As I have previously announced I'm gonaa be doing some kit reviews, this is my "pilot" one, so tell me what you think.
Model: Morser Karl Gerat 040/041 Initial Version.
Maker: Hobbyboss China
Parts: 100 something, vinyl tracks and decals.
Having built ZHobbyboss' 1/48 scale T-34/85, I had a very good impression of this company. THe Morser Karl Gerat was built in 1939, primarily to take on the Maginot line.
Assembly starts out with the idlers and road wheels. The constructions goes fairly well, but the fit of some of the parts is a bit tight: the bars you put in fron of the wheels hold on without any glue. THe instructions say to attach the tracks then, but I left them off until later.
Next come the upper hull. I assembled parts of it, painted, and then assembled the rest, it is made like a "sandwich" but there were no difficulties, as I anticipated. The exhaust pipe is a bit fidddly, it has no place to reallly attach, and is made in thwo peices. The same thing applies for the rails, be careful when removing them from the sprue, mine came broken in the box. Attaching them to the hull is a nuissance, becuse the do not hold well.
Next comes the Gun assembly, options are provided for the 60 and 54 cm version, but the options are not explained too well. assembling the gun is a bit difficult, as the pins inserted into the inside kept falling out, but I got it on the fourth or so try. After that, there were no problems with the gun.
Next came putting the two hull parts together. Care must be taken when alligning the two, as there are no reference points for it. When it does fit, the fit is great. There are two panels for the front and the back. There are a shovel and some other tools on the front one, but they are molded on. Attaching the gun to the hull is easy and there were no fit issues here.
This is when I decided to attach the tracks. They were a bit too short, and did no wrap around the wheels on the first try. After some patience and force, the were wrapped around the wheels. Two decal options are provided: for the Adam and Eva vehicles, but there are painting instructions only for Eva.
Overall, this was a good kit, and I would recomend it it to any modeler with some experience. I spent around twelve fun hours on what turns into a nice representation of the Morser Karl Gerat.