According to the blurb on the side of the kit box, the Opel Blitzbus Ludewig “Aero” was built during the mid 1930’s. The vehicle was made on the chassis of the Opel Blitz 3-ton truck in the workshop of the Ludewig brothers. The actual vehicle’s swoopy futuristic exterior lines were paired to a luxury interior and was not only used for transportation purposes but as a propaganda tool as well. Not many were produced due to the (even then) high cost of production. This particular kit represents the militarized version used for the transport of high ranking Wehrmacht officers on the Eastern Front during WWII.

The Box

The 6’” by 10” box features the dreaded end flaps, rather than a separate top. The box top features a cool painting of an olive green colored Aero ripping down a muddy road. Painting and marking instructions appear on the bottom of the box.

The Sd.Kfz.260 Kleine Panzerfunkwagen is a four-wheeled light armored car used to transport and protect signal units. It had a four-man crew protected by relatively thin armor and a mesh grenade screen, and was unarmed except for the crew’s personal weapons. Approximately 500 of the 260 and the similar 261 were built and used from 1940 till the end of the war. The really significant difference in the two vehicles was in antenna and radio fit. The 260 used a dipole antenna for medium range communications and the 261 used a frame type antenna for long range radio.

If you’re into small-scale armor like me, then you know that accessories like tarps, boxes and such have been hard to come by. Additionally, you usually had to order from overseas e-shops and pay an arm and a leg for the stuff, the quality of which sometimes was not that great. Well, thanks to our friends at Value Gear, that situation just got a bit better.

Packaging

The “Tarp Rolls & Crates, Set #1”, comes in a clear, zip-lock 3.5” x 5” poly bag which is stapled securely to a printed 3.75” x 7.25” fold-over card backing. The bag contains 37 individual pieces of resin molded tarp rolls and boxes - and individual means that there are no two items alike! There is also a full-color 3” x 4-5/8” tip sheet (or card) on the preparation and finishing of the resin product.

The MiG-21 family of aircraft is known for their air to air capability. The big part of that capability was the development of the Atoll Air to Air missile system.

The Eduard MiG-21s are some of the best kits available in plastic and that transfers over to the armament as well. But as always plastic can only do so much. That is where the resin comes in. The Brassin range of aftermarket is designed directly by Eduard to replace select parts on their kits. Because it is designed by them they will always fit perfectly.

The resin is a dark grey type with simply no blemishes or bubbles anywhere. The pour blocks are very small and are easy enough to remove. There are 28 grey resin pieces with detail that just can’t be replicated in plastic. You get four launch rails, four missiles and 16 maneuvering fins and four warhead covers. If you don’t like the covered warhead you can have the clear nose cone. There are four clear nose cones molded perfectly in clear resin.

Engine

The kit gives you a couple of engine options. One being a Hemi and the other a 340 or 360. Both fit together pretty well once you get past the flash. I used the Hemi in my build.

Chassis

The chassis is a weird setup. Part of the exhaust is molded into the chassis and the back half is molded to the springs & differential. It also looks to be extremely out of scale. Front suspension – there is none.

Interior

The interior tub is a one piece unit with poor engraving.

Body

The kit supplies a 2 piece hood scoop. The front portion of the scoop was difficult to get positioned properly.

Round2 has been supplying some very sought after kits lately. It’s a pity that they’re reissues of old molds that have seen better days. Thank you to Round2Models and IPMS/USA for the opportunity to build and review a marvelous kit.