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  1. Starting with a new one - this time it is Panzer III by Dragon. The kit I'm using is artillery observer tank Panzerbeobachtungswagen III but I'll build it into a regular Panzer III Ausf.G, as all the bits are supposedly in there. The turret shell is the only exception, but it'll be not too hard to convert. I have Voyager PE set and fenders to add as well as Aber barrels for the main gun an for MG's and a set of MasterClub metal tracks. I like Dragon's Pz.III based kits for their accuracy and crisp details and this one is up to that too. It's going together really fast at this stage and no hardships to report thus far. Cheers! Kristjan
  2. I wanted to work up a relatively quick build (@1 month or so) to up my output for the year since I'm a little behind in my goal of averaging one completed project per month. The newer-tooled Dragon Panzer and StuG III kits are really nice and are fairly straightforward and well-detailed. This one is getting close to the finish line, just needing a few small details and the tracks before I add it to a display base.
  3. StuG III Ausf.G 1945 Alkett Prod. (35388) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd The StuG is a German WWII AFV that is popular with modern modellers, and the more you learn about it, the more obvious it becomes why. The SturmGeschutz III was based upon the chassis of the Panzer III, but removed the turret and front deck, replacing it with an armoured casemate with a lower profile that mounted a fixed gun with limited traverse. It was originally intended to be used as infantry support, using its (then) superior armour to advance on the enemy as a mobile blockhouse, but it soon found other uses as an ambush predator, and was employed as a tank destroyer, hiding in wait for Allied forces to stumble haplessly into its path, where it could be deadly. With the advances in sloped armour employed by the Soviets, the original low velocity 75mm StuK 37 L/24 cannon was replaced by higher velocity unit that was also used in the Panzer IV for tank-on-tank combat, extending the type’s viable career to the end of WWII. The earliest prototypes were made of mild steel and based on a Panzer III Ausf.B chassis, and while equipped with guns, they were unsuitable for combat due to the relative softness of the steel that would have led to a swift demise on the battlefield, being withdrawn in '41-42. By this time the StuG III had progressed to the Ausf.G, which was based on the later Panzer III Ausf.M, with a widened upper hull and improvements in armour to increase survivability prospects for the crew. Many of the complicated aspects of the earlier models that made them time-consuming and expensive to produce were removed and simplified by that time, which led to several specific differences in some of the external fitments around the gun, such as the Saukopf mantlet protector. The Ausf.G was the last and most numerous version that was used until the end of the war with additional armour plates often welded or bolted to the surface to give it enhanced protection from the Allied tanks and artillery. The Kit MiniArt now have production well-and-truly running again after the shock of the invasion on the 24th of February 2022 forced them to up-sticks to escape from the bombardments, and they are now back in full flow. We’re all still firmly behind you! MiniArt have now released several toolings of the late StuG III and this is a continuation of the Ausf.G series, which had changes layered on changes during the final batches as the war ground to its ultimate conclusion. This boxing is another Alkett factory example from 1945 near the bitter end, and arrives in a standard top-opening box in the MiniArt style, with attractive artwork and decal profiles on one side. Inside the box are thirty-seven sprues in mid-grey styrene, one in clear, two good-sized Photo-Etch (PE) frets of brass parts, decal sheet and glossy-covered instruction booklet with colour profiles on the front and rear covers. Detail is excellent throughout, which is just what we’ve come to expect from modern toolings by MiniArt, with so much detail crammed into every part of the model, including individual track links that are different from the earlier pre-series kit we reviewed some while back. Construction begins with the floor panel, which receives the torsion suspension bars with their fittings, a pair of runners to support the engine that isn’t included in this boxing, and the support structure for the gun, which is made up from substantial beams that have a traverse shoe placed on top to give the gun its limited 15° travel for fine-tuning lateral aim. The rear bulkhead is set against the engine mounts with its exhausts applied to the exterior, and the hull sides are mated to the floor, with the bases for the final drive housing glued to the front next to the front bulkhead. The glacis plate with transmission inspection hatches are given a similar treatment, plus another appliqué panel, and the usual exhaust covers, towing lugs and idler protection are added to the rear, and a radiator exhaust panel with PE grille is made up and applied above it, adding some heat deflecting tinwork to the hull. Narrow bolted panels are added to the sides of the hull in preparation for the upper hull parts that are added next. Before the gun can be fitted, the walls of the casemate must be made up, and these are well-detailed externally, including vision slots, smoke grenade dispensers and lifting eyes. The shape of the casemate is completed with the addition of the front wall, which has a large cut-out to receive the gun in due course. The front of the casemate is built out forward with a sloped front and some appliqué armour, dropped over the front of the lower hull and joined by the breech assembly, which is covered by an armoured panel after armoured protectors to the mounting bolts have been glued over them. The commander’s cupola is built on a circular base into which seven clear periscopes are slipped, completing the task later with several protectors, PE latches and a set of V-shaped binocular sighting glasses in the separate front section of the cupola that can be open or closed independently to the main hatch. Much of the gun breech detail is represented, and a large trunnion is fitted onto the two pins on the sides of the assembly. Elevation, traverse, and sighting gear is installed on the breech, although it’s unlikely to be seen as anything other than a dim shadow within. Then it’s time to prepare the inner face of the Saukopf mantlet armour with four blocks and hooks to assist with attachment to the mantlet later, on similar blocks at the ends of the serpentine hooks, after which a bridge over the top encloses the breech and the Saukopf. The roof with some details added along with the commander’s cupola covers up the interior. The engine deck is built up with short sides and armoured intake louvres on the sides, which are covered with PE meshes as the deck is glued down onto the engine bay. A length of spare track links is fixed across the rear of the casemate with the fume extraction armour in the centre with the barrel cleaning rods underneath, lashed to the deck with PE and styrene parts, then the four hatches are made with armoured vents. two pairs of road wheels are carried on the deck with long pins through their holes that attach them to the rearmost pair of hatches. A field modification of a flat stowage box is mounted on the centre of the rear deck on PE brackets. The gunner’s hatch is a simpler affair consisting of a clamshell pair of doors, with the sharply-angled machine gun shield just in front of it and a well-detailed MG34 machine gun with drum mag slotted through the centre. As yet the StuG has no wheels, so the addition of the swing-arms with stub axles is needed, adding the highly detailed final drive housings under the front, plus additional suspension parts that improves damping. The idler adjuster is covered with armoured parts, and a group of pioneer