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Kugelblitz Flak Panzer IV (BT-039) 1:35 Border Model via Albion Alloys Unlike the later Tiger and Panther tanks, the Panzer IV had been designed in the years leading up to the outbreak of WWII, and was intended for a different role than it eventually played, which was as an infantry support tank with the mobile artillery function rolled into one. It was a heavier tank than the previous numbered types, and was well-designed, although it did suffer from the typical WWII German over-engineering that made them complex, expensive and slow to build, as well as difficult to maintain. The type went through several successive variants including enhancements such as a more powerful engine to give better performance, improved armour thickness for survivability, and latterly the provision of a larger gun with a longer high-velocity barrel that was based upon the Pak.40, but with shortened recoil mechanism and an enlarged muzzle-brake that helped contain the powerful recoil from the 75mm round. The new gun was a direct reaction to the first encounter with the T-34 in Soviet hands, an incident that shocked the German tankers and their superiors, as they knew very little of its existence until they had to fight it, and didn’t like the way their shots were prone to ricocheting off the sloped glacis. In true Nazi style, many variants with various intended uses were developed by the engineers from the base chassis, including four anti-aircraft options, starting with the Möbelwagen that looked like a skip dumped on top of a turretless tank, with a 37mm Flak cannon thrown in it, which garnered the nickname Moving Van in English. Its successors were the Wirbelwind and the Ostwind, mounting four 20mm or a single 37mm cannon respectively in a lightly armoured cupola. The final variant was too late to be of any use on the battlefield, and was the Kugelblitz, perhaps recognising that the anti-aircraft installation was as useful defending against ground attacks as aircraft. It mounted two 30mm Mk103 cannons in an armoured turret that had been developed for fitting to U-Boats, but only five pre-production instances were built before the war ended. It is thought that one of the examples was pressed into service toward the end of the war, as its rusted hull was found in 1999 buried at the site of a battle in central Germany. The Kit This kit is billed as a new tooling, however it shares a few sprues for the running gear with other kits in the Border range that are also based upon the Panzer IV chassis, so if you have one of their Jagdpanzer IVs, you might recognise them. The kit arrives in a top-opening box, and inside are eleven sprues and a hull part in grey styrene, a pair of turned and milled brass barrels for the 30mm cannons, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE), a length of braided wire, a tiny sheet of decals, and the instruction booklet that has colour profiles on the rear pages. Detail is good and up with the best Panzer IV kits, bringing link-and-length tracks, metal barrels, and a full depiction of the ball-like turret that is the core of the model. Construction begins with the lower hull, which is slide-moulded with plenty of detail on all external surfaces, and includes the cooling vents on the sides of the engine compartment, simplifying the build a little. Suspension bump-stops and other components are added to the sides, and the rear bulkhead with idler axle mounts, towing eye on two mounting plates, making up sixteen sets of paired road wheels that slide onto the twin bogies, handed to each side. Eight paired return rollers, two-part drive sprockets and four-part idler wheels are also made up and installed along with the two final drive housings at the front of the hull. This leads us to the tracks, which are of the link-and-length variety, offering the modeller a simplified variation on independent links, whilst easing the task of obtaining the correct sag, particularly to the upper run, which has substantial sag moulded-in, a conspicuous feature of this tank’s track system. Eight individual links are installed around the drive sprocket along with a short diagonal length then three more individual links, with a similar process carried out at the rear, but with one lower link transferred to fit around the idler wheel, and an extra link moulded into the diagonal section. Detail is excellent, with just a few small ejector-pin marks on the insides of the longer lengths that you can hide if you think they’ll be seen through the muck and grime of weathering. The hull can now be fitted with the glacis plate, with inspection hatches and armoured hinge covers plus brackets, laying a seven-link length of track across the fixed central panel as DIY appliqué armour. The fenders go on next, adding slide-moulded mudflaps to the ends, cutting off the short schürzen brackets moulded into