"...Overall this is a great series from DML and now the four vehicles are complete ..."

<View full review here>
- Cookie Sewell

The Sd.Kfz 234/3 was equipped the 7.5cm short barrel Kanone 51 and was intended to provide close support when accompanying other armoured cars on reconnaissance. The main gun was fitted to a standardised mounting, which along with low side armour shields, was attached to the open fighting compartment. The Sd.Kfz 234/3 was produced during 1944 and was issued to the reconnaissance units in Panzer divisions. With eight wheels, a top speed of 80 km/hour, and good cross country performance they were well suited to their reconnaissance role.

OVERVIEW

This is Dragon’s fourth release in the Sd.Kfz 234 series, which now includes one kit of each major production type. It features new tooling for the upper hull, and much of the fighting compartment and 7.5cm Kanone 51. The gun does not share any parts with Dragon’s earlier Sd.Kfz 250/8 Stummel, although it does share a few parts with the latest Panzer IV kits. One new feature of this kit is that it comes with two types of tyres that differ in their tread pattern, allowing you to build the kit with mixed tyres. Given wartime photos of front line armoured cars frequently have mixed tyres this is a really useful enhancement.

The model has approximately 470 parts and includes some photo etch, clear periscopes, and turned brass width indicators. The gatefold instructions have 28 steps of line drawings. As expected the parts are crisp and the external dimensions compare favourably to scale plans.

NEW GUN MOUNT AND INTERIOR

The 7.5cm gun and its mount are tooled to Dragon’s current high standard. The gun has a one-piece slide molded barrel with rifling on the muzzle and a crisply detailed gun sleeve. Other features include the sights (clear plastic), a gun breech, spent shell catcher, hand wheels and guard all provided. The base plate for the gun is included and sits above the hull’s top plate while the shields are thin and include realistic weld marks. A Gen-2 MG 42 is mounted co-axially to the 7.5cm gun, while a Gen-2 MG34 can be attached to a hinged mount on the rear of the fighting compartment. Being Gen-2 both MGs have crisp detail such as hollowed muzzles, sharp perforations on the barrel jacket and separate feed covers.

Inside the fighting compartment there is a newly tooled ammunition box mounted on the hull side, which comes with six separate shells. Another ammunition box, which is closed, is also included. The hinged gunner’s seat can be depicted up or down and a slat seat for the commander is provided.

Both driving positions have seats with springs on the back and vision ports, which can be built open or closed, while the forward position has the dials. As usual for recent Dragon kits the vision blocks are clear plastic.

The floor is well detailed with features such as the transmission cover and anti-skid plate with a dimple pattern as per photos of an un-restored vehicle. The structural braces on the sidewalls are separate parts with the nuts/bolts represented on both sides. Fittings include the MP38/40 submachine gun, head pad, transmission cover, radio, gas masks, fuel tank, and the firewall for the engine compartment.

The interior, including the open ammunition rack, compares favorably to the limited photos, which I found of the Sd.Kfz 234/3 interior, and in particular includes the fittings that will be visible on a model. The lack of references may explain why the two ammunition racks would struggle to store the armored cars full compliment of ammunition.

HULL, TYRES & FITTINGS

This kit has a new one-piece upper hull with the opening for the fighting compartment that is unique to the Sd.Kfz 234/3.

The fenders are the earlier mid 1944 design with four stowage bins on each fender which is the configuration seen in most photos of the 234/1. The padlocks are integrated into the fenders and, like with the hinges and screws are finely detailed. The side bins lids are molded shut. The storage boxes mounted on the top of the fenders can be assembled open or closed.

Two types of tyres are included and can be mixed. A full set of the type with the military tread pattern with large blocks extending onto the sidewalls is included as per Dragon other Sd.Kfz 234 series kits. These tyres are a two-piece injection plastic design, which fit together smoothly (the tread design suits a two piece tooling). The second tyre type has a more civilian pattern, which is typical of the era and is often seen in wartime photos of the Sd.Kfz 234 series. Three of these tyres are provided and they are built with six layer. Each layer provides part of the tyre’s tread profile (the profile has grooves that run the circumference of the tyre). These tyres are similar in construct to those used in one of Dragon’s 88mm Flak kits. For the rear spare wheel there is the option of either having the wheel fitted, or missing to show the detailed stub.

The main lower hull is a detailed one-piece slide-molded tub, which is narrower on the bottom than the top; a design innovation copied on many modern wheeled armored vehicles. The axle stubs and suspension arms are attached to a one-piece chassis frame and this sub-assembly is then fitted to the main hull. The steering assembly is represented with numerous connecting rods and the like. The suspension’s tie rod ends (D23, D24, D15) which fit onto the hull and guide the wheels have tabs that fit into slots on the hull, which along with tabs on the axles (B4) ensure that the road wheels face straight ahead, but the tabs can be snipped off so that the wheels are turned.

All engine deck louvers can be built either open or closed. If left open mesh could be fitted underneath them, by either scratch building it or using aftermarket drop fit PE mesh (e.g. Cyber-Hobby).

The four width indicator poles are provided with a choice of injection plastic or turned brass poles. Optional photo etch parts are included for the lifting hooks and the cover for the access port on the hull’s lower rear.

The on-vehicle tools such as the spades and the pickaxe have the clamps molded on. The jack is built up from six parts and has the latch molded onto the body of the jack with the brackets as separate injection plastic pieces. Six jerry cans with separate injection plastic mounting straps and PE for their centre weld joins are mounted on the fenders.

DECALS

The instruction sheet provides four view profiles of three armoured cars, all of which are depicted as a colour side profile on the box. The first vehicle (on the box art) is from Normandy and has the three colour scheme of a yellow base with green and brown camouflage with the reconnaissance unit and 116 Panzer Division’s markings on the front. The second vehicle has the same camouflage scheme and is from the “Ullrich von Hutten” Division is Germany 1945, while the last vehicle is plain yellow and from an unidentified unit in Normandy.

Two cleanly registered Cartograph waterslide decal sheets are included. One sheet is new to this kit and contains the unit and tactical markings for the first two vehicles, Balkan Crosses, shipping stencils and dash dials. The other sheet contains numerous vehicle registration numbers and Wehrmacht “WH” and Waffen SS prefixes (the runes are broken into two) as wells as two sets of blank white plates (one with and one without black outlines). You will need to build up the vehicles registration plates using separate numbers.

RECOMMENDATION

The Sd.Kfz 234/3 shows the benefits of Dragon’s up to date tooling in providing numerous extra bits of realism and finesse. The kit has crisp detail and promises to deliver an impressive model that compares favourably to references. The inclusion of two types of tyres is a very useful innovation, which helps give that front line look. Definitely recommended.

- Neville Lord