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3T Cargo Truck 3.6-36S Pritsche-Normal-Type (38079) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Opel was Germany’s largest truck producer during the 1930s, and their Blitz line of trucks played a large part in transporting Germany and their military around Europe, with over 130,000 of all variants made before the end of WWII. The name Blitz was given to the vehicle after a competition to find its new name, with a stylised S logo that resembled half of the SS badge, but also became the Opel logo that remains today. By the mid-30s there was a growing range of body-styles and load capacities available, replacing the locally produced engines with General Motors units nearer the outbreak of war, after GM bought Opel. This led to a 3.6T load-carrying option, which became almost ubiquitous in Wehrmacht service, but the new engines made it easier for the Allies to press captured Blitzes into service with a few tweaks, thanks to some familiarity with the motor. Unfortunately, due to its common usage, the Opel brand and its trucks were somewhat tainted by the War Crimes carried out by the Nazis and the SS, building them at the factories using forced labour, transporting prisoners to death camps, and even as a ‘gas van’ to carry out the heinous act itself. The rest of the Wehrmacht used the type for more typical roles of transport and carriage of men and matériel to, around and from the battlefield. Before and during WWII, many trucks were to be found in civilian hands, performing tasks important to the war effort during the war. Following WWII production restarted for the civilian market, and it wasn’t until 1952 that a complete new design was used instead of the old pre-war Blitz. The Kit This is a new boxing of a brand-new tooling from MiniArt, and the second of a line of variants that will hopefully steer clear of certain subjects. The kit arrives in a standard top-opening MiniArt box, and inside are eighteen sprues in grey styrene of differing sizes, a clear sprue, a sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) brass in a card envelope, a large decal sheet, and an A4 instruction booklet that is printed on glossy paper in colour, with profiles for the decal options on the front and rearmost pages. MiniArt have a habit of creating highly detailed kits that include interiors to the cab, engine and under the chassis, that are augmented by the sensible addition of PE parts where scale thickness will benefit. This is common practice for them now, and there’s no reason to expect anything else. Construction begins with the ladder chassis, which has some small raised marks removed from the main rails, spacing them apart by adding four cross-braces between them, with another three and a fuel tank in the second fit, applying a spare tyre that is made of six layers to achieve the tread pattern, sited on the top of the H-shaped brace, and fitting a towing shackle at the rear. Flipping the chassis over, a protective cowling is fixed between the moulded-in front leaf-springs, adding two L-shaped brackets on the chassis sides, a pair of leaf-springs in the rear, and two hooks at the ends of the chassis rails. An interlude sees the engine built from a four-part block, festooning it with ancillaries, intake and exhaust manifold, the transmission housing that is built from seven parts and mated to the rear of the block, serpentine belt and fan to the front, dropping it into the front of the chassis, and mounting a stowage box on the left rail near the spare tyre. Two more hooks are fixed to the front of the chassis, with a horn between them, and a two-part exhaust that stretches from the end of the manifold to the rear of the vehicle, turning left and exiting to the side, with a long muffler with a circumferential strap that hides the joint between the two parts. A scrap diagram shows where the downpipe should fit in relation to the engine manifold and chassis. A substantial beam axle is mounted under the front leaf-springs, extending a drive-shaft between the rear of the transmission and the rear axle with moulded-in differential bulge, making it from two halves. A couple of small parts are added to the sides of the chassis near the front, and the radiator is built from three layers plus feeder hoses, mounting it in the front on two pegs, a small PE bracket in the centre, and noting the location of both feeder hoses that supply hot water to and cooled water from the radiator. Building the cab starts with the dash, adding instrument backs and other small parts to the rear, plus a dash-pot, an oil-can, and the steering column, flipping it over to install the steering-wheel and a lever, applying four dial decals after detail painting. The floor has eight small pips cut away around the sides, turning it over the apply the foot pedals, handbrake and gear levers into position arranged around the left seat, then making two engine cowling side panels that have the lowest end of the A-pillar moulded-in, using alternate parts for some decal options, then gluing them to the floor, trapping the dash and the radiator cowling with separate logos between them, and placing a bench cushion over the hole in the floor. The cab rear has the back