Büssing NAG 4500A Truck
1/35 Kit #35028
Review by Terry Ashley
There were different types with enclosed metal or open top cab and numerous body configurations from the standard truck bed to specialised workshop bodies and was also outfitted as part of the V2 rocket battery and the flatbed version was fitted with the 3ton Bilstein crane of the type later fitted to the FAMO as included in the Calibre35 set #35001.
This full kit appears to be a mid war model truck with simplified front bumper bar and fenders but without the NOTEK light but it’s not clear if it represents a type 500, 500A, 4500 or 4500A as my references are not that extensive on this.
The Kit: 
The quality of the resin is to the usual high standard without any blemishes except for a few air holes exposed when the casting blocks are removed on some parts but most of these are in places that can’t be seen after the parts are assembled.
As well as the larger parts such as the full length chassis, cab and truck bed parts there are also many small delicate parts included for the separate door handles, driver’s gear levers and side rear view mirrors that need careful handling when removing from the blocks and during assembly.
The model is based on the full length chassis which comes taped to a stiff piece of cardboard to prevent any warping during transit and it works as my chassis is perfectly straight and 90% of the full length casting block has already been removed by Calibre35 which leaves only a thin film to be shaved off. This is a nice service by Calibre35 as this block would have been very difficult to remove had it been the ‘normal’ thickness.
The chassis includes all the cross members and leaf spring attachment points in the single casting with good detail definition in the chassis recesses. But watch when you shave off the remaining resin block as some of the cross members are recessed and not level with the sides of the chassis, if you shave off too much resin you will damage the chassis.
There are numerous smaller detail items that fit the chassis such as the front fenders with separate mounting brackets, front headlights and rear taillights on separate mounting brackets as well as the bumper bar and side cab mounting steps and care should be taken with all these to get in the right position on the chassis in relation to the cab and some test fitting would be advisable.
The cab includes interior details such as the seat, gear levers, steering wheel and foot pedals as well as an etched instrument panel with photo film dials and also has separate doors (with separate door handles inside and out) that can left open top show off the interior and there are etched windscreen wipes and delicate rear view mirrors for the doors. These mirrors are cast with extremely thin mounting stems and while perfectly formed will break off if your look at them sideways and I would recommend replacing these with thin wire for more strength.
The join between the rear cab and firewall has a large locating tab and corresponding recess for positive location and ensures the cab is assembled perfectly square, the top of the windscreen on my part was slightly warped but due to the locating tabs on the front of the roof section was pulled perfectly into line when the roof was attached so is of no consequence really.
The engine compartment has a one piece hood which is attached to the cab firewall with a separate front radiator and there is a rudimentary engine block mainly to fill the engine bay void as it has no additional details but can form the basis of the engine if you wanted to detail this up. One thing to watch here is there is raised detail on the front of the firewall but you have to trim the top corners of this raised detail to fit the inside contours of the hood part.
The suspension has separate leaf springs that fit to the front and rear axles that include separate diff/axles, brake drums and the nicely detailed wheels with the rear twin wheels having separate hubs and open lightening holes in the rims for good detail definition. These units fit precisely to the chassis thanks to the locating points being included on the chassis casting eliminating any alignment problems and there are the three drive shafts to fit between the transfer case and diffs.
The rear truck bed is a fairly straightforward assembly with the large flat bed which is cast flat without any warping (and includes nice wood grain effect), there was some slight bowing in my part but not enough to call warping and should be remedied when attaching the six separate underside cross members and the separate side and front wood panels but ensure the assembly is square and flat as the cyanoacrylate cures. The panels have nice grain effect and the separate rear gate that can be shown open of closed with all the metal strips (in resin of course) that bolt the side wood panels together also supplied as separate parts for good detail definition and include nice lower hinge and bolt head details.
0n the underside of the bed are engraved lines for locating the cross members and the four storage lockers as well as the spare wheel rack, but the location of the rear wheel fenders isn’t that clear and some test fitting of the bed to the assembled chassis/suspension would be advisable before final gluing.
Additional etched parts are provided for the rear gate latches and attachment brackets along the side panels for the upper side panels when these are fitting in place.
The instructions:
These are the usual small fold out sheet with exploded view drawings in eight
steps to show the kit assembly and while this mightn’t seem much for
a full kit the steps are fairly clear as the kit isn’t really that
complicated to assembly. But as usual careful study of the instructions and
some test fitting would be helpful. There are also six small photos of the
assembled kit which will help show the location of the major parts.
Conclusion:
This is well detailed kit of this important behind the scenes German truck
that is well cast and shouldn’t pose any problems during assembly,
but as with any resin kit there will be some test fitting and minor trimming
of the parts required. It can be used in virtually any location during WWII
as it was widely used and can also be used as the basis for a conversion
if you wanted a different home for the 3ton Bilstein crane?
Highly recommended.
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References:
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Trucks of the Wehrmacht Hard Cover |
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German Military Vehicles of WWII Ground Power Special February '04 Published by GALILEO Publishing Co.,Ltd. 2-2-13 Misaki-cho, Chiyoda-ku, Tokyo, Japan
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Page Created 9 June 2004