tools are dotted around the sides of the engine deck, after which the paired wheels are fixed to the axles, with drive-sprockets at the front and idler wheels with PE outer rings at the rear, plus a trio of return rollers on short axles near the top of the sides. The tracks are individual links that are held together by pins, using 94 links per side, and each link has three sprue gates to clean up, plus a wisp of flash on the highly detailed sides, which will need scraping away with a sharp blade. I created a short length in short order, and the result is a very well-detailed track with flexibility to adjust them around the running gear of your model, and as they are a tight fit, they shouldn’t need glue, but I’d probably set them in position with liquid glue once I had them how I wanted them on the vehicle. Once they’re in place, the fenders are attached to the hull sides on small brackets, with integrated mudguards and tiny PE fittings added once the glue has dried. More pioneer tools and stowage are added to these, as space was a premium on these vehicles, and every flat surface ended up with equipment on it. This includes a Notek convoy light and either a highly detailed PE fire extinguisher or a simplified styrene alternative if you prefer. Shovels, pry bars, track-tools, jack blocks and the jack are also found on the fenders, as are the two towing cables, which have styrene eyes and you’ll need to supply the 110mm cable material yourself, with a set of PE tie-downs holding them and the tools in place on each side. The barrel of the gun slides through the bulky Saukopf mantlet cover, tipped with a detailed three-part muzzle brake to give it the correct hollow look. A pair of aerials and a PE ‘fence’ around the edge of the engine deck that’s intended to hold in any stray stowage finishes off the vehicle itself, adding the brackets for the Schürzen along the sides of the hull and fenders with a few small added outriggers. The four PE schürzen panels per side are detailed with additional PE brackets on the rear sides, and once the glue between the two layers of PE (or you could solder them for strength), you simply hang them on the hooks, with a quartet of scrap diagrams along the bottom of the page showing the two methods you can use to hang the plates vertically, or sloped inward toward the bottom. Markings There are six markings options included on the decal sheet, all of them with varying camouflage based upon dunkelgelb with splotches of other colours. From the box you can build one of the following: 9th Panzer Div. ‘Hohenstaufen’, Hungary, Balaton Area, Spring 1945 9th Panzer Div. ‘Hohenstaufen’, Hungary, Balaton Area, Spring 1945 Unidentified Unit, Germany, Zweibrücken, Spring 1945 Unidentified Unit, Germany, Bitburg, Spring 1945 Unidentified Unit, Germany, Spring 1945 Unidentified Unit, Germany, 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 that will all-but disappear once applied. Conclusion A good-looking, well-detailed model of an important WWII German tank destroyer that saw action until the dire end of the Eastern and Western fronts in relatively large numbers. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  4. Hello everyone, These build took some time and it's finally finished. I must say I quite enjoyed it. You can see the whole process here. Thank you for following my WIP thread and for all the suggestions. The models here should represent two tanks: Panzer III Ausf. G from the 21 Panzer Division, as being photographed during April 1941 in Derna Pass during Operation Sonnenblume. Panzer III Ausf. H from the 15 Panzer Division, as being photograph during November 1941, during exercise somewhere around Tobruk. I used Dragon kits No. 6773 and No. 6775 as a base for these builds. Many aftermarket items were used as well as some scratch building. I apologize for soo many photos. Having to show two different tanks it was hard to keep the number lower. And of course, I was a bit lazy to make a better selection Here are some photos of Panzer III Ausf. G. Dragon kit is intended to be used for Touchpanzer version, so some changes had to be made. Also, there were some smaller field modifications, such as tools layout being changed, added roadwheel holders, etc. Model was painted with combination of MMP and MRP paints and weathered with MIG and AK products. And some detail shots. And here is the real thing. And some photos of Panzer III Ausf. H. Ausf. H and Ausf. G are quite similar, main difference being additional bolted armor and new type of wheels and wider tracks. Other differences depend on the production modifications that were continuous process. In this case, commander cupola is different for example. This one was painted with Gunze paints and weathered with MIG and AK. 15 Panzer Division tanks have more modifications compared to 21 Panzer Division tanks. Probably a learning process from the 21 PD experience. Also, this is the first time official RAL 8000 was used. Previously, it was yellow, light paint of unknown origin. And again, some detail shots: And the real photo of this particular tank. Thanks for watching and thanks for the feedback. Cheers, Nenad
  5. Inspired by @Bertie McBoatface's joy at building MiniArt kits, I have decided to ride into the jaws of Death and tackle this mechanical marvel. The Ausf A Panzer III had coil-spring suspension which wasn't strong enough, so the engineers threw everything at the Ausf B in the hope that something would work. MIniArt have done a grand job of reproducing the complexity, including far too many "don't glue this bit" arrows in the 15 assembly steps I'm going to ignore the instructions and build a nice solid hull first, because nobody wants a wobbly twisted hull, do we?
  6. The original-issue Pz.Kpfw. III Ausf. B kit from Miniart (this release was discontinued and replaced with an updated one) with the corrected engine deck, etc pieces from the newer issue provided by Miniart’s excellent customer service. The corrected kit also comes with crew figures-Highly recommended. I substituted Friul tracks, but the kit tracks are excellent.
  7. Bringing another long-ago-shelved project back to the workbench. This one was started in January, 2018 and discontinued a few weeks later when I realized that the kit had accuracy issues with the engine deck and brake access hatch plate. I picked up some aftermarket “fixes” in resin, but was nit happy with how they worked. Miniart discontinued this issue of the kit and retooled it to make the necessary corrections. Miniart’s customer service is top-notch and they send me the updated sprues. Unfortunately, I’d already built the hull with the original parts, so it took some work to disassemble and I gave up. I’m currently on an early war/Panzer III jag and started building Miniart’s Pz III Ausf. D after New Years. That kit is excellent and I was having enough fun with it that it inspired me to pull this one out of mothballs. Here’s where I left it in Jan/Feb of 2018: Getting back to the build with the new, improved engine deck and brake access plate set in place. The removal of the old back plate took some work, but I managed to get things together. The engine compartment doors have big slots that show what’s underneath, so I added an “engine” from a 1/32 Monogram Panzerspähwagen that I built in the mid-1970s as a kid(!)-I didn’t even clean the years of accumulated dust off of it… Moving right along, return rollers and the drive and idler wheels are added, as was the engine deck and front hull plates. The superstructure box is just set into position for the photo. Having fun with this one finally. With the Miniart updates parts, this has become a joy to build. Here is the tank I am planning to model: Quote
  8. This is a build I’ve been working on in small bits since the Panzer III GB earlier this year ended. That got me motivated to do another Pz III. These Dragon Panzer III kits are really nicely done. Assembly is straightforward and enjoyable. I got to this stage within a few days last Spring then got distracted.