cushion glued to it along with a pair of vents, and a small rear window in the centre, mating it to the growing cab assembly along with the roof panel that has the windscreen frame moulded into it, slipping a clear screen in from outside. One decal option has a warning triangle mounted on a PE bracket in the centre front of the roof, removing two raised rivets from further back. Turning the assembly over, the front arches with moulded-in running boards are fitted after removing raised location marks on the curved top-sides. PE brackets are attached within the engine bay, and windscreen wipers are created either from PE parts, or styrene alternatives if you prefer, making a pair of headlamps from styrene backs and clear lenses, attaching them to the arches using the remaining small raised markers to locate the PE brackets. The cab doors have open or closed window options plus a choice of open or closed quarter-lights installed in the frame, adding a door card, handle, winder and lever to the insides, plus handle, drip-guard from PE, and a long-stemmed wing mirror for the driver’s side, and of course they can be posed in open, closed or any position in between. The bonnet can be posed open or closed too, starting with the tapering fixed centre section, leaving the rest until later in the build. The cab is dropped into place over the engine, adding rabbit-ear indicators to the rear pillar on PE brackets, and mounting a pair of rising supports in the rear of the chassis. The closed engine cowling is made from two L-shaped segments with louvres moulded-in, plus clasps at the bottom edge, or the same cowling parts can be used tilted up along the centreline, utilising different open versions of the clasps, and supplying a support rod from wire of your own stock on either or both sides, depending on whether you decide to prop both sides open. A framework is created from three parts that is placed within the outer frame of the load bed under the floor panel, which has planking and wood texture detail moulded-in, as does the header board that can be made from a single layer for the “basic modellers”, or two for the advanced modeller, which requires a little adjustment of the parts, trimming some details off with a sharp knife, and adding PE tie-downs that differ between open and closed options. The rear arches have short supports inserted into recesses that lock them in position under the bed, making the sides in either Basic or Advanced manner for later installation. A PE bracket and number plate holder are fitted under the rear of the bed, adding a light further up, with another bracket on the opposite corner that has just a styrene light glued to it. Two pairs of wheels are required next, making the single front pair from five tyre layers around the hub, and the rear tyres are each made from five tyre layers each, but have different hub parts, and a three-part jointing lamination between them. The bed is mated with the chassis, the wheels are installed on their axles, and front bumper with number plate is fixed to the front of the chassis, returning to the front axle to add a steering linkage and bar with the aid of a scrap diagram. Completing the model involves choosing whether to fix the sides and tail-gate up or down, attaching locking toggles to the corners, removing the lugs for the open option. Markings There are six decal options in a choice of various bright or subdued colours, with extensive decals on a large sheet. From the box you can build one of the following: Coal Trade Truck, Provinz Schlesien, Late 1930s Regierungs Bezirk Zwickau, Late 1930s The General Inspector of German Road System, Germany, Early 1940s Construction Service, Berlin, 1940s Technical Assistance Truck, Berlin, 1940s Technical Assistance Truck, Hamburg, 1940s Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion The Open Blitz played an important role in transporting the German Reich and their civilian counterparts around, and this kit is of excellent quality and detail that should be an out-of-the-box build for most modellers due to the high standard. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Hi everyone, Another North Africa scene I completed. I really liked the photo of the early stage of the conversion of a Pz III into the one and only 15cm sIG 33 L/11(Sf) auf Fahrgestell Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf.H (Sf), what one book includes as a "Rommel Funny" - not sure I like that term. This image illustrates the Sig33 artillery piece (I used the AFV kit) which has had the rear end cut away. It is suspended on a Bussing-NAG 3T crane (represented below by the AFV kit). The Pz III chassis is mostly a Dragon Ausf H with the engine, crew compartment walls and interior from RLM's Ausf J. In the foreground is a Holmes Wrecker but I couldn't find the kit. The figures are modified from various DAK kits to reflect the scene. Challenging bits were the tank conversion overall, the crane, and the "ropes" added to the DEF Model's Opel Blitz tarp. A really fun build... I hope you enjoy seeing the end product. Apologies for some of the photos where the flash tends to be a bit much and wash out the colour. My lightbox is too small. Questions and comments always welcome... Jeremy

