1:35 Opel Blitz

The real subject

The Opel Blitz was a three-ton truck and the most widespread German truck of the Second World War. It carried supplies, ammunition and men, served as a chassis for workshop, ambulance and radio bodies, and appeared on every front. It is rewarding for modelers precisely because it suits almost every scene with German equipment, from a column on a broken road to a support post, and at the same time it has a great many thin sheet-metal parts on which the thickness of the material shows.

What the set contains

This is a set of photo-etched parts for a model of the Opel Blitz in 1:35 scale. The photo-etch replaces elements that are necessarily thicker in injection-molded plastic than the real subject would warrant. Which parts the set replaces and in what order they are fitted is given in the manufacturer's instructions. Models of this truck in this scale are issued by several brands, so hold the parts dry against your kit before gluing.

Building and painting tips

Cut the parts out of the fret with a sharp blade on a firm surface, not with pliers. Make the bends over the edge of a metal ruler or in a bending tool, otherwise the sheet ripples. They are glued with cyanoacrylate glue applied on a pin; on larger surfaces a slower-setting type helps, so that there is time to line the part up. Before painting, wash the photo-etch, degrease it and use a base color meant for metal, otherwise the finish will not hold on the smooth surface. Glue the thinnest elements on only at the end of the build, because they bend even at the touch of a finger.

Who it is for

The set is for modelers who are bothered by disproportionately thick sheet-metal parts on a truck and do not mind working with small photo-etch. It is an accessory to a kit; the model itself, paints and glue are not in the package, unless stated otherwise.