  9. StuG III Ausf.G Interior Kit (35335) Feb. 1943 Alkett Prod. 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd The StuG is a popular German WWII AFV, and the more you learn about it, the more obvious it becomes why. The SturmGeschutz III was engineered based upon the chassis of the Panzer III, but removing the turret and front deck of the latter, replacing it with an armoured casemate that mounted a fixed gun with limited traverse. It was originally intended to be used as infantry support, using its (then) superior armour to advance on the enemy as a mobile blockhouse, but it soon found other uses as an ambush predator, and was employed as a tank destroyer, hiding in wait for Allied forces to stumble haplessly into its path. With the advances in sloped armour employed by the Soviets, the original low velocity 75mm StuK 37 L/24 cannon was replaced by higher velocity unit that were also used in the Panzer IV for tank-on-tank combat, extending the type’s viable career to the end of WWII. The earliest prototypes were made of mild steel and based on Panzer III Ausf.B chassis, and while equipped with guns were unsuitable for combat due to the relative softness of the steel that would have led to a swift demise on the battlefield, being withdrawn in '41-42. By this time the StuG III had progressed to the Ausf.G, which was based on the later Panzer III Ausf.M, with a widened upper hull and improvements in the armour to improve survivability for the crew. Many of the complicated aspects of the earlier models that made them time-consuming and expensive to produce were removed and simplified into the bargain, which led to a number of specific differences in some of the external fitments around the gun, such as the Saukopf mantlet protector. The Ausf.G was the last and most numerous version, and was used until the end of the war with additional armour plates often welded or bolted to the surface to give it enhanced protection from the Allied tanks and artillery. The Kit Some of you may remember our review of the pre-series StuG.III from MiniArt a few years back, and you might expect there to be some cross-over of parts. There doesn’t appear to be any however. Some individual part meshes may have been re-used, but the sprue layouts are all different, and as you can imagine the addition of the interior further separates the two kits, as does the inclusion of the crew figures in this boxing. This is to all intents and purposes a new tooling, and arrives in a standard top-opening box in the MiniArt style, with attractive artwork and profiles on the side. Inside the box are sixty-eight sprues in mid-grey styrene, one in clear, a good-sized Photo-Etch (PE) fret of brass parts, decal sheet and glossy-covered instruction booklet with colour profiles on the front and rear covers. Detail is excellent throughout, which is just what we’ve come to expect from modern toolings by MiniArt, with so much detail crammed into every part of the model, which includes the aforementioned interior and individual track links that are clearly a new moulding, as they are different from the earlier kit. Construction begins with the interior, which is built up on the floor panel, which receives the torsion suspension bars with their fittings, a pair of runners to support the engine, and a covering part that makes moving around a less dangerous prospect for the crew, while it also holds the support structure for the gun, which is made up from some substantial I-beams that have a traverse shoe placed on top to give the gun its limited 15o travel for fine-tuning the aim. The rear bulkhead panels are set against the engine mounts to give them the correct angle, then the firewall bulkhead is made up with small drawers and various other details added before it is fitted into the floor. The driver’s seat is built from parts on a shaped base, and his controls are placed within easy reach of his feet and hands, with the option of adding a linkage for the hand controls from your own wire or rod stocks. Attention shifts to the transmission that distributes the power to the drive-wheels, diverting the engine’s output 90o into the drive sprockets at the front of the vehicle. It is made up from a number of finely detailed parts, with gear housings and their retaining bolts on each side, working out to the brakes and clutches, then rearwards to the drive-shaft that leads back into the engine compartment. It is set into the front of the vehicle, crowding the gunner, but leaving space on the floor for a number of shell storage boxes that have holes for the individual shells to be inserted after painting and application of their stencil decals, as per the accompanying diagrams. The engine is then built up from more parts, resulting in a highly detailed replica of the Maybach power pack, including all the ancillaries and pulleys that you could wish for. There are a number of parts inserted into the engine bay in preparation for the installation of the block to make it sit comfortably on the mounts, with a large airbox to one side with a battery pack on top. The sides of the hull need to be made up in order to finish the engine bay, and these two inserts are outfitted with strapped-on boxes, gas-mask canisters, pipework and the outer parts of the brake housings, complete with the spring-loaded shoes straight out of a 70s Austin Maxi. Unsurprisingly, another big box of shells is made up and placed on the wall, and in the engine compartment a large fuel tank is attached to the wall, with a fire extinguisher placed next to it. These two highly detailed assemblies are offered up to the hull along with the front bulkhead, which has been detailed beforehand with various parts, and the glacis plate with transmission inspection hatches are given a similar treatment, including an instrument panel for the driver’s use. A few other parts are inserted into the front of the hull to integrate the sides with the hull, and the glacis gets some heavily bolted appliqué armour panels fixed to the exterior, before it is put to the side for a moment. Tank engines are under immense strain pulling the huge weight of the armour, so they need an effective cooling system to cope with this. Two radiator baths with mesh detail engraved are built up and attached to a hosing network, with a fan housing on the top and more hosing across the top, plus take-off pulleys and belts providing motive power for the twin fans inserted into the top of the assembly, with even more hoses and other details added before the completed system is inserted into the rapidly dwindling space within the engine compartment. On the top of the engine a pair of small canisters are attached to depressions on each side of the apex, and my best guess is that they are air cleaners, as they resemble smaller versions of the Fiefel units seen on the back of the Tiger. Moving forward, the transmission inspection hatches are fitted with a choice of open or closed, as is right for such a highly detailed model. The rear bulkhead is detailed with towing eyes and simple exhaust boxes with short pipes fixed to the outer sides. What looks like a many-legged park bench is made up and has a PE mesh part applied