In Box Review of Tamiya 1/35th Scale
Military Miniature Series
German 20mm FLAK 38 MIT Sd.Ah. 51
Kit no. MM-202
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright: 1978
Out of production
Available at 3 locations over-seas on the web.
I paid $5.49 for my kit at a local hobby shop that went out of business.
By Ray Mehlberger
Copyright: 1978
Out of production
Available at 3 locations over-seas on the web.
I paid $5.49 for my kit at a local hobby shop that went out of business.
HISTORY:
The Flak 30 (Flugzeugabwehrkanone 30) and improved Flak 38 were 20 mm anti-aircraft guns used by various German forces throughout World War II. It was not only the primary German light anti-aircraft gun but by far the most numerously produced German artillery piece throughout the war. It was produced in a variety of models, notably the Flakvierling 38 which combined four Flak 38 autocannons onto a single carriage.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Type:VAnti-aircraft gun
Place of origin: Nazi Germany
In service: April 1934–1945
Wars: World War II
Manufacturer: Rheinmetall-Borsig, Mauser, Ostmarkwerk
Unit cost: 3500 Reichsmark
Produced: 1934–1945
No. built: more than 144,000
(Flakvierling count per barrel): Flak 30: 8,000+, Flak 38: 40,000+
Variants: 2 cm Flak 38, Gebirgsflak 38, Flakvierling 38
Mass: Flak 30: 450 kg (990 lb.), Flak 38: 405 kg (893 lb.)
Length: 4.08 m (13 ft 5 in)
Barrel length: 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) L/65
Width: 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Height: 1.6 m (5 ft 3 in)
Crew: 5
Shell: 20×138mmB
Caliber: 20 mm (.79 in)
Elevation: -12°to ±90°
Traverse: 360°
Rate of fire: Flak 30: 280 rpm (cyclic)/120 rpm (practical), Flak 38: 450 rpm (cyclic)/180 rpm (practical)
Muzzle velocity: 900 m/s (2,953 ft/s)
Effective firing range: 2,200 m (2,406 yds) (anti-aircraft)
Maximum firing range: 5,783 m (5,230 yds) (ground range)
Feed system: 20 round box magazine
The Flak 30 (Flugzeugabwehrkanone 30) and improved Flak 38 were 20 mm anti-aircraft guns used by various German forces throughout World War II. It was not only the primary German light anti-aircraft gun but by far the most numerously produced German artillery piece throughout the war. It was produced in a variety of models, notably the Flakvierling 38 which combined four Flak 38 autocannons onto a single carriage.
SPECIFICATIONS:
Type:VAnti-aircraft gun
Place of origin: Nazi Germany
In service: April 1934–1945
Wars: World War II
Manufacturer: Rheinmetall-Borsig, Mauser, Ostmarkwerk
Unit cost: 3500 Reichsmark
Produced: 1934–1945
No. built: more than 144,000
(Flakvierling count per barrel): Flak 30: 8,000+, Flak 38: 40,000+
Variants: 2 cm Flak 38, Gebirgsflak 38, Flakvierling 38
Mass: Flak 30: 450 kg (990 lb.), Flak 38: 405 kg (893 lb.)
Length: 4.08 m (13 ft 5 in)
Barrel length: 1.3 m (4 ft 3 in) L/65
Width: 1.81 m (5 ft 11 in)
Height: 1.6 m (5 ft 3 in)
Crew: 5
Shell: 20×138mmB
Caliber: 20 mm (.79 in)
Elevation: -12°to ±90°
Traverse: 360°
Rate of fire: Flak 30: 280 rpm (cyclic)/120 rpm (practical), Flak 38: 450 rpm (cyclic)/180 rpm (practical)
Muzzle velocity: 900 m/s (2,953 ft/s)
Effective firing range: 2,200 m (2,406 yds) (anti-aircraft)
Maximum firing range: 5,783 m (5,230 yds) (ground range)
Feed system: 20 round box magazine
THE KIT:
Tamiya is an old prolific plastic model kit manufacturer based in Shizuoka, Japan. They make all manner of plastic model kit subjects in the popular scales.
This kit comes in a blousy- shrink-wrapped end-opening type box. It is 2 ¼” too long. I am no fan of this type of box, because invariably parts or the decal sheet will find their way past one of the end flaps of the box to become lost forever. Give me a tray and lid type box any day of the week.
The box art shows a FLAK 38 and it’s two-wheeled carriage, posed against one of Tamiya’s SIGNATURE all-white backgrounds, that they use for the majority of their box arts.
The gun and carriage are overall Panzer-grey. The gun has 8 white victory rings around it’s barrel and white silhouette illustrations of aircraft on its shield as more victory marks.
The bottom of the box shows three 2-view profiles of the gun on the left side.
The first profiles are of the side and front of the gun, off the two-wheeled carriage. It is in the cover art scheme (already described above).
The second profiles are of the top and front of the gun, mounted on the carriage. It is overall dark-yellow, with a black shield with a white Afrika Korps palm-tree and swastika on it, on the right side of the front of the shield.
The third profiles are of the side and front of the gun. The side view shows it on the carriage. The front view is off the carriage. It is overall Panzer-grey with a heavy coating of winter white-wash, with no markings shown.
