Model Military International - Issue 140 (December 2017)

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Issue 140 December 2017 www.modelmilitary.com

BATTLEFIELD PIONEER

Painting IBG Models’ 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S

KURST KAT

Tamiya 1:35 Panther D

WHICH WAY TO THE

FRONT?

elled Anti-Tank op Pr lfSe sh iti Br e al sc 35 1: s a’ iy m Ta

INSIDE: p 01 Cover MMI 140.indd 1

Gun Archer

1:35 Armoured Krupp Protze ■ 1:35 LAV-25 ■ 1:35 AHN Truck with 3.7 cm Flak 36 ■ Airbrush Cleaner Tech Guide ■ and more...

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Contents - Issue 140 December 2017 6

REGULARS p 4 NEWS

What’s new in the world of military modelling

p 56 LARGE SCALE

New accessory, tool and kit releases in 1:25 scale and larger

p 58 INCOMING

New accessories, tools and decals in 1:35 scale

p 60 1:48 SCALE

News and opinion in the world of 1:48 by Luke Pitt

30

p 66 LAST POST

UK Ares Protected Mobility Vehicle

FEATURES p 6 THINK TANK

Valentine Variants by Bruce Culver

p 14 PREVIEW

Bronco 1:35 Armoured Krupp Protze

p 16 WHICH WAY TO THE FRONT? Tamiya’s brand new 1:35 scale Valentine Archer SPG by Brett Green.

p 28 PREVIEW

Tamiya 1:35 AHN Truck

p 30 BATTLEFIELD PIONEER Part Two IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S by Kamil Feliks Sztarbala

p 44 KURSK KAT

Tamuya 1:35 Panther Ausf. D by John Bonanni

52

p 52 TECH GUIDE

Airbrush Cleaners by John Miller

44 ©Doolittle Media Ltd 2017 Tel: (UK) 01525 222573 Fax: (UK) 01525 222574 Email: [email protected] Address: Doolittle Media Ltd., Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane, Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX, UK Model Military International is published monthly by Doolittle Media Ltd. Reproduction in part or whole of any text, photograph or illustration without written permission from the publisher is strictly prohibited. While due care is taken to ensure the contents of Model Military International is accurate, the publishers and printers cannot accept liability for errors or omissions.

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Newsline - December 2017 NEW BRONCO RELEASES

MMI Newsdesk, Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane, Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX, UK Tel:01525 222573 Fax:01525 222574 Email:[email protected]

Bronco has two new releases that should be available by the time you read this.

1:35 Hungarian Medium Tank 41.M Turán II Before the Second Wolrd War, the Hungarian Army’s tank forces consisted of mainly foreign tanks like the little Italian CV-33 tankette. After converting foreign tanks to suit their own needs in 1940 the Hungarians started to develop their own homegrown armoured fighting vehicles. First was the Turán I, built by the Weiss & Cspel Steelworks of Budapest. It was a medium tank with a five-man crew which was based on the hull of the Czech Skoda design similar to the German Panzer 38(t) and powered by 260hp Hungarian made engine. A refitted turret was able to mount a 40mm gun made by the Skoda works. By 1943 The Turán I was deemed under powered & under-gunned, so the further development of the type was required. This new tank was called the Turán II, the designers mounted a new 75 mm (2.95 in) M41 short barreled gun to the tank and to fit it gave the tank an enlarged turret to house the massive breech loading system and a specially armoured recoil piston that was adapted to the gun. The turret interior was still cramped and crowded, but to help this the designers added new vents to extract the large amount of fumes that followed the firing of the gun. The 41M Turán II first

appeared in May 1943, and a total of 139 were made by 1944. The Turán II's combat debut was in April 1944 in Galicia, they were used by the 1st & 2nd Hungarian Armored Divisions as well as the 1st Cavalry Division. First seeing action in 1944, in Galicia, the Turan II was completely outclassed by Russian T-34s and IS-2's they faced. Unfortunately, many of the division's forces were decimated in their actions defending Budapest and those that were not destroyed or captured were often abandoned on the battlefield. Bronco will be releasing a 1:35 scale Turan II tank, Kit No. CB35123. The kit will include a one-piece slide-moulded lower hull and one-piece upper hull and turret shell. A photo-etched fret will supply detail parts as well as the characteristic perforated turret and hull skirt armour. Turret and hull hatches may be posed open or closed. The tracks appear to be clickable single workable links, and the suspension may also be made workable. Markings are supplied for three vehicles.

1:35 A10 Mk.IIA/IIA CS Balkans Campaign The next kit in Bronco’s A10 family will be the Mk.IIA/IIA CS Balkans Campaign. The new kit differs from the recent Bronco A10 release mainly in the areas of new side skirts, the large fuel drum on the front left fender, additional stowage including spare road wheels. The kit may be built as a: 1. Tank Cruiser MK. II (A10 MK. I). Equipped with a QF 2-pounder cannon and two 0.33inch Vickers water-cooled machine guns.

2. Tank Cruiser MK. IIA (A10 MK. IA). Equipped with a QF 2-pounder cannon and two BESA air-cooled machine gun or 3. Tank Cruiser MK. IIA CS (A10 MK. IA CS). The CS (Close Support) version had a 3.7 inches (94 mm) howitzer in the turret assigned for infantry support role. We’ll have more information about these new models in the next issue of MMI. Thanks to Bronco for the information and images.

2018 HUDDERSFIELD MODEL SHOW The 2018 Huddersfield Model Show will be held on Sunday 11th February 2018 at Huddersfield Leisure Centre, Spring Grove Street, Huddersfield, HD1 4BP. Show opening times will be 10:30 am to 4:30 pm. Admission will be £4 for Adults and £2 for Concessions holders. For further information, please contact: Geoff Milnes on: 01132893152 or 07879446554 or Alan Paul on: 07811358355. Email the show on [email protected] or visit the website at huddersfieldscalemodelshow.co.uk

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Think Tank - Valentine Derivatives

This new “Bishop” self-propelled 25 pdr assault gun was seen during service testing in Egypt in 1942. The small Valentine tank turret ring required a high mounting for the 25 pdr gun-howitzer and a similarly tall fixed casement

VALENTINE DERIVATIVES Bruce Culver explores the development and production of various derivatives and experimental vehicles based on the chassis of the Valentine tank.

T

he Valentine tank was one of the more reliable tanks produced in the UK, was built by several manufacturers and was available in some numbers. This made it a good candidate for special purpose versions using the basic tank chassis. There were several variants developed to fulfil specific needs. The Valentine also was available in 1941, when the initial needs for special purpose versions were first formulated. The Valentine was first considered for a self-propelled gun. Despite the use of the Mk I Gun Carrier in the Great War, the rivalry between the Royal Tank Corps and the Royal Artillery had prevented the development of an advanced self-propelled artillery piece. The success of German self-propelled guns on the invasion of France

had driven home the need for such versatile weapons.

BISHOP SELF-PROPELLED 25 PDR In June 1941, the Director of Armoured Fighting Vehicles (DAFV) ordered development of a selfpropelled gun mount based on the Valentine Mk II or Mk III chassis. The weapon selected was the 25 pdr gun-howitzer, suitable for both the direct and indirect fire roles and providing a quick answer to the need for such a weapon system. Birmingham Railway Carriage and Wagon Company (BRCWC) constructed the pilot model in two months, and it was tested at the Royal Artillery (RA) test centre at Shoeburyness in August 1941. In keeping with the practice of naming self-propelled artillery after church clergy, the new vehicle was christened the Bishop.

The Valentine was not a large tank, and as a result, the Bishop’s 25 pdr gun-howitzer had to be mounted on top of the forward edge of the turret ring. This limited the elevation and traverse of the weapon compared to the towed artillery mount, but this was accepted as necessary to obtain a suitable mobile mounting for the 25 pdr. To protect the crew, a fixed casement was built on top of the hull fighting compartment. The casement was fairly large and had two large doors at the rear for access and reloading ammunition. It made the vehicle more visible than the basic Valentine, but was accepted as necessary. The 25 pdr could be traversed only 4 degrees in each direction and elevated only 15 degrees, a disadvantage. Space inside for the three-man crew was also at a

premium, and ammunition on board was limited to 32 rounds. Many Bishops towed an ammunition limber behind to augment the limited on-board supply. A common version of the limber was the No. 27 ammunition trailer used to serve towed 25 pdr guns. An order for 100 Bishops was placed by the Tank Board in September 1941, but an evaluation by the Ministry of Supply that the Valentine was too small and too light led to a reduction to 60 examples ordered. It was proposed that these be used in the Middle East and evaluated for their suitability for desert warfare. In the event, the increased use of the 25 pdr for both direct and indirect fire in North Africa revealed the advantages of self-propelled mounts in providing better massed guns for indirect fire,

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and eventually 150 Bishops were completed from March to May 1942, all by BRCWC. Their first major engagement was at Alamein in October 1942.Even with the high silhouette and cramped interiors, the Bishops performed well enough to validate the self-propelled gun concept. The Bishop served first in North Africa through the end of that campaign, then in Sicily and the early Italian campaign. Replaced by the US M7 105mm armed Priest, Bishops in service were declared obsolete and scrapped by the end of the war, and none survived.

VALENTINE BRIDGE LAYER The No. 1 scissors bridge was developed in 1940 to be carried and deployed by the Cruiser Mk II, then the new Cruiser Mk V (Covenanter). In 1942, it was redesigned for the Valentine. It was tested on a Valentine Mk I hull, but production models were based on the Mk II or III. The No. 1 bridge was 34 feet (10.4m) long and could span a gap of 30 feet (9.1m). In transit, it was folded in half and extended when deployed. The Valentine bridge-layer used a combination of cables and a screw jackshaft to extend and unfold the scissors bridge, which was rated at a capacity of 30 long tons (30 tonnes). The deploying system was driven by a power take-off from the fan drive and connections to the screwjack transmission. Deploying or recovery of the bridge took 2.5 minutes. It appears that A

The small turret ring of the Valentine tank necessitated mounting the 25 pdr gun-howitzer in a raised mount that limited both traverse and elevation. The rear doors could be closed for protection, but were almost always left open for ventilation and less crowding inside.

Following their service in North Africa, Bishops were deployed to Sicily in July 1943 as part of the invasion of Italy. This example was painted in an unusual scheme of sand over the original green, hastily sprayed in an abstract pattern.

Although the Bishop had restricted traverse and elevation compared to the towed 25 pdr, its fire power was very useful to the Canadian 1st Infantry Division on Sicily. This Bishop had just fired when this shot was taken, raising a cloud of dust.

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Ferries were often used to deliver vehicles to ports in theatres of operation. This load of Bishop 25 pdr assault guns was delivered to an Egyptian port in North Africa in 1942. These Bishops were later used in the Battle of El Alamein in October.

In Sicily, the major unit to use the Bishop was the Canadian 142nd (Royal Devon Yeomanry) Field Regiment (SP), Royal Artillery, of the Canadian 1st Infantry Division. Like most vehicles seen there, this example is piled with extra equipment and kit.

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Think Tank - Valentine Derivatives

Though mobile, many Bishops fired from prepared positions in support of infantry objectives. The crews could keep a steady supply of ammunition available for reloading, as the ammunition stowage on the Bishop was limited.

This battery of Bishops in Tunisia in 1943 was deployed to allow concentrated fire while separating the vehicles to make it more difficult to hit them. Most of these are sited on the reverse slope of uneven ground to increase the maximum elevation of the 25 pdr guns.

The Bishop’s internal ammunition supply was only 32 rounds and many of these SP guns towed an ammunition limber for reloading in forward firing positions. The limber most commonly used was the No.27 ammunition trailer seen here.

B the system of a jackscrew and cables was chosen because the demonstration model for the system was built using parts from the Meccano toy building system. This so impressed the War Office that they ordered the production examples to be made the same way, though a hydraulic operating system might have been a more efficient choice. 239 Valentine bridge-layers were built from January 1943 to August 1944, along with 30 spare No. 1 scissors bridges. The vehicle had a mixed service history. The first shipment to North Africa in January 1943 landed without their bridges, which had been sent to the wrong port. The first complete Valentine bridge-layer arrived in March 1943. A number were sent to the Soviet Union in 1943, and they were used in Italy, where each armoured brigade had six bridge-layers on strength. Some were sent to India, where they were used in the Burma campaign.

They also served in NW Europe until VE Day, largely because there were not enough Churchill bridge-layers, which were preferred. The Valentine bridgelayer in comparison was weaker and slower, but supplemented the limited supply of the Churchill model. The Valentine bridge-layer was still listed as war reserve in 1949.

VALENTINE DUPLEX-DRIVE One of the major problems in planning for amphibious landings on hostile shores was the need for rapid support from tanks and other protected vehicles to support the landing infantry. Where the contours of enemy beaches allowed, and landing craft could approach the beaches, tanks could be fitted with deep water wading gear, allowing them to pass through limited deep water (4-6 feet, 1.5-2m) before making the beach. Wading gear became a common preparation

The Valentine had been a relatively small tank, but this view of the Bishop and crew showed the bulk of the casement for the 25 pdr gunhowitzer. At the end of the campaign in Sicily, most Bishops were taken out of service and scrapped.

for amphibious landings, involving sealing all openings as much as possible and providing extended trunks for engine air intakes and exhausts. But there were beaches where tank landing craft could not approach because of heavy enemy artillery that had to be neutralized by the invading infantry, which would need tank support to succeed in tasking and holding the beachhead against enemy counterattacks. For these situations, another solution was needed. The man who developed that solution was named Nicholas Straussler, who designed a new approach called the Duplex-Drive (DD) tank flotation and propulsion system. It changed the way tanks could be used in amphibious landings. The two major features of the DD tank design were the use of a flotation screen that could be raised to allow the vehicle to float in water and dropped when fighting on dry land, and a dual propulsion

system allowing for normal use of tracks for driving on land, and using a propeller to move in the water. Straussler worked on both aspects of the system. Straussler’s invention carried forward the idea of a temporary hull to allow a tank to float to shore and then discard to function as a tank on land. While in the past pontoons had been used in experiments, they were very bulky due to the need for displacing a lot of water to float a heavy vehicle like a tank, and this would reduce the number of amphibious tanks that could be carried in a landing craft. Straussler replaced the fixed pontoon with a canvas screen that could be raised to float the tank and lowered when the tank had reached the shore, allowing it to operate as a normal fighting vehicle. The flotation screen was fastened securely to a frame that replaced the tank’s mudguards and sealed by screws and a sponge

A

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The Valentine Bridgelayer was developed in 1941 to carry and erect the 34 ft (10.4m) No. 1 scissors bridge. It operated by a system of cables to erect and unfold the bridge to cross a gap of up to 30 ft (9.1m).

