DRAGON MODELS LIMITED

6522, PaK43/3 L/71 mit Behelfslafette. 1/35th-scale injection-molded styrene/multi-media kit containing 347 styrene parts (including four clear), one etched brass fret, one length of chain, one length of string and six pages of instructions comprised of 22 steps.

Introduction.

With their backs to the wall in late 1944, the Germans looked to any and all means to provide their troops with effective anti-tank defense. Often, the rate of production of a vehicle chassis could not keep up with the rate of production of its weapon. When this occurred, the weapons were fixed to several types of improvised mounts, some mobile and others static. In the case of the 8.8cm gun fitted to the Jagdpanther, it was sometimes seen mounted on the late-war austere Behelfslafette cruciform platform.

DML recently released a FlaK37 on the Behelfslafette. Now they have come up with a kit of the relatively well-known 8.8cm PaK43/3 L/71, mounted on the austere cruciform. Unlike the previous kit, this one also includes the Sd.Ah.202 limber system. Also unlike the previous kit, there is no ammunition included in the box

The Gun and Carriage.

The L/71 gun tube is the sectional type and comes from a slide-mold, and it mounts the smaller, three-part, slide-molded muzzle brake. The entire assembly will elevate and traverse. 58 new parts are provided for the breech, recuperator cylinder, trunnion mounts, gunners breech guard, seat and sight, hand-wheels, linkages and new mounting plates. The breech can be depicted opened or closed but no ammunition is provided.

The Kreuzlafette.

There are a total of 47 parts for the simplified Behelfslafette. Several are slide-molded to include the main Kreuzlafette (cruciform mount), the separate outriggers and the core of the pedestal mount. Separate detail parts include multi-part lift hook mounts, leveling pads and their mounts, various cross-members, studs, slide-molded ground anchors, and, tiny pieces of conduit. A multi-part gun tube travel lock is provided. It features overall movement as well a separate, movable gun tube clamp.

The Limbers.

The Sd.Ah.202 special trailer sections are small models in their own right. The basic fender sections are produced from a multi-part slide mold so that all details can be properly presented. But, this means that there are several fairly discreet mold seams that must be carefully cleaned up. The axles and leaf-spring assemblies are beautifully rendered and also include steering linkages. The braces, lifting gear, tools and cruciform links are all equally well-represented. The front bogie features a two-position tow bar (hitched for towing or un-hitched for firing), while the rear bogie features a brakemans seat and controls. There is also an option of attaching two of the four reels that held the cables that were used to link a FlaK batterys guns to the central anti-aircraft fire control device. As this was strictly an anti-tank weapon, these items would be useless for this gun but could have been fitted earlier in the life of the Sd.Ah.202s.

Next, we come to the wheels and tires. These feature brake-drums and exquisitely detailed hubs. By far, the most innovative item in this kit has to be the tires. In order to have the tread detail on the face of the tires, DML has separated the tire into several rings that when laminated in the proper order will properly represent the tread detail. Small rings are to be glued to the back side after the hubs are inserted. I would recommend that the modeler paint everything separately. Then after you paint the hubs, sandwich them in between the painted tire assemblies, cement, and touch up if needed.

Accuracy and Details.

There are a hand-full of photographs of this version of the Behelfslafette in references, 5 and 8, below. Some photos show just the gun and mount on a concrete base, while others show the cruciform on the Sd.Ah.202 or beneath another gun type. Based upon these meager sources, it appears then, that DML has got it visually correct.

Markings.
The decal sheet provides tire pressure markings in black or white for the Sd.Ah.202 limbers and there are gun-in-battery letters in white. They are printed by Italys Cartograf and are well-done, withthin matte carrier film and crisp edges. There are painting and finishing instructions for three different guns in a 1945 scenario, with the colors keyed to Gunze and Testors paints. All are finished overall in Dunkelgelb.

Molding, Fit and Engineering.

As I had previously constructed the Behelfslafette and Sd.Ah.202 limbers, for a ToT reviews, I can say that that part of the kit goes together well; likewise for the new gun parts. Since artillery kits usually feature a number of in-scale moving parts (this one is no exception), the modeler will be rewarded by carefully cleaning and finishing the parts before paint is applied.

Conclusion.

This is quite an unusual gun and mount, which is representative of Germanys need to improvise weapons to stem the tide late in the war. It will look just great emplaced in a Rhine River PaK-Front diorama.

Highly recommended.

- Frank V. De Sisto