DML 6342 1/35 Flakpanzer IV Ausf G "Wirbelwind"

1/35 injection plastic kit with decals and photo etch

The Wirbelwind, a late war anti aircraft tank, was made by mounting a 2cm flakvierling inside an open top turret which fitted directly into the turret ring of a Panzer IV, the conversion being undertaken at a dedicated workshop in Sagan in Lower Silesia Prussia (now Poland). The Panzer IV chassis used for these conversions were typically from Ausf G or later tanks which had been returned, often damaged, from the front line for repair and overhaul. With an effective combination of firepower, armor to protect the crew and mobility inherent from a tracked chassis, the Wirbelwind was effective against both ground attack aircraft and ground targets.

CONTENTS

This is Dragon's second 1/35 model of the Wirbelwind. This release features a Panzer IV Ausf G hull which given the time of the Wirbelwind production would have been common for these conversions, especially among the earlier production Wirbelwind. A photo from the conversion plant showed several Ausf G hulls with features on this kit and another photo showed two Wirbelwind with 1942 production Ausf G hulls with the Notek light (also buildable with this kit).

This kit includes a choice of several frontal armor configurations and Bosch or Notek lights which will offer the flexibility to cover most Ausf G hulls produced from late 1942 to 1943. Dragon's previous Wirbelwind (kit 6540) had a late Panzer IV Ausf H or early production Ausf J hull.

This kit is in the Smart Kit format and draws on tooling from the previous Wirbelwind and Panzer IV G releases. All tooling is up to date and crisp, and like with kit 6540 is vastly superior to that in older models of the Wirbelwind. This tooling offer benefits in terms of part fit, accuracy, the in scale appearance of the turret armor plates, and the inclusion of greater detail particularly the detail inside and below the flak turret. Experience with related kits and test fit suggests this will be an enjoyable kit to make.

The often optional photo etch includes the gun sight, support arm for the gunner's seat, tabs on the turret flap, brackets for the front spare tracks, flaps for the side plate engine vents, baffles below the engine deck hatches, tail reflector, detail on the rear convoy light, and a pair of fender supports. The driver's vision block is clear plastic.

The 21 step gatefold instruction sheet is clearly laid out and clean up of the parts should be very quick. This kit does not include zimmerit and photos (plus the timing of the Ausf G production) indicate that most Wirbelwind with Ausf G hulls did not have zimmerit; hence this kit can be built as a front line vehicle out of the box.

OPEN TURRET

The distinctive nine sided open turret is made using two large slide molded shells which join on a vertical weld line. One shell has the ring which mates into the turret ring integrated into it with a knob that aligns with the other shell. Both shells have Dragon's razor edge design to give a thin in-scale effect. This approach to the design of the turret shell will ensure a neatly aligned model with armored plates that are free of both injection marks and visible alignment plugs. The turret shells have realistic looking weld marks on all plate joints. On the front of the turret there is a hinged flap which can be modeled raised or lowered. The flap has hinges and PE securing tabs. The separate toothed Panzer IV turret ring is attached to the ring on the base of the turret shells.

The kit also includes the two metal H beams which supported the flakvierling. These beams have small detail such as bolt-heads and were attached to the top of the hull. On top of the beams is a mounting plate which mates to the base of the flakviering. The base plate has plenty of detail such as bolt heads and a raised collar ring. Below the base plate there is a new part for the fighting compartment floor and other new parts are included for the forward and rear bulkheads. This level of attention to the interior detail below the turret shell helps distinguish this kit from older releases of this Flakpanzer.

The flakvierling is recent tooling with crisp features such as the gun cradle, hand wheels, gun sight and ammunition clips and feeders. The gunner's seat is attached to the flak via an arm which has the option of PE or plastic parts. One crew seat is attached to the turret shell as are two racks of ammunition clips (clips included).

The 20mm barrels are single piece slide-moldings with hollow muzzle opening that have the flash suppressors on the side are represented by indentations. While I expect that some modelers will replace these with metal ones, they are crisper than several one-piece metal flak barrels that I’ve seen.