This Valentine Bridgelayer was in a museum display, being examined by cadets, and showed a close-up view of the forward launch mechanism. Valentine Bridgelayers were used in North Africa (few), Italy, NW Europe, and Burma.

At the beginning of the launch cycle, the Valentine raised the scissors bridge with cables and pulleys, and as the bridge swung up it unfolded to span the gap ahead. It was hinged on the bottom side only, using the structure of the bridge to support the loads.

Valentine Bridgelayers served in Italy and NW Europe, the latter because there were not enough Churchill Bridgelayers to meet the demand. The Valentine was not as useful, being slower and not as powerful as the Churchill, and spares were in short supply.

When erected, the Valentine’s scissors bridge could span a 30 ft (9.1m) gap. Bridging equipment was critical for crossing streams and destroyed bridges during the advances in Italy and NW Europe.

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Think Tank - Valentine Derivatives

Nicolas Straussler developed the system of converting tanks to a duplex-drive (DD) system for operating in water as amphibious tanks. Modifications to this Valentine Mk II allowed it to float (with the hull below water level).

The screen was raised as seen here before entering the water, and a system of steel support rods and pneumatic inflated tubes served to keep the screen erect and able to keep out water. This proved to be a useful and reliable system.

Straussler also developed the power train needed for amphibious tanks. This installation on a Valentine was driven from a power take-off from the transmission to the propeller, which could be steered for directional control and raised to prevent damage on land.

B rubber insert to keep out water. The rubberized canvas screen itself was reinforced by steel hoops around the top edge and middle, and erected by 33 pneumatic tubes. Four additional vertical steel supports kept the screen stable in the raised position. Fully deployed, the screen displaced 600 cubic feet (18m³) of water, and the Valentine floated with the hull entirely below the waterline. The Duplex-Drive system was actually named for the double means of propulsion rather than the floatation system. Here, Nicholas Straussler designed a power train that operated the tracks on land and a propeller in the water. The propeller was 24 inches (710mm) in diameter with a 16 inch (405mm) pitch, and was driven by a power takeoff from the rear of the tank’s transmission. The propeller was mounted on a universal joint in a spherical housing and steering was controlled by hydraulics. The propeller could also be raised to operate on land and prevent damage to the blades. In water, the

Valentine DD tank could travel at 4.5 mph (7.2 kph). Total production of Valentine DD tanks was 639, all built by Metropolitan-Cammell. The initial order from the General Staff in 1942 had been 450, but delays in supplying the superior Sherman DD tanks led to increased numbers of Valentine DDs being ordered. Valentine DDs used the Mk V, IX and XI tanks as the basis for DD production. Straussler’s conversion of the Valentine to the DD configuration was quite successful, but the Valentine was no longer a viable tank on the battlefield, and the Valentine DDs built were largely used for training, being successful in teaching crews how to operate a DD tank in the water. There was consideration of using the Valentine DDs for the Normandy landings due to the delays in the Sherman DDs, but in May 1944, the decision was made to use the Shermans, and the Valentines did not go to the continent on D-Day. Valentine IX DDs served in Italy, and others served in the Burma

When afloat, the Valentine DD was mostly below the water level as seen here. The hatches were usually left open for faster egress in case of problems. Note the inflated support tubes holding up the screen.

theatre, but they were not used in an operational landing. By the end of the campaign in Europe, Valentine DDs had been replaced by the Sherman models.

ARCHER SELF-PROPELLED GUN The SP 17 Pounder Mounting (Archer) was an offshoot of the Valentine tank family, though substantially different. It derived from a 1942 General Staff requirement for a self-propelled mount for the excellent 17 pdr antitank gun, which was seen as being too heavy for crews to handle quickly and easily in the field. Other projects to mount the 17 pdr were begun, but the use of the Valentine chassis was proposed to produce a suitable vehicle more quickly. Although considered a stop-gap design, it served in numbers and remained in service even after the end of the war. The pilot model appeared in September 1943, followed by a production pilot, but full production was delayed until May 1944 to complete a contract for Valentine tanks for Russia. Total production

of the SP 17 Pounder Mounting in 1944 was 349 examples and 665 were completed by September 1945, when production ended. The lower hull and power train were not altered that much, but externally the new vehicle, named the Archer, was radically different from the Valentine tank. The 17 pdr was a large and heavy weapon. Mounting it facing forward would have produced an extremely long and unwieldy vehicle, so the Archer was designed with the gun pointing to the rear over the engine section. This design greatly reduced the overall length, and the weight of the gun and mount was placed over the hull’s centre. Traverse was limited to 22.5 degrees to each side, which was criticized by the AFV Liaison Board, but in fact, an Archer with 45 degrees of traverse could cover a front half a mile (0.8km) wide at a distance of 1000 yards (900m). As it was intended as a defensive anti-tank weapon, the Archer’s limited traverse did not prove to be a serious disadvantage. The major change was the

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Valentine DD tanks in the UK were used for training, as seen here in 1944. In this role, they were successful, but all British units that went to France in June 1944 used Sherman DD tanks, as they were more useful after landing in Normandy.

new upper hull and open fighting compartment. The engine deck was redesigned to accommodate the new gun layout. The open-top fighting compartment was fairly large and the crew had sufficient room to work on the gun. The driver sat in the centre of the forward hull and had two roofmounted periscopes and a front vision flap to see out of the vehicle.

As he was seated directly behind the 17 pdr breech, the driver had to evacuate his seat when the gun was fired. The open-top upper hull was a disadvantage in built-up areas, and an armoured roof kit was developed but not available before the end of the war. The Archer was issued to antitank battalions of priority infantry divisions in Italy and NW Europe,

and also issued to selected assault infantry divisions in NW Europe, replacing the M10 Gun Motor Carriage in those units. The crews liked the Archer’s low silhouette, reliability, and good cross-country performance. The weight and rear balance of the gun gave better cross-country traction than the basic Valentine tank. The Archer had to be backed into firing

position, but that meant a faster withdrawal, as the driver simply drove straight away from the position. The crews didn’t like the open top or the exhaust smoke when changing positions. Overall, the Archer was an effective weapon, and remained in service for a number of years after the war and was also sold to several other countries.

EXPERIMENTAL PROGRAMMES

Valentines DDs and other amphibious tanks could also be disembarked from landing craft as for non-amphibious tanks, and it was not uncommon to see DDs some distance inland still carrying their full amphibious gear.

Valentine DDs as seen here were readied for launching before the tank carrying ship reached the coast, and then were driven off the forwards ramp into the water. They could be used only in calmer sea conditions, to avoid being swamped by waves.

Due to its availability and relative reliability, the Valentine Tank was chosen for a number of experimental programs, although in most cases the superior Churchill or Sherman tanks eventually succeeded the Valentine for production and combat service. One of the earlier programs was to develop a tank-mounted flamethrower system suitable for use in combat. Established in 1940, the Petroleum Warfare Department (PWD) was tasked to design a long-range flamethrower for the Churchill infantry tank and a shorter-range design for the Valentine, this taking place in 1941. PWD ordered the installation of an AEC Heavy Pump Unit on a Valentine Mk I tank. It was comprised of the pump unit and a projector mounted on the offside (RH side) forward mudguard. Fuel for the flamethrower was carried A

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Think Tank - Valentine Derivatives B in a two-wheel trailer towed behind the tank. The PWD-AEC design used a partially armoured trailer. Meanwhile, the Ministry of Supply’s Chief Superintendent’s Research Department (CSRD) had come up with their own design, also tested on a Valentine Mk I. The CSRD version also had the projector on the offside mudguard, and used a fully armoured fuel trailer. The two systems, however, were vastly different in operation. The PWD design used pressurized hydrogen gas to project the fuel through the system but the CSRD system used pressure from burning cordite propellant, which was weaker and not as consistent. Neither system was deployed, as the superior “Crocodile” flamethrower was adopted and used with great success by the Churchill infantry tank.

SCORPION MINE FLAIL The last variant of the Valentine tank was the Scorpion mine flail. Clearing mines from the battlefield was a critical need and the Valentine was used to develop and prove a system of mine clearing. An early experiment in the

The Valentine Archer was developed to carry the excellent 17 pdr (76mm) anti-tank gun on a mobile carriage. The pilot vehicle appeared in September 1943 and production began in May 1944. The 17 pdr faced over the engine deck, reducing the Archer’s length.

Western Desert involved a mineclearing roller system using heavy concrete rollers. When the rollers were pushed over the test mines, the resulting explosions blew the rollers to pieces with heavy concrete fragments scattered over a dangerously large area. The Matilda Mk II infantry tank had been used for mine-clearing using a flail system, and one was designed for the Valentine. This was referred to as the Scorpion Mk III. 120 kits to convert

The Archer had an open-top superstructure, but its interior was larger than the comparable M10 Gun Motor Carriage. The 17 pdr could be traversed a total of 45 degrees, which made the lack of a rotating turret less of a problem.

This Archer was in the 102nd Anti-tank Regiment of the 125tth Scottish Division, and was in Celle, Lower Saxony, Germany, April 1945. Celle surrendered without a major battle, sparing the medieval city from complete destruction.

Valentine gun tanks to Scorpions were ordered. During testing of a prototype, the flail failed to detonate the mines reliably. In one test, the flail did not detonate the first mine encountered, but did explode the second mine. The first mine, now under the tank, exploded in sympathetic detonation and killed the three-man crew. As a result, the hull bottom was reinforced with two .5 inch (13mm) plates spaced 2 inches (50mm) from the original bottom plate.

These were considered proof only against anti-infantry mines, not the much more powerful German Teller anti-tank mines. A large six-sided box structure replaced the turret and supported the booms for the mine flail installation. Two Ford 82HP engines drove the flail rotor and a support structure held up the booms and flail rotor and chains. The Ford engines and controls were hydraulically operated and were controlled internally. Much of

This Valentine Archer was seen defending a road near Nutterden, Germany in February 1945. The 17 pdr was one of the best anti-tank guns in the Allied armies, and the Archer’s low silhouette made it more difficult to spot.

This Archer was photographed in Krankheim, Germany in 1945. In cities and towns, the Archer, like all open vehicles, was at a tactical disadvantage and vulnerable. A roof kit was developed, but appeared too late to be used before Germany surrendered.

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This Archer attached to a Canadian infantry unit showed a later modification, the installation of the .30 Browning LMG to protect the vehicle form the front. The driver sat up front, but had to vacate his position while the gun was being fired.

the loose external equipment and lights were removed, as they were likely to be damaged by detonating mines. The operating crew of two (commander and flail operator) stood in the box superstructure. The flail booms could be adjusted to the correct operating height. The driver was to drive the Scorpion at a steady speed of 1 to 1.5 mph (1.6-2.4 kph) to clear the mines at the correct speed. An open steel box at the rear of the hull was weighted to balance the vehicle, using spare lengths of chain that could also be used to repair or replace the flail roller chains when needed. There were several problems discovered with the Scorpion during trials. Since the booms and flail mechanism were fixed to the tank’s hull, uneven ground often raised the flail chains high enough that they could not clear the mines. On later Crab flail tanks, the flail installation was freefloating and balanced to eliminate this problem. In addition, the Ford engines driving the flail rotor often overheated. And there were still occurrences when the flails did not detonate all the mines. This was never fully addressed.

This Canadian Archer was seen near the Savio river in Italy, 1944. Because the driver was in front and the gun faced to the rear, the Archer was backed into its firing positions, which allowed a rapid exit when desired.

This Valentine Mk I was modified by the Petroleum Warfare Department (PWD) by installing a heavy pump unit designed by AEC to convert the tank into a flamethrower. The fuel trailer at the rear was only partially armored.

The Scorpion Mk III mineclearing tank was used by the 79th Armoured Division from late 1943 into 1944. It was used for training mine-clearing crews who would eventually go on to use the Sherman Crab mine-clearing flail tank. The deficiencies and poorer performance of the Scorpion limited it to training duties and it was prohibited from active use in combat situations.

An alternate to the PWD flamethrower tank design was this entry from the CSRD in the Ministry of Supply. Pressure for this system was by slow-burning cordite propellant, which proved to be uneven and inferior to the PWD system of pressurized hydrogen.

The Valentine infantry tank served as a useful combat tank in the early to mid-war period. While never as heavily armoured as other infantry tanks or as fast as the cruiser tanks it often replaced, it was a reliable and easy to maintain vehicle that was popular with its crews. Superseded during the war by more advanced designs, it nonetheless was an important part of British armoured forces

from 1942-43, and was the mostproduced British tank of the war. There are a number of preserved examples on various marks and variants in museums, and a few in the hands of collectors, often in running condition. For those who are fond of this sturdy little tank, seeing one in action is truly Valentine’s Day. ■

As the usefulness of the Valentine as a combat tank decreased, additional uses were found for the chassis, such as this prototype of the “Scorpion” mine flail. A number were used in training for the D-Day landings, but none saw active combat service. December 2017 - Model Military International 13

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KIT PREVIEW

Bronco 1:35 scale Armoured Krupp Protze Kfz.69 with 3.7cm Pak 36 • Kit No. CB35132

Bronco’s brand new 1:35 scale Armoured Krupp Protze has just landed on the Editor’s desk. Let’s take a close look at the first in Bronco’s Krupp Protze family.

The large front armour plate simply sits over the top of the body.

Running gear is well detailed.

