Kfz.69 Towing Truck
with 37mm PaK
Lion Roar 1:35 set #LE35064
Review by Terry Ashley

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The set has four frets of etched parts plus a small clear sheet for the Protze windscreens and some fine brass wire and plastic rod for the workable hinges and other details.

The quality of the etchings is again as good as you get these days with clean well defined etchings with relief where needed and the usual engraved bending lines to make this job easier. As with most contemporary sets the engraved bending line is placed to be on the inside of the bend for a sharper bend and also to help in bending in the correct direction.

Krupp Protze:
The Protze has many fine detail parts with the main components being the etched inner and outer windscreen frames that traps the clear sheet for the windscreen which requires the kit screen (part A29) to have the wipers removed before hand with these and the wiper motors replaced with etched and plastic rod parts.

The two side “wing” screens are also replaced with etched frames with clear sheet ‘glass’ and these can be positioned at any angle as well as the side turning indicators replaced with an etched covers and indicator.

On the inside the instrument panel gets a new etched face with photo film dials that again required the moulded on panel details to be removed plus all the floor panel tread plate being in etched sheet with fine raised detail with all the rifle racks and clips, multi-part tool clips and brackets as well as all the securing straps for the rear ammo canisters.

The two shovels also get replacement etched spade sections plus additional tread plate sections for the rear compartment and the mud flaps and the front bumper bar all replaced with etched parts.

37mm PaK35/36:
As mentioned the PaK35/36 gets an extensive reworking with the entire gun shields and trail spades replaced with etched parts plus many more finer details with the instructions only showing the parts fitted to the Tamiya kit but using the parts on the Dragon PaK35/36 would be similar.

The fret with the gun shields is in a thicker metal to better represent the scale shield thickness and the shields are in six separate parts for the upper shields and a further three parts for the lower shields. There are many fine fittings added to the main shields including working hinges for the side shield panels if you wish and multiple parts for the sight aperture with other fittings using the fine plastic rod included with the set.  

For the trail arms you have to cut off the plastic spades to be replaced with the etched spades made up of 11 parts for each spade plus additional detail fittings along the trail arms for the barrel cleaning rods and shovel fittings.

The gun gets additional detailing with the gunner’s shield from the thicker fret plus other small details as well as the hand wheels being replaced with etched and plastic rod parts.

This really transforms the PaK35/36 and if you added the metal 37mm barrel from ABER (set #35 L-20) about all that would be left of the Tamiya kit is the gun body, gun mountings, trail arms and the wheels with everything else in etched and metal parts.

The four page instruction sheet again has exploded view drawings of the assembly sequences which are easy to follow to make adding the new parts as trouble free as possible.

Conclusion:
Another excellent etched update set from Lion Roar with many fine details for the Protze and the major re-working of the Pak35/36 that may have some buying this set simply for those parts.

Highly recommended.

Krupp at War Schiffer Publishing Ltd. ISBN 0-88740-399-9

Trucks of the Wehrmacht Schiffer Publication Ltd. ISBN 0-88740-686-6

Thanks to Lion Roar for the review set.

Page created May 18, 2006