Tag Archives: tamiya

German Sturmtiger, 38cm Assault Mortar (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 177-4100 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘German Sturmtiger, 38cm Assault Mortar’.

German Sturmtiger, 38cm Assault Mortar

History

A very rare variant of the much feared Tiger I heavy tank, was the “Sturmtiger” assault weapon that mounted a gigantic 38cm caliber mortar on the tank chassis. Development was initiated in August 1943 and was intended for uses against heavily fortified areas. The short barreled L/5.4, type RW61 mortar was originally developed by Rheinmetall-Borsig, for the German navy’s land-based protection against an enemy submarine attack.

In order to withstand the heavy recoil of up to 40 tons, the Tiger I’s sturdy chassis was selected. A decision was made to use only those chassis/hulls that were sent back from the front, so that new production of the tank would not be affected.

A fighting compartment was formed of a boxlike superstructure which was bolted to the lower hull itself. Its armor plate measured 150mm thick at the front and 80mm on the sides. Later, a steel ring counterweight was added to the mouth of the mortar barrel on some vehicles to make elevation aiming easier.

The mortar’s huge self propelled rocket projectile was 149cm long and weighed 330kg. For loading these heavy rockets aboard, a hand cranked crane was mounted to the right aft side of the upper hull. Due to the rocket’s size, storage space was very limited and only 14 shells could be carried.

Conversion production of the Sturmtiger began in August 1944, and by the end of December a total of 18 units had been completed and sent to the front for action during the final stage of the conflict.

Source: Tamiya website

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Russian Heavy Tank, KV-1 Type C (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 066-1600 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘Russian Heavy Tank, KV-1 Type C’.

Russian Heavy Tank, KV-1 Type C

History

The name KV, were the initials of Klim Voroshilov. Klim was a Soviet hero who did a great job back in the Russian Civil War (at least that is what Soviet propagandists sell). Between the wars he spent his time pointing the big finger at his comrades so that Stalin had plenty of cannon fodder for his purges. His value as a Marshal during WW2 was less than spectacular. He was quickly replaced on the front line and spent the remainder of the war reviewing parade troops. This rather dim witted Marshal was probably under qualified to even do that.

When first introduced in late 1930’s, the KVI was no doubt one of the most powerful tanks in the world, and a complete secret. It was built to be completely “bulletproof”, and was shot proof against the 37mm Anti-Tank Gun with it’s thick 100mm armor.

In the B-model, armor was increased an additional 25-35mm. The C-model used a cast turret, replacing the old plated one to increase protection.

This heavy tank, weighing around 45 tons with crew of five, was armed with 76.2mm main gun and two MGs. The armament was considered heavy for 1940, but by 1943 the main gun lacked punching power against new Panthers and Tigers. Its weight caused constant trouble with the transmission. As weight increased due to additional armor, the engine power was not increased. This caused successive models to become slower.

Source: Tamiya website

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German 3 Ton 4×2 Cargo Truck (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 291-3000 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘German 3 Ton 4×2 Cargo Truck’.

German 3 Ton 4x2 Cargo Truck

History

Ideal choice for German Army – The German army in WWII used a wide variety of wheeled vehicles as part of their overall strategy of fast mechanized warfare. Among the most widely used was the 3 ton 4×2 Cargo Truck, a truck design that was first produced in the 1930s. From 1937 to 1944, over 78,000 medium 3 ton 4×2 Cargo Trucks were produced and they became the most recognized German army truck in WWII.

Featuring a dependable 6-cylinder gasoline engine, the 3 ton 4×2 Cargo Truck could take on a very large payload disproportionate to its size. It also featured a durable rear wheel-drive chassis with superior off-road handling and a large cargo area, which enabled superb load-carrying capacity.

They proved to be not only extremely reliable, but also very versatile, and were employed in a wide variety of roles, including fuel truck, ambulance, radio truck, as well as general-purpose cargo truck and was until the end of war used to transport troops and supplies on all fronts.

Source: Tamiya website

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German Panzerkampfwagen IV, Ausf. D (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 096-1800 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘German Panzerkampfwagen IV, Ausf. D’.

German Panzerkampfwagen IV, Ausf. D

History

The later models of the Pz.Kpfw.IV series have become the best known and the most fequently modelled variants. These were the tanks that took part in all the big tank battles of World War II and formed the backbone of Hitlers Panzer divisions.
Source: Tamiya website

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German Panzerkampfwagen IV, Ausf. J (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 181-3400 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘German Panzerkampfwagen IV, Ausf. J’.