IMPROVISED TANK HUNTER

T

he Kfz.69 Krupp-Protze was a six-wheeled 6x4 German truck and artillery tractor produced between 1934 and 1941 and heavily used in World War II. It was powered by a 55 hp or, from 1936, 60 hp Krupp M 304 4-cylinder petrol engine. Its main purpose was to tow artillery, especially the PaK 36, and transport motorized infantry. This vehicle was extensively used on the Eastern Front, during the North African campaign and in France and Sicily. The KruppProtze was of relatively advanced design. Its fuel consumption was relatively high (24 Litres / 100 km on road) in comparison to the comparable Opel Blitz 1.5 t truck (16.5 liters / 100 km, produced 1938 - 1942). Total production was about 7,000 units.Sometimes anti-tank (37 mm Pak 36) and anti-air (2 cm Flak) guns were mounted directly on the truck bed.* Bronco has released the first of their Krupp Protze family with this unusual, but operational, variant sporting angled armour and a bedmounted 3.7cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun. I have found a number photos of this modification in service, so be assured that this is in fact a real vehicle.The clean lines of the modification transform the clunky design of the Krupp

Protze into something more like a sports car, but the weight of the armour severely impacted on the performance of the overweight vehicle. Bronco’s 1:35 scale Armoured Krupp Protze Kfz.69 with 3.7cm Pak 36 comprises 368 parts in grey plastic, a photo-etched fret, eight vinyl tyres and decals for one vehicle. A fully detailed boxer engine is included, as is a complete chassis and associated elements such as the battery, transmission, fuel tank and exhaust. The cab interior is nicely detailed too. The four rear suspension units are highly detailed and quite complex, each being made up from multiple plastic and photoetched parts. The front wheels may be posed straight ahead or turned to the left or right. The tyres are vinyl and the wheel hubs are separate plastic parts. The vlnyl tyres are nicely detailed but if you don’t like this medium, there are a number of after-market resin Krupp Protze tyres available from Royal Models and Hussar (and maybe others). The 3.7cm gun is a little gem. If you take some care with the glue, it may be allowed to traverse after assembly. The distinctive armour plate is supplied in just three main

parts that are mounted over the standard nose of the vehicle. Markings for a single vehicle attached to 2nd Company, 44th Tank Destroyer Battalion, 1st Mountain Division “Edelweiss” in the Ukraine in 1941 are supplied on the decal sheet. Markings are in register and colours look good. This is a highly detailed kit of a rare but real tank destroyer conversion.Bronco has already announced the forthcoming release of an early-version standard Krupp Protze, so I expect that we’ll see the whole family in due course. Tamiya’s venerable 1:35 scale Krupp Protze is still available. It’s not a bad kit by any means but as you would expect, Bronco’s new offering hits the 1978-vintage Tamiya kit out of the ballpark in terms of detail. The high parts count and potentially fiddly suspension assembly mean that this one is best suited to experienced modellers, but your efforts will be rewarded with a very interesting piece of tank destroyer history in scale. ■

A full boxer engine is included.

There are many small parts.

The gun, shield and mount are well done.

Thanks to Bronco for the sample http://www.cn-bronco. com/en/index.php

Photo-etched parts are included. I’m not so crazy about the soft vinyl tyres. The kit’s modest decal sheet.

Any colour you want as log as it’s Panzer Grey!

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* Historical information courtesy of Wikipedia.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun Archer • Kit No. 35356

WHICH WAY TO Brett Green builds a test shot of Tamiya’s brand new 1:35 scale Archer self-propelled anti-tank gun.

T

he Self Propelled 17pdr, Valentine, Mk I, Archer was a British self propelled anti-tank gun of the Second World War based on the Valentine infantry tank chassis fitted with an Ordnance QF 17 pounder gun. Designed and manufactured by Vickers-Armstrong, 655 were produced between March 1943 and May 1945. It was used in North-West Europe and Italy during the war and post-war the Archer served with the Egyptian Army. The vehicle was unique for its gun being mounted facing the rear of the chassis instead of the front. It looks perfectly sensible when viewed from behind, but I just can’t get my head around the idea that the gun is actually facing the rear!

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TO THE FRONT?

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun Archer • Kit No. 35356

In the Box Tamiya’s 1:35 scale British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun is a new kit that follows close in the footsteps of their Valentine Mk.II/IV, released earlier this year. You might expect many parts in common between Tamiya’s Valentine and Archer kits as the real SPG was based on the chassis of the gun tank, but in fact only Sprue A – the tracks and some of the running gear parts is common to both kits. Tamiya’s new Archer test shot comprises 391 parts in pale grey plastic, a substantial increase from the 283 parts of the Valentine. Most of the higher parts count is due to the gun and fighting compartment interior detail. The kit also includes five clear parts, ten polythene caps and markings for two vehicles. I would guess that the production kit’s plastic parts will be dark green. The kit is broken down quite conventionally. The lower hull is made up from separate sides, front, rear and bottom, while the upper hull is a single piece with the superstructure built up from sides and a rear part. The running gear is nicely detailed but simple to assemble with a modest number of parts. The road wheels represent the later style. These are new for this kit. Tracks are link-and-length, with subtly sagged upper runs and straight lower runs. Individual links are designed to be glued direct to the drive sprockets and idler wheels. The fighting compartment and 17pdr gun are bristling with detail. All the key structural elements of the interior are provided, including a nicely fitted out driver’s position with levers, seat and instrument panel, plus plenty of stowage and stowed ammo. All of this detail is offered with a typically modest parts count thanks to Tamiya’s clever engineering. The big gun looks great and will be able to traverse and elevate due to the use of polythene caps. Surface texture is everything we have come to expect from a new Tamiya release. Grilles and louvres are cleverly depicted on the upper hull, and raised details look great too. Clear parts are included for the light lenses. A vision block is also on the sprue. Three crew figures are supplied. Two are in the fighting compartment loading and firing the gun, while the Commander will be perched on the front fender directing the action. The action poses are natural and sculpting is very good. Moulding quality is marvellous. There are ejector circles but they are mainly in places that will not be visible on the finished model. Decals are included for two vehicles in overall dark green – but more on that later!

Tamiya’s box art.

Markings are supplied for two vehicles.

The one-piece upper hull.

The superstructure is made up from separate sides, front and back parts.

Lower hull sides.

The hull is made up from a flat pack of parts.

Three well-sculpted figures in action poses are included.

The new late-style road wheels.

Stowage and shells are included.

Some of the link-and-length track parts.

The clear sprue.

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Construction The model was built straight from the box with no complications whatsoever. I loved the link and length tracks on this model. The subtle drape of the upper run matches wartime photos, and the inclusion of a locating pin for the centre of the long top run is another evolutionary improvement. I did not fit the gun nor the gun shield until all painting and weathering was complete. I also left some of the fighting compartment details including the shell stowage and various packs until the rest of the model was finished. These details were painted separately and fitted immediately before I fixed the gun in place.

The driver’s compartment starts to take shape.

The drier’s instrument panel. I didn’t worry too much about detailing this as it is hidden deep within the front of the interior.

Construction commences in the driver’s compartment.

Detail is nice even though there is a minimum of parts.

Driver’s levers are included too.

I like the levers and controls.

The lower hull comes next.

Sub-assemblies await glue.

The lower hull assembled.

Plenty of shell stowage is included. Individual shells will be added later.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun Archer • Kit No. 35356

Mounts for the drive sprockets, idler wheels and return rollers.

Main components of one of the suspension units.

Drive sprocket components. The polythene cap permits the sprocket to rotate – quite handy when fixing the track links and lengths in place.

There are two sizes of road wheel.

These have been glued in place on the lower hull.

A plastic clamp was used to hold the parts in pace as the glue dried.

There are two styles of suspension unit, so don’t get them mixed up!

Drive sprocket components. The polythene cap permits the sprocket to rotate – quite handy when fixing the track links and lengths in place.

Inside surfaces of one of the road wheels.

Assembled road wheels and idler wheel.

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The lower hull looking busy with the wheels now in place.

Here are all the links and lengths required for one side of tracks.

Fitting the tracks starts with the long top run. This is positioned precisely thanks to a locating pin on top of the centre return roller.

…then they were wrapped around the idler wheel.

The process continued with a short length and an individual link attaching to the long bottom run.

Next, I glued together eleven individual links. These were set aside for a few minutes for the Tamiya Extra Thin Liquid Cement to partially set…

The same technique was applied to the drive sprocket side, simply following the kit instructions.

The result was a perfect fit and subtle drape across the top run.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun Archer • Kit No. 35356

The engine decal vents are built up in layers.

Here is the base set of louvres.

A second set of louvres plus the centre mount are now fitted over the top.

The one-piece upper hull may now be glued to the lower hull.

The vent is very effective.

Gun mount parts awaiting assembly.

The gun base is fitted via a ball mount that allows the finished assembly to traverse.

The gun mount clicks to the curved lip on the upper hull.

Gun mount and gunner’s seat sub-assemblies.

The mount traverses with no problem.

This is quite an involved assembly.

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Detail parts for the fighting compartment.

Looking quite busy now!

Some details have been left off the sidewalls for the time being, as they will be painted separately and added later.

The exhaust assembled.

External stowage boxes.

Exhaust, Pyrene extinguisher and hatch handle parts.

Superstructure in place. External fittings have been glued in place. Note that the driver’s visor has been posed open.

The plastic smoke dischargers are nicely done.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun Archer • Kit No. 35356

The core 17 Pdr breech.

Gun breech parts.

Guards and scope in place.

The breech block is a separate part that may be posed open or closed.

The model ready for paint.

The gun and mantlet have not been glued in place here – they are temoraility dry-fitted.

Painting and Weathering The finish of this vehicle is quite ambiguous. I don't know if it is camouflage, stains, watermarks or a combination of all of these. Tamiya’s instructions suggest that the vehicle is overall green, but there is definitely much more going on here. Tomasz Mankowski of ToRo Model noted that 7th Antitank Regiment, 2 Polish Corps used Archers in Italy from the end of 1944 until 1946. All known photos of this vehicle are taken after the war, after 8th August 1945. This is visible on the tactical signs. He describes these vehicles as having two-tone camouflage (Black over OD/SCC 9) with the typical British white barrel bottom. Tomasz believes that the darker areas are probably dust stains or the remnants of bitumen sealant. Regardless of what it might be, I have simply tried to make the model look like the reference photos.

The entire model first received a coat of Tamiya Grey Primer straight from the spray can.

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The gun barrel received a coat of Tamiya’s White Primer, and then the wavy lower demarcation was masked off.

My base colour is SCC 15 British Olive Drab. British armour camouflage expert Mike Starmer’s latest suggestion for mixing this colour using Tamiya acrylics is as follows: 5 parts XF-81 Dark Green 2 RAF + 1 part XF-58 Olive Green + 1 part XF-71 Cockpit Green (IJN) I didn’t have any XF-71 cockpit green so I substituted it with a lighter colour, XF-21 Sky, which delivered a paler / faded version of the base colour. The main model, gun and mantlet remained as separate sub-assemblies for painting. I was pleased with the colour once the paint dried. I painted the areas that looked like disruptive camouflage in Vallejo Panzer Aces 337 Highlight Ger. (Black) using a fine paintbrush. The darker areas – sealant or stains – were brush painted using a mix of Vallejo Panzer Aces 333 German Tank Crew and Model Color 70950 Black. The gun barrel received a coat of Tamiya’s White Primer, and then the wavy lower demarcation was masked off and sprayed with my SCC 15 British Olive Drab mix. The rear of the barrel was brush painted in Vallejo Panzer Aces 337 Highlight Ger. (Black). Next, the tracks, the tyres, exhaust, tow cables and tools were painted “scale black” – a 50-50 mix of Tamiya XF-1 Flat Black and XF-64 Red Brown applied by brush. After a coat of Future floor polish, kit decals were applied. Panel lines and structural features were shaded with a mix of Future floor polish, water and a black/brown blend of Tamita XF-1 Flat Black and XF-64 Red Brown. The model was then hit with a flat coat, and a light overspray of Tamiya XF-57 Buff to represent the filter of dust seen in the reference photos. Chipping was applied with a fine brush, and scratches were added using a brown Prismacolor pencil. The exhaust and surrounding areas were treated to several shades of rust pigment. The pigments were mixed with Mineral Turpentine to fix them to the plastic part. Tracks and road wheels received a coat of Maru Technics Easy Mud No.21105, European Earth, which was quickly wiped off the raised surfaces of the track pads. I mixed up a wash of Winsor & Newton Raw Umber oil paint and lighter fluid, and applied it selectively to the lower hull sides and wheels. This represented stains and oil leaks. I also brushed this mix onto some of the darker areas on the hull sides, suggesting fresh wet areas. MIG Productions’ Oil and Grease Stain Mixture was used sparingly to represent wet stains on a couple of road wheel hubs and on the running gear. Shiny areas of wear on the track pads were achieved with a 2B pencil. The shells were sprayed with Tamiya’s TS-21 Gold straight from the spray can. With all the painting and weathering complete, the interior detail parts, gun and mantlet were fixed in place.

The base colour is SCC 15 British Olive Drab. I painted the areas that looked like disruptive camouflage in Vallejo Panzer Aces 337 Highlight Ger. (Black) using a fine paintbrush.

The darker areas – sealant or stains – were brush painted using a mix of Vallejo Panzer Aces 333 German Tank Crew and Model Color 70950 Black.

The model received a light overspray of Tamiya XF-57 Buff to represent the filter of dust seen in the reference photos.

Tracks and road wheels received a coat of Maru Technics Easy Mud No.21105, European Earth, which was quickly wiped off the raised surfaces of the track pads.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun Archer • Kit No. 35356

Conclusion

Tamiya has delivered another accurate and easy to build replica of an interesting subject. Keep ‘em coming! ■

Modelspec Tamiya 1:35 British Self-Propelled Anti-Tank Gun Archer Kit No. 35356 Modelling Products Used: Tamiya Extra Thin Liquid Cement Revell Contacta Cement Tamiya Surfacer

The shells were sprayed with Tamiya’s TS-21 Gold straight from the spray can.

Paints and Finishing Products: Tamiya Spray Paint – Grey Primer; White Primer; TS-21 Gold. Tamiya Acrylics: XF-1 Flat Black, XF-2 Flat White, XF-49 Khaki; XF-55 Deck Tan, XF-59 Desert Yellow, XF-60 Dark Yellow, XF-64 Red Brown; XF-71 Interior Green; XF-81 Dark Green 2 (RAF). Vallejo Acrylics: Panzer Aces 333 German Tank Crew; Panzer Aces 337 Highlight Ger. (Black); Model Color 70950 Black Maru Technics Easy Mud No.21105, European Earth Alclad II Klear Kote Flat Future Floor Polish ✓ High level of detail; nice surface textures; easy to build; link and length tracks. ✗ Nothing much worth mentioning. Available from Thanks to Tamiya Japan for the sample www.tamiya.com Tamiya kits are distributed in the UK by The Hobby Company Limited www.hobbyco.net

Rating

A wash of Winsor & Newton Raw Umber oil paint and lighter fluid was mixed and applied selectively to the lower hull sides and wheels. This represented stains and oil leaks.

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This is another fast build and pleasing subject from Tamiya.

MIG Productions’ Oil and Grease Stain Mixture was used sparingly to represent wet stains on a couple of road wheel hubs and on the running gear.

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KIT PREVIEW

Tamiya 1:35 German 3.5 ton Truck AHN w/3.7cm Flak 37 AA Gun • Kit No. 32410

Cab doors are separate and may be posed open.

The rear cargo deck.