along with a port for manual starting of the engine, and this is installed mesh-side-down on the top side of the bulkhead, with a pair of thick hoses slotted into place once the glue is dry. Additional thin guides are later placed under the “bench”, and pins with PE retaining chains are added to the hitches before the lower hull is put to one side for a while. The gun is represented in full, with a complex breech, safety cage and brass-catching basket present, and a large pivot fitted onto the two pins on the sides of the assembly. Elevation, traverse and sighting gear is installed on the breech, with a small seat for the gunner on the left side to keep him stable while aiming at his next target. Before the gun can be fitted, the walls of the casemate must be made up, and these are encrusted with yet more detail, including a pair of MP40 machine guns with ammo pouches, equipment and stencil decals on the rear panel with a big extraction fan in the centre of the wall. The detailed radio gear is bracketed to a shelf that is installed on one sidewall, with more boxes and stencils adding to the busyness of the area, plus the option of adding wiring from your own stocks to improve the detail even more. The other side is also decked out with boxes that require more wiring, all of which is documented in scrap diagrams where necessary to offer assistance in increasing the authenticity of your model, which is all joined into the shape of the casemate with the addition of the front wall, which has a large cut-out to receive the gun in due course. The front of the casemate is built out forward with a sloped front and some appliqué armour, then the commander’s cupola is prepared with seven clear vision blocks, lenses and PE parts, set to the side for later, while the casemate is dropped over the front of the lower hull and joined by the breech assembly, which is covered by an armoured panel after armoured protectors to the mounting bolts have been glued over them. A bridge over the top of the insert encloses the breech, then it’s time to prepare the roof with some details before covering up the interior, then making a choice of how to finish the commander’s cupola in either open or closed pose, but you just know you’re going to leave it open to show off all your hard work. It has a number of PE latches and a set of V-shaped binocular sighting glasses in the separate front section of the cupola that can be open or closed independently to the main hatch. The gunner’s hatch is a simpler affair consisting of a clamshell pair of doors, with the machine gun shield just in front of it and a well-detailed MG34 machine gun with drum mag slotted into the centre. This hatch can also be closed, but why would you? The engine is still hanging out at the back, which is corrected next, building up the engine deck with short sides and armoured intake louvers on the sides, which are covered with PE meshes as the deck is glued down onto the engine bay, allowing the viewer to see plenty of engine detail through the four access hatches at this point. Two types of rear appliqué parts can be added to the slope at the rear of the deck, then an armoured cover to the extraction fan is added to the back of the casemate, with short lengths of track to each side as extra armour and spares in the event of damage. The tracks are held in place by a long bar that stretches across most of the rear of the casemate. Under these are sited the barrel cleaning rods, lashed to the deck with PE and styrene parts, then the four hatches are made with armoured vents, and all of these can be posed open or closed. A pair of jerry cans and the jack block are also made at this time for later addition to the engine deck. A pair of road wheels are used on some of the decal options, and these have long pins through their holes that attach them to the rear pair of hatches on the engine deck. One decal option also has a field modification of PE railings around the rear of the deck with an additional bracket to store two jerry cans, and on the back of the beast another two spare road wheel sets can be pinned in place in the same manner as the other two. As yet the StuG has no wheels, so the addition of the swing-arms with stub axles is needed, adding the highly detailed final drive housings under the front, plus additional suspension parts that improves damping further. The idler adjuster is covered with armoured parts, and a group of the pioneer tools are dotted around the sides of the engine deck, after which the paired wheels are fixed to the axles, with drive-sprockets at the front and spindly idler wheels at the rear, plus a trio of return rollers on short axles near the top of the sides. The tracks are individual links that are held together by pins, and a jig is supplied to assist you with this, although I had to remove mine from the sprue to be able to build up a short length for this review. There are 94 links per side, and each link has three sprue gates to clean up, plus a little flash on the highly detailed sides, which will need scraping away with a sharp blade. I created a short length in fairly short order on the jig, coupling them together with the pins that are moulded in pairs at the exact same spacing as the links when together. You push them into the links whilst still on the sprue, taking care to push them straight in to avoid breakage, then cut them off cleanly with a pair of single-blade nippers. The result is a very well detailed track with flexibility to adjust them around the running gear of your StuG, and as they are a tight fit, they shouldn’t need glue, but I’d probably set them in position with liquid glue once I had them how I wanted them on the vehicle. Once they’re in place, the fenders are attached to the hull sides, with the mudguards and PE fittings added once the glue has dried. More pioneer tools and stowage are added to these, as space was a premium on these vehicles, and every flat surface ended up with equipment on it. This includes a convoy light and either a highly detailed PE fire extinguisher or a simplified styrene alternative if you prefer. Shovels, pry bars, jack blocks and the jack are also found on the fenders, as are the two towing cables, which have styrene eyes and you’ll need to supply the cable material yourself, with a pair of PE tie-downs holding them in place on each side. The barrel of the gun has a large bulky Saukopf mantlet cover, which is made up from three parts with a barrel sleeve moulded into the front, which the single-part barrel slots into, tipped with a detailed three-part muzzle brake to give it the correct hollow look. It slides over the recoil tubes of the gun, closing up the rest of the interior, and the last parts of the kit are two whip antennae on the rear of the casemate. Figures In this boxing we are treated to a set of crew figures for the vehicle, which consists of five figures on a single sprue, starting with three figures standing in their hatches, one hard at work driving, and another apparently sitting on the glacis plate leaning with one arm resting on the gun perhaps. Each figure has a choice of heads and four have either peaked caps or stahlhelms that perhaps might not