The Panzer IV was the main workhorse medium tank for the German Army during WW2. Starting the war with an infantry support gun it ended it completely transformed into a tank hunting machine with a long 75mm gun. Although eclipsed by the Panther and the Tiger it was nevertheless more than a match for the Soviet T-34 hordes.
Introduction
This is a wargaming kit made by Plastic Soldier in the 1/100 scale (15mm). The plastic quality and overall detail is excellent, as usual.
Assembly Process
The kit comes with the option of building either a early/mid war Ausf. F1 (short 75mm barrel), a mid war Ausf. F2/G (long 75mm) or a late war Ausf. H (long 75mm + shurzen). I can’t express how important this is, as it will save you money again and again when trying to get a specific Ausf. version to your tank forces. I chose to assemble the mid war F2/G variant.
We start with the turret and i wanted to assemble one with the commander sitting in the hatch in a classic pose however it seems that the figure would not fit. I tried to enlarge the hatch a bit but i gave up when it was becoming clear that i was damaging the actual model. Such a shame and a small minus point here.
Next are the tracks. The small round spaces on the actual tracks make it easier for you to fit them together with the wheel section. Not much to say about it but a bit of care and pre-asembly fitting check must be done.
We will now work on the hull of the tank. Here are all the parts for it.
We now glue the lower and upper hull together and fir the engine plate and the exhaust plate on the back of the hull.
Next we add the track to the front of the lower hull (that’s where it was stored) and the machine-gun plate to the front of the upper hull. This completes our hull assembly. It is optional if you want to glue the 2 spare bogies also on the side. I did.
And with this we are done!
Evaluation
Plastic Quality | 5 (Perfect) | Excellent in all points. |
Number of Details | 5 (Perfect) | Amazing detail for 15mm. Gets a 5 for letting us customize 3 types of tanks. |
Instructions | 4 (Good) | Instructions are clear and easy to follow. |
Building Time | 4.5 (Very Good) | Under 15 minutes! |
Enjoyment | 5 (Perfect) | It is a pleasure to work this kit. |
We have a 5 plastic tank box from PSC which let us customize 3 types of variants for all war periods and is probably half the price of any metal out there. Add exquisite detail and lots of spares left after assembly for conversions and we have a winner!
What role did the Panzer IV play as the main medium tank for the German Army during World War II, and how did its design evolve from an infantry support gun to a tank hunting machine with a long 75mm gun?
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