IN ENEMY HANDS Tamiya teams their veteran 3.7cm Flak 37 gun with ICM’s 3.5 ton AHN Truck.

T

he Renault AHx was a range of light/medium trucks with carrying capacities from 2 to 5 tonnes manufactured by Renault between 1941 and 1947. Various versions were used in World War II by the German forces. Prototypes of the first AHx truck, the AHS2, were unveiled by 1939. It was aimed at replacing the similar AGC truck, which had a maximum payload of 1.5 tonnes. The truck was designed to be used by the French military on the 2.5tonne carrying capacity group, but it was rejected. The Wehrmacht in turn ordered the production of the model, reclassifying it as a 2-tonne payload model and naming it Lastkraftwagen 2 to. The AHN (4-tonne payload) was the successor of the AGR and was produced for the Wehrmacht with the designation Lastkraftwagen 3.5 to. The heaviest AHx model, the AHR, was produced with a 5-tonne payload and, as the two other versions, was used by the Germans. The Wehrmacht was supplied with about 23,000 AHS, 4,000 AHN, and between 1,000 and 2,000 AHR. After the war, evolutions of the AHS2 and AHN (AHS3/AHS4 and AHN2/AHN3) with 2 and 3.5 tonnes of payload respectively, were produced mainly for the civilian market. In 1947, these trucks were replaced by the Renault Galion. The AHx cabin was also the basis for a 7-tonne payload truck, the Renault 208 E1. The AHS has a 2.38-litre inlinefour petrol engine (delivering 52 metric horsepower (38 kW)) while the AHN and AHR use a

4.05-litre inline-six petrol unit, the latter with a power output of 75 brake horsepower (56 kW). The three models had a 4-speed manual gearbox. Both the Renault AHS and the AHN have gasifierequipped versions using engines similar to the petrol versions. The AHS version (AHSH) has a power output of 35 metric horsepower (26 kW) at 2,800 rpm while the AHN version (AHNH) has a power output of 52 metric horsepower (38 kW) at 2,800 rpm. The AHx range has a cab forward layout, a design introduced by Renault in 1934 and gradually extended to all its truck line-up. The AHN has a height of 2.6 metres, a length of 6.4 metres and a width of 2.4 metres.* Tamiya’s latest mix-and-match re-boxing is their 1:35 scale “1:35 German 3.5 ton Truck AHN w/3.7cm Flak 37 AA Gun”. The AHN truck was originally produced and released by ICM in 2014. The truck comprises 164 cleanly moulded in a dark tan coloured plastic parts, nine parts in clear plastic and eight vinyl tyres, although I confess that when I opened the box it looked like the parts count might be much higher. The truck features full engine and chassis detail and a cab that includes separate doors that may be posed open or closed. The suspension is well done but the tyres are soft vinyl with prominent raised centreline seams that may be tricky to eliminate. Subject matter experts have also stated the wheels/tyres are too small in diameter. Next in the package is Tamiya’s own venerable 3.7cm FLAK 37 gun. This kit was first released

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in 1989. It is simple, but that means it will be fast and easy to build and detail is still quite respectable. The Flak 37 is made up from 89 parts in a pale khakicoloured plastic. Tamiya includes four seated figures from a couple of sets, all dated 1999. Two of the figures are destined for the cab, and two are chatting in the back. Also supplied are two grey sprues of jerry cans, drums and accessories. Markings are supplied for four vehicles – two Wehrmacht and two Luftwaffe. This should be an interesting “diorama-in-a-box” project. Although the gun and the figures date from the late 1980s to late 1990s, they stand up reasonably well today, while ICM’s 3.5 ton AHN truck is very nice – I just hope someone releases a set of resin replacement wheels and tyres! ■

Thanks to Tamiya Japan for the sample www.tamiya.com Tamiya kits are distributed in the UK by The Hobby Company Limited www.hobbyco.net

Full engine detail is included.

Nice wheel detail…

…but not so sure about those vinyl tyres.

Clear parts are supplied for the windows and lights.

Tamiya’s venerable 3.7 cm FLAK 37 gun is part of the package.

The kit decal sheet.

* Historical text and technical details adapted from Wikipedia

Tamiya jerry cans, fuel drums and figures are supplied too.

06/10/2017 15:01

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FEATURE ARTICLE

IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S • Kit No. 35029

BATTLEFIELD P

PART TWO – PAINTING, WEATHERING, F

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D PIONEER

G, FIGURE, TOOLS AND BASE

Kamil Feliks Sztarbala finishes IBG Models’ new 1:35 scale Scammell Pioneer recovery vehicle.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S • Kit No. 35029

Paintwork I intended to finish my Scammell kit as one of vehicles used by the 16th Workshop Company of the Polish 1st Armoured Division during the autumn of 1943. The unit was then based in UK. I chose to depict a few distinctive modifications for this particular vehicle during the assembly process. Aside from these few details that were not mentioned in the assembly guide, the painting scheme and decals supplied with the kit seemed to be quite correct.

To unify the various materials used for the model construction, I applied a layer of AK-Interactive AK767 ‘Black Primer & Microfiller’ over all surfaces.

Next, the kit was additionally primed with Tamiya XF-62 ‘Olive drab’.

At this stage, I decided to focus on the cab interior. Heavily diluted Tamiya XF-55 ‘Deck Tan’ was used to highlight the chosen surfaces and details within this section. I also sprayed some random meandering streaks over the cab walls and floor.

Tamiya XF-49 ‘Khaki’ was selected for the basecoat. I airbrushed heavily diluted paint over the entire kit in such way that the dark undercoat still showed through it in various nooks and crannies, and around the chosen details.

The final effect was achieved by applying a filter with very heavily diluted Khaki base color. As very good coverage is one of the main features of Tamiya paints, in this case I basically had to airbrush some thinner mixed with a tiny amount of paint.

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Afterwards, I took the brushes and proceeded with detail painting. The seat upholsteries were finished using various colors from the Lifecolor CS28 ‘Hemp & ropes’ set.

Other details were painted with a number of Vallejo acrylics from their Model Color…

…and Metal Color ranges.

When I was working on this kit, no aftermarket upgrades were available, and IBG did not provide the instrument panel decals. Now you may address this problem using the very nice instrument panel from Yahu Models or a more comprehensive detail set released by Eduard. However, I had to resort to using some spare aircraft decals. Once I’d found the appropriate instrument faces, I punched them from the sheets using my RP Toolz ‘Punch and Die Tool Set’. The interior was sealed with a layer of matt varnish. This allowed me to bring out the details. For this purpose, I used ABT005 ‘Smoke’ oil and ABT113 ‘Fast Dry Thinner’ from Abteilung 502.

The products were mixed in different ratios and distributed over the surfaces that had been previously dampened with ABT113 ‘Fast Dry Thinner’.

Some fine paint chips and scratches were painted with Vallejo 70.977 ‘Desert Yellow’…

…whilst more intense damage was added using AK-Interactive AK711 ‘Chipping color’. In the case of wooden floor, I painted some streaks along the wood grain.

The deepest scratches down to bare metal were painted with a mixture of 70.861 ‘Glossy Black’ and 70.939 ‘Smoke’ from Vallejo…

…whilst the most exposed edges and details were rubbed with an 8B pencil.

I then dirtied the floor a little, using Tamiya Weathering Stick ‘Mud’. The compound was applied with an old paint brush.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S • Kit No. 35029

Now I could continue the process of exterior painting. My first step was to add the highlights. For the areas that were to remain in green camo, I used Mr.Hobby H44 ‘Flesh’.

Before I attached the roof, I had removed the masks from the inner sides of the windows and covered the apertures over the doors with pieces of paper, preventing the accidental overspraying of the cab interior during the further stages.

I then airbrushed the basic shape of the black disruptive pattern free hand.

The effect was toned down with a filter of heavily diluted Tamiya XF-49 ‘Khaki’.

The latter were finished using a Vallejo acrylic colour and brush. The hard demarcation between the camouflage patches was emphasized with a brush, as in the real vehicle.

As my airbrush cup was filled with Tamiya XF-1 ‘Flat Black’, I took this opportunity to apply a basecoat to the tyres.

To add some variety to the plain black areas, I sprayed some meandering streaks of Mr. Color C125 ‘Cowling Color’ over them.

More intense highlights were added with Mr. Color C72 ‘Intermediate Blue’.

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Once I’d applied the decals, I could deal with detail painting.

The metallic parts, such as the cables or engine, were brush painted with Vallejo acrylics from the Metal Color range.

The rust effect was added to the exhaust manifold using various acrylic colours from the Lifecolor CS10 ‘Dust and Rust’ set.

I then accentuated the engine details with a mixture of two Vallejo Game Inks, namely the 72.091 ‘Sepia’ and 72.094 ‘Black’.

The excess enamel was distributed over the surface with a brush. I also added tiny quantities of AK-Interactive AK2019 ‘Aircraft Engine Oil’ here and there.

Afterwards, I airbrushed the entire engine compartment with a misted application of AK-Interactive AK082 ‘Engine Grime’, that had been diluted with white spirit.

To apply a wash over the areas painted in Khaki colour, I again used ABT005 ‘Smoke’ oil and ABT113 ‘Fast Dry Thinner’ from Abteilung 502. I put a small amount of oil into a metal palette and swamped this with the thinner, which allowed me to easily mix both ingredients in different ratios, depending on whether I needed a mixture that would be more or less rich in colour. I applied and distributed the oil mixtures over the surfaces that had been previously dampened with ABT113 ‘Fast Dry Thinner’.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S • Kit No. 35029

Next, I added some subtle damage to the paint layer, using a very fine paint brush and pieces of sponge.

The surface detail in the black areas was emphasized with AK-Interactive AK067 ‘Streaking Grime for DAK vehicles’.

Deeper scratches and paint chips were created in the same way as in the case of the cab interior. I subequently added some metallic sheen with an 8B pencil.

At that stage, I could attach most of the parts that had been left separately until then, such as the counterweights, recovery tools and motorcycle, which will be further described hereafter. This allowed me to begin the weathering process. I started by airbrushing a misted application of AK-Interactive AK074 ‘Rainmarks for NATO Tanks’ over the lower and side surfaces.

Before the enamel had fully dried, I removed the excess with a brush that had been slightly dampened with white spirit, moving it in a vertical motion.

The first step of the wheel weathering process was to mist them with AK-Interactive AK074 ‘Rainmarks for NATO Tanks’. Using a wet brush, I distributed the enamel in such a way that most of it was accumulated in various corners.

Afterwards, I treated the outer surfaces of these with the same products from the ‘Splashes’ range that had been used for weathering the lower sides of the vehicle. I applied them mainly into the recesses of the tread.

More dirt was added using fluids from the AMMO by Mig ‘Splashes’ range. I speckled the lower areas of the vehicle with A.MIG-1753 ‘Turned Dirt’, A.MIG-1754 ‘Damp Earth’ and A.MIG-1750 ‘Dry Earth’. Where necessary, the products were distributed with brushes or cotton buds that had been dampened with white spirit.

Finally, I slightly moistened a cotton bud with Tamiya XF-1 ‘Flat Black’ and rolled it along the tyre tread.

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Triumph While looking for something that would spice up the vehicle’s appearance, I thought about hanging a motorcycle from the crane. I browsed my stash and selected the Triumph 3HW kit from Bronco Models.

The Bronco Triumph motorcycle is a really nice and refined replica of the real thing, and even includes the photo-etched spokes, which are to be bend to shape using a special jig press supplied with the kit.

The brake drum and second spoke half was attached in the same manner.

The shaped spoke halves were temporarily installed within the tyre halves. For this purpose, I slightly softened the plastic with ‘Plastic Magic’ adhesive from Deluxe Materials.

I then applied a few drops of ‘Roket Plastik Glue’ from Deluxe Materials into the locating holes of the tyre halves…

…held the tyre rim with clamps, and sealed the junction with some ‘Plastic Magic’ glue. Even though I joined plastic with metal, in this case reinforcing the junction with cyano was not necessary.

The cavities on the back of various small tanks and boxes had to be filled with Magic Sculp two-part epoxy putty.

The assembly was generally straightforward and I did not encounter any serious problems with the instructions. Before I attached the most fragile parts, I detailed the kit with lengths of lead wire of various thickness.

The mudguards and pannier racks were added at later stage. The latter were soldered from a number of photo-etched parts provided with the kit.

The kit was ready to have some paint applied. As usual, I left some subassemblies separate for this process.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S • Kit No. 35029

My first step was prime the entire kit, minus the wheels, with a layer of Tamiya XF-51 ‘Khaki Drab’.

The most exposed surfaces and details were highlighted with heavily diluted Mr.Color C39 ‘Dark Yellow’. Afterwards, I applied a rather transparent basecoat of Tamiya XF-49 ‘Khaki’, allowing the dark undercoat to show through it in various corners.

Once I’d primed the wheels in black, I airbrushed the spokes with AK-Interactive AK481 ‘Polished Aluminium’.

The details were brush painted with various acrylic colours from AK-Interactive, AMMO by Mig, Lifecolor and Vallejo.

I accentuated them with ABT015 ‘Shadow Brown’ oil that had been mixed with white spirit in different ratios.

A small amount of mud and dirt was added using the products from the AMMO by Mig ‘Splashes’ range. In the case of wheels, I applied the liquids with cotton buds, rolling them over the surface.

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The lower areas of the motorcycle were speckled with the very same products, using an old brush with stiff bristles.

I subsequently installed the wheels and strengthened the joint surfaces with extra thin glue.

…which was finely soaked with ‘Roket Hot’ thin cyano from Deluxe Materials in order to harden it.

The finished motorcycle could be hung on a length of thin twine…

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FEATURE ARTICLE

IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S • Kit No. 35029

Figures I didn’t plan to place the kit on anything more elaborate than a small base, but even a simple vignette needs some components that will bring it to life. I therefore unearthed an old figure of a British soldier from SKP Models, which finally would find use after more than 10 years since its purchase. To ‘Polonize’ the soldier, I also needed a small photoetched fret and decals from ToRo Model.

The photo-etched Polish eagle replaced the British cap badge on the beret.

Once I’d cleaned up the figure from flash and other minor moulding defects, I sprayed it with a priming coat of AK-Interactive AK758 ‘Grey Primer and Microfiller’.

Next, I painted the face using three acrylic colours from the Lifecolor CS13 The beret was finished with three paints from the AK-Interactive AK3001 ‘Flesh Paint’ set, which were mixed with each other on a wet palette. ‘Panzer Crew Black Uniforms’ set…

The painted head was sealed with a layer of satin varnish and subsequently secured with Wamod’s masking fluid.

