Monday, August 1, 2011

1/72 WWII Wargaming- Wespe, Plastic Soldier Company Panzer IV

I purchased 2 of the Italeri Wespe and a Dragon Models Hummel kit for the SP battalion of my artillery regiment. I just finished a Wespe. The kit was easy to build up until the final step of gluing the tracks on. Like the old ESCI kits the "flexible" plastic tracks will split if you even stare at them wrong. Unlike rubber tracks which can be superglued on in realistic fashion, superglue seems to hasten the tracks breaking as both did on the Wespe  within 30 seconds of being wrapped around the drive sprockets over  little super glue. I switched to Loctite plastic/vinyl glue and at least got them serviceable. The  kit comes with a seated driver and a standing crewman which would have been useable but  which I replaced with Caesar Miniatures panzer crewmen anyway.


I completed my first three PzIVs from PSC too. The purest scale modeller may have some issues with the thickness of the schurzen pieces but the wargamer will be overjoyed at the speed and ease of assembly along with the durability to be able to survive the clutches of the careless gamer. I really love these kits and looks forward to more great  PSC 1/72 releases. The only modification I made was to swap the commander out  (they provide two different busts but IMHO they are too big & thick) with a Caesar Miniatures Panzer crewman and I glued the commander hatch halves together since they do not provide a single CO's hatch suitable for an H model.



One more company of panzers and Pz Regt  GD should be able to take on the 13 T-34/85s of my Russian guards tank brigade.