German 3T Cargo Truck 3.6-36S Pritsche-Normal-Type Military Service (35442) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd Opel was Germany’s largest truck producer during the 1930s, and their Blitz line of trucks played a large part in transporting Germany and their military around Europe, with over 130,000 of all variants made before the end of WWII. The name Blitz was given to the vehicle after a competition to find its new name, with a stylised S logo that resembled half of the SS badge, but also became the Opel logo that remains today. By the mid-30s there was a growing range of body-styles and load capacities available, replacing the locally produced engines with General Motors units nearer the outbreak of war, after GM bought Opel. This led to a 3.6T load-carrying option, which became almost ubiquitous in Wehrmacht service, but the new engines made it easier for the Allies to press captured Blitzes into service with a few tweaks, thanks to some familiarity with the motor. Unfortunately, due to its common usage, the Opel brand and its trucks were somewhat tainted by the War Crimes carried out by the Nazis and the SS, building them at the factories using forced labour, transporting prisoners to death camps, and even as a ‘gas van’ to carry out the heinous act itself. The rest of the Wehrmacht used the type for more typical roles of transport and carriage of men and matériel to, around and from the battlefield. They were typically painted in the colours of their operators, but the wooden load bed was sometimes seen in green. Following WWII production restarted, and it wasn’t until 1952 that a complete new design was used instead of the old pre-war Blitz. The Kit This is a new tool from MiniArt, and the start of a line of variants that will hopefully steer clear of certain subjects. The kit arrives in a standard top-opening MiniArt box, and inside are twenty-one sprues in grey styrene of differing sizes, a clear sprue, a sheet of Photo-Etch (PE) brass in a card envelope, a decal sheet, and instruction booklet that is printed on glossy paper in colour, with profiles for the decal options on the front and rearmost pages. MiniArt have a habit of creating highly detailed kits that include interiors to the cab, engine and under the chassis, that are augmented by the sensible addition of PE parts where scale thickness will benefit. This is common practice for them now, and there’s no reason to expect anything else. Construction begins with the ladder chassis, which has some small raised marks removed from the main rails, spacing them apart by adding four cross-braces between them, with another three and a fuel tank in the second fit, applying a spare tyre that is made of six layers to achieve the tread pattern, sited on the top of the twin brace, and a fitting a towing shackle at the rear. Flipping the chassis over, a protective cowling is fixed between the moulded-in front leaf-springs, adding two L-shaped brackets on the chassis sides, a pair of leaf-springs on the rear, and two hooks at the ends of the chassis rails. An interlude sees the engine built from a four-part block, festooning it with ancillaries, intake and exhaust manifold, the transmission housing that is built from seven parts and mated to the rear of the block, serpentine belt and fan to the front, dropping it into the front of the chassis, and mounting a stowage box on the left rail near the spare tyre. On the opposite side, a Jerry can is made from two halves with a PE seamline trapped in the centre, adding triple handles and a filler cap on top, then securing it in a three-part frame, held in place by two PE straps. Two more hooks are fixed to the front of the chassis, with a horn between them, and a two-part exhaust that stretches from the end of the manifold to the rear of the vehicle, turning left and exiting to the side, with a long muffler that hides the joint between the two parts. A scrap diagram shows where the downpipe should fit in relation to the engine and chassis. A substantial axle is mounted under the front leaf-springs, stretching a drive-shaft between the rear of the transmission and the rear axle with differential bulge, making it from two halves. A couple of small parts are added to the sides of the chassis near the front, and the radiator is built from three layers, plus feeder hoses, mounting it in the front on two pegs, a small PE bracket in the centre, and noting the location of both feeder hoses that supply hot water to and colder water from the radiator. Building the cab starts with the dash, adding instrument backs and other small parts to the rear, plus a dash-pot, an oil-can, and the steering column, flipping it over to install the steering-wheel and a lever, applying four dial decals after detail painting. The floor has eight small notches cut around the sides, turning it over the apply the foot pedals, handbrake and gear levers into position arranged around the left seat, then making two engine cowling side panels that have the lowest end of the A-pillar moulded-in, using alternate parts for one decal option, then gluing them to the floor, trapping the dash and the radiator cowling with separate logos between them, and placing a bench cushion over the hole in the floor. The cab rear has the back cushion glued to it along with a pair of vents, and a small rear window in the centre, mating it to the growing cab assembly along with the roof panel that has the windscreen frame moulded into it, slipping a clear screen in from outside. Two decal options have a warning triangle mounted on a PE bracket in the centre front of the roof, removing two small rivet marks from further back. Turning the assembly over, the front arches with moulded-in running boards are fitted after drilling out some holes and removing raised location marks on the curved top-sides. PE brackets are attached within the engine bay, and windscreen wipers are created either from PE parts, or styrene alternatives if you prefer, making a pair of headlamps from styrene backs and clear lenses, plus optional slit covers for wartime use, attaching to the arches using small raised markers to locate the PE brackets. The cab doors have open or closed window options plus a choice of open or closed quarter-lights installed in the frame, adding a door card, handle, winder and lever to the insides, plus handle, drip-guard from PE, and a long-stemmed wing mirror for the driver’s side. Before they are put in position, a three-part jack is fixed to the co-driver’s step, and of course they can be posed in open, closed or any position in between. The bonnet can be posed open or closed too, starting with the tapering fixed centre section, leaving the rest until later in the build, but adding a convoy light on a PE bracket at the front of the left wheel arch. The cab is dropped into place over the engine, adding rabbit-ear indicators to the rear on PE brackets, and mounting a pair of supports in the rear of the chassis. The closed engine cowling is made from two L-shaped segments with louvres moulded-in, plus clasps at the bottom edge, or the same cowling parts can be used tilted up along the centreline, utilising different open versions of the clasps, and supplying a support rod from wire of your own stock on either or both sides, depending on whether you decide to prop both sides open. A framework is created from three parts that is placed within the outer frame of the load bed under the floor panel, which has copious planking and wood texture detail moulded-in, as does the header board that can be made from a single layer for the “basic” modellers”, or two for the advanced modeller, which requires a little adjustment of the parts, trimming some details off with a sharp knife, and adding PE tie-downs. The rear arches have short supports inserted into recesses that lock them in position under the bed, making the sides in either Basic or Advanced manner for later installation. A pair of stowage boxes are made and glued under the rear of the bed, mounting a PE bracket and number plate holder upon it, and fixing a light further up. A Notek convoy light is fitted to the rear lip of the bed, with another bracket on the opposite corner that has just a styrene light glued to it. Two pairs of wheels are required next, making the single front pair from five tyre layers around the hub, and the rear tyres are each made from five tyre layers each, but have different hub parts, and a three-part jointing lamination between them. The bed is mated with the chassis, the wheels are installed on their axles, and front bumper with number plate is fixed to the front of the chassis, returning to the front axle to add a steering linkage and bar with the aid of a scrap diagram. Completing the model involves choosing whether to fix the sides and tail-gate up or down, attaching locks to the corners, removing the lugs for the open option. Markings There are six decal options included on the small sheet, with a variety of schemes, some of which are two-tone. From the box you can build one of the following: Unidentified Luftwaffe Unit, Poland, 1939 Unidentified Wehrmacht Unit, Poland, 1939 267. Infanterie-Division, France, 1940 Organisation ‘Todt’, 1939-40 31. Infanterie-Division, Rifle Company, Eastern Front, 1940 62nd Separate Motorcycle Battalion, 2nd Ukrainian Front, Red Army, Czechoslovakia, Spring 1945 Decals are by Cartograf, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion The Open Blitz played an important role in transporting the German Reich around, and this kit is of excellent quality and detail that should be an out-of-the-box build for most modellers due to the high standard. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Hello, Opel Blitz Tamiya and Flak 2cm Dragon Model completed... Tarp fromDefmodel ans wheels from Mig Productions

