ICM 1/35 Krupp L3H163 Kfz.72
| KIT #: | 35462 |
| PRICE: | $51.99 SRP |
| DECALS: | Two Options |
| REVIEWER: | Scott Van Aken |
| NOTES: |
| HISTORY |
Germany began to build the modern army after 1933. The important part of Wehrmacht motorization was manufacturing of three-axle 3 t trucks. One of them was the Krupp L3H63. It was in production sarting in 1931. The modified version, the Krupp L3H163 producted from 1936-1938, had a 110 hp six cylinder gasoline engine and pneumatic brakes.
All in all, about 2000 of these trucks were manufactured. The L3H163 trucks were widely used by all of Germany's armed services up until about 1942. Some of these trucks had special bodies installed for special purposes. One of them was the Kfz.72 van body. These trucks were equipped with a variety of radio transmitters and receivers. They operated as A/B mobile radio stations.
| THE KIT |
This is another impressive boxing from our friends at ICM. Molded on ten sprues of various sizes, the quality of the detailing is right up there with the best of them. There are a few molding marks, but nothing major. The amount of detail provided is really quite impressive. This is by no means a curbside as you get a fully detailed 7.5 liter Krupp engine with its attached transmission. The chassis is also completely detailed with full suspension. Tires are plastic, which is something many of us appreciate as it lessens the strain on the plastic chassis components.
A complete cabin is included with all of the pedals and levers in the real truck as separate items. All of the instruments are provided as decals. The cab in the only place with optional bits and that is the choice of including the side curtains or not. Actually, that isn't totally correct as one can also pose the engine cover open to show off the engine detail. The clear sprue is well done and these bits will need to be added during construction and masked prior to painting. As a bit of an aside, it would be kind of neat if these sorts of kits would show engine wiring as well, though perhaps 1/35 is a tad small for this detail. This one replaces the standard open bed of the initial boxing with the large van shape used by these radio trucks. This includes various tools and a rear entry step. There is no interior to the back side so that will be up to various aftermarket types to come up with something to fit in there.
As you might expect, quite a few of the sprues from the earlier Henschel truck are utilized, but most of the
kit includes new sprues for the Krupp truck. This means that the box is quite fully packed with bits and pieces, allowing the modeler to have quite a goodly number of spares for other projects.
Instructions are superbly printed on glossy paper. ICM has chosen Model Master paints for its color references. There are two markings options, both of which are in overall panzer grey. These differ by license plates for the most part. One is from France in 1940 while the other is from Ukraine in September 1941
| CONCLUSIONS |
No matter how you look at it, this will make into a most impressive model. The parts count is such that it will please the detail modeler and yet offer considerable modeling pleasure to those who like to take it slowly.
| REFERENCES |
Kit instructions. January 2013 Thanks to Squadron Products for the preview kit. You can get this and other fine ICM kits at your local retailer If you would like your product reviewed fairly and quickly, please contactme or see other details in the