This allowed me to paint the uniform with an airbrush. I first applied a layer of AK-Interactive AK3081 ‘Uniform Base’, which was mixed with AMMO’s acrylic thinner and a tiny amount of AK737 ‘Drying Retarder’.

The shadows and more prominent highlights were added with a brush, using heavily thinned acrylics.

…whilst for the metal eagle badge, I used Vallejo acrylics from the Vallejo 72.212 ‘Non Metallic Metal’ set.

Even more diluted AK3082 ‘Uniform Light’ was sprayed onto the figure from above.

With all details painted in their appropriate colours, I could seal the figure with a layer of matte varnish.

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The second ‘character’ was sourced from the Riich Models ‘Lifestock vol.1’ set. This plastic sheep does not stun with details, but by using some putty (or, in this case, dense super glue) and milling bits attached to a rotary tool, one can make it usable.

The sheep was then base coated with Mr.Color C69 ‘Offwhite’. The shadows and discoloration were added with Mr.Color C321 ‘Light Brown’…

…and further enhanced by applying a wash using AK-Interactive’s AK074 ‘Rain Marks for NATO Tanks’ and AK067 ‘Streaking Grime for DAK Vehicles’ enamels.

I finished the paintwork with three acrylic colours from the AK-Interactive AK3160 ‘Winter and White Colors’ set.

Tools

The only 1:35 scale towing tools set available on the market did not meet my expectations. This encouraged me to produce my own set of tools for recovery vehicles, which were subsequently cast in resin, and released under the KFS-miniatures label.

Most of the tool castings from my own copy of the set were attached to hypodermic needles, allowing for easier handling during the painting stage. I first applied a priming coat of AK-Interactive AK757 ‘Black Primer and Microfiller’.

Next, I airbrushed the chosen parts with a mixture of Hataka’s lacquer thinner and ‘Polishing powder Iron-type’ from Uschi van der Rosten, which works similar to a metalizer.

The surfaces had to polished. In this case, I used a plastic brush.

To add some damage to the paint layer on selected tools and the counterweights, I applied tiny quantities of masking fluid to their edges and other areas that would be prone to damage. For this purpose, I used pieces of sponge.

Afterwards, I airbrushed these parts with various green and khaki tones from Mr.Hobby…

…and removed the masking fluid immediately.

The details were emphasized with AK-Interactive AK045 ‘Dark Brown Wash’.

Now I could place the tools on the vehicle.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

IBG Models 1:35 Scammell Pioneer SV2S • Kit No. 35029

The Base

As usual, I started by building a box structure from balsa wood, which was filled with styrodur foam. This allowed me to determine the exact positions of the particular components of the scene. The next step was to prepare the fence posts. I took a few lengths of styrene rod and added the wood

grain texture to them, using coarse sandpaper. Thanks to the rough surface, it was easy to ‘paint’ the posts by rubbing them with various oil colours from the Abteilung 502 range. The ground was formed from fastsetting wall tile adhesive. ■

I poured some tiny pebbles, sand and ‘Fine Autumn Forest Scatter’ blend from Reality in Scale over the surface while it was still sticky and wet. I also added some miniature vegetation from Polak Model and Freon, Faller’s static grass and various mosses from the Accion Press ‘Landscape in Detail’ range.

Once the groundwork had fully dried, I could apply the final colour to the road by airbrushing random streaks of AK-Interactive AK4062 ‘Light Dust Deposit’ here and there.

Afterwards, I glued lengths of thin metal wire to the fence posts…

…and attached the figures and vehicle to the base, using two-part epoxy adhesive.

After a few retouches the vignette was finished.

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Mini Modelspec • IBG Models 1:35 scale Scammell Pioneer SV2S – Kit No. 35029 • KFS miniatures 1:35 scale WWII Era Recovery Tools for Allied Vehicles – Kit No. 35-005 • SKP Models 1:35 scale The British Soldier WW II – Kit No. 010 • Riich Models 1:35 scale Livestock Set Vol.1 – Kit No. 35007

The hanging Triumph motorcycle really lends character to the vehicle.

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KURSK FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 Panther D • Kit No. 35345

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K KAT

John Bonanni builds Tamiya’s gorgeous 1:35 scale Panther Ausf. D as an Operation Citadel warrior rom the first time I

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laid eyes on a Panther it became one of my favourite tanks. Its sleek design with long 75mm main gun made it a formidable opponent on the battlefield. Rusting in a field at the Aberdeen Proving Grounds sat two Panthers. As I kid I climbed all over these hulks and not much had changed 15 years later when I returned with a camera. Over the years I would use these photos along with many others to support my builds, but out of all of the models I’ve built to date one notable vehicle was missing. I had never built an Ausf. D. I had heard great things about Tamiya’s newest Panther, which by good fortune was an Ausf. D so I decided to give it go.

TEETHING PROBLEMS The Panther tank made its combat during Operation Citadel in the summer of 1943. To no surprise to the combat units the Panther experienced considerable teething problems during initial operation in the spring of 1943. Extensive testing and design refinement was overlooked in an effort to have the vehicle ready for the big offensive. A majority of the problems surrounded the final drive and transmission assemblies with some fuel line issues. These issues were captured, along with others, and remedial work to already produced Panther Ds was conducted. Production vehicles also received design changes to fix issues. A

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 Panther D • Kit No. 35345

The parts in grey were primed before assembly to highlight gaps and seams. These parts are easier to manage separately as opposed to on the model.

After a fast assembly the model is ready for a primer coat.

B SHAKE N’ BAKE Construction began on the lower hull by attaching the torsion bar arms and rear plate. Next, the rear hull details were added, which included drilling out the exhaust pipes for a more realistic scale thickness. The rear stowage boxes are crisply molded and do not require replacement latches. After making quick haste of the lower hull I turned my attention to the sponsons and intake vent panels. Despite the limited visibility I still choose to detail paint the intake vent panels. They were first primed in black followed by Vallejo 70982 Calvary Brown and AMMO 033 Rubber & Tires. Once dry I tried Vallejo 71042 Dark Brown acrylic wash to enhance the shadows. It was my, first experience using acrylic washes and based on the results I will try them again and refine my technique. The Vallejo washes dry a lot faster than an enamel wash which can keep a builds momentum

going. To finish off the panels I added rust speckles and a fine dust wash. Unfortunately, once installed no details can scene, but I know they’re there! Detailing the upper hull began with Tamiya’s photo etched screen set, a must for German tanks. Bolts were added as well using a Waldron punch and die set. The small brass vent screen was an Aber item from the spares box. Before adding the tools I drilled out the mounting clasps, which is a cheap alternate to aftermarket accessories. Next, all of the kit tools and details were attached

with Tamiya Extra Thin liquid cement. Initially I mounted the kit provided track hanging mounts but later decided to replace them with Aber brackets and chains. I think it was a good decision and proved to be an easy addition. The only real problem in the kit was discovered when I mated the upper and lower hulls. At the rear of the sponsons, a 2cm wide gap is present, a feature not on the real vehicle. A stripe of Evergreen styrene strip proved to be an easy solution. I covered the top of the seam with Mr. Perfect Putty and after wiping the excess putty

away with my finger, dampened with water, the hull was ready for primer. The turret, along with the hull, is nicely textured to represent rolled steel. The mantlet also accurately captures the two large castings plug marks characteristic of the Panther D. I drilled out the s-mine dischargers to a more scale thickness. The only area that needs correction on the turret is the large seam on the cupola, which is not present on the real vehicle. Tamiya Putty quickly remedied the situation and the vehicle was complete.

A simple way to add detail and interest was to drill out the tool clamps.

The kit provided nylon braided cable draped perfectly over the models details.

The small seam line where the plate meets the turret Tamiya’s aftermarket screens were easy to install sidewalls was one of the few areas that needed and only needed bolts to finish them off. attention during turret assembly.

The front hull plate really shows off the superb moulded-on surface texture.

Surprisingly, a large gap is present when the upper and lower hulls meet.

A strip of styrene and Mr. Perfect Putty made for a quick fix.

Before priming, the model was dusted off with a large soft bristled brush.

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The easiest way to paint the wheels and unattached details were to tape them to an old cardboard box. Black served as the primer colour and ensured that all crevices were covered and laid the foundation for shading.

Four acrylic paint mediums allowed the radiator assemblies to be finished in one night.

BLANK CANVAS

The kit provided assemblies are beautifully moulded, but unfortunately will be barely visible once installed.

Tamiya Dark Yellow with some Deck Tan provided the first base coat layer prior to highlighting. A mix of 50/50 of the previous combination brought the model’s colour more to the appropriate scale tone.

After dusting the model off with a soft bristled brush it was ready for priming. I choose a generic black aerosol lacquer paint for priming. I prefer using an aerosol can because it is much faster and requires less preparation than using a primer applied with an airbrush. Secondly, the lacquer based paint will bite into the models surface and create an excellent foundation for successive paint coats. After allowing the paint to dry for a full 24 hours it was time to begin base coating. The first top layer of paint was uniform coat of Dunkelgelb, one part Tamiya XF-55 Deck Tan and two parts XF-60 Dark Yellow. It is very important at this stage to cover the entire model and not to let the black show through, similar to pre-shading. As my techniques have evolved I have moved away from pre-shading and allow the weathering stages to create tonal difference. When I finished the base coat I wasn't happy with the overall shade. I thought it was too dark and I decided to airbrush a 50/50 mix of the previous paint combination to lighten the models overall appearance. At this stage it was time to apply the first pattern of the camouflage scheme. Using the model’s painting guide and XF-58 Olive Green, I copied the pattern freehand with an Iwata HP-C. The Olive Green was thinned 50/50 with X-20A thinner and a few drops X-22 Clear to help the flow. My compressor was set to 18psi (1.25 bar) and I held the airbrush about an inch away from the models surface. The same process was repeated for the brown areas with XF-68 NATO Brown.

To protect the paint work the model received an overall coat of X-22 Clear.

DECAL DILEMMA From the onset of this project I knew I wanted to depict a vehicle used at the Battle of Kursk. Fortunately, Tamiya provides a range of vehicles from that conflict. I have always been hesitant to use Tamiya decals. I have found them to be a little on the thick side when compared to other brands. No matter, I decided to use the kit-supplied decals. Using Micro Sol and Set the decals laid perfectly onto the vehicles surface. Following a coat of X-22 Clear I realised there was a problem. The edges of the decal film for the large turret numbers was easily noticeable. At this point I knew I should have trimmed the excess film off to only have the numbers. I began searching the Internet and asking friends for advice on how to remedy the situation. I decided to add a few more layers of clear coat to build up around the decal edges. After letting the clear coat dry for several days I used 1200 grit sandpaper to slowly blend the edges. This process was repeated once more to ensure there was no trace of the decal edges.

LESS IS MORE Feeling relieved that the decal issue was resolved, I began my favourite part of scale modelling weathering. The products for weathering can range from acrylic, enamel and oil paints. No single medium is the best and each has their pros and cons. A

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 Panther D • Kit No. 35345

The first camouflage layer to be applied was the green patches followed by brown.

The model’s camouflage sheet was closely followed to replicate the vehicle’s dramatic three-tone scheme.

B I prefer to use a combination

of enamels and oils, both have the benefit of longer drying time. I added general brown filter with Winsor & Newton Vandyke Brown, which was thinned with Humbrol thinner. Next, a dark brown enamel pin wash accentuated the shadows and fine details. To further blend and fade the camouflage colours I used a variety of oil colours to apply a dot filter. After applying dots of oil paints to the models surface I began blending on vertical surfaces using a streaking motion, while horizontal

After multiple layers of clear coat and light sanding, the sight of the decal’s edges were removed from the finish.

surfaces were stumped. There’s really no way to make a mistake during this process. Oil paints are incredibly forgiving and almost any colour can be used. I prefer to stick to the primary colours of the tank and earth tones. Chipping is always a hard technique to pull off. In 1:35 scale, paints chips should be nearly invisible from three feet away. For nearly all the chipping on this model, I used a craft sponge that can be found at any art supply store. I began by cutting the sponge into small wedges, which A

A uniform brown filter further homogenized the camouflage pattern.

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The pin wash was applied with a fine tip brush in order to control the dark brown around details and crevices.

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Tools, tracks, and cables were painted on the vehicle using Vallejo acrylics. Black was again used to prime the tracks followed by a light mist of XF-64 Red Brown before dust and dirt was added.

The base layer of dust on the tracks was a mix of Tamiya Buff and tap water. I almost wanted to stop there because they looked so good!

After letting the pin wash dry for 10 minutes the excess wash was removed with a damp brush leaving a crisp finish.

Subtle streaks were created using the oil dot filter technique while blending with a streaking motion for the vertical surfaces.

502 Abtielung Bitume was applied was applied with a fine brush along the pronounced turret and hull plate joints for deeper shadows.

An artist’s sponge has become my preferred method for recreating chipped paint. The ease of control and ability to chip a model in a short period are its main benefits.

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FEATURE ARTICLE

Tamiya 1:35 Panther D • Kit No. 35345

The bright red oxide chips draw interest to the models details and form the first layer of chipping.

B were then picked up using a pair

of self-locking tweezers. I dabbed the sponge into 70982 Calvary Brown and began removing a bulk of the paint before moving to the models surface. All of the edges and areas where the crew would frequent were treated with the chipping colour. I choose Calvary Brown because it is a very close match to the ubiquitous German red primer. Only a few select areas were chipped in a darker brown to replicate oxidized steel.

SLINGING MUD Most photographs of Panther Ds from the Battle of Kursk show a relatively clean appearance so I wanted to stay conservative during this weathering stage. I began by mixing AK Interactives AK080 Kursk Earth with plaster and Humbrol thinner to create a mud slurry. Next I loaded an old brush with the mix and used an airbrush to blast it onto the lower hull. This stuff flies everywhere so masking off the upper hull and putting up a backdrop to protect the bench is a must. Once the base layer of mud was applied I turned to speckling to add darker colors and texture variation. The speckling layers were applied to the road wheels as well. Lastly, AK016 Fresh Mud was brushed on for streaks and concentrated damp areas. The tracks were first painted in a dark brown and grey mix, which looked very similar to the plastic they were molded in! Next, a wash of XF-57 Buff thinned with tap water created a fine dust layer. A slurry similar to that used on the hull was added to the tracks. After letting the enamel paint fully cure overnight an old brush removed the excess mud from the surfaces that would come in contact with the road wheels. Lastly, gun metal pigment and a graphite pencil created the polished metal look.

The darker coloured jack hints that it may be from another vehicle.

