German 88mm suggestions

Bish is currently building the Merit 1/16 kit,it looks pretty good.You should check out his thread a few lines down

Tamiya has the 88 but the kit is originally a 1972 release. Follow this link for a PMMS review.

www.perthmilitarymodelling.com/.../tam35283.htm

Bish is doing his magic to the Merit kit, the thread is truly inspirational!

I have the Dragon 3 in 1 in the stash but I would not be able to give a comparison to the AFV offering.

The Dragon 3 in 1 comes with 3 different shields and optional turned barrels for either a 36/37 build.

Not sure if it is possible to build the kit "propped up" and to far away from home to check.

VBR

JT

"German 88 propped up on its wheels"

Do you mean the 8.8cm Flak gun (which is on a cruciform carriage)?  Because there are many 88mm German WW2 guns.

Tamiya 88mm Flak 36/37 as referenced by Johan above.  The older kit includes the trailers & figs.  The recent "Afrika Korps" release does NOT have the trailers but appropriate crew.  The older kit is easy to find, simplest to build, not as accurate as the following, newer kits. Can be shown firing while attached to trailers.

DML variants of the 8.8 cm Flak 36, Flak 37 and late war Flak 37 on ersatz carriage.  Very detailed and accurate.  Both the Flak 36 and Flak 37 come with trailers (the ersatz kit has no carriages).  Can be shown firing while attached to trailers.

AFV Club 88mm Flak 18.  Earlier version.  Comes with trailers and the Flak 18 can fire from trailers too.

Bronco 8.8mm Flak 41.  Two releases , one with gun crew and no trailers, another one with trailers and no gun crew.

AFV Club 8.8cm Pak 43/41.  AT gun version with basic trailer arms.

Trumpeter 8.8cm Pak 43.  AT gun version on cruciform carriage.

I'm currently doing the Tamiya kit everyone has referenced here.  Now remember this is my first armor type kit I have built, but I think it is a great kit!  Easy instructions, it's been a blast to do so far, and like everyone said, it comes with tons of stuff.  It has the trailers with cabling for comms, a bunch of figures, and even a motorcycle and driver!  Too cool I think.  I'm doing the AAA version, so I won't be using the trailers.  If you'd like some pics of the sprues or of the build, I'd be happy to shoot you some.  

Eagle90

Alright guys awesome feedback thanks a million! ya Eagle90 id love to see some pictures!

TheMotherLand

Alright guys awesome feedback thanks a million! ya Eagle90 id love to see some pictures!

Well here ya go!  If you want something more detailed, just PM me and I'll get it to you!

Hope these are useful.

@Eagle90: You said you're "doing the AAA version".  This is a mistaken implication in the Tamiya directions.  EVERY 8.8cm Flak was capable of multi-roles whether AAA, direct fire against ground targets or indirect artillery roles.  For some inexplicable reason, the Tamiya narrative says the Flak 36 was the anti-tank version while the Flak 37 was the anti-aircraft version.  This is total fabrication. Indeed the word "Flak" means Anti-Aircraft cannon!

Also whether or not  you choose to include the SdAnh 202 trailers is irrelevant to the intended role of the gun.  The trailers were requisite equipment to move the gun from one place to the next.

If you want to read more, I wrote an article entitled "Mistakes and Myths in German 8.8cm Flak Identification" around 2009.

www.track-link.com/.../1203

Hope this helps

T26E4

@Eagle90: You said you're "doing the AAA version".  This is a mistaken implication in the Tamiya directions.  EVERY 8.8cm Flak was capable of multi-roles whether AAA, direct fire against ground targets or indirect artillery roles.  For some inexplicable reason, the Tamiya narrative says the Flak 36 was the anti-tank version while the Flak 37 was the anti-aircraft version.  This is total fabrication. Indeed the word "Flak" means Anti-Aircraft cannon!

Also whether or not  you choose to include the SdAnh 202 trailers is irrelevant to the intended role of the gun.  The trailers were requisite equipment to move the gun from one place to the next.

If you want to read more, I wrote an article entitled "Mistakes and Myths in German 8.8cm Flak Identification" around 2009.

www.track-link.com/.../1203

Hope this helps

Mr. Chow,

Being a complete novice to the armor genre of this hobby, I indeed used the Tamiya instructions as my guide.  After reading your article (very informative by they way!), I now see what you are saying.  All were capable of AAA or ground attack, the designations of 18,36,37 were referencing upgrades to the system (i.e. Fuse-setters, etc.).  See, I am teachable!  