PANZER IV HULL

The hull is from Dragon's latest Panzer IV Ausf G Smart Kits and the upper hull is the same as for the gun tanks. The key point for the armored body is the choice of welded or bolted on applique armor or no additional armor for the upper and lower front plates or welded plate only. There is a choice of a Notek or Bosch light on the left fender (the assembly hall photo had Bosch fittings, but photos show multiple Wirbelwind had the earlier Notek light). Specific to the Wirbelwind are two metal cases for storing spare 20mm barrels which are fixed to the rear upper hull. Each box has hinge and latch detail and can be modeled open to reveal the spare barrels.

The key features of the suspension are the drive sprocket is the early type typical of the Ausf G, the rear idler is the welded design, the return rollers have rubber tyres and the Magic Tracks are the common 40cm profile without chevrons (which is consistent with many photos). The road wheels have the tyre and rim as one piece and separate hub-caps with the recessed screw holes.

The other features of the hull are in keeping with related Smart Kit releases. The driver and radio operator’s hatches do not have signal ports (dropped late 42), but have splash guards and both hatches can be modeled open. Correctly for an Ausf G there are side vision ports for the driver and radio operator. The forward MG34 has a workable ball mount and internal detail. The baffles underneath the engine hatches are photo etch.

The fenders have an anti-skid pattern on the upper surface and underside and separate front and rear fenders. The holes for the tools are predrilled and the bottom of some of the brackets are crisply cast onto the fenders, which combined with the sharply defined tools (which have the brackets and clamps cast on) will deliver crisp results.

The lower hull is accurate for an Ausf G and has slide-molded detail on the bottom and sides such as weld beams, counter sunk holes and screw heads. Other features such as the drive housing and the use of separate parts for the rear idler mount, bump stops etc are as expected for a Smart Kit. Spare Panzer III/IV tracks are mounted on the glacis plate and have no visible injection marks, while the lower spare track rack which is typical of an Ausf G and has a choice of round or flat handle can be filled with Magic Tracks. A twisted wire tow cable is stored on the rear plate. The rear exhaust is a detailed multi-part assembly with a hollowed outlet.

DECALS

The Cartograf decal sheet contains three sizes of Balkan Crosses, arc shaped elevation markings for the Flak and some markings unique to the gun in the box art. Colour side profiles are on the box and three view profiles on the instruction sheet for three suggested paint schemes.

The one on the box art id from Schwere Panzer Abteilung 509 near Darmstadt 1945 and has green and brown spray painted camouflage over the yellow base. It has turret number 036 and four unit insignia (tigers head on a shield).

The second Flakpanzer has a three colour camouflage scheme and is from a well known footage of Kampfgruppe Peiper in the Ardennes 1944. The last is from an unidentified unit in France and has a harder edged three colour camouflage scheme and is seen destroyed in photos taken by the US Army.

RECOMMENDATION

This new release lets modelers build one of the many Wirbelwind converted from a Panzer IV Ausf G hull. This kit will make an impressive and accurate model out of the box, while also providing the basis for super detailing. Like with Dragon’s Wirbelwind on the Ausf H hull, the flak turret is tooled to a very high standard and the best available in 1/35 scale. Highly recommended.

- Neville Lord

Kit Review: Dragon Models Limited 1/35 scale '39 - '45 Series Kit No. 6342; Flakpanzer IV Ausf. G "Wirbelwind" Early Production - Smart Kit; 954 parts (615 in grey styrene, 288 "Magic Link" single link tracks, 35 etched brass, 15 clear styrene, 1 twisted steel wire); pre-order price US$49.95 via Dragon USA Online

Advantages: new variant of this kit makes numerous small changes; uses the nice Flakvierling mount and "slide molded" turret parts

