Academy's 1/72 German Cargo Truck (Opel Blitz)
|
 |
Opel Blitz
As the Studebaker truck was to
the US Army the Opel Blitz was to the German Army. This 3-ton multipurpose
truck became one of the most widely used German vehicles. The basic chassis
came in a 2-wheel and 4-wheel drive versions. It was powered by a 68hp
6-cyclinder gas engine with a 5 speed transmission. The cab came in an
all-metal version but as metal became scarce later in the war cabs were
manufactured out of wood. Not only did Opel carry cargo beds but ambulances,
work shops, fuel tanks, wreckers and other variants.
The Kit
I like Academy's colorful boxart
which shows two Opel Blitz on a airfield. It makes a good painting reference.
There are some color photos of a finished model on the sides of the box.
Inside the box is a twelve-page instruction manual in Korean, Chinese,
German and English. The illustrations are very well done for your assembly.
There are sixteen subassembly steps to complete your model. Kit instructions
have a symbol legend for filing, gluing, cutting, etc. to assist you through
assembly. If you have trouble finding a part there is a parts location
diagram page. You will find in this diagram unused parts are listed in
a shaded box rather than the parts being shaded themselves. There are
two sealed bags containing styrene sprues and one containing the decals.
The sprues are molded in a soft khaki styrene. There is no visible flash
on any of the parts which is impressive as this is a small kit. Minor
ejector pin markings are hidden.
My first impression is very positive. This kit includes a very well detailed
engine but as you build the kit it will be hidden from view by the engine
cowling. I suggest you leave the hood loose or in an open position to
show off this little jewel. You can even see through the radiator grill
. . . nice touch. The only thing missing is the Opel insignia on the grill
itself. There is no decal for it. The floor of the cabs have what appear
to be some sort of tread plating which is out of scale to me. The kit
comes with clear headlight lenses but I would use MV lenses instead but
this was the best effort I have seen to include them in a kit of this
scale. You get a nicely detailed cargo bed that could use some cargo like
fuel drums, ammo-boxes, soldiers, etc. As it shows on the box you can
build one of two cabs, metal or wood. Which ever cab goes used you can
buy the Italeri (ex-ESCI) Opel and improve that kit with it. Academy appears
to not have spared anything in this kit. I'm sure we will see some after-market
conversions and accessories specifically for this kit in the near future.
 
Assembly begins with the engine, chassis and suspension in steps 1 through
6. You then proceed with the fenders, engine cowling and interior detail
in step 7. At this point, you should have made your decision on which
cab version to build as steps 8 and 9 assemble the wooden cab. Steps 10
and 11 will assemble the metal cab. The kit glass appears a little thick
but is of minor concern. It appears the interior could use some more detail
and if you can try to leave the driver's side door open to show off the
interior. This would take more effort but would be worth it in the end.
Exterior cab details are added in steps 12 and 13. This is where you would
want to use MV lenses for the headlights if you choose to do so. The cargo
bed is assembled in steps 14 and 15. Lastly, the cab, chassis and cargo
bed are mated together in steps 16 and 17.
The decals are of high quality as you have come to expect from Academy.
These are generic Wehrmacht vehicle ID numbers and a cargo bed stencil.
There are paint and decal placement steps that give you the option of
two Opel Blitzs in early or late markings. Your primary vehicle color
is khaki drab with an optional red-brown camouflage scheme.
 
Conclusion
Academy has really jumped into the 1/72nd ground vehicle market with
their recent releases. The mold quality is equivalent to their new 1/35th
scale kits. I definitely give this kit two thumbs up for scale detail
and accuracy. Along with their Opel fuel truck (#13403) this is the best
kit of the Opel Blitz in 1/72nd scale I have seen. I highly recommend
this to builders of soft-skin vehicles. Virtually no flash or sink marks
on the parts. I would like to thank MRC
for the review kit.
|
|