THERE’S ONLY ONE Tamiya’s rendition of the venerable Panther D is a real treat. Its easy assembly and small part count enable it to be built just in a few nights. Detail sets are recommended with Tamiya’s photo etch deck screen set being a must and their single link track set a valuable addition as well. As mentioned before the only area of concern is the opening at the rear where the sponsons join the rear paint. As for highlights, there are many that include perfect fit, armour texture, detailed tools, and engine cooling system. To close, this kit is no surprise from Tamiya and will certainly bring joy to any modeller who builds it. ■

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Masking is a must when applying mud to the suspension. The stuff flies everywhere!

Multiple layers of light mud speckling completed the wheel weathering. I wanted to have some of the base coat to show through.

Life Color rust pigments ensured the spare tracks would not turnout monochromatic.

The side skirt panels received heavier weathering to show the beating they take in the field.

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On its feet! Tamiya’s click together tracks were easily installed.

AK’s Engine Oil is a quick and easy way to replicate fuel and oil spills.

Modelspec Tamiya 1:35 Panther D

Kit No. 35345

Accessories Used: Tamiya Panther Ausf. D Track Set Tamiya Panther Ausf. D Photoetched Grille Set Aber Panther Ausf. D Photoetch Set Tools and Materials Used: Tamiya Extra Thin Liquid Cement Waldren Subminiature Punch and Die Set Microscale Industries – Micro Sol, Micro Set Iwata HP-C Airbrush Paints and Finishing Products:

Tamiya’s new Panther Ausf. D will certainly bring joy to any modeller who builds it.

AK Interactive Acrylic Colors – Dark Rust, Medium Rust AK Interactive Enamels – Wash for Dark Yellow Vehicles, Engine Oil, Kursk Earth, Fresh Mud AK Interactive Pigments – European Earth AK Interactive Oil Paint – Rust Windsor Newton Oil Paints – Titanium White, Sap Green, Yellow Ochre, Vandyke Brown, Mars Black Tamiya Acrylics – Buff, Deck Tan, Dark Yellow, Olive Green, Clear, NATO Brown Tamiya X-20A Thinner Mr. Color – Leveling Thinner Vallejo Acrylics – Flat Black, Dark Brown LifeColor Acrylics – Burned Rust, Corroded Rust, Streaking Rust Humbrol Enamel Thinner ✓ Perfect fit, surface texture. ✗ Sponson gap, vinyl tracks. Available from Tamiya kits are distributed in the UK by The Hobby Company Limited www.hobbyco.net

Rating

Tamiya’s rendition of the venerable Panther D is a real treat.

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Tech Guide

- Airbrush Cleaners and Suggestions on Getting the Gunk Out

There is no shortage of different cleaners available!

AIRBRUSH CLEANERS AND SUGGESTIONS ON

GETTING THE GUNK OUT John Miller compares the effectiveness of various thinners on different types of paints.

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his little project tried to answer a simple question: How well do airbrush cleaner’s remove dried paint? Most people with a little airbrushing experience will tell you that wet paint is easier to remove from an airbrush than is dry paint. In fact, particles of dried paint clinging to the needle, nozzle and innards of our airbrushes cause multiple issues including loss of spray pattern, clogging, spitting, and even sneezing. Folks, it’s just not very pretty. Many of us use commercially available airbrush cleaners to remove paint from our brushes following a normal painting session. And to be clear, most of the airbrush cleaners tested in this study will do an acceptable job removing paint that is wet or just partially dried. In contrast, the removal of paint that has dried completely to the metal surfaces of our airbrushes is the focus of this study. Dried paint may be removed by a cleaning solution in two ways: 1) the cleaner can dislodge and/or fragment dried paint producing visible particles, or 2) the cleaner can dissolve or solubilize dried paint thereby putting it back into solution. From the standpoint of cleaning our airbrushes, a cleaner that dissolves or solubilizes dried paint is preferred. In order to test how efficiently common airbrush cleaners solubilize dried paint, the crew down in the secret underground paint research laboratory came up with something a little different.

THE AIRBRUSH CLEANER TEST To assess the ability of common airbrush cleaners to dissolve dried paint from multiple manufacturers, ~1 drop of each type of paint was used to coat the well of an aluminum paint palette. The acrylic paints used were dark colors from the Mission Models, Vallejo, LifeColor, Tamiya, and Model Master ranges. Gunze Mr. Color (a lacquer) was included for amusement. After a 2-hour drying time, the painted wells were covered with ~0.5ml of a commercially available cleaning solution and allowed to sit for 20 minutes. After this time the palette was gently rocked to determine if any of the painted wells showed signs of paint solubilization (dissolving). Wells exhibiting complete solubilization are denoted with an “S+” in Table 1 below. Wells that didn’t exhibit complete solubilization were aggressively scrubbed with a micro brush to determine if the paint was still adherent. Some paints would dissolve immediately with just a small amount of scrubbing and these are denoted with an “S-“ in Table 1 below. In contrast to degrees of solubilization, some painted wells exhibited a fragmentation of the paint layer with little-to-no evidence of the paint actually dissolving. These wells are denoted by an “F” in Table 1. Wells that showed no effects to the cleaners being tested are denoted with an “I” in Table 1 for insoluble. The special category “G” for goo was used to

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describe the evil mess that cheap lacquer thinner turns some dried acrylics into: truly nasty. If you’re wondering, whether I questioned my sanity for a moment: bent over, stirring little wells of dissolving paint with a microbrush, my camera at the ready, the answer is yes. Good thing the shop door was locked. To give you an idea of what this little test looked like, photographs of the Life Color Airbrush Cleaner test palette are provided. The palette layout is as follows: Effects of Airbrush Cleaners on Dried Acrylic Paint Layers Paint Cleaner Manufacturer Tam Mission Vallejo MM LC Gunze Grex S+ SF F SI Vallejo S+ F F I SI LifeColor S+ SF SSS+ Tamiya SSSS+ F S+ Windex S+ S+ I I I I Lacquer S+ G G S+ G F Key: S+ Solubilized S- Solubilized with brushing F Fragmented I Insoluble G Goo

Abbreviations: MM Model Master LC LifeColor Tam Tamiya Cleaner Win Windex

Upper row, from left to right-Tamiya, Mission Models, Vallejo. Lower row, from left to right-Gunze, Model Master, Life Color. This photograph shows both the Tamiya and Gunze paint layers solubilized by Life Color cleaner.

RESULTS A quick glance at Table 1 shows that the Grex cleaner (#GXCL-04) is good for cleaning dried Tamiya, Mission Models, and LifeColor. Windex, a product that many modelers use when cleaning their brushes proved efficient at dissolving Tamiya and Mission Models but not much else. A surprising result was the rather anemic performance turned in by Vallejo Airbrush Cleaner (#71.119). I was sufficiently surprised at the first round of results to purchase a new bottle of Vallejo Airbrush Cleaner for a repeat test: results were the same. Vallejo cleaner failed to solubilize but caused both Vallejo and LifeColor paints to fragment when brushed. A very small degree of solubilization was evident but nothing compared to the other cleaners. I suspect a longer soak time with the Vallejo cleaner would result in more solubilization than is evident in 20 minutes? A pleasant surprise is LifeColor Airbrush Cleaner. This cleaner shows a pronounced ability to solubilize most of the acrylic paints tested plus Gunze Mr. Color, a lacquer. I’ll be replenishing my stock of LifeColor Airbrush Cleaner very soon. Tied with LifeColor is the Tamiya Lacquer-based Airbrush Cleaner (#87089). I’ve been using this stuff for years as the final rinse step in my airbrush cleaning routine. No matter what type of paint I’m cleaning out of my brush (Vallejo, LifeColor, Gunze), the last solution I spray through it is Tamiya Airbrush Cleaner. I find that the lever actions of my brushes don’t bind even after many months in storage if they’re rinsed out with this cleaner before being put to bed: really good stuff. When you can find it, I suggest you stock up. I’ve cleaned a lot of enamel and lacquer paints out of my airbrushes with lacquer thinner over the years so just for old times sake I included it in the test. The effect that cheap hardware store lacquer thinner (Klean-Strip) had on dried acrylics necessitated the category of “G” for goo. I would not want to remove this exceedingly sticky, tar-like material from my airbrush. A notable exception is Model Master acrylic, which is efficiently solubilized by lacquer thinner. An additional take home point from the data is that you guys shooting Tamiya acrylics have no excuse for not having the cleanest airbrushes in the modeling kingdom. Every cleaner and thinner tested quickly solubilized dried Tamiya paint completely.

CONCLUSION As mentioned earlier, wet paint is easier to clean than dried paint. If you can keep the paint in your airbrush innards wet until the moment you add thinner or cleaning solution to your brush, the clean up job will be much easier and more thorough with less work. An easy trick to remember is “Don’t Run It Dry.” No matter how hard fight the temptation to empty that last ¼ cup of paint at the trash can (or cat) until the hiss of air can be heard from your brush. That hissing is the sound of paint

The second photograph shows that scrubbing of the same palette with a microbrush revealed that all but the Vallejo paint layer was dissolved. The Vallejo layer was fragmented.

being air-dried to all the little nooks and crannies of your airbrush. By keeping the paint in your brush wet right up until you begin cleaning, the opportunity for the paint to dry is greatly reduced and the brush will be much easier to clean: simple. Sooner or later however, you’ll forget your poor airbrush for an hour or two with the paint cup full of the nastiest acrylic paint known to mankind. In this situation you’ll probably be faced with cleaning dried paint out of your airbrush. Depending on the brand of the offending paint, you may be able to get away with just a long soak with the appropriate cleaner. For example, if my brush were infested with dried Model Master Acrylic, I’d try a series of 15-minute soaks with either LifeColor or Tamiya cleaners. Lacquer thinner will work for Model Master but it’s the exception of all the acrylics tested. To remove dried Vallejo, I’d be reaching for my Tamiya cleaner and leave the other brands on the shelf. Conversely, dried Life Color is solubilized with a little scrubbing in Grex, Vallejo, or Life Color cleaners: many options. If you’re shooting the new Mission Models acrylics (my personal favorite) and have a dried paint problem, Grex, Vallejo, Life Color, Tamiya, and Windex are all good options. Well, for those of you with a gooped-up airbrush hidden away in the bottom drawer of your workbench, I hope this serves to give you (and your airbrush) some hope. Likewise, for those who prefer a proactive approach to keeping their brushes clean, I hope you picked up a trick or two that makes that job a little easier. ■

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ITALERI

1:9 sCale kettenkraD • kIt no. 7404 It is just typical. In early August, for my birthday, I visited the Tank Museum at Bovington and walked past the Kettenkrad there, not giving it a second thought – I was looking for the Ha-Go to photograph after having drooled over The Tiger Exhibit for an hour. The week after my visit this kit arrives unannounced on my doorstep. Whilst I have free entry for another 355 days, my wife will be annoyed if I drive almost 600 miles there & back albeit with a valid reason!

Note the central, not offset, drive teeth.

Nut and bolt detail is serious in this scale.

I am unable to find an exact date, but this kit first appeared under the ESCI brand somewhere around 1975. At the time it was revolutionary in that it came with working suspension, workable individual link tracks, a sprung driver’s seat, detailed engine compartment plus the sheer size of the thing. Since ESCI disappeared in the early 1990’s this kit has appeared under the ESCI/ERTL, Dragon and Revell brands with Italeri being the latest to re-issue it. After all, it is the only 1/9th Kettenkrad available.

Tracks and pads.

Separate wing nuts are supplied.

BOX CONTENTS The model comes in a big box that is packed with eight light grey sprues, one clear plastic, another in black vinyl, then rubber pipe for the cabling, metal springs for the suspension, one vinyl front tyre and some nylon mesh for the engine screens. Bearing in mind the age of it, the parts have held up well but you will find some flash, sink marks, prominent mold seams as well as some burrs & tooling marks that will need smoothing out. What surprises

Kit supplied MP40.

me is that some of the detail looks clunky but when you compare it to photos of the real thing it is actually very good. As with all kits there is room for super-detailing but you will get an excellent representation out of the box with this one.

CONSTRUCTION Construction is presented over 17 steps although many of these have several sub-assemblies illustrated. The drawings themselves are nice and clear and exceptionally easy to follow

Tooling scars on the front fork ribs.

Engine detail.

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Soldiers’ personal equipment is included.

This is one big sprue!

The full track sprue.

plus (so far) I have not spotted any instructional errors. We kick off with the main hull and this is made of separate parts. On my example the hull floor does show some slight warpage but the rest appears okay. I have not started construction yet so cannot comment on how it goes together. Italeri have you sensibly assemble the suspension which involves placing metal springs between the suspension arms. Once done, we then pull the hull together and then add all of the running gear. Although not yet called out, the tracks are individual link and you glue the pad to the link to make it all workable. There is one error though in that the drive sprocket teeth are

molded central whereas they should be offset slightly. The engine is up next and we do get a fairly well detailed example. Care will be needed in measuring and fitting the rubber cabling but there is nothing here to catch you out. Note that you can display it if you wish as the access hatch is moveable. One flaw in the kit is that there is no detail on the inside panels so there is plumbing in the engine that has nowhere to go. However, what is missing can be found by a simple Google search on ‘Kettenkrad Walkaround’ as there are some superb restorations as well as original vehicles out there. A standout point for me is the driver’s controls in that

The main hull pieces.

We even have a separate lining for the helmets!

all of the dials are clearly printed decals that are fixed behind clear plastic bezels. Turning to the front forks, you will need to tidy up some tooling scars but due to the size of the parts it will be easy to put together. The rubber tyre has a pattern that is identical, or certainly similar, to that seen on wartime photos and also possesses some lovely tyre wall writing. To finish it off there are a selection of tools to go under the seat, and some infantry equipment in the form of an MP40, canteen, food container and three helmets complete with liners and vinyl chin straps. There is no figure sadly though it would have been nice if Italeri could have

Personal gear and tools.

Tyre sidewall detail.

Misaligned tyre tread.

‘borrowed’ the one that Dragon did in their boxing of this kit.

CONCLUSION This is a big kit by any standards and, despite showing its age in places, it holds up well. I would expect that cleaning up time will be more than you would need on a modern kit but nothing that basic modelling skills & tools won’t cure. Due to the size of the parts and clarity of instructions this could be built by anyone with a few kits under their belt, plus it also offers scope for super-detailing. Good references are available free at the click of a button too. I like it, so it comes highly recommended. ■

Road Wheel half.

