Hobby Boss has recently re-released the TriStar kit of the Pz. 38(t) under their own label. Fortunately for me, the last time I worked on this particular vehicle it was using the elderly Italeri kit some years ago, so I can approach this model with no previous expectations. Let’s take a closer look at the kit.
The Ampersand Group, Inc. and David Doyle in conjunction with Hobbylink Japan have published another book on U.S. Army Half-tracks in the Military Modeling Series. Part 2 is a continuation of their previous book, Part 1, with Part 2 covering half-tracked multiple gun motor carriages and gun motor carriages.
What you get is an 8-1/2" x 11" glossy hardbound book covering 448 pages with high resolution black and white glossy, detailed historical photos covering the different variants of the half-track based vehicle. The book is divided into 8 chapters with Addendums, Appendix and a Bibliography:
This is the publication's thirty-third issue and as the subtitle says, it is “the photo journal of the Second World War”. This issue deals with five subjects in 96 pages, the paper being glossy and reproducing the images well in black & white. The only color photos are on the covers (front and back). Two of the subjects are outright allies and one German. The final two started out as allies (French) but after 1940 their tanks were used by the Germans. At the beginning of each chapter there will be a short text on the history of that subject and most of the photos will also have a brief text about that photo. The photo sizes varies, but about 65% of them cover the full page and the remainder have anywhere from two to four pictures per page.
This is another great book in Ampersand’s Visual History Series by prolific author David Doyle. The hard cover book is almost entirely photographs, with a brief introduction and text captions on the photos.
The book’s introduction describes the development history of the Sd.Kfz. 251 half-track starting with the Sd. Kfz 11, which would form the basis for the later half-tracks. Production of the Sd.Kfz. 251 started in 1939 as the Ausf. A, followed by the Ausf. B in September 1939, and the Ausf. C in January 1940. A new body style was developed December 1942, designated the Ausf. D, that would become the most numerous of the variants.
Manny variations of the Sd. Kfz 251 were developed as modifications of the basic Sd. Kfz 251 vehicle. These variations are included in the book:
Ampersand’s latest book continues to expand on their Visual History format follows the same look as David Doyle’s “USS California”. Ampersand got their start in 1993 when Pat Stansell distributed a free issue of Military Miniatures in Review at the IPMS Nationals in Atlanta. Ampersand joined forces with HobbyLink Japan in 2008, and have continued to expand their military AFV publications ever since.
The SOMUA S35 was a French Cavalry tank of the Second World War. Built from 1936 until 1940 to equip the armored divisions of the Cavalry, it was for its time a relatively agile medium-weight tank, superior in armor and armament to its French and foreign competitors, such as the contemporary versions of the German Panzerkampfwagen III. It was constructed from well-sloped, mainly cast, armor sections, that however made it expensive to produce and time-consuming to maintain.
During the German invasion of May 1940, the SOMUA S35 proved itself to be a tactically effective type, but this was negated by the French command's strategic mistakes in deploying the Cavalry armored divisions. After the defeat of France in June 1940, limiting production to a number of about 440, captured SOMUA S35s were used by the Axis powers, some of them on the Eastern Front*.
The Italeri kit this release is based on was first issued in 1988, and I not only bought it then but built it up into one of my all-time favorite dioramas. As with a lot of Italeri kits released at the time, there were a few spots of oversimplification, but it was a quick and fun build and certainly looked the part when complete.
Tamiya has done something interesting here, in that they have re-released this almost thirty year old kit along with their equally venerable U.S. Command figure set. Since I have built these figures numerous times over the intervening years, I will forgo the pleasure of repeating myself here.
Ampersand’s website:
Noted military truck historian David Doyle has created an extensive and vivid portrait of these unique trucks. He begins with a detailed description of the truck platforms and designs, giving the reader a basic primer of the trucks prior to modification. This is followed by a lengthy illustrated description of the many weapons systems used, from small arms to the .50-caliber quad. Coverage of the trucks in action follows and is composed of many never before seen photos, many of which are full page in size and in color.
The first section describes military transport vehicles from the 1/4 ton M151, 2 1/2 ton 6 x 6, the 5 ton 6 x 6, and the M37. Each of the vehicle types is described in two or three pages with overall views and detailed photos of the engines. The photos are ‘proving ground’ type shots and in-action photos.
Osprey Publications have given us another excellent book for the military historian or for the model builder wanting a good reference book to include in his library. This publication was written by Bruce Oliver, PhD, a lecturer in International Relations at the University of California Berkeley who has several publications to his name.
The Valentine, Infantry Mk III was a light duty tank built and used by the British in WW II. The book is divided into 8 sections.
The introduction section consisting of 2 paragraphs, gives a short synopsis of the Valentine platform and the countries it was exported to during WWII along with the percentage data of the platform usage.
The Panzerkampfwagen 35(t), commonly shortened to Panzer 35(t) or abbreviated as Pz.Kpfw. 35(t), was a Czechoslovak-designed light tank used mainly by Nazi Germany during World War II. The letter (t) stood for tschechisch (German: "Czech"). In Czechoslovak service, it had the formal designation Lehký tank vzor 35 (Light Tank Model 35), but was commonly referred to as the LT vz. 35 or LT-35. Four hundred and thirty-four were built; of these, the Germans seized two hundred and forty-four when they occupied Bohemia-Moravia in March 1939 and the Slovaks acquired fifty-two when they declared independence from Czechoslovakia at the same time. Others were exported to Bulgaria and Romania.
