German V3000S Truck. Revell 1:35

[Shar2]

German V3000S Truck

Revell 1:35

From 1940 onwards the German army, by standardizing and simplifying the numerous types of trucks, tried to improve the procurement of spare parts and facilitate repairs. The result was the standard 3 ton truck, which all German manufacturer snow used as a basis for construction. This was also the basis on which the motor manufacturer in Cologne produced the "V3000S" from 1941 onwards. Various bodies and sets of equipment were available. A typical recognition feature was the oval radiator grille and one-piece windscreen. In total about 25,000 examples were built. The "V 3000 S" came to be used on all fronts in the Second World War and was indispensable for supplying the troops with goods of all kinds.

The Model

This model is a re-pop of the ICM kit supplied in the standard Revell end opening box, on the front of which is a nice representation of the truck in use. Inside, within a large poly bag, are three sprues of light brown styrene and, in a separate poly bag, one clear sprue. On initial inspection the parts are really well moulded, clean, with no sign of flash. There are a number of moulding pips, some of which are on quite fragile looking parts, so care should be taken when removing. The sprue gates attaching items like the cover rails are also quite heavy and I can see these parts breaking if not careful.

The build starts with the nicely detailed engine with the block and gearbox halves glued together followed by the addition of the rocker covers, starter motor, alternator, front engine mounts, cooling fan, air filter, cooling pipes, gear stick and other sundry items. The instructions then move on to the chassis rails with the addition of five cross members and rear chassis end piece, to which the towing eye, cover and pin are added. To the top of the main rails the two sub rails are added. These are then further secured to the main rails by six ties and clamps. The front and rear leaf springs are fitted along with the rear axle and transfer box. Turning the rails over the engine can now be fitted plus the exhaust system, which comprises of seven parts, and looks particularly fragile so it may be an idea to build in situ rather than as a separate assembly the instructions call for. The two driveshafts can then be added, as can the radiator/front chassis end piece. The steering rack assembly is built up using the four parts provided and, if the modeller chooses can be built up so that the front wheels are posable, although this may make it rather fragile, particularly the rear tie rod. After fitting the various brackets and supports as well as the front bumper and tow hooks, it’s onto the wheels, these come as single piece tyres and outer wheels. There are seven provided, singles for the front, doubles for the rear and a spare which fits on the chassis behind the cab and under the bed. The inner wheels are glued whilst an middle part is not, to enable the wheels to turn when fitted to the axles which most modellers probably wouldn’t be bothered with.

The building of the cab begins with filing off the ejection pins marks on the underside of the floor, before fitting the pedals, steering column, steering wheel and handbrake handle. The seat support and cushion is fitted to the floor, whilst the windscreen, instrument panel, with decal instruments, are fitted to the roof/front part of the cab. Onto the rear panel of the cab the seat back and rear screen are attached. The next assembly for the cab is the bonnet, which is made up of left and right hand parts, bonnet and bonnet ornament strake. The completed bonnet can then be posed either opened or closed. The final part of the cab is the engine bay which is built up of the left and right hand sides, radiator grille, and rear bulkhead. These five sub assemblies are then fitted together to make the full front assembly, which is then fitted to the chassis. To finish off the front, the mud guards/foot plates are attached along with the doors, which are made of the external panels, door cards, clear parts, and door handles. Last details are the wing mirrors, lights, wipers; grab handles, spade, triangular roof marker, jerry can and its support bracket.

The last assembly is the truck bed. This is built up with the bed itself, five strengthening beams on the underside along with two storage containers and rear number plate. There are four supports for each of the rear mudguards and the mudguards themselves to be fitted before flipping the assembly over and attaching the front sides and rear panels. On the front panel, two brackets are attached, into which the hoops for a canvas cover, which is not supplied. The whole assembly is then attached to the chassis, completing the build.

Decals

Apart from the instruments mentioned above, the small decal sheet gives the modeller 4 options. A plain grey painted vehicle from the Russian front 1942, a dark earth painted vehicle from Italy 1944, and two camouflaged trucks, one from Yugoslavia 1944 and the other East Prussia 1945. The decals are nicely printed, clear and in good register with a slightly matt finish.

Conclusion

Not having seen the ICM kit beforehand I really like this kit. Whilst the details straight from the box are rather good, there is plenty of scope to add extra detail, particularly to the engine and the very empty cargo bed. Once built and weathered this truck will make a nice component to a multi-vehicle diorama, or on its own with a bit of imagination and some figures, one or two of which would have been nice to have been included in the kit. There doesn’t appear to be anything that would trouble anyone other than complete beginners, so I can quite happily recommend this nice and quite interesting truck.