Build this severals years back, the only aftermarket parts used in the build are 3 PE clamps. Canvas tarp made from tissue paper. [/url]

I finished another truck in Swedish WW2 era colours. I think it as 1/72 Roden kit. It has been unfinished so long that I've forgot.

One and a half year since I painted it and finally I managed to finish it. A civilian truck pressed in to military service. On my Scania Vabis I used a thin solder for the tubing of the gasifier and I decided to do the same here.

I fancied something nice and quick after 4 tanks in a row, so dug this one out. I bought some Star Decals with big 'Rauchen Verboten!' warnings because they looked fun. Cab, chassis, covered load bed, dunkelgrau - what could go wrong? Two large sprues in a nasty dark grey plastic (hello 1970s!) and some really mad instructions with arrows all over the place somehow linking the parts together, Then I spent a good 30 minutes just looking at the cab parts and trying to get them to fit together and line up. Hmm. There's gonna be a few gaps. It's going to be draughty in there for poor old Hans! The doors are moulded into the cab sides, with a very thin section down the hinge joint. Apparently they can be opened up once the cab is assembled, and swung open "several times without breaking". It's going to be a different kind of fun to what I was expecting, but I'm sure it will go great. I might need to find better wheels. The tyres are rubber and only the front rims have 8 spokes, the rears are commercial 6 spoke ones. Perhaps that would be correct for an early one though. Wish me luck! I can't find any previous builds on here, just a few saying what a relief the Tamiya Blitz was after this effort. It can't be that bad though, it's just a cab and a chassis and a covered bed.

