Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.J
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Pz.Kpfw.III Ausf.J Ref. # 6394 Scale: 1/35 Manufacturer: Dragon Price: Unknown Material: Styrene, PE
IntorductionThe Pz.Kpfw. III actually appeared in the German armed forces a year after the Pz.Kpfw.IV , and was initially supposed to be the main armoured vehicle for the German forces. It was soon apparent however, that the Pz.Kpfw.IV was the main armoured vehicle, and so the Pz.Kpfw.III became a secondary vehicle. The Pz.Kpfw.III existed as Ausf. Types from A to N, this kit by Dragon representing and Ausf.J which first appeared in March 1941. About halfway through the production of the Ausf.J a new longer barrelled gun was introduced in December 1941, this being the 5cm KwK 39 L/60....actually a variant of the PaK38. Dragon claim that the kit is a '2-in-1' in that an early or late Ausf.J can be modelled, by providing both guns. The engine deck in the kit however, is more representative of a late engine deck, although photographic evidence of this deck with the earlier gun apparently exists. | |
The KitThe kit is another in the ‘Smart Series’ of kits, and therefore is supposed to represent an extremely accurate vehicle, with the minimum of photo-etch included necessary to make an this accurate representation. With that in mind, there is a reasonably-sized fret of photo-etch included, along with two transparent sprues for mainly the cupola periscopes, and a small decal sheet. The main hull is provided as a separate part, and to go along with this lot we have 10 large sprues of styrene and 3 smaller ones, two small bags of magic tracks, left and right-handed links, plus a small gun sleeve in a separate Ziploc bag. | |
Looking at the parts on the sprues, the moulding is as usual, first class, with absolutely no sign of flash anywhere, and all the pin-marks in places where they will not be seen on the completed model. Most of the sprues are brand new, apart from things such as the small MG sprue etc., and Dragon have gone to the trouble of including one of their ‘booklets’ to let us know the care that went into the model. Such things as extremely fine weld seams are pointed out for us, along with the asymmetrical shape of the turret stowage bin. Since the only people who will get to read this are presumably the people who have already bought the kit, I’m not sure why it’s included? | |
Construction is much as you would expect, beginning with the installation of the torsion bars in the hull, and construction of the rest of the running gear. Even the anchor points for the torsion bars on the inside of the hull are extremely well detailed, although it’s difficult to see why, since none of them can be seen when the model is complete, and there’s nothing else of the interior supplied? The Rear Idlers have Photo-etched inserts to replicate the complicated profile of the original version, and to go along with this photo-etch I would have liked to see PE tool clamps supplied, although they do provide four really fine engine screens for the rear of the engine deck. All the tools therefore are supplied with moulded on clamps, which always look a little too thick to me, so they will benefit from either being thinned down or replaced. There are some tools supplied without clamps on a sprue marked as ‘not for use’, but there isn’t a replacement for each one of them. | |
As mentioned earlier, you can either build the model using the KwK L/42 or the longer-barrelled L60, and you could also use the spaced armour or build it without. No metal barrel included though, although both supplied barrels are moulded as one-piece, with pre-drilled ends, which helps. However, whichever version of gun you use, the breech assembly is identical. Lacking references I can’t say whether or not this would be correct, although I suspect not? | |
The fenders, as you expect are newly-tooled for this kit, and have the engraved pattern on both sides. Which is nice. What isn’t so nice however is that the engraved pattern on the real fenders is actually recessed instead of standing proud as it is on the kit ones. To give you an idea of what I mean, imagine taking a flat square of mezzanine flooring, and then putting a frame of angle iron around it to hold it. Now imagine building the frame of angle iron first and then just placing the square of mezzanine on top of it. | |
Taking the kit as a whole, the detail is exquisite. From the extremely fine detail on the turret stowage bin, to the two=part lifting hooks over the turret, and the 40cm ‘Magic Tracks’. The only thing that really will have to be replaced is the two lengths of moulded tow rope for laying across the engine deck. I really do wish that a length of wire had been included with separate eyelets! | |
Marking OptionsDragon include options for eight different vehicles in the kit, interestingly though, the instructions only give colours on the first three? The options are: 5./Pz.Rgt,24.Pz.Div., Stalingrad 1942 – Overall Panzer grey 1./3.Pz.Gren.Div., Stalingrad 1942 – Overall white/Camouflage 2./Pz.Rgt.18, 18.Pz.Div., Russia 1942 – Olive Brown? 23.Pz.Div., Eastern Front 1942 5./Pz.Rgt.1, Pz.Gren.Div. 'Lah', Kharkov 1943 3./Pz.Rgt.7, 10.Pz.Div., Tunisia 1943 1./Pz.Rgt.5, Pz.Gren.Div., 'Wiking', Russia 1943 3./Pz.Rgt.8, 15.Pz.Div., Tobruk 1942 | |
ConclusionAnother fantastic kit to add to the 'Smart Series'. Could have been 'tweaked' to make it even better, but it still adds up to a great kit for what it will probably cost when it eventually hits the shelves, so I'm not moaning. Recommended. My Thanks to Dragon for the review sample For full information on all Dragon products, please see their website, Dragon Models Ltd. |
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