Printing on the decals is superb. December 2017 - Model Military International 57

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Incoming SBS MODEL

1:35 SCALE 40M TURAN / ZRINYI SUSPENSION AND ROAD WHEEL UPGRADE FOR THE BRONCO KIT ITEM NO. 35030

When it came to building the new Bronco Turan 1 (Kit CB-35120), I was struck by the impression that some of the subassemblies were overly ambitious in execution. Take for example the bogie units. These assemblies have 31 parts each and are designed to fully articulate like the original vehicle. The problem is the fit of the individual parts is somewhat sloppy, so alignment of the parts is a vexing problem. This sample turned up at just the right time so that I could closely examine both the kit parts and this upgrade. The set consists of 66 very well cast resin pieces. 34 resin road wheels replace the kit parts and are slightly wider and exhibit far more detail on the hub and rubber portion of the road wheel than the kit supplied items. In the Bronco kit the bogie swing arms are supplied in front and rear units that have to be glued together totalling 16 parts. The SBS units are supplied as a 8 units, having the front and rear sections cast as one piece. The units are more accurate that the kit supplied units as the have the correct inner bogie profile and the inclusion of an optional mud scrapper. Eight spring leaves are included and these are a vast improvement on the Bronco items. When assembled, these units are not only more accurate but a lot more rigid resulting in an easier assembly process. I was impressed with this upgrade. Highly Recommended Thanks to SBS Model for the sample www.sbsmodel.com Luke Pitt

AFT DECALS

1:35 SCALE ITEM NO. AR77006 – WAFFEN SS PANZER / PANZER GRENADIER DIVISION INSIGNIA ITEM NO. AR77009 – AMMO BOX STENCILS (37MM, .30 CAL, .50 CAL AND 25 PDR) ITEM NO. AR77010 – NATO AND MODERN AMMO BOX STENCILS ITEM NO. AR77012 – MISCELLANEOUS WWII GERMAN VEHICLE MARKINGS ITEM NO. AR77022 – GERMAN 88MM AMMO STENCILS ITEM NO. AR77023 – GERMAN 75MM AMMO STENCILS ITEM NO. AR77040 – GERMAN LICENSE PLATES AND PANZERFAUST MARKINGS Archer Fine Transfers has an interesting batch of recent releases in their 1:35 scale waterslide decals under the branding of AFT Decals. These cover the following: • AR77006 – Waffen SS Panzer / Panzer Grenadier Division Insignia • AR77009 – Ammo Box Stencils (37mm, .30 cal, .50 cal and 25 pdr) • AR77010 – NATO and Modern Ammo Box Stencils • AR77012 – Miscellaneous WWII German Vehicle Markings • AR77022 – German 88mm Ammo Stencils • AR77023 – German 75mm Ammo Stencils • AR77040 – German License Plates and Panzerfaust Markings The subject matter makes the usage fairly self-explanatory but an instruction sheet is included for each along with one small-sized decal sheet packed with useful markings. These are all conventional waterslide decals printed perfectly by Cartograf. All Recommended. Thanks to Archer Fine Transfers for the samples www.archertransfers.com Archer Fine Transfers are available online from Creative Models Australia www. creativemodels.com.au Brett Green

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ITALERI

1:35 SCALE LAV-25 PIRANHA KIT NO. 6539

SBS MODEL

1:35 SCALE 40M TURAN BARREL AND MANTLET FOR THE BRONCO KIT ITEM NO. 35031

This set updates the kit supplied plastic examples with a turned brass barrel and a more accurate mantlet in terms of shape. As with all SBS products, the resin casting is flawless. Highly Recommended Thanks to SBS Model for the sample www.sbsmodel.com Luke Pitt

The LAV-25 is an eight wheeled armoured vehicle based on the Swiss MOWAG Piranha. Entering service with the US Marine Corps in the early 80’s the vehicle has undergone many changes over the years and the version in this kit is an early one that was used in the first Gulf War of 1991. The kit itself first appeared in the 1980’s and this particular re-issue is timed to coincide with the 25th anniversary of the 1st Gulf War. In the box are just three sprues of tan coloured styrene and a small decal sheet. Considering that this kit is over 30 years old the amount of flash present on parts is not that bad really although there are mould pin-marks present. Surface detail is a mix of raised and engraved panel lines (the engraved ones are quite deep), the engine grills could do with replacing with etched items as they are quite heavily done and the same could be said of the turret basket base as this is moulded in with the turret, all the periscopes are solid and lack any detail and the exhaust needs etch replacements for the covers, the jerry cans are more like WW2 issue rather than the modern plastic type that should be on the vehicle. The biggest issue however is that the turret hatches are moulded side by side and on the real vehicle they are offset - not an easy fix without rebuilding the turret roof. On the plus side, Italeri has made a good attempt at the weld seams around the hull and have included a basic interior for the rear (no turret interior though). The wheels are two-piece moulded styrene and look okay. Painting schemes are for two sand coloured vehicles (one with brown camouflage) and a three-tone scheme of green, brown and black. According to the instructions all vehicles are from unidentified units based in Saudi Arabia during 1991 although three decal options are given for specific LAV-25’s such as ‘Steel Justice, ‘Croaker’ with Barracuda(?) artwork painted on the side and ‘Known Distance’ so somebody somewhere will know which units these were from. Surprisingly, up until Trumpeter released their family of LAV-25s a few years ago, this kit (and ESCI’s awful one) were the only ones available of this type. It’s probably unfair to compare the Italeri and Trumpeter kits as both require aftermarket goodies to bring them up to scratch but the turret hatch issue is a big problem and something that Trumpeter actually got right. Thanks to the Hobby Company for the review sample www.hobbyco.net Andy King

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1:48 Scale – A round-up of the latest news and releases THE SEVEN STAGES OF MODELLING

I

’m knee deep into a 1:48 scale build at the moment and for the life of me, I think the build is taking on a life of its own. If you’re like me, you will constantly ask why you go to all this effort to make scale models. I’ve thought about this a little and have broken down the steps into seven distinct stages. The first is the inspiration stage. This can happen at any time and anywhere. The problem here is nothing that you conger up in your “mind’s eye” will ever look as good when full made up as a scale model. The things that motivates me are: well-built models, interesting or different paint or versions of a particular vehicle or indeed a different location that the vehicle operated in. The next phase is the purchase. Now this may seem like the most simple phase but for me it isn’t. I am faced with the dilemma of having a large stash, so do I buy the kit or not? Now, a wag will tell you just don’t get inspired by stuff you don’t have, but brother, inspiration doesn’t work that way! The third phase is checking the contents or cracking the box. This for me is akin to getting drunk. I wander around thinking of all the possibilities but I struggle to build models straight out of the box, but the rub is that I constantly

want to! The other thing is I that I have a lot of internal conflict on this one and this slows the whole process down, Once I have the kit I generally check over the pieces trying figure out how I can improve it. I’m pretty much old school in this regard so, I generally use the plastic card option. But many seek out aftermarket options, which leads to the “Improvements Phase”. This can lead you to spending more money than the base kit has cost, and can at times it is like opening you

wallet and handing out 50 dollar notes and saying “there you go fella, have a nice day”. The next stage is the build. Many don’t reach this stage or, if they do, they never complete the stage. This one is the most difficult - seeing a build through can at time be tough. Grappling with additions, paint and various other problems can be taxing on one’s soul. The next phase is the finish. This is when you put all the various nick nacks on the build and look at the finished build for the first time. If you are anything like me, your finish build is nowhere near as good as what you had in your mind’s eye. I’m never pleased at this stage and tend to think all my completed models are complete rubbish. The last phase is post-match analysis. This is the one I like the best and generally happens a few months after the build and for me, with a few beers on board. I pick up the model and think to myself, how the hell did I do that! I like this phase so much that I’m thinking why don’t I just get someone else to do my models and pretend I did them myself. Now that’s an idea!

Anyway I’m late for my bus... until next time Luke Pitt

TORO MODELS

1:48 SCALE SEPTEMBER 1939 SERIES ITEM NO. 48F37 - ARMOUR OFFICER WEARING OVERALLS ITEM NO. 48F44 - POLISH FIGHTER PILOT IN DENIM FLYING SUIT

Toro Models from Poland has produced a series of models under the banner of “September 1939”. These concentrate on the men and material used in the invasion of Poland. These two new figure releases are scaled down from their 1:35 scale offerings and it shows. The two figures are quite simply superb and are what I would describe as high-end offerings. The tank commander is a four piece resin casting with the main body, two arms and a head making up the figure, A lovely colour paper set of maps and plans is included and rounds out this figure. It’s the sharp detail that makes this figure from the well-defined fabric creases to stance and beautifully defined boots and facial features. The height and bulk of this figure also give it a sense of purpose. The pilot is equally well done but this time coming in just two resin pieces, the one piece flight suit could be easily modified to suit any air force in the early war period to be honest and all up is very well done. If you purchase either of these two figures you will not be disappointed. Our thanks go out to Toro models for providing the review samples. Highly Recommended. Luke Pitt

HAULER

1:48 SCALE TAMIYA ELEFANT UPDATES ITEM NO. HLX48381 - ELEPHANT BASIC UPDATE ITEM NO. HLX48382 - ELEPHANT FENDER UPDATE I’ll say this up front - I’m a fan of the Elefant and was as pleased as punch when Tamiya released the kit in 1:48 scale. Our friends at Hauler are always thinking of ways to improve and enhance the current crop of 1:48 scale releases and this one is no exception. The first set is a basic external upgrade and concerns itself with all the smaller fittings. Provided for on two small photo etch frets the parts count is quite small with 68 individual parts. The items covered are all the various brackets and equipment holders on the vehicle itself together with the screen and hot air deflector at the rear of the fighting compartment, jack upgrades in addition to

the rear tail light assembly and lastly 3 periscope assemblies for the drivers entry hatch. The second set includes a full set of fenders and directly address one of the minor problems with the Tamiya kit. Anyone who has studied the various details on the real vehicle will note than unlike other mainstream German vehicles of the period, the non-slip surfaces extended all the way over the lip of the fender itself. The set consists of just 30 pieces and is very well done and solves a quite vexing problem Thanks to Hauler for the samples www.hauler.cz Highly Recommended. Luke Pitt

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NEW in the ‘HOW TO BUILD...’ series

How to Build... TAMIYA 1:32 F4U-1A and F4U-1D CORSAIR

When Tamiya released their 1:32 scale Spitfire Mk.IXc in 2009, they set a new standard for plastic model kits. Each model since then has seen incremental improvements. Just when you think the series can’t get any better, Tamiya goes and proves you wrong. Their 1:32 scale Birdcage Corsair was released in mid-2013. This was an outstanding kit in every respect. Tamiya expanded their 1:32 scale Corsair family with an F4U-1A in late 2014. This kit included several new sprues and offered a wider range of camouflage and marking possibilities. Tamiya has now completed the -1 trio with their new 1:32 scale F4U-1D Corsair. Once again, this kit includes a significant number of brand new sprues to depict the unique attributes of this variant. We can also marvel at the kit’s subtle surface textures, high level of detail, clever parts breakdown and accuracy. In this new book, we provide an exhaustive stepby-step illustrated guide to building and detailing the 1:32 scale F4U-1D and F4U-1A, offering plenty of inspiration with two different configurations and colour schemes.

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£14.95 plus p&p

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Available in the ‘HOW TO BUILD...’ series How to Build... Hawker Typhoon Mk.Ib New and revised for 2017 now including the Car Door and Bubbletop builds. The complete guide to building the amazing Airfix 1:24 scale Hawker Typhoon, written by Brett Green of HyperScale and Model Military fame. This new book features an exhaustive step-by-step guide to construction with modelling contributions by James Hatch, Brett, and Chris Wauchop. Hundreds of construction photos, reference images, a museum walk around, and how to get the very best from your big Typhoon kit a must have before you build the model!

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Contact Details - for companies featured in MMI... ACCURATE ARMOUR/ ARMOUR DISTRIBUTION

Units 15-16 Kingston Industrial Estate, Port Glasgow, Inverclyde, PA14 5DG Scotland. Tel; 01475 743 955 Fax; 01475 743746 www.accurate-armour.com

ADALBERTUS

Iberyjska 7/49, 02-764 , Warsaw,Poland [email protected] www.adalbertus.com.pl

THE AIRBRUSH COMPANY Ltd

Unit 7 Marlborough Road, Lancing Business Park, Lancing, West Sussex, BN15 8UF. Tel; 08700 660 445 www.airbrushes.com

ALCLAD II LACQUER

5 St Georges Close, Bacton, Norfolk. NR12 0LL Tel; 01962 65216 Fax; 01692 652334

ALPINE, ROYAL MODEL, ARTISAN MORI, YOSCI; SMARTMODELLING No.7 Gordons Way, Oxted, Surrey RH8 0LN. UK Tel; 01883 734746 [email protected]

AMPERSAND PUBLISHING (via Historex Agents in UK)

235 NE 6th Avenue #4 Delray Beach, Florida 33483-5543, USA Tel; 561-266 9686 Fax; 561-266-9786

ARCHER

(Historex in UK)

PO Box 1277 Youngsville, NC 27596-1277, USA www.archertransfers.co

BADGER AIR-BRUSH COMPANY 9128W Belmont Ave, Franklin Park, IL 60131 Tel; 847/678-3104 www.badgerairbrush.com email [email protected] (In the UK from www.shesto.co.uk)

BISON DECALS

Available from www.hannants.co.uk and www.pdi-model-supplies.com

DELUXE MATERIALS www.deluxematerials.co.uk [email protected] Tel; 01529 455 0340

DRAGON MODELS

(The Hobby Company in UK)

Dragon Models Ltd, Kong Nam Ind. Building B1-10F, 603-609 Castle Peak Road, Tsuen Wan NT, Hong Kong Fax; (HK) 4110587 www.dragonmodelsltd.com (For 1:6 Action Figures, please contact Amerang in UK)

ECHELON FINE DETAILS

Available from; wwwaccurate-armour.com & http://pachome1.pacific.net.sg/~kriegsketten/

FRIENDSHIP MODELS

12 Delta Drive, Musselburgh, East Lothian, EH21 8HR Tel; 0131 665 0866 Mobile; 07877166225 www.friendshipmodels.com

GREAT NORTH ROADS

CAMMETT

(Lifecolour, Scale Caliber)

Unit 5 Greenfield Industrial Estate, Forest Road, Hay on Wye, Powys, HR3 5FA Tel; 01497 822757 Email; [email protected] www.cammett.co.uk

CLASSIC PUBLICATIONS

Midland Counties Publications, 4 Watling Drive, Sketchley Lane Industrial Estate, Hinckley, Leics UK. LE10 1YF Tel; 01455 233 747, Fax; 01455 233 737 [email protected] www.classic-publications.com

