Tamiya

1/48 German Aircraft Power Supply Unit & Kettenkraftrad

Kit Number: 32533

Reviewed by  Doug Hamilton, IPMS# 21985

MSRP: $15.00 I like the trend over the past couple of years to manufacture armor in 1/48 scale. It seems like a logical scale due to it's existing popularity for aircraft. This offering from Tamiya is a very nice bridge between these two genres. It contains a German power unit and Kettenkraftrad molded in gray plastic that are nice additions to a growing number of 1/48 scale equipments. The box contains two individually packaged sprues, the power unit and Kettenkraftrad. The power unit sprue also contains two standing ground crew figures, two fuel drums, a toolbox, and a hand pump that mates to one of the fuel drums. The Kettenkraftrad sprue also has two figures, both seated, and an aircraft tow bar. An instruction sheet with painting directions and a small decal sheet complete the contents. The Kettenkraftrad has been available under a few packaging options, and is the same one found in the ME 262 kit as well as kit # 32502 that includes a Goliath unit. The molding quality is very good, and all surface details are very crisp on both units. I found very little flash on any of the parts, some of which are very delicate. Care must be taken when separating a few of the parts from the sprue due to the delicate molding. The assembly process was very straightforward, and I encountered no problems getting things to fit correctly. I left the tracks, road wheels, and the trailer wheels off until painting was complete. The Power Unit is quite a nice little piece of work. The rear engine cover can be positioned open or closed. If posed open, a small gas pony motor is provided for the rear compartment. A small diameter wire is included to simulate the starting cable, and has a plastic end piece that represents the aircraft plug. Assembly was also straightforward, with no problems encountered during construction. I chose to show the pony motor, so I left off the cover until final assembly. Painting was very easy, and offers several choices. Standard German ground colors are always an option, however equipment that served with Luftwaffe units very well could have been painted with aircraft colors. With that in mind, I painted both units RLM 71 Dunklegrun, or dark green. I gave the whole thing a wash of darkened 71, and drybrushed with a lightened 71 to complete the finishing. The accessories that come with the kit are ok, but I found the molding of the figures to be a little weak. The two standing figures, we'll call Hans and Frantz, are dressed in coveralls, and have awkward poses. The molding around the collars is barley visible, and the hands should be replaced. The seated figures are by far better molded, but were relegated to the spares box. The fuel drums are nicely done, and the toolbox is OK too. I mounted the whole thing to a cobblestone base produced by Tiger Productions, and added a wooden crate from Armand Bayardi to fill in some space. The completed power unit and Kettenkraftrad look good together, and will look great along side any WW II German aircraft in 1/48 scale. While the figures are a little weak, it's always nice to get more variety 1/48 scale figures. It was fun putting these two units together, and when complete scale well next to each other. I recommend this kit highly due to the quality molding and interesting subject matter. It's a very nice addition to this series of kits and a welcome addition for Luftwaffe modelers. My thanks to Tamiya USA and IPMS for supplying this sample for review.

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