the outer lip of the fenders. The upper hull is made from the roof and side sections, adding crew hatches to the front, a couple of grab-handles and a tool box over the engine bay, in what is at this stage a pretty standard Panzer IV hull. It is mated with the lower hull, and has the upper glacis place with bow machine gun installed on the right with a barrel stub through the centre, and the driver’s armoured vision port on the left, fitting small return springs to the sides of the front mudguards, and two more at the rear, whilst installing the rear of the engine bay and two armour panels over the exhaust baffles, followed by the covers, which are depicted as open for this boxing. Twin exhausts with slide-moulded exits are mated with their armoured bases that have a PE top, and joined to the rear bulkhead, fixing the four towing eyes to each end of lengths of braided wire and supporting them on a bracket mounted at the top of the rear bulkhead. A full set of pioneer tools, including fire extinguisher, axe, track tools, detailed jack and block, a shovel and various other small parts are dotted around the upper surfaces, adding an open-topped stowage box with four road wheels and two spanners in them on the left fender, and more track links from custom links on the right side. A single headlight is fitted on the front of the left fender, a Notek convoy light on left rear fender, and even more track links are draped across the lower glacis, held on by a bracket welded to the forward towing mounts. Building the turret begins with the short breeches of the mk 103 cannons, which are each three parts, mounting them in a boxy surround, with the two barrel bases projecting through holes in the front face. Gun controls and a door are applied to the rear of the assembly, gluing the door in the lowered position, then adding two side supports and the curved armour to the front. Ammo boxes and arched feeder chutes are attached to the sides, building the roof from several parts before fixing it over the gun assembly. A curved rear panel has hinges added to it before it is glued to the back of the roof, and the whole gun mount is bracketed by two domed pivots that have additional details glued to the inner surface, doubling up the thickness of the rear panel to enhance the detail further. A clamshell hatch with a periscope on one side are inserted in the cut-out in the roof, either open or closed at your whim, then trunnions are installed over circular bearings on each side of the turret, which glue to the sides of the turret ring on recessed areas. Covers are fixed over the ammo boxes with hinges on the inner faces, and the conical splinter shield is lowered over the assembly, clearing the barrel stubs first, and mounting two retaining pins along the break-open portions of the shield. Outer shrouds are slotted over the barrel stubs, and the brass barrels are inserted into the centres, choosing whether to install the travel lock on the rightmost barrel shroud before you install it on the hull. The brass barrels have plenty of detail on them, with a milled muzzle brake at the tips, depicting the side exits, although these don’t extend into the barrel, but are recessed to give the impression that they do. A little black paint will improve that impression once the model is painted. Markings There are two markings options included on the decal sheet, both of which are possibly fictional, although as at least one of the pre-production examples saw combat, one or more could be real. From the box you can build one of the following: The decals are supplied on a tiny sheet, with just four Balkenkreuz provided, one pair in white, the others in black and white. Both are well-printed and suitable for the task, but don’t forget to apply them before any weathering, so they look as grimy as the paint work. Conclusion This is an interesting and unusual variant of the Panzer IV, with plenty of detail and a couple of fun camouflage schemes. You probably can’t tell from the side profiles, but the colourful option looks like a Catherine wheel from above. Highly recommended. Available in the UK in all good model shops. Review sample courtesy of