CREATIVE MODELS LTD

(Mig Productions, Vallejo, Accurate Miniatures)

Unit 6-10, Honeysome Industrial Estate, Honeysome Road, Chatteris, Cambridgeshire. PE16 6TG Tel; 01354 760022 www.creativemodels.co.uk [email protected]

DARTMOOR MILITARY MODELS Haylis cottage, Budlake, Broadclyst Exeter, EX5 3LJ, England Tel; 01392 881271 www.dartmoormilitarymodels.com

www.etchmate.com www.missionmodels.com Tel; 818 842 1885 Fax; 818 842 1886 [email protected], [email protected], [email protected]

THE ARMORY; M&MODELS

9329 S. Cicero Ave, Oak Lawn, IL 60453, USA http://home.earthlink.net/~mmodels/

MODEL WHOLESALE UK LTD Tel; 01892 533036 www.modelwholesaleuk.com

ORDNANCE MODELS

Harbour Road, Oulton Broad, Lowestoft, Suffolk, NR32 2LZ, Tel; 01502 517444 Fax; 01502 500521 www.hannants.co.uk [email protected]

HISTOREX AGENTS

Wellington House, 157 Snargate Street, Dover, Kent, CT17 9BZ, UK Tel; 01304 206720 Fax; 01304 204528. www.historex-agents.co.uk [email protected]

HOBBYLINK JAPAN

Sano-shi, Kurohakama-cho 162-1, Tochigi 327-0813, Japan www.hlj.com

HUSSAR PRODUCTIONS, CANADA www.airconnection.on.ca

ICM

Via Hannants in UK

(ETCHMATE, GRABHANDLER, MICRO CHISEL)

HANNANTS

BOOKWORLD WHOLESALE

CALIBRE 35

MISSION MODELS

MONROE PERDU

BLAST MODELS

Unit 10 Hodfar Road, Sandy Lane Ind Est Stourport, Worcs, DY13 9QB Tel; 01299 823330 Fax; 01299 829970 [email protected]

9 Rannoch St., Battlefield, Glasgow G44 4DF, Scotland Tel/Fax; 0141 633 1400 [email protected] www.milicast.com

9a Marcombe Road, Torquay, South Devon, TQ2 6LL Tel; 01803 400436 www.greatnorthroads.co.uk email [email protected]

IAN ALLAN

Via AFV Modeller or www.blast-models.com

MILICAST MODEL CO.,

www.ianallanpublishing.com Mail Order Dept 01455 254450 Kiev 02099, Ukraine, Borispolskaya 9 building 64. Tel/fax; (+38044) 369-54-12 [email protected] www.icm.com.ua

ITALERI

(The Hobby Company in UK)

Via Pradazzo, 6, I-40012 Calderara Di Reno, Bologna, Italy, Tel; 051 726037 www.italeri.com

JUST BASES

21 Graham Road, Paignton TQ3 1BB Tel; 01803 558520 www.just-bases.co.uk

JUST KITS

4 High Street, Botley, Southampton, SO30 2EA Tel; 01489 781177 www.justkitsandmodels.co.uk

MDC

Model Design Construction, Victoria Place, Victoria Road, Ripley, Derbyshire DE5 3FW Fax; 01773 513344 [email protected] www.modeldesignconstruction.com

MODELING ARTISAN MORI

http://www3.ocn.ne.jp/~m.a.mori/index_eng.html

MIG PRODUCTIONS (Creative Models in UK)

C/ Santiago Rusinol 7, Pral 2a, 08750 Molins de Rei, Barcelona, Spain www.migproductions.com

Monroe Perdu Designs, 3168 Renee Court, Simi Valley, CA 93065, USA. www.monroeperdu.com Via; www.steelmodels.com

PACIFIC COAST MODELS Tel; 001 707 538 4850 [email protected] www.pacmodels.com

PANZERWRECKS

PO Box 164, Heathfield, Sussex TN21 8WA, UK www.panzerwrecks.com

PARAGRAFIX

104 County Street, Suite 101 Attleboro MA 02703 USA Tel: +1 508.431.9800 M-F 9am to 4pm EST http://www.paragrafix.biz [email protected]

PLUS MODEL

(Creative Models in UK)

SCHIFFER BOOKS

Schiffer Publishing, 4880 Lower Valley Rd, Atglen, PA, 19310 USA www.schifferbooks.com

SCHIFFER BOOKS in UK

Bushwood Books, No.6 Marksbury Avenue, Kew Gardens, Surrey TW9 4JF, UK. Tel; 020 8392 8585, 020 8392 9876, email; [email protected]

SCHUMO KITS

www.schumo-kits.com

SDV MODEL www.sdvmodel.cz

SIMPLE 2 TRADE

No 2 Hollywood Lane, Hollywood, Birmingham, B47 5PP Tel; 0121 474 3030 www.simple2trade.com

SMARTMODELLING

(Swash, Tasca, Gap, Yosci, Royal Model)

No.7 Gordons Way, Oxted, Surrey RH8 0LN UK Tel; 01883 734746 [email protected]

SQUADRON

1115 Crowley Drive, Carrollton, TX 75006-1312 U.S.A

SWANN-MORTON

Owlerton Green, Sheffield, S6 2BJ Tel; +44 (0)114 234 4231 Fax; +44 (0)114 231 4966 General: [email protected] www.craftknives.com

TAMIYA JAPAN

Tamiya, Inc., 3-7 Ondawara Suruga-ku, Shizuoka 422-8610 JAPAN www.tamiya.com

TAMIYA UK;

THE HOBBY COMPANY LIMITED Garforth Place, Knowlhill, Milton Keynes, MK5 8PG, UK Tel; 01908 605686 Fax; 01908 605666 [email protected] www.hobbyco.net

Jizni 56, 370 10 C. Budejovice, Czech Republic. [email protected] www.plusmodel.cz

TRUMPETER

POCKETBOND

VERLINDEN PRODUCTIONS

(Trumpeter & AFV Club in UK)

Bachmann Europe PLC Moat Way, Barwell, Leics, LE9 8EY Tel; 01455 841756 [email protected]

PSP MODELS LTD (Mission Models in USA)

Unit 19B, Applin’s Farm, Farrington, Dorset DT11 8RA, UK Tel/Fax; 01747 811 817 www.psp-models.com

QUICKBOOST

www.quickboost.net

REVELL GmbH & Co. KG Orchard Mews, 18C High Street, Tring, Herts, HP23 5AH Tel; +44 (0) 1442 890285 www.revell.eu

SB MODELS

UK distributor for Model Victoria and Royal Model

P.O. Box 114, Barrow-in-Furness, Cumbria, LA13 0WY. Tel/Fax; 01229 430 749 [email protected] www.sbmodels.net

SBLC

PO Box 794, Cheltenham GL52 3ZW, UK [email protected]

SBX MODEL SHOP

Norwich Road, Ipswich. IP1 5DN Tel; 01473 464311 www.sbxmodelshop.co.uk

www.trumpeter-china.com Pocketbond in the UK (Historex in UK)

811 Lone Star Drive, O’Fallon, Missouri 63366, USA www.verlinden-productions.com

VALLEJO

(Creative Models in UK)

Acrylicos Vallejo, SL Apartado 337 - 08800 Vilanova i la Geltrú, Barcelona, Spain Tel; (34) 93 893 60 12 Fax; (34) 93 893 11 54 www.acrylicosvallejo.com

VLS CORPORATION (LSA in UK)

(TRAKZ, WINGZ, CUSTOM DIORAMICS, WARRIORS); Lincoln County Industrial Park, 1011 Industrial Court, Moscow Mills, Missouri 63362, USA www.modelmecca.com

FO

WHITE ENSIGN MODELS (Toms Model Works)

8532 Lamar Drive, Huntington Beach, CA 92647, USA [email protected] www.whiteensignmodels.com

WWII PRODUCTIONS, AUSTRALIA 12 Prince Street, Waratah, 2298, NSW, Australia Tel; +61 (0)2 4967 3205 Fax; +61 (0)2 4967 3207 [email protected]

ZVEZDA

(The Hobby Company in UK)

Promishlennaia Str.,2, Lobnya, Moscow Region, 141730 Russia [email protected] www.zvezda.org.ru

SCHATTON BARRELS

Industriestrasse 6, 94347 Ascha, Germany Fax; 09961 910 7826

■ Please mention ‘Model Military International’ if you make contact with any of the companies listed above - thanks! 64 Model Military International - December 2017

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Next Issue On sale 7 December, 2017 TECH GUIDE – RUSTED TUTORIAL Clayton Ockerby guides us through techniques to obtain authentic rust effects.

ISSUE No.140 December 2017, Published November 2nd 2017 Editor;

Brett Green

Group Editor;

Marcus Nicholls

Publisher;

Alan Harman

Graphic Design;

Alex Hall

Advertising Manager;

Sean Leslie

Office Manager;

Paula Gray

Administration Manager; Hannah McLaurie Administration Assistant; Julie Lane MMI Website;

Doolittle Media Web Team

Printed by; Henry Stone Ltd, Oxfordshire Distributed by; Seymour Distribution 2 East Poultry Avenue, London, EC1A 9PT Tel; 020 7429 4000 Newstrade; Select Publisher Services 3 East Avenue, Bournemouth, BH3 7BW Tel; 01202 586848 Email; [email protected] Model Military International is published on the first Thursday of each month by; Doolittle Media, Doolittle Mill, Doolittle Lane, Totternhoe, Bedfordshire, LU6 1QX UK www.modelmilitary.com Tel; +44 (0)1525 222573 Fax; +44 (0)1525 222574 Editorial enquiries; Email; [email protected]

A NEW KING IN TOWN

Advertising enquiries; Tel; +44 (0)1525 222573 Email; [email protected]

John Bonanni builds Meng’s new 1:35 scale King Tiger.

Reproduction in part of any text, photograph, or illustration without written consent from the publisher is strictly prohibited. While due care is taken to ensure the contents of Model Military International is accurate, the publishers and printers can not accept responsibility for errors and omissions.

FRENCH FIREPOWER Tomasz Janiszewski presents his 1:35 scale Meng AMX-30B.

Advertisements are accepted for publication in Model Military International only on Doolittle Media’s standard terms of acceptance of advertising, copies of which are available from the advertising department. Please write to the address above. All advertising, circulation and subscription enquiries should also be directed to the UK address above. Subscription rates are; 1 year (12 issues); £44 UK £56 Europe £69 Worldwide (Airmail)

FOR YOUR SAFETY Don’t forget, when using solvents such as glues, paints, thinners and cleaning agents, always ventilate your work area thoroughly and wear a face mask. When using power tools, side cutters or any tool that can suddenly break or create highspeed airborne particles, wear approved eye protectors with hard, clear lenses. Please always model in safety!

...and much more! Due to many influencing factors, we cannot guarantee the appearance of the above projects, but we’ll try our best!

Binders; £8.50 plus postage (UK £2.45, Euro £4.45, World £6.45) For all orders, please call; (UK) +44(0)1525 222573 or visit www.modelmilitary.com

A10 Cruiser

Back Issues; Back Issues are available at the current cover price. See the latest back issues advert or visit www.modelmilitary.com

Brett Green paints Bronco’s 1:35 scale A10 Cruiser tank in the Caunter scheme.

The paper used in this magazine is manufactured at the Leipa Georg Mill and is 100% recycled using de-inked pulp. The mill conforms fully with the requirements of both FSC and PEFC and carries the full accreditations for their environmental policies.

© Doolittle Media 2017

The paper used on this title is from sustainable forestry

Order online now at; www.modelmilitary.com

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December 2017 - Model Military International 65

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The Last Post...

X A J A E C N U O N N A MINISTERS S E L A W N I E N O T S E L DELIVERY MI B

ritish Defence Minister Harriett Baldwin and Minister for the UK Government in Wales Guto Bebb visited General Dynamics’ factory in Wales today to see two vehicles in the final stages of testing before they are delivered to the British Army. The ministers viewed a demonstration of the new Ares protected mobility vehicle, part of the £4.5 billion Ajax family of armoured vehicles, at the factory in Merthyr Tydfil. The platforms will now continue going through a process known as Government Acceptance Training (GAT) before they are handed over to the Army. Defence Minister for Defence Procurement, Harriett Baldwin, said, “I am delighted to see the Ares in action. This vehicle, and the others in the Ajax family, will give the British Army a multi-role, mounted fighting power and reconnaissance capability fit for the future. We continue to invest in the best equipment for our Armed Forces, and I’m delighted to support such strong investment in Wales”. The ministers were also given a tour of the facility, which was only opened in 2016, bringing around 250 jobs to the area. The MOD is the biggest provider of apprenticeships in the UK and many of those the ministers met were manufacturing and mechanical apprentices keen

to talk about their work in the factory. The Ajax build programme is also sustaining 300 jobs at General Dynamics’ nearby Oakdale site. Backed by a rising defence budget, last year the MOD spent £870 million with Welsh businesses, helping to build a stronger economy and keep Britain safe, with Ajax representing the biggest single order for a UK armoured vehicle in 30 years. MOD investment in Wales works out to £280 per capita. Minister for the UK Government in Wales Guto Bebb, said, “The UK Government is delivering on its ambitions for economic growth in Wales and is helping to improve people's lives. Here in Merthyr Tyfil, General Dynamics are building next generation vehicles for the Army, providing jobs and skills that drive a stronger economy for Wales and for the UK.” The six variants in the Ajax programme – Athena, Ajax, Ares, Apollo, Atlas and Argus - are due to come into service in 2020, providing a full suite of medium armoured vehicles and capabilities. The ‘GAT’ process for the Ares platforms will now be undertaken by an army headquarters unit, conducting acceptance for both the British Army and Defence Equipment & Support (DE&S) at the facility in Merthyr Tydfil. The range of Ajax variants will allow British Army ‘Strike Brigades’ to conduct sustained,

expeditionary, full-spectrum and networkenabled operations with a reduced logistics footprint. They will operate in combined-arms and multinational situations across a wide-range of future operating environments. The news comes after several other milestones which General Dynamics revealed at the Defence and Security Equipment International (DSEI) exhibition last week. These included: • The start of manned live firing trials for Ajax, including trials of the CT40 cannon, chain gun and smoke grenade launchers. • The first appearance at DSEI of digital training systems being delivered by subcontractor Lockheed Martin, including small arms handling and turret crew trainers. ■

66 Model Military International - December 2017 Crown Copyright - MOD News Licence.

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