Here is my (really) late entry to the SIG. Between my work and changing diapers, I've not even looked at my workbench in ages. Now that Junior has grown up a bit (aka she sleeps at night now), I decided to give this build a shot.
The kit
Wiki
While the StuG was considered self-propelled artillery, it was not clear which land combat arm of the German Army would handle the new weapon. The Panzerwaffe (armoured corps), the natural user of tracked fighting vehicles, had no resources to spare for the formation of StuG units and neither did the infantry. It was agreed that it would best be employed as part of the artillery arm. The StuGs were organised into battalions (later renamed "brigades" for disinformation purposes) and followed their own doctrine. Infantry support using direct-fire was its intended role. Later, there was also a strong emphasis on its use as an anti-tank gun.
As the StuG was designed to fill an infantry close support combat role, early models were fitted with a low-velocity 7.5 cm StuK 37 L/24 gun. Low-velocity shells are lightly built of thin steel and carry a large charge of explosive, to destroy soft-skin targets and blast fortifications. Such shells do not penetrate armour well. After the Germans encountered the Soviet KV-1 and T-34 tanks, the StuG was first equipped with a high-velocity 7.5 cm StuK 40 L/43 main gun (spring 1942) and in the autumn of 1942 with the slightly longer 7.5 cm StuK 40 L/48 gun. These high-velocity guns were the same as those mounted on the Panzer IV for anti-tank use but the heavy steel wall high-velocity shells carried much less explosive and had a lower blast effect for use against infantry or field fortifications. These versions were known as the 7.5 cm Sturmgeschütz 40 Ausf.F, Ausf. F/8 and Ausf. G (Sd.Kfz.142/1).
Beginning with the StuG III Ausf. G from December 1942, a 7.92 mm MG34 machine gun could be mounted on a shield on top of the superstructure for added anti-infantry protection. Some of the F/8 models were retrofitted with a shield. Many of the later StuG III Ausf. G models were equipped with an additional coaxial 7.92 mm MG34.
The vehicles of the Sturmgeschütz series were cheaper and faster to build than contemporary German tanks; at 82,500 RM, a StuG III Ausf G was cheaper than a Panzer III Ausf. M, which cost 103,163 RM. This was due to the omission of the turret, which greatly simplified manufacture and allowed the chassis to carry a larger gun. By the end of the war, ~11,300 StuG IIIs and StuH 42s had been built.
The sprues This being a Dragon kit, there are no shortages of sprues with a majority of them being marked "not for use"
The magic tracks. The kit comes with the winterketten track and additional ice cleats to be added. The modeller gets to choose the gap between each ice cleat.
The Dragon Card - once very common but now is an endangered species
The Hull ... and a story
I had bought this kit in 2013 along with a StuG III Ornage Box kit. The plan was to do a twin build with the two kits being made side by side. Back then my work bench was not fully set up (I had just shifted to Oman and most of my tools were still in India) so in the end I decide to build the Orange Box first. I had a lot of issues with the hull of the OB and had to do a lot of modifications to make it fit. It was just before the painting stage that I decided to use the hull of this kit to use as a reference for yet another mod that was required. I opened the Kit box and immediately dropped it in shock - I had somehow interchanged the hulls
I tried my best to salvage the hull but as you can see, it was pretty far gone by then. I put the kit away until the day I felt confident my skills had improved enough to attempt a salvage. And that day arrived last week. I had improved my skills so much that I was able to find a replacement hull on eBay
The replacement hull. For 11$ shipped, it made Ob Lt Hans Minion so happy that he agreed to be a prop support to help me take this picture.
The two hulls side by side. You can see the remains of my attempted salvage on the left hull.
So time to get cracking.....thanks for watching.
Cheers
