Hi. I got one done that I started last week, see it in the previous builds section. I am currently working on the HMS Hood. Let’s check out the progress.
Over 2500 pieces so this will take awhile to get done but progress has been steady with no major screw ups. So far.
Bag 1 is complete and so is the bow.
Bag 2 continues the bow into the midsection. I will say the build is easier with the different colored blocks. It makes it easier to spot the right block and since it is the internal structure the color doesn’t matter. Wish they had been doing this sooner.
Bag 3 was the stern and once again no problems.
Bag 4 completed the stern and also started the basic midships so we have the full hull joined and ready to fill out. That will be next week.
Previous builds.
I teased this last week so here it is completed.
Sd. Kfz. 243/3 Stummel
The Sd.Kfz. 234 (Sonderkraftfahrzeug 234, Special Purpose Vehicle 234), was a family of armoured cars designed and built in Germany during World War II. The vehicles were lightly armoured, armed with a 20, 50 or 75 mm main gun, and powered by a Tatra V12 diesel engine. The Sd.Kfz. 234 broadly resembles the appearance of Sd.Kfz. 231 (8 rad).The Sd.Kfz. 234/3, produced simultaneously with the 234/1, served as a support vehicle for the reconnaissance vehicles. It had an open-topped superstructure, in which a short-barreled 7.5 cm K51 L/24 gun was installed. This gun was intended for use against “soft” targets; however, when using a hollow charge shell, the penetration power exceeded that of the 5 cm L/60 gun. This variant was produced from mid 1944 to the end of 1944, before switching production to the 234/4.
Ford V3000s Maultier
Maultier (English: “mule“) or Sd.Kfz. 3 is the name given to series of half-track trucks used by Nazi Germany during World War II. They were based on Opel, Mercedes-Benz, Alfa Romeo or Ford trucks.
History
Soon after invading the USSR, German troops discovered that their wheeled transport vehicles were unsuitable for the sparse road network, particularly in the muddy conditions of the rasputitsa. Only half tracks like the Sd.Kfz. 11 could haul supplies to forward units in these conditions, but removing them from their combat role for supply duties was not feasible, so it was decided to produce half-tracked versions of standard Opel, Daimler-Benz, Alfa-Romeo and Ford trucks (lorries) by removing their rear axles, truncating the prop-shafts and connecting them to redundant Panzer I track assemblies. Heavier trucks (4 tons payload) were fitted with Panzer II track assemblies.
Horstmann suspension components employed by the Panzer I was practically identical to the light tank track system used on the Universal Carrier, with the Maultier’s use of them closely resembling the roadwheel/suspension system used by the T16 American-produced version in its roadwheel design. Most Maultier conversions were based on Opel Blitz model S trucks, which proved successful in service.
Although they lacked the overall mobility of purpose-built half tracks, they were cheaper and sufficiently effective. From 1943 some Maultier trucks were fitted with armored bodies, designated Sd.Kfz. 4. Some of these were armed with ten-tube rocket launcher Panzerwerfer 42, and were designated Sd.Kfz.. 4/1.