German motorcycles with sidecars, a 1/72 comparison

A short comparison between the different sidecar combinations I have

- Zvezda BMW R12

- Hät/Armourcast BMW R75

- Revell BMW from the SdKfz 11 set I think

 

Hät vs Zvezda

As you can see the Hät model is crude, huge and the figures are rather…apelike….

Zvezda vs Revell

The Revell model is smaller and less details than Zvezda.

The winner: Zvezda! No real competition here.

There is an Italeri-set that would be interesting as a comparison, but it’s not very high up on my to-buy list at the moment.

Pz IV D in 20mm by Armourfast compared to Plastic Soldier Company

Another Pz IV, this time an early war version, the Ausf D, from Armourfast.

You will get two models in the box, and they are fast build, meaning few individual parts, in this case less than 30 per model. The instructions on how to assemble the kit is on the back of the box, and it is somewhat lacking. I would strongly advise you to have some photos of the real thing handy, as some of the details are rather vague, and check the look of a real commander’s cupola, as the instructions seem to be faulty.

 As always, click on the photos to get a larger image

The detailing is decent, but lacks for example tools. The biggest faults in my opinion is the lack of even rudimentary boogies and the tracks are rather flat without details, see photos. So much could have been improved with very little effort. Disappointing.

There was no hull MG, so I fixed one with brass wire, and gun and exhaust hade to be drilled out.

The result is two decent early war Pz IV D, perfectly all right for wargames. They could have been better, and if you’re primarily a modeller you will probably be disappointing.

I might buy another box sometime in the future, just to get the right France 1940-feel.

 Armourfast Ausf D vs PSC Ausf F1

To give you all an indication of how it compares to another fast build Pz IV, this time Ausf F1, you’ll get a couple of comparison shots of Armourfast vs Plastic Soldier Company.

Look here if you’re interested in my prior article comparing the Pz IV:s from PSC, Airfix and Hasegawa.

Hanomags

The German half-track Sd.Kfz. 251 was often called Hanomag, the name of the largest producer of it. I need quite a lot of these for early war, so I essentially need the models A, B and C and the variant /1, the base-model with machine guns.

Armourfast

Armourfast has this all new 251/1 C in 1/72 scale, fastbuild and two to a box. These kits are very simple, wheels and tracks in one piece per side and overall little detail. It is fastbuild, but that can be OK when you’re about to game with them.

Some irritating details:

-The fenders have no decent pegs to make them jack into the correct position, and this is especially noticeable in the front above the front wheel. Be careful to get them in the correct position.

-The crew compartment is very basic, don’t expect driver’s seat or anything like that. The positive aspect of that is the fact that you don’t need a driver, but it will be noticeably empty in front.

-The vision slits needs to be glued in place, but be aware that they are different in front and on the sides! I didn’t do that until the glue had set on my first vehicle.

-Why on earth do they have just a MG 42 in an early half-track? They might at least have had a MG 34 as an option, but no. For these Hanomags I grab the two MG 34:s from the weapons sprue that came with Caesars 150 mm infantry gun, but every vehicle needs two machine guns, so I have to find more. Many more.

-No decals. I get registration numbers and German crosses from Skytrex decals.

Two Hanomags, Revell in the front and Armourfast behind it.

Revell/Matchbox

I have bought four 251/1 B in 1/76 scale from Revell, and they are the same as the old Matchbox-models from my childhood. I built two of them.

A difference in size between 1/72 and 1/76

These are essentially very fine sets if you want to game with them. Decent detailing and not to many fragile pieces. Included is a machine gunner and one soldier jumping off the side of the Hanomag, and, as usual with these old Matchbox sets, a small diorama. I’ll keep the ruins for future projects.

The tracks are made of soft plastics. To get them to sag and look more natural I drill two holes slightly above the wheels on each side, apply the tracks over the ready painted and varnished wheels, and push the tracks down with a pair of pliers while I push brass rods into the holes I drilled before. A drop of super glue and some gun-metal paint on the pins, and we’re finished.

Some irritating details:

-No driver… why on earth is the driver’s seat empty? Oh well, I make a major amputation on a spare soldier and that is fixed.

Crew compartment filled with stuff, or not.

-Wrong machine-guns again. For this model it is even more annoying as several of the versions they have decals for are earlier than the MG42. Where do I find more than ten MG34? 

Conclusion: Both kits will function in a war-game. They have slightly different sizes, they are after all of different scale, but if used in different platoons I think it will be OK.

I have two more Revell kits waiting for glue and paint, and I just bought two model B from Fujimi. The Fujimi kits can be made as either /1 or /10, the platoon-commander version with a 37mm gun. I’ll be back with more information on them.

I found the Fujimi kits at Hobbybokhandlen on Pipersgatan, Kungsholmen, Stockholm. An excellent shop if you’re interested in militaria. They've got model kits, paints, books etc.

Bromma Hobby is the place where I bought the Armourfast kits, and they have stuff from a lot of other brands, such as Caesar, Pegasus, The Plastic Soldier Company and more.

News June 2011: I read that The Plastics Soldier Company will release a kit with early 251/1:s. It’s a must buy for me.

There are not that many producers of these early models, but far more of the later model D.

My goal is to get eight 251/1 and maybe one 251/10, the command-model armed with a 37mm gun.