In Box Review of Nitto Kagaku 1/35th Scale
Hanomag Sd.Kfz. 250/3 Rommel's "GREIF" Half-track
Kit no. 419-1000
By Ray Mehlberger
One found on eBay for 39.90 Euro
By Ray Mehlberger
One found on eBay for 39.90 Euro
HISTORY:
Armor played a decisive part in the Western Desert battles of 1941-43. Both the Deutsche Afrika Korps and the British Eigth Army fielded large armored formations in the see-saw battles along the North African Coast. The Germans were commanded by the redoubtable Field Marshal Erwin Rommel - the Desert Fox and through his skillful employment of forces the desert campaign came near to German victory.
Rommel frequently directed operations from just behind the front line. His armored radio command car becoming a familiar sight to the German troops. "Greif" or Strike, as he had named the vehicle, was a standard Sd.Kfz. 250/3 semi-tracked reconnaissance car developed from the one-ton armored personnel carrier which was one of the most common vehicles used by the German Army in the Second World War.
Minor alterations to Rommel's vehicle included the addition of spare fuel and water cans in racks on the rear hull plate and small items of internal equipment for the use of the Commander in Chief. Germany's use of half-track troop carriers during the war was the result of a German Ordnance Department requirement for high-speed mechanized support infantry to keep pace with the Panzer units.
The Sd.Kfz. 250 series of armored reconnaissance vehicles was designed and built by the firm of Demag, production beginning in 1939, complementing the larger three-ton tracked carriers built by Hanomag. The 250's carried a crew of 6 and a main armament of two heavy machine guns.
With the 250/3 version accommodation was reduced to 4 crewmen to make room for the radio communications equipment. No less than 14 different models of the basic 250 were produced including supply and cable-laying vehicles, anti-tank and self-propelled guns and observation cars. The engine was a 6-cylinder 4.17 lit Maybach with 7 forward and 3 reverse gears. It's semi-tracked layout conferred on it a respectable cross-country speed of 37 m.p.h. The internal fuel capacity of 31 gallons gave a radius of action of o 186 miles.
The large frame antenna was for the Fu-8 inter-divisional link radio set. Also installed was a Funkprechgerat F radio telephone. The basic scheme of "Greif" was originally an overall Panzer-grey, but when arriving in North Africa it receive a coat of sand-yellow. A dirty mottled appearance was achieved by leaving areas of Panzer-grey and evidence suggests that the vehicle's interior was left Panzer-grey.
THE KIT:
Nitto Kagaku is a model company based in Japan. A recent check to see if they are still in business found their web site. However, it appears there that they only do futuristic combat robot figures now. No AFV's are listed anymore there anyway.
This kiit came in a shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box. The box art shows a Sd.Kfz. 250/3 pulling a 2-wheeled trailer (included in the kit) past a burning building with 2 infantrymen advancing beside it.
Two crewmen are looking out of the top of the fighting compartment. One is using binoculars. The other crewman wears a steel helmet and the guy with the binoculars wears a soft side-cap.
The vehicle and the trailer are in a base of earth yellow with dark green bands. It has German crosses on the sides and a white letter G on the right of the nose above a license number of WH-32566.
One side panel has the history of the half-track in Japanese and English, with a small color 3-view of the vehicle in overall earth-yellow color with no markings..
The other side panel has 5 color box arts of AFV kits Nitto marketed:
1. a U.S. Armored half-track (no name mentioned)
2. a U.S. Personnel carrying half-track (no name mentioned)
3. A German Sd.Kfz. 251/1
4. A German Sd.Kfz. 251 with rocket launcher
5. This Sd.Kfz. 250/3
No kit numbers are shown for these 5.
Nitto Kagaku is a model company based in Japan. A recent check to see if they are still in business found their web site. However, it appears there that they only do futuristic combat robot figures now. No AFV's are listed anymore there anyway.
This kiit came in a shrink-wrapped tray and lid type box. The box art shows a Sd.Kfz. 250/3 pulling a 2-wheeled trailer (included in the kit) past a burning building with 2 infantrymen advancing beside it.
Two crewmen are looking out of the top of the fighting compartment. One is using binoculars. The other crewman wears a steel helmet and the guy with the binoculars wears a soft side-cap.
The vehicle and the trailer are in a base of earth yellow with dark green bands. It has German crosses on the sides and a white letter G on the right of the nose above a license number of WH-32566.
One side panel has the history of the half-track in Japanese and English, with a small color 3-view of the vehicle in overall earth-yellow color with no markings..
The other side panel has 5 color box arts of AFV kits Nitto marketed:
1. a U.S. Armored half-track (no name mentioned)
2. a U.S. Personnel carrying half-track (no name mentioned)
3. A German Sd.Kfz. 251/1
4. A German Sd.Kfz. 251 with rocket launcher
5. This Sd.Kfz. 250/3
No kit numbers are shown for these 5.