So, with my new found knowledge, I should change my statement to...."I'm doing the Flak 37 version in a AAA role.  Since this will be a "fixed" AAA position, I will not be utilizing the trailers in the dio". 

Thanks for the info and the references!  The sites with the pics are VERY useful!

Eagle90

Seems Tamiya constantly gets its "facts" incorrectly....remember the same type of error with the Hanomag, SDKFZ 251...

I would suppose, a company like Tamiya would invest a little more in research....

Could it be the translation done incorrectly?, just curious if the same is mentioned in the Japanese instructions.

BTW,  Roy, congratulations on your profile being published!

garzonh

Seems Tamiya constantly gets its "facts" incorrectly....remember the same type of error with the Hanomag, SDKFZ 251...

I would suppose, a company like Tamiya would invest a little more in research....

Could it be the translation done incorrectly?, just curious if the same is mentioned in the Japanese instructions.

BTW,  Roy, congratulations on your profile being published!

Seem to have missed this thread. As has been mentioned, there are a number of versions of the 88, both Flak and PaK versions and I think all if not most have been modelled in 35th, as listed by Roy above which I assume is the scale you are after. I have the same Dragon kit as Johan and I am pretty sure it can be displayed fitted to the trailers.

Roy, its not just Tamiya who make this claim about the Flak 37. According to the Osprey new vanguard book on the 88, the 37 was only used in the AA role. It suggests that the new follow the pointer system was not suited to the rugged demands of use in the field. Of course, there is a difference between not being able to be use against ground targets and not being used against ground targets. And I have seen at least one pic of a Flak 37 fitted with a direct fire sight being used against ground targets.

For the novice armor builder, the Tamiya kit, in any of its' guises is a great choice. I built one way back when as a kid, and another in the mid 90s. With adult modeling skills. it really can shine. Yes it is older and not as detailed as the newer kits out now, but it still looks real nice.

@Bish: Look up the Osprey 88mm Flak book on Amazon.  Note the single review (by me).  It's singularly one of the worst books ever made to print.  It's utter rubbish (on par with the Gary Simpson book on Michael Wittman).

The "follow the dial" aiming system was for wire fed targeting data for air targets.  They were not even used in the direct fire role.  A good part of the narrative is fiction.  The centerfold schematic indicates all sorts of items that are BS as well.  For example, Norris cites the rear of the auto rammer arm as the eyepiece.  I call into question whether or not Norris ever laid eyes on an actual gun.   It's that bad.

I built the Tamiya 88 Flak when I was probably 14.  When I brought that kit home from the LHS, I felt like it was Christmas morning!  As for WOW factor for a novice modeler, it's gotta be WAY up there!  Monster gun, tons of figs, tons of ammo!  Great memories!

Roy, I hadn't actually look at that centre fold closely, I decided it wasn't in enough detail to be of any use. But having just looked, I can see what you mean. Item 20 is labelled as the sight for engaging AA targets, buts its the ZF 20 sight for engaging ground targets.

O well, theres a few nice pics in there. To be honest, I have hardly used any of the 88 books I got, the links you provided and the photo's posted by the other guys have proved far more useful

Thanks for the info on the book. Hopefully MotherLand will be able to make a decision from what he has been given. And I would agree with Stik, especially if you don't have experience with armour. I built it many years ago and was one of my best Dio's, I was really p'eed off that it didn't survive.

Not sure if this is any help

Dragons Flak 36, you can fold the trails and mount onto the carriage if you wish  to show it in the towed position

i4.photobucket.com/.../88Flak5.jpg

[URL=s4.photobucket.com/.../88Flak8.jpg.html][IMG]i4.photobucket.com/.../spacepacker12345

Hope this is some help...cheers....Kenny

stikpusher

For the novice armor builder, the Tamiya kit, in any of its' guises is a great choice. I built one way back when as a kid, and another in the mid 90s. With adult modeling skills. it really can shine. Yes it is older and not as detailed as the newer kits out now, but it still looks real nice.

But the early Tamiya kit is still very detailed, and a joy to put together.  I did one many decades ago, and still have it (most of it has successfully made several moves with us).  The BMW motorcycle that came with the kit was nice, too.  I wouldn't hesitate for a second to pick up another copy and do it all over again. 

I agree completely. I picked up the re issue, mainly because of the DAK crew figures, but am quite happy to build another somewhere down the road.