A little German truck
This is Tamiya's 1/35 German 3 ton 4x2 cargo truck, otherwise known as an Opel Blitz, but I think Tamiya weren't allowed to use that name for various reasons.The truck was originally built in 1931, and mass production followed in 1935. It had a simple rear wheel drive chassis with a 68hp, 3,626cc 6 cylinder engine and a 5 speed gearbox which gave it a respectable performance both on and off road. It made an ideal choice for military use, and production of an army version began in 1937. They were used on all fronts throughout WWII to transport troops and supplies. The factory was destroyed by allied bombers in 1944 by which time over 78,000 examples had been built.
Tamiya have released this kit in a number of versions, this is the open version, and she has a small load of jerry cans and barrels. As usual with Tamiya, the kit was a pleasure to build, and I finished her with German grey, and mainly used dark earth for weathering. There is a driver and mate in the cab, but they are difficult to see! Thanks for looking, George.
Nice little build, George...I like it.
Cheers, Craig, sometimes a little is enough.
Great little Opel, George. Not too weather beaten with a good load.
Fine work, well done.
From Italeri is also the "Maultier" available, a Opel Blitz as a halftrck.
Thanks, Bernd, a half track truck, that would be interesting.
Maybe Tamiya or Italeri will do it in 1/48. In 1/35 there is a Maultier from Italery out, as well the armed "Panzerwerfer" ( no, they don t throw tanks 🙂 )
And as Steve said, there trucks were used until long after the war
Oh I like this George. Could you imagine how many miles these trucks traveled in all of the war campaigns, it must have been thousands and thousands. Even after the wars. These trucks just kept running in civilian use.
Very nice model.
California Steve
Thanks, Steve, glad you enjoyed it.
Great job George. I like the windscreen dirt and wiper trail. Nice.
Kind words, Gregor, it's shame you can't see the driver and his mate.
Nice story and great build, thanks for sharing!
Thanks for looking, Milan.
Great looking model, George. Now just need a diorama to feature it in!
One day, maybe, Rob, thanks for your comments.
Cool mate, it looks real! I love the weathering on the windows!
Cheers, Richard, I'm still looking forward to seeing your Challenger.
I reckon it will be ready sometime between Xmas and new year! I hope so anyway, I'm struggling to find the time at the minute.
Little change of pace for you George. Excellent workmanship. I'm this kit has about 1/3 the parts as the ICM German Ford truck I'm building. ICM likes to use at least 3 parts where one will do.
Did your cargo load come with the kit? Trying to come up with a load is one of the things slowing me down.
Once again, well done.
Thanks for looking, Al. I think most of the load came with the truck, and I made it up with some spares. Tamiya do a German jerry can set, ref 35315, which also has some other useful looking bits in it.
good looking truck george
Thanks, Bob, it's strange how something so ordinary can be good looking.
Very nice build, just enough weathering.
Glad you liked it, Mike, it makes a change from racing cars.
Hey George, your talents are great.
Nicely done truck mate.
Well done mate.