Disadvantages: no zimmerit on hull; still comes with “Magic Track” links

Rating: Highly Recommended

Recommendation: for all German, Pzkw. IV and "Duck Hunter" fans

As was noted in July 2009 when the first of these kits (No. 6250) leased, the Germans were as keen as the US and British in mobile troop air defense and came up with a large number of vehicles to provide this necessary support to ground forces units. But of all of their efforts, probably the most striking one of the lot was the mating of a 2cm Flakvierling quad mount and an octagonal turret with rebuilt Pzkw. IV chassis as a very potent tactical weapons system. The vehicle, formally designated as the Flakpanzer IV/2cm Vierling, was better known as the “Wirbelwind” (whirlwind). Alas, only 122 of these vehicles were converted between July and November 1944 before they were replaced by the Flakpanzer IV/3.7 cm Flak or "Ostwind".

As some of the vehicles were converted from Ausf. F and G chassis with thinner armor, applique armor was added as the vehicles were converted. (I do not know how many of each were converted.)

Combing a potpourri of their various Pzkw. IV sprues with the 2cm Flakvierling mount from their recent Sd.Kfz. 7/1, this provides a number of different options for finishing an early production version of the Wirbelwind.

As before the kit does not have any zimmerit. Note that if you do add zimmerit the turret does NOT have any attached as it would add weight and would have slowed it down when traversing, a problem most armored turrets had when tracking enemy air targets.

Drivers now consist of only four parts; the separate bolts are gone. Bogies are now nine piece affairs without separate tires. New details are provided for the tow hook at the rear of the hull as well.

The upper hull again consists of a deck and framework with applique sides, front and rear engine intake components and fenders. The standard muffler has a central tube section and six add-on parts to complete it along with a “slide molded” exhaust pipe.

All ports and hatches are separate parts so they can be posed open. Other than the interior of the turret the hull only provides a rudimentary firewall for the engine compartment and the cross-braces and new turret race parts. The bow also comes with a well-done machine gun and ball mount. Note that all ports have clear styrene inserts as well.

The turret is a DML gem in that they split it vertically at the joint between the front five panels and the elongated rear three panels. The upper sections are respectively thin - DML’s “Razor Edge” moldings – and the joint here is easier to hide than the old horizontal splits used by Monogram and Tamiya. The turret race fitting for the upper race is molded as part of the front section, a truly unique design. The 2 cm Flakvierling 38 has new guns with slide molded barrels and flash hiders. As with previous DML antiaircraft gun offerings, there are different sight articulation bars provided for setting the guns at either 0 or 60 degrees elevation, but the guns will not move if the bars are used. A number of magazines and ammo racks for the installation.

As with all "Smart Kits" etched brass is kept to a minimum and only covers items such as the engine air intake louvers, the inner guides of the idler wheels, some small brackets, and the flaps for the engine air intakes on the sides of the rear deck. There is also what appears to be a "catch bin" for ammo casings at the bottom of the turret.

Tracks are the "Magic Track" snap-together-then-cement type, and modelers are advised to recall that when facing the head card the left side track links are on the left and right are on the right.

Technical assistance was provided by Notger Schlegtendal, Thomas Anderson, Dan Graves, Tom Cockle and Gary Edmundson.

Three finishing options are provided: s.Pz.Abt.509, outside Darmstadt, Germany 1945 (tricolor top and sand hull, black 036); Kampfgruppe Peiper, Ardennes 1944 (tricolor top and sand hull, black crosses); Unidentified Unit, France 1944 (tricolor top and black crosses). A small sheet of Cartograf decals provides the markings. However, as is unfortunately all too common with DML, while they give you a large number of options they do not tell you which vehicle gets which applique or other optional parts.

Overall, other than the missing zimmerit this kit should be very popular for the great representation of its subject and the most correct depiction of the turret mounting yet.

- Cookie Sewell

Flakpanzer IV Ausf.G Wirbelwind
-Early Production
Manufacturer: Dragon models
Scale: 1/35
Material: Styrene & Phtot-etch
Serial Number: 6342
Price: TBA


Introduction
The Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind was a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun based on the Panzer IV tank, and successor to the Mobelwagen. Dragon have already released a modern tooling of this kit, kit no.6540. This version being only slightly different and representing an early production model.