often be worn in the confines of a tank. Sculpting, pose and material drape is up to MiniArt’s class-leading standard, and adding these chaps into their place of work gives the model a sense of human scale, emphasising the claustrophobic nature of being a tanker. Part breakdown is standard with heads, hats, torsos and separate limbs, plus a couple of lugers in holsters and another MP40 that could be laid on the deck near one of the figures. A colour chart gives paint numbers for Vallejo, Mr.Color, AK RealColor, Mission Models, AMMO, Tamiya brands plus colour names for your delight and edification. Markings There are five decal options in this boxing, and from the sheet you can build one of the following: Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 189, Eastern Front, Spring 1943 Luftwaffe-Feld-Division “Adler Division”, Staraya Russa Region, Eastern Front, Spring 1943 Luftwaffe-Feld-Division “Adler Division”, Staraya Russa Region, Eastern Front, Spring 1943 Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung “Grossdeutschland”, Okhtyrka, Ukraine, Spring 1943 Sturmgeschütz-Abteilung 210, Eastern Front, 1943 Decals are by Decograph, which is a guarantee of good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion A stunning model of an impressive tank destroyer that saw action the Eastern and Western fronts in relatively large numbers. There’s enough detail for the most ardent adherent to, well… detail. Very highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  10. Panzer III World Of Tanks (03501) 1/72 Carrera Revell Designed in the mid 1930s to be part of a pairing with the larger Panzer IV, the lighter Panzer III was originally intended to be sent up against other tanks, as well as to push through gaps in enemy lines to cause havoc with supply lines and generally disrupt the enemy's day. Production began in 1937, with few of the early marks reaching series production, using up A through D as prototypes, of which the Ausf.B was used in the Polish campaign briefly before being put out to pasture as a training vehicle along with the remaining Cs and Ds. The suspension was a work-in-progress, using leaf springs until the Ausf.E, which moved to torsion bars that were then seen on most new German designs during WWII and beyond. During the early period of WWII the Pz.II continued to do its prescribed task until the T-34 rained on the Nazis parade, tearing up the lighter armoured Pz.IIIs and necessitating an up-gunning of the Pz.IV with a new high velocity gun to combat its sloped armour. By 1942 it was relegated to tasks where its light armour and 3.7mm pop-gun wasn't an impediment, such as close support of troop advances. By this time it was clear that it was past its sell-by-date, and that the Pz.IV had much more development potential. The chassis went on to be used for many other developments, some of which were quite successful, like the StuG III, and our review of the O-series can be seen here, which incidentally shares some parts with this kit. World Of Tanks is a popular online Game developed by Belarusian company Wargaming, featuring 20th century era combat vehicles. It is built upon a freemium business model where the game is free-to-play, but participants also have the option of paying a fee for use of "premium" features. The focus is on player vs. player gameplay with each player controlling an armored vehicle, from the time of Pre-World War 2, to the Cold War-era. This is mainly online with PCs, but is now available on other platforms as well. The Kit Here Revell have re-boxed their own kit from 2001. Inside the compact end-opening box are three sprues of grey plastic and decals. The sprues are well laid out and the mouldings are free from flash. Surface detail is clean and crisp, and first impressions are very favourable.. Revell have obviously released this kit in conjunction with World Of Tanks. Inside each kit there is also a set of Special Bonus & Starter Pack codes for the game. As with most Revell kits, no shortcuts have been taken with the detail and the thing builds just like a miniature 1:35 scale model. While the axles and suspension units are moulded onto the side of the hull, the road wheels, drive sprockets and idlers are proper two-part jobbies. Take it from me, however, that painting the tyres on twenty-four individual wheels will drive you bonkers. The tracks are of the link and length variety and have been very nicely moulded. Once the running gear is in place, construction moves on to the upper hull. In keeping with the rest of the model, this is nicely detailed and extra parts such as spare wheels, tracks and pioneer tools are all present and correct. Once this is complete the turret can be built up. A three part glacis and gun mounts to the front with the commanders copula going on top. The side hatches are added along with the gun and rear storage locker. To finish of spare track links are added to the front of the tank. Decals There is both a sheet of decals.. As well as national markings for the tank there are a wide range of markings which I suspect are available in the Game to mark your tank. Conclusion This seems to be a good looking small kit and should build up into a good looking model. Revell model kits are available from all good toy and model retailers. For further information visit or
  11. Hello all 🥳 Today I would like to show you my project from the Panzer III GB. I built a SIG 33B assault infantry gun, which was used in Stalingrad. The vignette shows a railway line in the industrial quarter near the famous grain silo during the first snowfall. The model by Dragon is old, but with a few refreshments very usable. The water pump comes from Plusmodel, again with minor changes 😉 As a finishing touch I added a figure from Panzerart with a Hornet head and BvB scarf 😎, which should give more life to the scene. I have to admit that the whole construction process tested my patience at times, but all in all it was a lot of fun 😅 Thanks again to hosts Stix and Ozzy for an exciting GB and anyone who has written or visited my build. 👍 🙂 If you are interested you can find the whole build here: www.britmodeller.com/forums/index.php?/topic/235088377-15cm-sturm-infanteriegesch%C3%BCtz-33-auf-pz-iii/ Have fun! MD See you!
  12. This is one of two entries for this GB. The engineering and packaging of Forces of Valor kits reminds me of Dragon and Trumpeter. As to how good the kits are ... that's another matter. They should at least be easy to build, but accuracy remains to be seen. I may complete this in a "Panzer Grey" w/disruptive stripes scheme included in the Italeri (ESCI) kit that I am also building.
  13. This is one of two entries for this GB. I built this kit twice back in the early 1980s from the original ESCI boxings, one as a Flammpanzer III, the other as the M. At he time, I never got the kit of the M/N with the side and turret "skirts". The Italeri kit is the M/N version, including the extra sprue with the armour skirts and mounts, as well as the 75mm L/24 barrel, mantlet and other details. It also has the "hard" tracks introduced in the ESCI/ERTL era. The tracks are for the Panzer IV, and have to be cut to size for the Panzer III.