WHAT'S IN THE BOX:
This kit contained 4 tan parts trees, a dark-green tree, tan vinyl poly-caps all in 3 stapled-shut cello bags. It also contains a loose tan hull tub part, black vinyl tires, motorization hardware, the decal sheet and the instructions.
The instructions consist of a single sheet that accordion-folds out into 8 pages in 8 1/2" x 11" page format and a loose sheet that is the same size and printed on both sides. Plus a small sheet with the box arts of 4 ship models that Nitto marketed. All the text about these ship kits is in Japanese, so I cannot say what ships they may be???
Page 1 of the instructions begins with a black and white photo of the model made up in the Grossdeutchland Div. scheme, followed by the history of the half-track in Japanese and 4 blak and white illustrations of variants of the Sd.Kfz. 250.
Page 2 has the parts trees illustrations with a list of the names of all the parts in Japanese only.
Page 3 through 8 give a grand total of 18 assembly steps..
The single sheet has 3-view's on one side for painting and marking in Japanese only:
1. a 250/1 of the 24th Panzer Div.
2. a 250/3 Rommel's GREIF
3. a 250/7 of the Grossduetchland Div.
The other side of this sheet has 3 line drawings of interior variants of the Sd.Kfz. 250 - a 250/1, a 250/7 and a 250/10.
The first 2 can be built with this kit, but the 250/10 cannot be because there is not 3.7 cm Pak 36 with shield that was the main armament of this version provided in this kit.
Dark-green small letter a parts tree holds: weapons, helmets and field-gear etc. (60 parts)
This kit contained 4 tan parts trees, a dark-green tree, tan vinyl poly-caps all in 3 stapled-shut cello bags. It also contains a loose tan hull tub part, black vinyl tires, motorization hardware, the decal sheet and the instructions.
The instructions consist of a single sheet that accordion-folds out into 8 pages in 8 1/2" x 11" page format and a loose sheet that is the same size and printed on both sides. Plus a small sheet with the box arts of 4 ship models that Nitto marketed. All the text about these ship kits is in Japanese, so I cannot say what ships they may be???
Page 1 of the instructions begins with a black and white photo of the model made up in the Grossdeutchland Div. scheme, followed by the history of the half-track in Japanese and 4 blak and white illustrations of variants of the Sd.Kfz. 250.
Page 2 has the parts trees illustrations with a list of the names of all the parts in Japanese only.
Page 3 through 8 give a grand total of 18 assembly steps..
The single sheet has 3-view's on one side for painting and marking in Japanese only:
1. a 250/1 of the 24th Panzer Div.
2. a 250/3 Rommel's GREIF
3. a 250/7 of the Grossduetchland Div.
The other side of this sheet has 3 line drawings of interior variants of the Sd.Kfz. 250 - a 250/1, a 250/7 and a 250/10.
The first 2 can be built with this kit, but the 250/10 cannot be because there is not 3.7 cm Pak 36 with shield that was the main armament of this version provided in this kit.
Dark-green small letter a parts tree holds: weapons, helmets and field-gear etc. (60 parts)
The non-alphabetized tree holds the fenders, front wheel suspension,road wheels and wheel hubs.
Tan large letter A tree holds: the hull tops, floor, Jerry cans, banister radio antenna, radio, crates, machine gun shield etc. (50 parts)
Tan letter B tree holds: drive sprockets, road wheels, bogies, suspension parts etc. (52 parts)
Tan letter C tree holds: the steering wheel, Jerry cans, vision flaps, crates, entry door, Notek lamp, hatch doors, tow hooks, dash board, shovel etc. (93 parts)
Tan letter D parts tree holds: the 3 crew figures parts (two standing and one seated driver figure they are all full bodied with separate arms, 3 steel helmets, 1 alternate right arm (to put on which one of the 3 figures you choose), 3 gas mask canisters, 3 canteens, a pair of binoculars, bayonets in scabbards, a MP 40 machine pistol, two 98k carbines, a MG 34 machine gun, a pistol holster, 2 ammo clips, a pouch and a rolled tarp. (36)
Unfortunately, neither of these 3 figures is Rommel. The 2 standing figures look like they are just infantrymen and you are instructed to put all kinds of field gear on them. Meaning neither is an officer.
Tan letter E tree holds all the 2-wheeled trailer parts. (12 parts)
The lone tan hull tub part is next.
There are 4 black vinyl tires in the kit. The 2 larger ones are for the half-track and the small ones for the trailer. They are in cello bags. The small ones mixed in with motorization hardware.
There are 2 long runs of black vinyl treads. These are the older type that have to be heat-riveted into loops and not the newer glueable type.
There are 2 cello bags with various motorization hardware items in them. However, if there was a small battery operated motor in this kit I have lost it over the years. It is also funny that the parts trees illustrations show the hardware but not the motor. Maybe it was NEVER in the kit??
Vinyl caps for the wheels.
The decal sheet completes the kit's contents.
I bought this kit back in the 70's at my local hobby shop.