Hello all Today a few pictures from a project I have been working on for a long time. My plan is to convert the W 39 as an early version into a tour bus of the artists for the troop support - therefore the title "Fronttheater". The Roden model is not that high in quality, but the price is 🤑 The entire conversion is not based on an existing vehicle but only on my imagination. For wartime use, vehicles were often converted to suit the needs, so in my opinion it is not unrealistic. Another interesting vehicle would be a workshop bus-but there are already a few of those. So now a tour bus-let it rock 😎 MD Modification of the wheel housing and new resin wheels the rear axle is lower to simulate weight Pictures of the inside will follow...

I started this a good few months ago, and boldly/foolishly decided to include a driver figure to spice it up a bit. The truck sat with just the passenger door fitted while I tried to paint my first figure since the Airfix multipose ones about 40 years ago (and how good they were!) I just couldn't get the fleshtones right at all, so Jurgen ended up with a face only his mother could love and hair like custard. Off to the shelf of Doom! I had a JFDI moment on Saturday, so I got back to work and finished him off. The pictures don't do him justice, but at least he'll be stuck behind glass once the windscreen is on. I'm sure that Francois Verlinden started off in the same way. I have told myself that I will not have a Shelf of Doom. Only been back a few months and there's this Opel Blitz, an Sd.KFz. 222, and a Takom Hanomag SS100 that have been "put to one side". I'm taking myself in hand and sorting them out

Hi all, would anyone have any reference material for the Opel Blitz being used in the SCW, would these have been painted in the early three tone camouflage or the generic field grey/green? Also the kit I'm planning on using would be: https://www.scalemates.com/kits/181439-icm-35401-typ-2-5-32-1-5to I know they were used quite widely by the Condor Legion but information is a little scarce

Here's my take on a widely-used German truck. I chose to model one from the Polish campaign.

Dear fellow Britmodellers, this is Fujimi's 1/72 Opel Blitz Ambulance truck. Painted with Gunze/Mr.Hobby acrylics. Photographs by Wolfgang Rabel.

Ok so rather than Flooding the forum with a huge amount of new topics I'd just condense some of my favourite 1/16 models all done in the last 18 months. Theres a few more to come still!!! I've a Bulldog and tank transporter to detail and paint too.and will need to take some photos of my winter KV1 note the T34 interior was based on photos I took from inside one at a show that was happily driving around the arena... the amount of rust and paint flake has NOT been exaggerated 😳😳😳 album link as there are many more. https://flickr.com/photos/150255258@N02/sets/72157686523917386 Sorry so so many photos!!!

Hi all. With my Grizzly finished I decided to move to next project. This time I wanted to change something in my way of building models. Up to this point my modelling was pretty straight forward. Bulding, painting, filters, washes, oils, chippings, streakings, pigments. In the end I had a nice looking model, but it is not what I desire. I wanna do a little bit of storytelling with my work. I wanna build a vehicle (scaled) that has been somewhere. I also want to be more aware of what I'm doing and how that affects the whole project. That said, I wanna break down my weathering to smaller sections rather than do it on a whole model. That way I'll see the difference and possibly understand the WHY of using some method. Also, with every new model I want to try something new or do something old differently. The main topic of this project will be: WOOD. Painting and weathering wooden structures. To do this, I chose ICM's Opel Blitz type 2,5-32. Here's some pictures. The boxart. First of all, I'm not gonna use shelter as my Opel will be a little bit post-war. That's what's inside the box. Not too many parts and rubber tyres. There will be some additions. Let's get to work. The plastic is rather soft, so work goes nicely. There are a lot of small or thin parts though, so pay extra attention to cutting it. Chassis is quite detailed. I also started with interior. I broke down building stage to four stages and I do the separatly: engine, chassis, shelter's floor and cabin. Engine is quite hard to build as it consists of 21 parts. Interior is the first thing that's gonna see paint. First: the primer. Door with details. Pretty neat. Floor. Interior is quite simple. The seat needed to be roughened up a bit in my opinion, so I did some folded tarps. That's paper towels soaked in PVA glue and water mixture. First layer of paint: steel. After that I put some chipping fluid on which was followed by some dark grey colour. Next stage was chipping with a brush dipped in water. The same happened with the door. OK, that will be it for now. Thanks for watching. Dawid

A few quick builds this week to give my Mustangs and Fireflies something to aim at. Untitled by jongwinnett, on Flickr Untitled by jongwinnett, on Flickr Untitled by jongwinnett, on Flickr Untitled by jongwinnett, on Flickr As you can see, I couldn't resist tinkering a bit, so one Opel has had the tilt opened at the rear. My only other addition so far has been drive shafts: Untitled by jongwinnett, on Flickr These are very good value, three in a box (One 251 D still to build), quick and easy to put together, and a decent basic canvas for detailing if you want.