  14. The last of my five-strong Wehrmacht AFV collection is a tank, conceived as a medium-weight fast (30 mph) cruiser. However, the 37mm AT gun of the early variants (less than 700 built of Ausf. A, B, C, D, E and F) proved to be helpless against the armour of the British Matilda and the Soviet KV. So almost 2,000 next generation Pz.Kpfw. IIIs (Ausf.G, H, and early J) were fitted with a 50mm AT gun. However, it was not until the beginning of 1941 that the Ausf.J was upgunned with a long-barrel 50mm cannon, making it a dangerous enemy for most Allied tanks in North Africa. These long-barreled variants (late Ausf. J, Ausf.L and M) totalled more than 2,400 of the 5,800 Panzer IIIs built. But after El Alamein and Stalingrad, it became evident that the 50mm AT gun was barely effective against the sloped armour of the M4 Sherman and T-34, and thus some 700 final Pz.Kpfw. IIIs (Ausf.N) became support (i.e. infantry) tanks. Fitted with a short-barrel 75mm gun, they were used mainly as light tanks screening the heavy Pz.Kpfw.VI Tigers. Weighing about 23 tons and crewed by five men, all late-generation (Ausf.J - N) Panzer IIIs were powered by a 300 hp Maybach V12 petrol engine. The best 1/72 Panzer III kit on the market is the quite recent (2016 tooling) Ukrainian Unimodels kit, available in six different boxings. Mine is the #271 "Ausf.J". It's built OOB except for a drilled (0.7 mm dia) gun barrel and exhaust pipes, and an antenna made of the Aber 0.3mm wire. The only problem was the complexity of this tiny kit. The entire vehicle, about 75mm long (88mm including the barrel), consists of 237 plastic and 11 photo-etched parts ! That is some 85 parts for every inch of the hull lenght - paranoia ! My idea was to have the Pz.Kpfw.III in the early Tropen scheme of RAL8000 Gelbbraun and RAL7008 Graugruen - much darker than the 1942 DAK scheme. However, it was very difficult to find a mid-production (i.e. long gun, but still with transverse air intake covers behind the turret) Ausf.J from Africa. After some digging, I managed to find a batch of similarly camouflaged tanks from a completely different area. The „white outlined 123” is one of the four (the others are 115, 122 and 124) long-barrel Pz.Kpfw.IIIJs spotted in Rostov in July 1942 during their expedition to the Caucascus. They belonged to the famous 5.SS Panzerdivision Wiking. These early 1941-production tanks had the then standard Tropen camouflage. The paints are (as always) brush-painted enamels: Humbrol 83 for Gelbbraun and 155 for Graugruen. Then the Vallejo acrylic matt varnish was brush-applied overall. This time the decals are OOB. Only the Luftwaffe-style swastika came from the Hasegawa Heinkel He51. The pictures are taken with an LG smartphone. Comments welcome.
  15. After what seems like an incredibly long time since I proposed this much anticipated Single Type Group Build, it is now only four weeks until the start day - Saturday 6th February! The following 43 members are already signed up - are you all ready for the off?: @Ozzy, @Corsairfoxfouruncle, @SleeperService, @fatfingers, @German Armour, @vppelt68, @GREG DESTEC, @bigfoot, @SoftScience, @Robert Stuart, @Yetifan, @Retired Bob, @sdk_uk, @Foxbat, @exdraken, @Chrissy_J, @John, @the South African, @Bullbasket, @ridinshotgun, @AgentG, @ijs302, @stevej60, @Bonhoff, @nimrod54, @Silver Fox, @badger, @srkirad, @sampanzer, @witjas4, @Jasper dog, @Rob S, @klr, @modelling minion, @SimonT, @shelfspace, @Mig Eater, @M3talpig, @Longbow, @robw_uk, @Ned, @Six97s and @Andy J I apologise if I have missed anyone off the list. If anyone else wants to take part please just let me know. The actual chat thread for this GB can be found here: I'm still not absolutely sure what kit(s) I'm going to make..........I have changed my mind many more times than the number of Pz.III kits I have.......which is a lot!!......but probably not as many as some people! Kind regards, Stix
  16. Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.D/B 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Designed in the mid 1930s to be part of a pairing with the larger Panzer IV, the lighter Panzer III was originally intended to be sent up against other tanks, as well as to push through gaps in enemy lines to cause havoc with supply lines and generally disrupt the enemy's day. Production began in 1937, with few of the early marks reaching series production, using up A through D as prototypes, of which the Ausf.B was used in the Polish campaign briefly before being put out to pasture as a training vehicle along with the remaining Cs and Ds. The suspension was a work-in-progress, using leaf springs until the Ausf.E, which moved to torsion bars that were then seen on most new German designs during WWII and beyond. During the early period of WWII the Pz.III continued to do its prescribed task until the T-34 tore through their ranks, brushing aside the lighter armoured Pz.IIIs and necessitating an up-gunning of the Pz.IV with a new high velocity gun to combat its sloped armour. By 1942 it was relegated to tasks where its light armour and 3.7mm pop-gun wasn't an impediment, such as close support of troop advances. By this time it was clear that it was past its sell-by-date, and that the Pz.IV had much more development potential. The chassis went on to be used for many other developments, some of which were quite successful, such as the StuG III. The Kit This is a re-tool of MiniArt's new range of Panzer III models, the early Ausf.B with crew we reviewed recently here. While it does share some of the larger parts with its stable-mate, there are a significant number of new sprues due in part to the different suspension, but also because of the additional hull parts (stowage and such) that are visible in the box painting. There are twenty seven sprues of grey styrene, plus three separate parts, a further twenty one sprues of track links, and five more of track pins, plus a clear sprue, fret of Photo-Etch (PE) brass, a decal sheet and the instruction booklet. The usual high level of detail is present, and the modular approach to moulding allows them to produce maximum variants from their toolings. The major difference between the boxings is to be found in the track area, where different suspension units are used, necessitating the tooling of new parts that include the hull sides. The new parts have three leaf spring arrangements, with two Y-shaped suspension arms damped between them, and each arm mounting two pairs of wheels on an additional swing-arm that pivots around the centre. Each wheel has a rubber tyre around the steel rim, and a cup inside the inner wheel allows them to remain mobile after construction if the glue is used sparingly. The large drive sprocket is retained, as is the large idler wheel, although both are subtly different due to design changes. The forward section of the top deck is identical to the previous version, but the engine deck is different, having two side-by-side access doors on the flat section, each having clamshell doors, with the sloped section retaining the single doors of its predecessor. The raised centre section is identical, and the fenders are moulded in one run, but with panel lines and fasteners showing the modular nature of the real things, and some slight differences between the fixtures and fittings. The track links are identical, and are built up in sections nine links, using the perfect spacing of the pins to add them seven at a time, building into two runs of 96 links, one for each side. From my previous experimentation, the pins do hold the tracks together, but with handling they can slip free, so take precautions during handling. The jig shown in the picture is also not included in this boxing, but that shouldn't be much of an impediment, and you won't end up with your tracks glued to the jig. For two decal options there are additional track links draped over the front of the machine, to add extra armour to the area, which are made