Kit Contents
Unless you possessed quite specific knowledge on these vehicles, you might perhaps find it difficult to point out the differences between this kit, and the earlier released version. The differences are small. To start at the beginning though, inside the box you'll find eight large, seven medium-sized and five small sprues of grey styrene, one small transparent sprue plus a two-part turret, separate lower hull, two bags of individual Magic Track links, a decal sheet, photo-etched fret, wire tow rope and of course instruction leaflet...this time running to eight sides.

The various sprues contained within the box are not all new tooling and originate from a number of different kits, just as in 6540, but there are a few differences to allow for this model being based on a Pz.IV Ausf.G chassis rather than a Pz.IV Ausf.H chassis as in 6540. As a result of this practice of taking sprues from a variety of earlier releases, it can quickly become confused when describing the sprues, so I'll attempt to clarify this by adding a number.

First off there are three different sprues all called 'A'. The first and largest one A(1) holds...amongst others...parts for the construction of the Flakvierling mount. It's almost identical to the one from 6540, except that there are a couple of tiny parts added that were not on that sprue, parts 67 & 68. Curiously, they're not shown on the parts map on the front of the instructions. Not even marked 'Not for use'. Sprue A(2) contains the drive sprockets and return rollers, different from 6540 and consisting of the earlier six-spoked solid-ribbed sprocket. Sprue A(3) holds all the roadwheels, idler wheels and suspension components and is the same as that from 6540.

Moving on....sprue E(1) contains the parts for the superstructure and is from an earlier Pz.IV kit, but not the one supplied in 6540. Sprue D holds the parts for the turret race, and fighting compartment floor and interior, and is identical to that supplied in 6540. E(2) is the left-hand half of the sprue E that was supplied in 6540, therefore omitting some superstructure elements plus parts intended for a turreted Pz.IV. H. Sprue G(1) follows the same pattern, in that it represents the left-hand side of a complete sprue that was supplied in 6540. Nearly all of its parts are marked as 'Not for use', just a few tiny parts being used for the vision ports and kugelblende.

Sprue C has a selection of on vehicle tools, originating from the Smart kit series, and therefore having slightly better representations of the toolclamps moulded in place. Sprue G(2) are from the 8-ton halftrack Flakvierling and contain the gun parts. Sprue K has right and left fenders from the Pz.IV kit, but the ones in 6540. Sprue H are the engine deck parts, and is almost identical to that from 6540, but having an additional three parts, for the spare track on the frontal armour.

That just leaves the main deck and lower hull, both of which are different from those supplied in 6540 as you would expect. The inspection plate detail on the lower surface of the hull is slightly different, whilst the shape of the raised guards around the driver's and co-drivers hatches are of the chamfered type, along with a few other smaller detail changes around welds etc.

If you're familiar with modern Dragon kits then of course this kit will hold no surprises for you. Dragon has the Panzer IV chassis down to almost an art form now they've released so many variants, and the 2cm Flakvierling from the Sd.Kfz.7 kit is an incredibly detailed construction even taken in isolation.

The Wirbelwind turret, as mentioned earlier is supplied in two parts supported on a vac-formed shell for protection. It's possibly not the two parts you would expect though, being split into two parts vertically at two of its corners, rather than horizontally. It's also been moulded incredibly thinly too. So there are no ugly chamfered edges that need to be dealt with. It's more or less a scale-thickness.

Stand-out points in the kit for me, are the incredible detail on such things as the roadwheel tyres, showing the manufacturers log, the logo on the return roller rubber, the sheer amount of detail on the Flakvierling and the thinness of the armour.

Conclusion
I can't deny that it's a beautifully produced Wirbelwind. The detail is superb. Whether or not you'll want one if you already have the other one is moot. Fills a gap though! If you want a really, really superb kit....install a couple of Griffon sets, including replacement barrels with flash suppressors that have holes in...and you'll have a show stopper! Recommended.

- Vinnie Branigan