and that surface will not be marred by the possible glue seepage between the 4 pieces. Lay the 4 pieces face down and run a line of glue between the panels. While the glue is still soft, place the frame on the underside of the deck and make sure that everything is square. Glue the frame to the deck and let it dry.
Dragon certainly has produced a lot of Panzer IV kits and this latest one comes with some parts with Zimmerit on them, so you don’t have to apply it. This kit, other than the new Zimmerit parts, is a duplicate of their earlier kit no. 6300 (May 2009) of the Panzer IV Ausf H late production. Dragon also has supplied DS tracks rather than a set of “magic tracks”. We’ll see during the build how this works out. In the Dragon fashion we have at least 23 sprues (two of which come from their Brummbar kit) and as the box top states “over 520 parts”. I did not count the total parts, but just the parts marked "not for use" came to 158. I used about 200 parts on this model, so your spare parts box will have a large addition.
Having no knowledge of this series of MiniArt kits, I was expecting about 5 pieces of resin to clean up, prep, slap together quickly, paint and weather. Wrong! One finds upon opening the box 464 grey plastic pieces on 48 sprues. However, there are only 3 different sprues, each repeated 16 times. Instructions are line illustrations on two double-sided 8x11 sheets, and are pretty straightforward – more on this later. When the dust has settled, you will not only have a brilliant diorama accessory but also a number of extra parts left over which will be extremely useful for the diorama hound.
The wz. 34 armored car was developed as a modification of the wz. 28 half-track armored car with the tracked wheels being replaced with tires. This allowed simpler maintenance and improved the off-road capabilities. Ten squadrons of armored cars (80+ vehicles) were mobilized in September 1939. In these first days of fighting, the cars were used for reconnaissance and support. Polish crews achieved success by using the element of surprise despite German equipment superiority.
Issue No. 52 of AFV Modeller has the usual mix of articles and special features that this magazine is known for. However, the emphasis of most the articles in this issue seems to be on weathering. I know that weathering is in the eye of the beholder and some may not be convinced that a heavily weathered vehicle is appropriate. Nevertheless, the articles provide illustrated instructions on how to get the job done.
The cover article, on the odd German vehicle known as the Minenraumer, uses the 1/35 scale RPM kit. Rather than concentrating on constructing the kit, the focus of Albert Lloret’s article is on weathering this unusual vehicle. In a step-by-step process, Mr. Lloret provides a number of techniques using masking, diluted paint, and weathering powders to produce a well weathered vehicle.
This British “Car, Light Utility” was based on a passenger car chassis. They were produced by several manufactures and used throughout WWII from Dunkirk to North Africa. Nicknamed “Tilly”, they were powered by a 10 hp engine, lacked 4-wheel drive, and poorly suited for off road assignments. They were used in rear areas and on British airbases in a variety of roles.
This new kit from Tamiya is contains one sprue of gray parts and one of clear parts. The clear parts are for the windshield, windows, one headlight, fender lights, and the canvas cover for the cargo compartment. The molding is crisp and clean with excellent detail and no flash. There is a driver figure included, as well as an excellent decal sheet. The instruction sheet includes 8 construction steps with detail painting call outs form Tamiya paints. It also includes a marking and painting guide on the back of the sheet for 3 trucks.