Bofors 40mm AA/AS Gun PT Boat Weapon Set #6 (N72044 for Revell) 1:72 CMK Navy Series by Special Hobby The American PT boat series were fast, agile and well-armed to deal with the Japanese enemy in the Pacific theatre for the most part. Revell’s kits of these famous sea-borne warriors are quite old now, so upgrades to the level of detail to modern standards is a worthwhile proposition. This set is number six of a growing series of sets that are now available for the basic kit, and it depicts the Bofors 40mm Anti-Aircraft cannon that saw extensive use both at sea and in the air during WWII, which was based upon a Swedish design that had been instigated as an improvement on previous Vickers designs. They were often seen mounted on the foredeck of PT boats on a substantial boxy installation, and the gun was used almost ubiquitously by WWII Allied Navies. The set arrives in a white cardboard box with a captive top flap and sticker showing the contents. Inside are three bags of parts, the traditional cast resin in grey, and the 3D printed parts in a bright orange colour. Additionally, a small fret of Photo-Etch (PE) provides more parts, and all this is protected by the instruction sheet and a few polystyrene foam peanuts to increase stability of the parts during transport and storage. The resin parts are attached to their casting and print bases in sensible locations to reduce clean-up work, and once the parts are liberated, they can be put to good use. Construction begins with the resin base, onto which the rotating floor and rear rails are added from the 3D parts, fitting PE foot rests and orange resin seats with PE backrests. A curved 3D profile is fixed to the rear of the floor, then the gun is built up based upon the breech, two of which are included, one for horizontal and one for elevated poses. Your choice of breech receives the barrel at the front, a resin ammo feeder that locates in a recess in the top of the breech, plus a PE twin ring-and-bead sight so that both crew members can sight the gun. It is mounted between two trunnions with PE elevation winder handles that should be glued in opposition to each other, adding twin elevation pistons under the front for the elevated option, and a curved resin part to the rear. The horizontal breech also has a choice of installing a covered ammo feeder instead of the open feeder that has rounds ready for firing. The base of the completed gun assembly is then plugged into a recess in the centre of the floor of the rotating portion to finish off, and a replacement stowage box has been included to improve details on the deck as a bonus. Markings There are no decals in the box, and no painting instructions are provided, as these will be found in the base Revell kit. Conclusion If your kit comes with a 40mm Bofors, this is a great way to upgrade the detail simply. If it doesn’t, you can install it on the front deck to add some individuality to your model. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

TOR M-2/SA-15 Gauntlet Update Set (36473 for Zvezda) 1:35 Eduard We reviewed Zvezda’s new Multiple Launch Rocket System (MLRS) tracked Anti-Aircraft vehicle in June of this year, which you can see here if you don’t yet have one and are interested. This new set is designed for that kit, and as usual with Eduard's Photo-Etch (PE) and Mask sets, it arrives in a flat resealable package, with a white backing card protecting the contents and the instructions that are sandwiched between. The set is etched from a large brass sheet and contains a large number of parts, many of which are grilles and perforated plates. You will need to have some 0.6mm rod on hand to complete the first section, which is a set of louvers on both lower sides of the turret, after removing the chunkier moulded-in detail. The radar dish is fitted with a curved PE edge on the underside; twin exhausts in the turret cut-out have their detail removed and are replaced by two-layer PE grilles; the trapezoid mesh grilles on the ends of the turret sponsons have their mesh material replaced by two layers of PE on each side; the letter-box shaped engine exhaust on the side of the hull has the mesh material replaced by PE as well, with a PE back-box behind it that is shown in place on a scrap diagram with another small rectangle cut from the styrene and backed with a shallow box; the various engine deck hatches have their vented sections scraped back and are replaced by perforated panels of various shapes with lifting handles on some of them. The large radiator bath on the rear side of the deck is also outfitted with a new grille to replace the material after reducing the height of the edges, and you are advised to use a steel ball to sag the mesh afterward to depict the after-effect of the crew walking on it. There are many more grilles on the engine deck, and the front hull section has its raised patches removed and replaced by more perforated panels that have small upstands folded under them to raise them from the deck; the pioneer tools are all upgraded with detailed shackles after removing the chunky styrene renditions, and the big two-man saw is replaced entirely by a new blade and protector from PE, using short lengths of 0.5mm rod for the handles. A number of brackets are fixed to the glacis, and on the rear two more are used to retain a spare track link in amongst the stowage boxes. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of

