Zündapp KS750 Motorcycle With Feldgendarmerie 1942

[Mike]

Zündapp KS750 Motorcycle With Feldgendarmerie 1942

1:35 Great Wall Hobby

The Zündapp KS750 was a wehrmacht staple heavy motorcycle during WWII, with over 18,000 produced, and shared many parts with the contemporary BMW R75. They were often see with a sidecar attached, which had a driver wheel, and made the bike capable of off-road use by selecting the All Terrain gear.

The rider sat astride the 750cc 2-cylinder engine on a large saddle-type seat, which was well sprung by two coils, to protect the rider's rear from the hard knocks of the type of terrain that it could traverse.

This kit is a later release from the original issues and has no sidecar, but instead has three Feldgendarmerie, German Military Police figures. The kit arrives in a medium sized top opening box in GWH's now familiar brown, with a painting of the bike and the figures on the front, with some beautifully painted finished model photos on the sides. Inside the box are four sprues of grey styrene, with a few extra parts on "spruelets", a small sheet of Photo-Etched (PE) brass, 4 individual sets of spokes in a separate bag, a small bag containing the seat springs, and a set of decals. The instruction booklet finishes the package and includes a black and white painting diagram on the rear, using Vallejo colour call-outs, but adding Tamiya and Gunze colours in a conversion table near the front.

The bike parts are contained on two sprues, with some redundant wheels in the larger sprue, which have been replaced by the laminated parts on the second sprue to improve the tread on the bike's wheels. The pre-dished PE spokes form part of this lamination, and should result in a very realistic finish as long as you take care not to crush the spokes during construction.

The engine is first to be constructed, as it forms the heart of the bike, and detail here is excellent, from tiny wingnuts to the finely rendered cooling fins on the two cylinders. The rear hub and driveshaft are then built up and sandwiched between the two chassis parts along with some PE parts, including a nice sump-guard. The fuel tank and exhaust system are next, and it's about here that you realise that a sub-assembly construction process is going to work best, so you can paint the parts before assembly.

The rear passenger seat sits atop the single piece fender, and foot pegs abound on the rear and front wheels, as well as for the rider himself. The front forks assemble round the front wheel, and the hollow-moulded headlight with its characteristic slit-cover are added between brackets on the forks, with a small decal and clear cover supplying the detail for the speedo that is affixed to the back of the light. The handlebars are moulded with the brakes and handgrips integral to them, and a central boss completes the assembly, which drops onto lugs moulded to the top of the forks. The rider's seat can be assembled either with the real springs installed, or a pair of styrene replacements if you're not confident with Superglue (CA).

The rear kick-stand can be mounted stowed or deployed, but if left unglued, it may be possible to alternate between modes as the mood takes you. A pair of box panniers mount on brackets either side of the rear wheel, which finishes the build of the bike itself.

The figures depict a trio of military police, with their striking breast plates on chains around their necks. Their poses are quite limiting, insofar as two of the figures are in the process of mounting directional signs to the supplied post. One if hammering a nail home with the flat rear of an axe, while the other carries another sign that is to be installed. The final figure is directing traffic with a small lollipop mounted on a stick. Two of the figures (the axe and lollipop wielders) are wearing greatcoats, and have additional parts for the tails of these that hang down almost to their ankles. A set of breast plates and uniform markings are supplied in the PE fret, although these are already present on the original mouldings, so whether you feel it is worth removing the moulded in styrene parts for these metal replacements is down to you.

The moulding of the figures is nicely done, and the poses are quite lifelike. There are some quite prominent seams where the two halves of the moulds meet, so a little preparation will be necessary to improve their realism. Five direction signs are supplied on the figure sprue, plus the one being carried by the figure, which enables you to personalise your post, which has a nice restrained and realistic wood texture moulded in, and the mould seam has been cleverly located on the corners, leaving only a diagonal line to sand off the top of the post.

Conclusion

A well detailed kit of the workhorse motorcycle of the Wehrmacht done using modern tooling techniques that should result in a detailed and realistic model of this iconic bike. The pre-dished spoke parts are a godsend, and really improve the detail, but I can't help wishing that they had also included a rider figure to complete the package.

Great for dioramas, or as a stand-alone vignette, and not lacking in detail. I can imagine the bike leant against the post, with the two figures hard at work posting the signs, while the third directs a line of traffic through the back lanes.

Recommended

Review sample courtesy of:

[Paul A H]

Now that is rather cool!

[alanmac]

Hi

It's a lovely detailed kit, but it's as real as a "paper panzer". The solo version never existed, the same as the BMW R75. Both were designed and built as a three wheeled motorcycle, with all the geometry of the frame, weight distribution and of course the drive shaft going to the sidecar wheel designed as such.

I have both examples of the GWH sidecar kits and they are lovely , highly detailed kits as are these solo ones.

Mike you say "They were often see with a sidecar attached". I've actually yet to see anybody produce a real photograph of this or the BMW as a solo bike during WW2. You can't blame GWH, they are after all just copying many other model manufacturers such as Tamiya, Esci , etc. in producing a kit of a bike that never existed.

Alan

Edited November 25, 2011 by alanmac

[Moofles]

im not too sure with the first one, as im pretty sure that the mud splatter is on the wall next to the bike, and there is no shadow or any form of side car visable. As for The second image, im again not too sure its a KS750.

[Mike]

interesting pics - that first one looks like a sidecar to me... That 2nd one looks promising, as the sidecar sticks quite a way forward

Here's a restored one without sidecar:

[alanmac]

im not too sure with the first one, as im pretty sure that the mud splatter is on the wall next to the bike, and there is no shadow or any form of side car visable. As for The second image, im again not too sure its a KS750.

Hi

First picture you can see the sidecar, splattered with mud, the carrying case strapped to the front is visible. Also the guy's balance must be great if there is no sidecar supporting the bike.

Second image is really to dark to see although when I went to save it to see if altering the contrast in Photoshop I could make the bike out clearier it came up with this file name - DKWNZ350GREECE1941.jpg,

Do remember both BMW and Zundapp built other bikes, the Zundapp K800 for example, which unless the image is clear could be mistaken for one.

I've for years thought there was a solo version of each manufactured and used during WW2, buying the Tamiya set in that belief. It's only in the last couple of years I've become aware of this error.

Alan

[Paul A H]

Is this the one that was in Indianna Jones and the Last Crusade?

[afv_rob]

Is this the one that was in Indianna Jones and the Last Crusade?

I think the one in Indiana Jones is supposed to be a BMW R75 with sidecar.