German Panzerkampfwagen IV, Ausf. J

History

The Panzerkampfwagen IV was Germany’s most important tank during the second world war. It remained in mass production throughout the conflict, with more than 8,000 units being produced. This represented more than one-third of Germany’s total wartime tank production. It was the backbone of the Panzer Divisions and it was often referred to as their “Workhorse” The Pz.Kpfw.IV underwent constant improvement throughout its long career.

As an example, its original short-barreled 7.5cm main gun was replaced with the long barreled 7.5cm KwK40 L/43 gun beginning with the Ausf. F2 version. The further improved 7.5cm KwK40 L/48 was added to the Ausf. H onwards.In 1944 however, with the introduction of the new Panther and Tiger tanks, plus other tactical considerations, the Pz.Kpfw.IV began to serve mainly in a defensive capacity. A need was required to simplify construction and increase productivity, plus conserve scarce raw materials.

The last of the series, the Ausf. J thus had a much simpler construction, and an extra fuel tank replaced the auxiliary engine/generator. This greatly increased its range from 210km to 320km and was welcomed by the German troops, as they were having difficult with their supply, but it was attained at the expense of electric power for the turret traversing motor. The thin steel plates known as Schurzen (skirts), first introduced with the Ausf. G, were sometimes replaced with heavy gauge wire mesh, or not even used at all.

Source: Tamiya website

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German 20mm Flakvierling 38 (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 091-1000 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘German 20mm Flakvierling 38’.

German 20mm Flakvierling 38

History

Shooting an impressive 600 rounds per minute and greatly feared by Allied pilots was the German 20mm Flakvierling 38 with Sd.Ah.52.

Although its purpose was to provide aerial defense against Allied aircraft attack from a grounded position, it was also seen used with trucks and other land vehicles as well on warships.

Source: Tamiya website

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German Flakpanzer Gepard (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 099-2500 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘German Flakpanzer Gepard’.

German Flakpanzer Gepard

History

The Basis of the Gepard weapon system is the remarkable Oerlikon-Contraves 35mm which was developed and put into production in the early 1960’s. During the 1960’s, two prototypes were produced.

The Oerlikon, which was chosen for production, became the Flakpanzer Gepard, which was essentially a standard Leopard with the ordinary turret replaced by the Oerlikon-Contraves twin 35/90mm AA turret and associated auxiliary equipment.

Source: Tamiya website

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Russian Heavy Tank, JS-2, model 1944 ChKZ (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya 35 289-4200 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘Russian Heavy Tank, JS-2, model 1944 ChKZ’.

Russian Heavy Tank, JS-2, model 1944 ChKZ

History

The Russian Tank that was too much for the Germans – The Russian Heavy Tank JS-2 was built to overthrow the German Tiger I. The JS-2 which was put into production in the latter half of WWII in December 1943, had a long powerful 122mm gun and superior mobility. From August, 1944 the upper part of the hatch was removed from the hull which greatly improved its defensive ability.

The JS-2 was produced in the Chelyabinsk Kirov factory (ChKZ), and a characteristic of the tank is it’s one piece cast rounded front. The JS-2 showed great strength in the break through of defensive positions but also in anti-tank battles. The Russian tank JS-2 played a major part which contributed to the victory of the end of the Great War.

Source: Tamiya website

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  • Hobbymesse 2012

German Sturmgeschütz III, Ausf. G (Early version) (Tamiya)

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This is the Tamiya, 35 197-2600 kit in 1/35 scale, of the ‘German Sturmgeschütz III, Ausf. G – Early version’.

German Sturmgeschütz III, Ausf. G - Early version

History

Originally intended for infantry support duties, Germany’s Sturmgeschutz (assault gun) and abbreviated “StuG” III first appeared in combat during 1940. It had the durable Panzer III chassis with a completely new superstructure. To keep the vehicles profile as low as possible, the revolving turret was eliminated and the short barreled 75mm L/24 gun was mounted directly onto the hull.

As it was mainly intended for close fire support for the Wehrmacht, it was used as self-propelled artillery against the opposing enemy’s strategic points. However, when the German forces encountered the Russian KV and T-34 tanks on the Eastern front, the situation abruptly changed. To cope with this Russian tank threat, the Germans were forced to upgrade their existing weapons systems. The G-type StuG III built from late 1942 onwards, used a more powerful, long barrel 75mm L/48 gun. The early G-type had a square shaped gun mantlet.

The superstructure was redesigned and an MG42 machine gun with shield, commander’s vision cupola and smoke dischargers were added. The thin steel plates, known as Schurzen (skirts) were attached to the sides of the hull beginning in the spring of 1943. The type-42 assault gun mounted a 105mm howitzer on the StugG III chassis and was developed to fulfill the StuG III’s original role of infantry support. Incorporating several minor changes, about 7,800 G-type StuG III’s were produced.

Source: Tamiya website

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