up and secured in place with PE brackets. Another addition to one of the options is a set of wooden stowage boxes around the rear of the tank, covering most of the engine deck apart from the access doors on the flat section. The boxes are made up from styrene parts, but with PE brackets, latches and padlocks where appropriate. Despite this not being an interior kit, the turret is quite well appointed, with a full breech assembly, twin coaxial machine guns, turret baskets, seats and other equipment supplied in the box. The side doors can be posed open or closed, and have PE trim on the inside, with more PE parts forming the little hatches for the sighting gear and coax machine gun openings in the mantlet. The turret sits in the opening of the hull and is not locked in place, so you will either need to remember this, or fix it in place to avoid dropping it with handling. Markings There are four decal options in the box, with some optional personalisations made to the kit depending on which you choose, as pointed out throughout the build instructions. The decal sheet is small due to the genre, but from the box you can depict one of the following: Panzer-Zug 2.Panzer-Kompanie Pz.Abt. (ZbV)40 attached to the SS Division "Nord" XXXVI Army Corps, Karelia, Summer of 1941. IV Panzer-Zug 3.Panzer-Kompanie Pz.Abt.(ZbV)40 attached to the fast detachment Fossi (Osasto Fossi) battle group F (Ryhmä F) 3rd Infantry Division of the Finnish Army. The fighting in the direction of Uhtua – Vuokkiniemi Karelia, July 1941. I Panzer-Zug 2.Panzer-Kompanie Pz.Abt.(ZbV)40 attached to the division of the Finnish Army Corps (III Armeijakunta, III AK) Karelia, November 1941. Panzer-Zug 2.Panzer-Kompanie Pz.Abt. (ZbV)40 attached to the SS Division "Nord". Defensive battles in Kestenga village area (Kiestinki) April 24-May 11, 1942. Decals are printed in the Ukraine by Decograph with good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Conclusion Another high quality model of this perhaps overlooked early War staple of the German tank forces. Of course due to their period of operation the dominant colour is panzer grey, but a distemper scheme has been included for a little variety, and the crew personalisations of the appliqué armour and extra stowage areas brings additional interest to the model. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  17. TopDrawings #93 Panzer III (9788366148857) Kagero Publishing via Casemate UK The Panzer III at the time it was developed was envisaged as the main medium tank for the German forces. At the time most other tanks were light and mainly thought of as infantry support vehicles. Initially they tank was to mount a 50mm gun, but the 37mm Pak 36 was chose to standardise with the infantry. This was to prove inadequate and so they were upgraded to a 50mm gun. Again this proved to be lacking and the 7.5cm gun was added in later versions. The Panzer III was used in just about every major campaign by the German forces. Unlike some of its more famous heavier brothers the tank was reliable and durable. However by 1945 they had largely been relegated away from the front line, an in a lot of cases the chassis converted to StuG III Assault guns. The book is written in English on the left of the page with Polish on the right, which translates to top and bottom for the captions to the various drawings within. The book itself is bound in a card cover and has 24 pages,. Throughout the book, there are numerous smaller diagrams that show equipment layout; as well as the sometime small differences between Marks. There are two A3 double-sided sheets of plans showing profiles and top views. Conclusion These books are essential for the modeller that enjoys comparing their models against scale plans, and wants them to be as accurate as possible, with the separate scale plans quite useful. Currently (at time of writing) on offer at a discounted price from Casemate UK Review sample courtesy of
  18. Hi, This is a 1:35 model, the Panzerkamfwagen III Ausf L, German medium tank. This is Tamiya KIT no. 35215. I made it as movable model, to do it I had to replace the road wheels by older ones from older (85'th) Tamiya KIT. Additional parts are the Friulmodel tracks and small accessories. I added a short video showing how does the model ride at the bottom. P.S. The photo light tent really does it job. This video clip presents how this model can ride I'd be glad if you review my remaining RFI-armor posts
  19. Sturmgeschütz III on the Battlefield 5 World War Two Photobook Series (9786155583179) Peko Publishing The Sturmgeschütz, or StuG for short was a turretless armoured tank destroyer from WWII that was part of a successful line of ambush predators employed by Nazi Germany against enemy tanks. The StuG III was unsurprisingly based upon the chassis of the Panzer III, with the upper hull and turret removed and replaced by a low-profile casemate on the front half and a flat engine deck at the rear. The casemate was filled with a 75mm gun that was adapted to the chassis with -10 to +20 elevation and 12 degrees of traverse before the driver would need to reposition. It was eventually upgraded to a longer barrel that offered higher muzzle velocity for a more powerful punch, which coupled with the low profile made it perfect for laying in wait for Allied convoys, taking a heavy toll before the element of surprise was lost. It was later superseded by the Jagdpanzer IV, Jagdpanther and Jagdtiger, but it remained in service until the end of the war. This new volume from PeKo's World War Two Photobook Series, and as the name suggests it is primarily a book of photos, which isn't too difficult to divine. Although this is Volume 5 of the set it still covers the earlier variants with their shorter barrels as well as the more mature variants of the StuG, beginning with the Ausf.A and carrying on through C/D/F to Ausf.G with all the variations in fit and finish between the main factories that were engaged in construction of this important and numerous piece of German WWII armour. It is hardback bound with 112 pages between two blank inner leaves, finished in an overall white cover, and arriving protected by a layer of shrink-wrap that also helps keep out dirt. The photos are almost without exception full page, with space left only for the captions, which are in Hungarian and English, each one adding valuable insight to the photo, which may not be immediately apparent without it. For the modeller there are plenty of diorama possibilities, as well as opportunities to see how the crews actually stowed their gear on their vehicles (or otherwise) in real-world circumstances. Seeing how they come apart when blown up is also useful for diorama purposes, but thankfully there are no grisly scenes accompanying the destroyed vehicles. Quite a few of the photos are from private collections with attributions in the top corner as appropriate, with substantial quantities of soldiers standing in front of damaged or abandoned vehicles between or after the fighting is over, plus a number of groups investigating the wreckage after a cataclysmic explosion of the tank's magazine, or demolition by the escaping crew. There are also a number of maintenance scenarios with the Maybach engine in or in the process of being removed for serious repairs or replacement. While the contemporary photos are in black and white as expected due to the scarcity and expense of colour film at the time, the detail in which they are depicted would be an absolute boon to any AFV enthusiast or modeller, especially those wishing to go down the route of realism and authentic settings. Conclusion Whether you have the models that you intend to use this book for reference, or have an interest in the subject, this book will give you all the reference pictures and some besides, as well as some inspiration for dioramas. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  20. Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.D/B (36402 for MiniArt) 1:35 Eduard MiniArt's new and growing range of Panzer III models in 1:35 gets the Eduard treatment with this new set that's designed to augment the detail already there. As usual with Eduard's Photo-Etch (PE) and Mask sets, they arrive in a flat resealable package, with a white backing card protecting the contents and the instructions that are sandwiched between. A single brass fret contains all the parts needed, which starts with a new set of fenders with workable hinges that depend upon lengths of 0.3mm wire that you must provide, and result in a highly realistic finished item. At the rear a set of detailed mesh panels are folded and fixed to the cooling vents under the rear apron. The kit jack block is replaced by an all-new three-section PE assembly that replicates the wood grain, and is held together by a frame each end and a carry-handle. This is fitted into a new bracket on the fender, and is accompanied by new shackles for the pioneer tools such as the axe, fire extinguisher, jack itself, pry-bar and the S-shaped track-tool. The moulded-in cleats must be removed from the tools first of course, and the area made good. Review sample courtesy of
  21. Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.B w/Crew (35221) 1:35 MiniArt via Creative Models Designed in the mid 1930s to be part of a pairing with the larger Panzer IV, the lighter Panzer III was originally intended to be sent up against other tanks, as well as to push through gaps in enemy lines to cause havoc with supply lines and generally disrupt the enemy's day. Production began in 1937, with few of the early marks reaching series production, using up A through D as prototypes, of which the Ausf.B was used in the Polish campaign briefly before being put out to pasture as a training vehicle along with the remaining Cs and Ds. The suspension was a work-in-progress, using leaf springs until the Ausf.E, which moved to torsion bars that were then seen on most new German designs during WWII and beyond. During the early period of WWII the Pz.II continued to do its prescribed task until the T-34 rained on the Nazis parade, tearing up the lighter armoured Pz.IIIs and necessitating an up-gunning of the Pz.IV with a new high velocity gun to combat its sloped armour. By 1942 it was relegated to tasks where its light armour and 3.7mm pop-gun wasn't an impediment, such as close support of troop advances. By this time it was clear that it was past its sell-by-date, and that the Pz.IV had much more development potential. The chassis went on to be used for many other developments, some of which were quite successful, like the StuG III, and our review of the O-series can be seen here, which incidentally shares some parts with this kit. The Kit We reviewed the original issue of this kit in 2015, which you can see here, and this is a slightly revised tooling with the addition of a full set of crew figures in era appropriate tanker gear, including the large berets worn at the time before comms became standard fit, necessitating a change to caps. There are a staggering 48 sprues of grey styrene, three hull and turret parts, a clear sprue, a revised Photo-Etch (PE) fret, decal sheet and instruction booklet with the figure painting guide in the front cover, and the markings & schemes in the rear. The kit is ostensibly the same as the original, so if you want to read about the build, have a quick click on the previous review above, but for those of you averse to clicking, a quick summary follows. The lower hull is made up from numerous slabs, with leaf suspension and running gear added to the sides in pairs. The individual track links click-fit together and are secured by the addition of the pins in batches of seven, still attached to their sprue runners until they are fitted, after which you can break or cut them off. The additional PE parts are used in providing in-scale louvers for the engine deck, as well as the trapezoid boxes on the sides of the deck, which improves detail. The upper hull is fitted to the lower in sections, each of which is detailed with small parts during application, while the breech, turret basket and zwilling coaxial MG34 machine gun mount are all present in the turret that has openable hatches with PE lips on the inside. Fenders are detailed with pioneer tools, fire extinguisher, jack block and so on, then installed on the sides of the hull. Figures Included in the kit are five sprues of figures, three of which were joined together on arrival, but were separated for ease of photography. Put the word MiniArt into discussion about figures and you know that the sculpting will be first class, and these are no exception. The figures are in a fairly relaxed pose, standing, sitting or leaning on their vehicle. The commander is standing cross-legged in his cupola with his hands resting on the edge, and the rest of the crew can be seen below in the instruction and painting guide. Markings Early war usually means panzer grey, but although there are some grey examples, there is also a rather fetching camouflaged example. There are five decal options, and you can build one of the following: Unidentified unit, Poland, Sept 1939 2nd Battalion Unidentified Unit, Poland, Sept 1939 Unidentified Unit, Chomutov, Sudetes, Czechslovakia, Oct 1938 (green camouflage) 1st Battalion, 1st Panzer Regiment, 1st panzer Division, Poland, Sept 1939 In service during the campaign in Poland, 1939 The decals are printed by Decograph in the Ukraine, with good registration, sharpness and colour density, with a thin matt carrier film cut close to the printed areas. Colour call-outs are cross-referenced by letters throughout, which correspond to a table that covers Vallejo, Mr Color, LifeColor, Tamiya, Testors, AK Real Color, Humbrol, Revell, Mission Model, with the colour names in pictorial form, Cyrillic and English text too. Conclusion A nice reboxing of a fairly recent and well-detailed kit that adds figures to the mix to give it some human scale. Highly recommended. Review sample courtesy of
  22. This small tank I've been working on for half a year or so. While Dragon's plastic parts fit nicely, the photo etch side skirts need a lot of tender-love-and-care to get them positioned correctly (something I've not entierly achieved). However I feel they look much better than the kit's oversized plastic parts and you can add some 'battle-damage' with a pen. The vehicle was painted with Gunze/Mr.Hobby acrylics and weathered with pastel chalks and artists' oils. It represents a tank from 6. Panzerdivision at Kursk, 1943. Photographs taken by Mr. Wolfgang Rabel of IGM Cars & Bikes.
  23. Panzerkampfwagen III Aus L. On display at the Tank Museum in Bovington. This is an early production Aus L, modified for ‘tropical’ service. It was shipped via Naples to Benghazi in Libya in July 1942, arriving on the SS Lerica on July 18th. It was issued to the 8th Panzer Regiment, part of the 15th Panzer Division and probably fought in the battle of Alam Halfa. It was subsequently captured by the British Army and shipped to the UK; the details of its’ capture and subsequent history are unclear. Info from from The Tank Museum Pics thanks to Alex; Pics thanks to Mike;
  24. Hi, another one from my 1/72 collection. This time the P3 from Revell, my smallest tank so far in this scale.Build in March of this year.No real problems, but the size made it very fiddly ( length and single link tracks) Build OOB, but replaced the gun barrel with a metal one from RB. Here the pictures done in two sessions using different backdrops I hope you like it Cheers Bernd
  25. Hello, my attempt on small-scale armor: 1/72 Revell's Panzer III Ausf.M with side skirts and small details from Eduard Photo Etch. This is a vehicle of 6.Panzerdivision, in action at Kursk, 1943. Painted with colours from the Gunze/Mr.Hobby range. Decals from the box. Thanks for looking! Roman
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