Internet Modeler : First Look : Armor RSS News Feed

MIRAGE 1/35 POLISH C7P LIGHT TRACTOR & CARGO CARRIER IN CAPTURED GERMAN MARKINGS

By Ray Mehlberger

MSRP: $14.26 (approximately)

HISTORY:

The C7P tractor was manufactured in Poland by the Panstwowe Zaklady Inzynieryjne (State Engineering Works) from 1935. Its design used components of the Vickers 6T tank - built under license in Poland - in a modified form as the 7TP. The tractor was designed by Witold Jakusz, who used the engine, body, suspension, and transmission. The first tractors were introduced into service with the 1st Heavy Artillery Regiment at Gora Kalwaria, which converted in 1935 to the 220 mm mortars purchased from Czechoslovakia. Eventually, five C7P tractors were required for each mortar: one for the barrel carrier, one for the carraige, one for the undercarraige, and two for equipment and ammunition trailers. According to the establishment, each two-gun battery should have 11 tractors. Outside of the 1st HARgt the C7P tractors were planned to be used as recovery vehicles in light tank companies: two vehicles per company, and mobile armor units would include 14 vehicles each. C7P tractors were also used in railway engineer units, each railway bridge company scheduled to have one to three machines, either on platforms or on rail wheels.

According to incomplete information, the following number of tractors were in service prior to entry into WWII: seven at the Armored Weapons Training Center at Modlin, five in the 2nd Armored Battalion at Zurawica, four in the 3rd AB in Warsaw, two in the 4th AB at Brzesc nad Bugiem, and three in the 5th AB in Krakow. Immediately prior to the outbreak of war, four surplus vehicles of the type from the Main Depot of Armored Weapon Materials were allocated to the 12rh AB at Luck, and for the 21st Light Tank Battalion, which was equipped with the French R-35 tanks and just being formed. After the war broke out, single tractors were still at this depot and no.1 Armored Weapons Replacement Center. A number of C7P's were allocated to 30 mobilized railway bridge companies, and at least one tractor on rail wheels was used at No. 1 Railway Bridge Engineer Replacement Center.

Fates of the C7P tractors during the 1939 campaign are difficult to ascertain. More information is available only on the vehicles of the Independent 11th, 12th, and 13th Heavy Artillery Battalions of the 1 HARgt, which had a total of 99 C7P tractors. Some vehicles, used by the 11 HAB were destroyed on the 23rd of September 1939 at Tarnawatka, near Tomaszow Lubelski, while some were damaged and captured by the Germans. (subject of this kit). Tractors of the 12th HAB were captured by the Soviets on the 27th of September 1939 at Melelin near Hrubieszow, while vehicles of the 13th HAB were captured by the Soviets on the 19th of September at Zorawno in Podole. It is estimated that the Germans captured 15 to 20 tractors, while the Soviets some 70. The scope of use by the captors has not been accertained so far.

What's in the box?

The kit comes in a large, blousy box.(16 1/2" x 11 1/2" x 2"). Upon opening this box one is greeted with a letter "L" shaped void around the parts. This letter "L" is 3" wide. They could have used a smaller box.

The box art shows this Polish tractor in captured German markings, with the personal mark "KLARA" on the front of the roof.

Inside the box are five trees of battleship gray colored parts trees, a tree of clear parts, rubber-band style treads, and a decal sheet...all cello bagged into three cello bags.

The instructions are a 11 1/2" x 8" booklet of 16 pages.

Page one gives us the vehicle's history in Polish, Czech, and English.

Pages 2 through 15 give us 35 assembly steps, called out in Roman numerals.

As this tractor is a conversion of a 7TP light tank, those basic tank parts have to be cut down a bit. This is called out in step no. VII, where you trim down the hull sides, and in step VIII...where you whittle on the drive sprocket housings.

This kit has a very complete interior. Only the engine is missing. A very nice towing boom is included.

The bottom of page 15 has an international assembly symbol explanation and a paint number chart.

Page 16 gives two paint schemes: one still in it's Polish three color wave pattern and the other in overall Panzer gray.

The first two trees of parts are common to the 7TP tank kits. One tree contains the hull bottom, sides, leaf spring/boggies, turret mantle (not used), and exhaust pipes. (16 parts)

The second tree holds idler wheels, return rollers, drive sprockets, road wheels, fenders, tools etc. (124 parts)

The third tree holds the cab and interior parts. (95 parts)

The fourth tree holds the cabin floor, seats, four rifles etc. (60 parts)

The fifth (smallest tree) holds four more rifles and the boom parts (16 parts) One of the rifles in my kit was busted in two...sigh.

Next comes the clear parts tree. This holds all the cab windows and the head light lenses.

The rubber band type treads come in two lengths, with a tow cable on the same sprue. (3 parts)

I would advise getting some individual links, by some after-market company, to replace the kit's treads. They are rather sad and poorly detailed. The links are not delineated at all.

The small decal sheet includes license plate numbers, two types of German national crosses, and meter gauge faces.

Conclusion

This is a very detailed kit and should make up into a real show stopper. However, I only recommend it to modelers who have quite a bit of armor modeling experience...due to its complexity, amount of parts, and the need to alter some parts to fit the kit.