To the right there are color illustrations of vehicles that have the gun mounted on them.
The top side profile shows the gun on a Horch Type 1a that is overall dark yellow.
The 2nd side profile shows the gun on a Hanomag Sd.Kfz. 251/17 half-track, that is overall Panzer-grey.
The 3rd side profile shows the gun on a Krupp Protze 6 – 4 truck, that is overall Panzer-grey.
Tamiya is an old prolific plastic model kit manufacturer based in Shizuoka, Japan. They make all manner of plastic model kit subjects in the popular scales.
This kit comes in a blousy- shrink-wrapped end-opening type box. It is 2 ¼” too long. I am no fan of this type of box, because invariably parts or the decal sheet will find their way past one of the end flaps of the box to become lost forever. Give me a tray and lid type box any day of the week.
The box art shows a FLAK 38 and it’s two-wheeled carriage, posed against one of Tamiya’s SIGNATURE all-white backgrounds, that they use for the majority of their box arts.
The gun and carriage are overall Panzer-grey. The gun has 8 white victory rings around it’s barrel and white silhouette illustrations of aircraft on its shield as more victory marks.
The bottom of the box shows three 2-view profiles of the gun on the left side.
The first profiles are of the side and front of the gun, off the two-wheeled carriage. It is in the cover art scheme (already described above).
The second profiles are of the top and front of the gun, mounted on the carriage. It is overall dark-yellow, with a black shield with a white Afrika Korps palm-tree and swastika on it, on the right side of the front of the shield.
The third profiles are of the side and front of the gun. The side view shows it on the carriage. The front view is off the carriage. It is overall Panzer-grey with a heavy coating of winter white-wash, with no markings shown.
To the right there are color illustrations of vehicles that have the gun mounted on them.
The top side profile shows the gun on a Horch Type 1a that is overall dark yellow.
The 2nd side profile shows the gun on a Hanomag Sd.Kfz. 251/17 half-track, that is overall Panzer-grey.
The 3rd side profile shows the gun on a Krupp Protze 6 – 4 truck, that is overall Panzer-grey.
One side panel of the box shows a color illustration of the Panzer-grey Krupp Protze, pulling the gun on its trailer. Followed by a one paragraph history of the gun and features of the kit: This precision plastic model kit in 1/35th scale is a masterpiece in a model of a German anti-aircraft gun. The barrel can be moved horizontally and vertically. Kit comes with a 2-wheeled trailer, the Sonderanhänger. Trailer and gun are detachable from each other.
The other side panel of the box shows 3 color box arts of other Tamiya artillery kits: Kit no. 25035, German 37mm anti-tank gun, Kit no. MM-117, German 88mm Flak 36/37 and Kit no. 35091, German 20mm FLAK 38. Tamiya did not provide the kit numbers for these 3 kits. I looked the numbers up on the Scale Mates web site and added them. Bad move Tamiya !
On one of the end-flaps of the box there is a color illustration of the box art of Tamiya’s horse-drawn field-kitchen towing a 20mm FLAK cannon.
On the other end flap of the box there is a color illustration of an Afrika Korps desert yellow Horch Type 1a towing the 20mm FLAK 38.
WHAT’S IN THE BOX:
The kit holds 2 dark-grey parts trees and the decal sheet in a stapled-shut clear cello bag.
Kits are alphabetized.
Dark-grey letter J tree holds the parts of the gun: its base, shields, rotation plate, ammo clips, gun barrel etc. (38 parts)
The kit holds 2 dark-grey parts trees and the decal sheet in a stapled-shut clear cello bag.
Kits are alphabetized.
Dark-grey letter J tree holds the parts of the gun: its base, shields, rotation plate, ammo clips, gun barrel etc. (38 parts)
Dark-grey letter K tree holds the part of the trailer: frame with fenders on its wheels, leaf springs, axles etc. (12 parts)
The instructions consist of a single-sheet, printed on both sides in 7” x 16” format, folded twice to fit the box.
The face side begins with a black and white repeat of the cover art, over the history of the gun in English and German.
Below the history is READ BEFORE ASSEMBLY instructions and line drawings of the box arts of Tamiya’s kits of the German horse-drawn field-kitchen, a Flakpanzer IV Mobelwagen and a Krupp Protze truck.
To the right there are 2 assembly steps for the gun.
The reverse side of the instructions has 2 more assembly steps for the gun and 2 for the trailer, over a black and white photo of the model made up with the gun on the trailer.
Included in the kit is a Color catalog of Tamiya kits.
The small decal sheet completes the kit’s contents.
There are no crew figures included and I think that Tamiya should have included them.
Good detail.
The face side begins with a black and white repeat of the cover art, over the history of the gun in English and German.
Below the history is READ BEFORE ASSEMBLY instructions and line drawings of the box arts of Tamiya’s kits of the German horse-drawn field-kitchen, a Flakpanzer IV Mobelwagen and a Krupp Protze truck.
To the right there are 2 assembly steps for the gun.
The reverse side of the instructions has 2 more assembly steps for the gun and 2 for the trailer, over a black and white photo of the model made up with the gun on the trailer.
Included in the kit is a Color catalog of Tamiya kits.
The small decal sheet completes the kit’s contents.
There are no crew figures included and I think that Tamiya should have included them.
Good detail.