GERMAN ANTI-AIRCRAFT TANK FLAKPANZER IV Ausf G WIRBELWIND DRAGON 1/35

Smart Kit’s quadruple anti-aircraft tank. Built in January 2015. From the previous homepage the posting of the making notes exceeded 70 items in half. I think it is easier to see the article in the blog categorization.

Have a happy new year! Now I’m making Dragonmodel’s Flakpanzer IV Wirbelwind.

It is almost same as the Stug IV chassis making. I needed patience to assemble many road wheels.

It’s effective to use photo-etched parts for clamps on spare caterpillar tracks.

I attached all the wheels to the chassis. I choose the fenders with the body after winding caterpillar. There is enough space to work between fender and upper wheels so maybe no trouble.

I just finished winding caterpillar. Dark gray tracks are left and light gray are right. This kit has inside parts of visor (klappe). This kind of detailed work is a wonderful point of Dragonmodels kits. I made an open scene of both sides.
(02-January-2015)

I could hardly see the inside after displaying and viewing from the side. I painted inside on matte white lightly. It will be OK if the viewer understands that the inside was painted.

The spare machine gun barrels are set on both vehicle rear sides. Beside that, they can be open state. I choose both sides open even the painting is more difficult.

Assembling antiaircraft machine-gun, there are many small parts, but it is not difficult according to the instruction procedure. These molds are very sharp and high quality.

Considering the paint process, it’s the limit of assemble. After basic paint and light weathering, I attached each module.

I blew gloss black on the shadowed areas and caterpillar. I blew gloss paint this time, no need to be nervous, almost finish up will be coated in semi-gloss clear or matte clear later.
(05-January-2015)

I painted dark yellow basic color. This tank is open top style, so the inside of the turret is also blew in dark yellow.

Referring instruction and box art, completed 3-color camouflage. I only used airbrush till this process.

Painted detailed parts with a brush and attached national insignia, unit marking decals. It is almost complete.
(10-January-2015)

Wirbelwind is the antiaircraft tank which carried 4 x 20mm antiaircraft machine-guns on the IV panzer chassis. There is not so much number of the total production at around 100 vehicles.

German military did not have enough air force to keep air supremacy. The barrage of this  anti-aircraft machine-guns needed to protect tank battalion from allied air attacks.

I painted mud splash with the elastic force of brush. Maybe hard to see them…

Turret was guarded with a 16mm steel sheet. I blew it with a little semi gloss clear coating as metal texture.

This kit has three kinds of marking. I choose one of them, the 509 heavy tank battalion operated  in the suburbs of Darmstadt in 1945. Darmstadt location is near Frankfurt and Baden, German city. So I think it would fight against Western Allied Forces mainly.

Because there were unnecessary holes on the body rear and side, I buried it with putty. Not only this kit, but almost Dragon Models tank kits include a lot of unused parts and assembly is complex.

Inside of the turret, 3 crew operated in here. It seems too small and terrible noise occurred.

Turret is only put on the chassis, movable and unloaded.

I mix blue with black on the barrels, showed cold metal feeling.

Though OVM cramps are not photo-etched parts, Smart Kit is not omitted them at all and moderate mold plastic parts, I like it very much.

Military insignia is tiger marking. This tank belonged the 509th heavy tank battalion, which was deployed King Tiger and Tiger I. The 509th are Wehrmacht unit, not Waffen SS.

I painted caterpillar glaring like making Soviet tanks as usual. Road wheels are molded company name on the side with very small letters and I made it readable with drybrushing.

It loaded spare barrels for it became burnt and need to be changed. This is one part molded, difficult to paint.

Open top tank is nice looking from the top to see complicated mechanism.

I can say this weathering is “wet”, if choose “dry” or “wet”.  I suppose it’s moderate weathering in the situation of German territory in 1945. This tank’s most appeal point is quadruple-mount machine-gun, still I like caterpillar tracks.
(20-January-2015)