Flakpanzer IV “Wirbelwind” 2cm Flak 38 (03296) 1:35 Revell Wirbelwind translates to Whirlwind in English, and this was the name used for the converted Panzer IVs that were fitted with a new open turret that contained a quartet of 2cm Flak 38 anti-aircraft guns mounted within, and were used as mobile air defence wherever it was needed. Around a hundred were made and some were used as troop support due to the concentrated fire being useful against enemy personnel and soft-skinned vehicles, but for aircraft a larger calibre was deemed necessary, resulting in the creation of the Ostwind with a single 3.7cm Flak 43 in a more streamlined turret, although this too was open-topped due to the fumes from the cannon. The Kit This is a reboxing of a fairly old Academy kit of the type, but for its age (it’s a child of the 80s) it looks to be one of their better kits, and while it isn’t cutting edge, the main giveaway that it is of an older vintage is the space for an electric motor in the hull and that some of the ejector-pin marks are a little rougher and there are a few small sink marks here and there, such as in some of the stowed magazines. The kit arrives in an end-opening box, and inside are five sprues and two hull parts in a sand-coloured styrene, two sprues of flexible poly-caps, two lengths of black flexible tracks, decal sheet and instruction booklet. Unusually, construction begins with the rear bulkhead, adding a flat tank and exhaust muffler along with a few other small parts. Then the road wheels are made up in 16 pairs with a poly-cap in the centre, which is also the case with the drive sprocket and idler wheel, the latter being of the tubular outer ring type. Eight pairs of return rollers are also glued together, after which the lower hull is prepared with bogey parts, four per side. The final drive housing is fitted to the sides of the hull, the return rollers are added, and the road wheels are attached, two per bogey plus drive sprockets and idlers on each side. Small hooks, towing eyes and stiffening webs for the idlers are stuck on as this progresses, then the tracks are joined by four pins that are melted flat by careful use of a hot screwdriver blade or similar. The upper hull is fairly complete from the box, but has forward fender sections, rear bulkhead, front glacis armour panel with driver’s slit and bow machine gun added, plus a host of pioneer tools, grab-handles, fire extinguisher, crew hatches and convoy lights dotted around. Side panels, spare road wheel carriers and other stowage boxes finish off the upper hull, then attention turns to the turret and its weaponry. The quad mount for the Flak cannons is made up first, with a pivot at the centre and elevation and sighting mechanisms glued to the assembly. The guns are mounted on either side of that assembly on a circular plate, with a narrow, curved shield slipped over the barrels and curved 20mm magazines plugged into each breech. You’ll need to drill out the muzzles if it concerns you, then the two paired barrels are pressed into position on either side of the base, using no glue other than for a few connecting rods. There is a gunner’s seat at the rear of the base, and here is where the crew figures that are included on the sprues come in handy. Four figures are included, in the shape of gunner, two loaders and a commander figure, all dressed in winter overalls with spats over their boots to keep out the mud or snow. The gunner is sat on the seat before installation, then he and the guns are inserted into the lower section of the turret along with two racks of magazines, ammo can and two additional seats for the other two seated figures, who are inserted into the turret before it is closed up due to the close fit of the walls. The commander figure is standing, and can be posed with field glasses up to his eyes, scanning the sky for targets. The top shroud of the turret is placed on top of the assembly along with a pair of supports and the panel in the centre between the guns. The last steps include joining the upper and lower hulls together, twisting the turret into place on its bayonet connector, adding some spare styrene track lengths at the front, towing ropes at the back, and then stretching some sprue to fit a 70mm antenna on the base at the rear left of the hull. Markings There are two markings options in the box on a small sheet that contains little more than four black crosses with white outlines, and two white serial numbers. From the box you can build one of the following: Unknown unit Summer-Autumn 1944 Factory fresh vehicle with production number after delivery to Normandy, 1945 It’s a small sheet, but the 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 It’s not the most modern tooling, but it shouldn’t tax anyone too much, and a lot of folks still prefer flexible rubbery tracks, of which these are nicely done. You might want to fill in a few sink marks and ejector-pin marks here and there, or just have fun with it. Recommended. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or

QF 3.7-inch AA gun (fixed) pic taken by Rich Ellis at Nothe Fort, Weymouth.