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German Flakpanzer V Ausf.A (84535) 1:35 Hobby Boss via The Flakpanzer V was a derivative of the Panther main battle tank that was developed by Rheinmetall and utilised a pair of 3.7cm Flak guns with 1,500 rounds between them that were mounted in an enclosed turret with sufficient elevation to allow the gunner to target aircraft successfully. The vehicle in this form was another paper or wooden Panzer because at the end of the war, the project had been cancelled with only a mock-up utilising a Panther D chassis and a wooden turret completed in 1944. The project commenced in 1943, initially considering a pair of 20mm cannons, then it was proposed to increase the size of the weapons to 3.7cm and eventually to 55mm in due course, as the feeling was that just as 20mm flak cannons were falling out of favour for being too light-weight, eventually the 37mm would suffer the same fate. The project was shut down following the D-Day invasion and Allied incursion into previously secure territory, partly because the Panther chassis were needed for the front-line, but also because the 37mm guns were already considered unfit for development. Before cancellation however, it was given the name Coelian. The Kit This is a partial retool of the original Flakpanther kit from Hobby Boss that was released in 2012 with a single flak cannon open on the deck, which has seen numerous reboxings with new parts over the intervening years, and now enters the realms of the paper/wooden panzer with this latest alteration. The kit arrives in a top-opening box with an interesting painting of an in-service machine with a pair of crew figures on top, although these aren’t included in the box. Inside are ten sprues in sand-coloured styrene and three separate hull/turret parts in the same colour, nineteen sprues in brown, two sheets of Photo-Etch (PE), a decal sheet, black and white instruction booklet and an A4 sheet of colour profiles in panzer grey. Detail is good and the part-count is high, moreso due to the individual link tracks that accompany the kit. Construction begins with the lower hull, which receives twin rows of torsion suspension tubes, plus axle sheaths that are first mounted on a rail for each side, then are slipped through the exits on the sides of the hull from the inside, to have the actual bars fed through with the swing-arms moulded into the ends. The idler axles are pushed into holes in the rear, and the armoured final drive covers are first added at the front, then have the housings with guide wheel and other suspension parts completing the fitting. The Panther spread its weight with interleaved wheels, the under sets in singles, the outer in pairs, which are slipped over the axles in order along with the three-part idler wheels and drive sprockets to complete the running gear in preparation for the tracks. Each track link has four sprue gates and has two separate guide-horns glued in place before they are linked together into runs of eighty-eight, which will require glue to hold them together. It’s best to make them into runs and drape them around the road wheels while the glue is still soft, securing them in place with tape, foam and anything else you can find to help. The sprue gates are on concave edges of the links, but with a circular needle file or motor tool on low speed, it’s the work of moments to deal with them. With the tracks in place, the fenders are fixed on tabs that mate with slots in the top of the lower hull, have the front mud guards added, making up the rear bulkhead to finish off, which has the usual twin exhausts with PE stabiliser brackets, angular stowage boxes, jack, and access hatches added to complete it. The upper hull has vision blocks inserted from below at the front, then with the part right-side-up, the forward hatch insert and swinging hatches, then the engine hatch with insert on the engine deck, followed by the circular grilles and rectangular radiator grilles with PE mesh over them, mushroom vents, lifting hooks and grab-handles are all installed. On the sloping sides of the hull the pioneer tools on frames, barrel cleaning rod tube and spare track link racks are placed all over any open area. At the front, the glacis plate has a single headlight, driver’s hatch, and notable by its absence, no kugelblende, as the bow machine gun had been deleted on this variant. The two hull halves are brought together, and have optional width indicator lollipops on the fenders, and tiny wingnuts across the join. The hull is completed by adding the towing shackles at the rear and gluing six hangers under the sponsors to accept the PE schurzen, which are in four sections, allowing you to bend, remove or dent them as you see fit to add a little individualism to your model. The turret is the last assembly to be made, and starts with the enclosure that covers the breeches of the 37mm cannons, with two holes in the forward end, and pegs in the bulbous rear, which mount on a pair of tapering trunnions inside the turret part, which is a complete moulding of the upper structure that is completed by adding the floor with moulded-in bayonet lugs and rear access hatch plus the two barrels, both of which have tapering hollow muzzles thanks to a bit of handy slide moulding. The perforations on the sides could be drilled out if you have the bits and patience, and there are depressions there to guide you if you’re feeling brave. On the top of the turret are two circular hatches, another that has a square cover laid over it, three mushroom vents and a shell ejection port on the centre rear with separate hatch. The commander’s hatch is relatively simple, but has a wide binocular targeting mechanism that is mounted over the hatch, which begs the question “how would you open the hatch with that in position?”. The turret and hull are joined by bringing them together and twisting to lock them in position. Markings There was only one of these wicked-looking beasts made, and that was partly made of wood. The prototype was painted Panzer Grey, so if you’re going for accuracy that’s the colour. If you’ve a mind to create a what-if or what might have been though, you have plenty of examples of late war camouflage out there, so have at it. From the box you can build the following: The scanner has made the red code digits appear slightly pink. They aren't in reality. Decals aren’t usually Hobby Boss’s strongest point, but these will be suitable for the job, as the sheet consists of three rows of digits plus a few spare zeroes, and two pairs of crosses in different sizes. The inclusion of the red digits will come in handy for anyone planning to go off-piste. Conclusion The Coelian is an interesting off-shoot of the successful Panther lineage that was still-born due to circumstances, but this is a nice modern tooling with plenty of detail. Add some figures, stowage to personalise it and place it in a small urban or factory diorama, and it will draw plenty of attention. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Hi All, Here's the Takom Flakpanther with the twin 37mm turret. You also get a much less attractive looking 4 * 20mm option turret but I'd imagine most people will build this as at least a wooden mock up of it was produced. I can't bring myself to glue on individual track horns so went for Fruils both sides have about 1 link too many when i look at it now. Otherwise a great kit which I enjoyed immensely. Very simple "diorama" just to give it a bit of context - still struggle with faces as you can see. Would appreciate your thoughts Many Thanks David