UM 1/72 38(t) ausf. C Light Tank
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History
The Germans made good use of indigenous tank designs  whenever
they occupied other countries during World War II. Czechoslovakia was
no exception. When the Germans took control of Skoda tank production they
renamed the Praga LT.38 as the Panzer 38(t). As the history in the kit
instructions indicate, the ausf. C version appeared in May of 1940. The
all-riveted hull and turret weighed just 9.4 tons. This light tank was
armed with a 37mm main gun and had two 7.92mm machine guns. The 150 horse
powered diesel engine gave the four-man crew good mobility and cross-country
capability. There were 110 Panzer 38(t) ausf. C tanks built.
The Kit
 Typical
of UM is the colorful box art that gives you an idea of how to paint and
decal your Panzer 38(t) ausf. C. You will be surprised when you open the
box. Besides seeing a sealed bag containing four part sprues, decals and
photo-etch you will notice that
UM has deviated from using their trademark green drab styrene. Instead
this kit is molded in a light gray styrene. There are no sink marks or
flash and the injector pin marks are on the inside surface. Parts detail
is very crisp and to scale. There are a total of 120 parts in this kit.
You will also find one photo-etch fret containing 9 parts. As the norm,
you have a multi-lingual (Ukraine, English and German) instruction sheet.
You will find it is very well illustrated. To assist in assembly is a
symbol legend for gluing, painting, drilling, etc. Included is a numbered
parts location diagram. Unused parts are shadowed out. Could this be an
indicator of other variants of this chassis to come? I hope so.
The thirteen-step instruction sheet begins with the five-step lower
hull assembly. The level of detail here is top notch. Even the suspension
arms show individual bolt and leaf spring details.   Make
note that step 3 requires you to notch a 9mm cut on the hull sides for
the glacis plate. Step 5 is the most time consuming as you attach the
length and link tracks. These tracks are very well detailed inside and
out. The best I have seen for this size. The six-part turret is next to
be assembled from steps 6 through 9. Assembly here could be a bit dicey
due to the small size and number of parts to assemble. Rivet and other
surface detail is very good here also. Once you are finished with the
turret final assembly of the upper hull begins. Steps 10 through 13 is
where you will use the photo-etch parts which include a stowage bin and
fender braces. The molded fenders are very thin so be careful when removing
them from the sprue. There are also a number of stowage tools that are
quite small and delicate to handle as well.
  When
you come to steps 14 through 17 you have a choice of four Panzer 38(t)
vehicles to choose from before paint and decals. The thin decal sheet
is multi-colored with white, black, yellow and red. The quality of these
markings are very good. These come from the Polish, French, Russian and
Hungarian theatres of operation. Units included are from the German 3rd
Light Division, 7th Panzer Division, and 1st Hungarian Armored Division.
That's quite a choice you have to make. UM includes a Humbrol paint reference
calling for 6 colors to use with Panzer Grey as the main vehicle color.
Conclusion
 This
is a very unique and welcomed series from the UM line of kits. With the
38(t) in the bag they can proceed to make other variants of this chassis
such as the Hetzer, Grille, Marders and others. I can't wait for those.
Their quality is very consistent all-around. Crisp detail and scale affect
has become a trademark. I rank this kit above those offered by other manufacturers
of the same chassis even though this is UM's first chassis variant. I
give this kits two thumbs-up. I would like to thank Squadron
Mail Order for the review kit.
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