Construction - Hull Mating, Turret & Front / Rear Details
I wasn’t planning on doing a detailed log of the build here, since Tamiya kits are generally pretty simple and we’re really kist trying to get this kit built, based, camouflaged and ready for its first weathering trials so we can move on with our main project - As it’s progressed though, I’ve found a few cautionary tales and deviations from the original vehicle which other modellers building the kit would do well to be aware of.
It must be reiterated that misclose between the two injection mould halves has been a persistent issue with this kit, resulting in much sanding, filing and carving to restore some illiusion of homogenaiety to the parts. We were way beyond tolerance for factory casting lines.
Mating the Upper & Lower Hull
I’m pretty big on trying to mate upper and lower hulls as early as possible, as I’ve been burned by previous kits that have advanced the installation of certain details for graphical convenience on the instructions but led to critical miscloses later in the build. Once the drive hubs (#10 and #11) are installed I would recommend installing the front tow hooks (yellow), followed by landing the upper hull, and then closing off with the rear plate (#14). Apply pressure with a half-painted Panther Ausf G, a feat achieved thanks to its cast aluminium lower hull
Rear Assembly
This kit was made with a tooling from the early 70’s, and the newer tooling of Tamiya’s Panzer II Ausf A/BC shows just how far technology has come. Although moulded solid, even the kit’s own decal instructions acknowledge the perforated muffler cover
With reference to historical photos from a captured example (which now sits at the National Armor and Cavalry Collection at Ft. Benning, GA), a more detail-obsessed hobbyist would probably
- Pick up the Eduard PE set for this kit, which includes the perforated screen
- Drill out the exhaust pipe (unfortunately moulded solid)
- Replace Part #12 with a stiff wire as there should be daylight between it and the hull
Front Lower Hull Assembly
Some ugly mould marks in the spare track carrier prompted some even uglier application of abrasives. Further cleanup and putty work is required. If I wanted to have a semi-serious crack at a faithful replication, adding those bolts in the track carrier and tow hooks couldn’t hurt…
Turret Assembly
Moulding errors resulted in bubbling inclusions on the upper turret part where the upper and lower turret pieces meet. These needed to be filed back to enable proper fit, but the turret upper, lower and gun mount otherwise went together without incident beyond those darned mould lines
Turret Stowage Basket
Some examples of Panzer II had a stowage bin mounted at the rear of the turret, and Tamiya gives the option to include it. This doesn’t appear to be a common addition, but such an example was captured by US forces in Tunisia in 1943 which was hosted at Aberdeen Proving Ground until 1989 and then various museums since. It appears to have been used extensively as a reference by kit manufacturers, leading many kit builders to believe the stowage bin to be standard issue when this wasn’t really the case…
The turret stowage bin has a notch revealing this hook at the rear of the turret, likely associated with how the stowage bin was mounted. Installing this hook first will help you align the rest of the stowage bin, should you choose to represent it on your model
(Edit: For clarity this stowage hook is common for Panzer II, not just those isolated examples with the stowage bin. The notch in the stowage bin is indicative of the hook being used to mount the bin)
Bear in mind there are no moulded locating guides for the turret stowage bin, so care must be taken to ensure that you don’t mount it too low or you will prevent the turret from rotating. Reference photos from the example at Fort Benning (at the time of writing, anyway) will provide some guidance
I’ll keep chipping away at this anyway - The #1000 grit sanding pen and I have a bit of work to do - Unfortunately cleaning mould lines and mould miscloses can become rather like treating pimples when your first pass of carving and sanding is a little too aggressive…
