MiniArt StuH 42 Ausf.G Early Prod May-June 1943 (72114) 1:72

[Mike]

StuH 42 Ausf.G Early Prod May-June 1943 (72114)

1:72 MiniArt via Creative Models Ltd

 

 

Following WWI the German military had identified a weakness in their forces, in that their advancing troops often left behind the support of their artillery as they moved forward, leading to a call for the creation of Sturmartillerie, which was effectively a mobile artillery piece that could travel alongside their forces, providing valuable protection.  By the time the Nazis were gearing up their economy and military for war more openly, a requirement for just such a vehicle was made official, mating the chassis of the then current Panzer III with a short-barrelled 75mm gun in a fixed armoured casemate with limited traverse, which gave the type a distinctive howitzer-style look.  In the later variants a longer high-velocity gun, the 7.5 cm StuK 40 L/48 replaced the shorter gun to give it an improved penetrating power that was more in alignment with the Tank Killer job that it had become used for.  These vehicles were designated Ausf.F or G, and were amongst the most produced version of this almost ubiquitous WWII German tank.

 

A project to up-gun the StuG was instigated using an Ausf.F chassis and a 10.5cm leFH 18 howitzer, taking the name Sturmhaubitze 42 or StuH 42 for short.  The rounds were electrically fired, and it was to be fitted with a muzzle-brake to bleed off some of the recoil, and a dozen of this type were made from repaired Ausf.F examples, then almost 1,300 were built as infantry support that were based on the Ausf.G, some without their muzzle-brakes due to the limited availability of certain metals as the war continued to turn against the Nazis, thanks to the Allied bomber force bombing their industrial base into rubble on a 24/7 schedule.

 

 

The Kit

This is a re-boxing with new parts of a recent tooling from MiniArt in their new 1:72 armour line, which is bringing high levels of detail to this smaller scale, with MiniArt’s engineers and tool designers applying their skills to a scale that has been neglected to a certain extent for many years, certainly at this level of detail.  The kit arrives in a small top-opening box, and inside are ten sprues of various sizes in grey styrene, a small clear sprue with decals in a shared bag, a Photo-Etch (PE) brass fret in a card envelope, and the instruction booklet in full colour in portrait A5 format.  Detail is excellent, including weld-lines and tread-plate moulded into the exterior of the hull, with plenty of options for personalisation, and link-and-length tracks to provide good detail without making the building of the tracks too time consuming or complex.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Construction begins with the lower hull, which is put together with five parts creating the ‘tub’, then adding the three-part glacis plate at the front, and the exhaust assembly at the rear, accompanied by duct-work and overhanging vents with a PE mesh panel underneath.  Various suspension parts are applied to the hull sides that have the highly detailed swing arms and axles already moulded-in.  Six paired return rollers are made up, along with twelve pairs of road wheels, plus two-part idler wheels and drive sprockets, the latter having an alternative front sprocket face for you to choose from.  Once all the wheels are installed on their axles, the tracks can be built, utilising the long lengths on the top and bottom, adding shorter lengths to the diagonal risers, and individual links around the sharper curved sections toward the ends of the runs.  There are eight individual links at the rear, and six at the front, plus another between the lower and its diagonal, each link having three sprue gates in sensibly placed locations.

 

The gun mounting block (it’s not a detailed breech) is built from four parts and mounted on a carrier between a pair of trunnions, which is then fitted to a pivot plate and set aside while the casemate front is made from two sections.  First however, the fenders are glued to the sides of the hull, locating on three lugs moulded into the sides, with a couple of PE vertical plates on the rear.  The gun mounting block is slotted into the front of the casemate, with a mantlet slid over the front, after which the lower heavily armoured and bolted lower front has a vision slot and armour cover applied before it is glued to the bottom of the casemate, along with the sides and rear bulkhead, attaching it to the lower hull while the glue cures to ensure everything lines up.  A convoy light is glued onto the left fender, then the engine deck is made, fitting two-part sides with separate baffles, and a single rear panel that is aligned when the deck is installed on the rear of the hull, choosing one of two narrow rear facets on the rear round-down.  Two PE grilles are glued over the outer cooling intakes, and a length of spare track is fitted over the rear bulkhead of the casemate, adding armoured covers over the five vents on the engine deck, with a choice of cast or bolted vents on the two at the very rear of the deck.  A choice of three styles of cupola can be made, each one made from a differing set of parts, based around the commander’s vision blocks and central hatch, adding wire grab handles from your own stock where indicated, then inserting the completed assembly in the cut-out on the roof, adding a periscope to the front of the cupola for one option.  Triple-barrelled smoke dischargers are formed at the front for some decal options, adding a pair of aerial mounts on the casemate rear, and a shallow stowage box in the middle of the engine deck.  The barrel is moulded as a single tubular section with a hollow muzzle with brake moulded into the business end, and its sleeve is moulded into the front of the saukopf, which is an inverted trapezoid that is made from another two parts, plus small PE tie-downs on the rear corners of the casemate.  Pioneer tools are built up and fitted wherever there is space as the build progresses, including muzzle cleaning rods, jack, fire extinguisher, and track tools.  The gunner’s hatch can be posed closed, or replaced by two separate parts in the open position, adding another scratch-built grab handle from wire, then fitting a drum magazine to the supplied MG34, sliding it through the frontal splinter shield with PE support and another DIY grab handle before putting it in place in front of the gunner’s hatch.

 

Towing eyes are supplied for the tow cables, but you must provide the braided thread or wire to make the cables themselves, attaching one to each fender, and two stacks of wheels that are mounted on long pins on the rear of the engine deck on the aft vents, the pins made from your own wire stock.  Two decal options have a section of extra armour around the forward curve of the commander’s cupola.  Some decal options have schürzen skirts to protect the vehicle from incoming shaped charge warheads, pre-detonating them to disperse the energy of the weapon.  Two mounts are made from angle-iron with three stand-off supports, which fit against the side of the hull, and once the glue is fully cured, the four PE main panels are hung individually from the hooks, with two smaller supplementary panels added to the centre section.  Bear in mind that these panels were often lost or damage during combat and manoeuvring in the field, so think about adding some wear if you want to achieve a more realistic look, annealing the brass first to enable easier bending.  Three decal options have another run of spare tracks across the back of the vehicle, attached to the top of the rear bulkhead.

 

 

Markings

There are four decal options on the small sheet, with various schemes all with a base coat of dunkelgeb, and various camouflage styles over the top – or not.  From the box you can build one of the following:

 

• StuG Abt.245, Eastern Front, Summer 1943
• StuG Abt.912, Eastern Front, Summer 1943 (with Schürzen)
• StuG Abt.245, Eastern Front, Summer 1943
• StuG Abt.912, Jüterborg, May 1943 (with Schürzen)

 

 

 

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

MiniArt have only recently brought their prodigious talents to bear on 1:72 scale armour, releasing a subject they have already researched for their extensive 1:35 scale StuG and StuH ranges, resulting in a highly detailed series of models with plenty of options for personalisation, and further expansion of the range to come.

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of