Sd.Kfz.10 w/3.7cm PaK
Cyberhobby 1:35 Scale Smart Kit No. 6709
Review by Terry Ashley

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The le.Zgkw.1t Typ D7 differed from other German half-tracks as it used a conventional closed hull tub rather than an open chassis frame and was powered by a Maybach NL38/HL42 TRKM 6-cylinder, water-cooled petrol engine driving through a Maybach VG 102 128 transmission with seven forward and three reverse gears for a maximum (allowed) speed of 65km/h on road surfaces.

The Sd.Kfz.10 (le.Zgkw.1t Typ D7 ) was built by seven manufacturers in 5 versions for a total of approx. 14,000 vehicles built between 1938 and 1945;

Manufacturers:
Deutsche Maschinenfabrik AG (Demag) (development contractor), 1075 built
Adlerwerke, 3414 built
Büssing-NAG, 750 built
Mechanische Werke Cottbus (MWC), 4750 built
Maschinenfabrik Niedersachsen Hannover (MNH), 600 built
Mühlenbau-Industrie A.G (MIAG), 324 built
Oesterreichische Saurerwerke, 3075 built

Versions:
Sd.Kfz.10/1 chemical detection vehicle.
Sd.Kfz.10/2 chemical decontamination vehicle
Sd.Kfz.10/3 poison gas laying vehicle (later converted to ammo resupply vehicles)
Sd.Kfz.10/4 2cm FlaK 30
Sd.Kfz.10/5 2cm FlaK 38

Field modifications included vehicles fitted with a 3.7cm PaK 36 or 5cm PaK 38 anti-tank gun.

This kit follows the initial release of the Dragon Sd.Kfz.10/5 fur 2cm FlaK 38 (kit #6676) and represents an earlier production vehicle without the reinforced hull being basically a standard Sd.Kfz.10 Ausf.A with a one-off field modification mounting the 3.7cm PaK on the rear hull without the carriage wheels. There were a number of different field modifications seen in period photos but I've not seen a photo of this particular configuration, that doesn't mean it didn't exist though. The kit also includes the earlier style road wheels used on the Sd.Kfz.10 Ausf.A before switching to the later style as included in the Sd.Kfz.10 Ausf.B, Sd.Kfz.10/5 kit and on the Sd.Kfz.250 series.

The kit consists of 344 parts in light grey plastic, 4 in clear plastic, 21 etched parts, 96 individual “Magic Track” links plus the decal and instruction sheets. A number of the sprues are from the Sd.Kfz.10/5 kit along with new parts for the running gear and rear hull as well as the older PaK 36 sprues which means there are duplicates of some sprue numbers and you should take care to use the correct parts for this version as called out in the instructions, the remainder can be added to the spares box.

Metal, Etched and clear parts

Dimensionally the overall kit dimensions (hull width, length, road wheels) match the recent 1:35 plans in the Panzer Tracts 22-1 Leichter Zugkraftwagen 1t book listed below very well although there are a few issues with individual components, mostly the suspension/running gear.

The front wheels are 2mm smaller in diameter than the Panzer Tracts plans indicate (more on this below) and the new style drive sprockets 1mm smaller in diameter as well as the drive rollers being oversized and the sprockets are too narrow compared to the plan dimensions (and photos). The road wheels/idlers are the correct size as per the plans but with some detail issues, more on this below.

Update:
I have located some images of the actual vehicles in Trojca's Panzerjadger vol.2 (thanks Peter) which show more than one vehicle was produced as well as other issues with the kit. Most notably all the vehicles depicted (including the one depicted on the kit decal sheet) still have the main cabin canvas roof cover still fitted in the rear folded position, this cover is missing altogether for the kit unfortunately. Also the vehicles have the Notek light fitted to the left front fender, also not shown in the kit, the Notek light itself is still included on the sprues but the mounting bracket is not provided, not a big deal to fabricate. All have the blackout slit covers on the headlights which are again not included in the kit.

The details of the large side fender mountings for the 3.7cm PaK are also simplified and should not have the three notches along the lower edges, but have two hand hold recess centrally on the side front and rear. There should also be an outward kink that coincides with the raised rear fairing and a securing bracket for the rear spades should also be present but again missing. There are also some bracing strips on the front gun axle mountings as well at the rear and the images show the wheel mounting disc with bolts is still present on the gun carriage axles.

These images show the large fender gun mountings to be quite simplified as well as the lack of folded canvas roof is a little disappointing with all the other omissions fairly easy to include with a little work.

The hull tub is an impressive moulding with recesses for the front suspension but you will have to shave off the three bolted reinforcing strips on the rear sides as these are not required for the earlier hull applicable to this kit. There is also a new rear plate added representing the earlier configuration as well as the extended top box section with nice crisp details on all surfaces and an inner floor section with fine tread plate pattern included.

The separate axles have the full torsion bar included with these fitting into channels on the inside of the hull tub, this will allow you to articulate the axles should you wish too?

Added to the hull sides are the final drive housings and rear idler mountings, there are small plates (parts A41, A42) to be added to the hull idler mounting but these are numbered incorrectly in the instructions as B41, B42 but are in fact on the A sprue.

The drive sprockets are the newer tooled items from the recent Sd.Kfz.10/5 andSd.Kfz.250 kits but are actually too small in diameter by just over 1mm and the drive teeth (rollers) oversized as well the sprockets are too narrow. Interestingly the older drive sprocket still found in the same kits are the correct size but with less detail than the retooled sprockets.

The best way of illustrating the width issue is to look the spacing between the drive sprockets and outer edge of the track; this clearly shows the new DML sprockets to be too narrow.

Drive sprocket size images showing the isses as above

Images illustrating the drive sprocket width issues.

If substituting the sprockets for ones of the correct diameter/width such as those in the recent Friulmodel set #ATL-110 the sprockets don’t fit between the road wheels too well and you may need to trim the insides of the first two road wheels accordingly.

Friulmodel Drive sprocket and track added to the kit suspension

When fitting the sprockets to their axle stubs you should trim off the smaller pin on the end of the axle to allow the sprockets to sit properly onto the final drives.

The kit track which is workable individual link has nicely done details on the cast links but the guide tooth is the wrong shape, this is so the track will fit the undersized sprockets. There is also some clean-up required as there is a pour bur on each tooth and a couple of shallow pin marks on the inside of each link should you wish to remove these as the road wheels tend to hide these a little.

Incorrect shaped kit guide teeth

The actual vehicle uses 41 track links per track run with the kit using the same 41 links but the fit of the track around the sprocket is very tight and doesn’t sit flush with the facets without some coaxing due to the sprocket issues.

Assembly of the track is the usual for German half-track track with one link pins fitting into the next and held in place with the separate rubber track pad, just ensure you don’t get glue on the pins while gluing the pads if you want the track to articulate?

Moving on, the kit has the early pattern road wheels which are the correct diameter and have nice detail included on the rims and sidewall embossing with additional small etched discs added to the inner wheel hubs. There is an issue with the inner road wheels which have two small curved braces inside the disc lightening holes but in reality only the idler wheel has the two braces and the road wheels only have one brace per lightening hole as clearly indicated in period photos and the Panzer Tracts plans. This can be rectified by carefully cutting away the two braces and replacing just the one centrally in each road wheel lightening hole to correctly depict the road wheel detail, a bit of work if this is of concern?

There are two styles of front wheels included in the kit, the original wheels in two halves and the newer sandwich style with five ‘slices’ to construct each wheel, there are different wheel rims for each style of wheels so check the part numbers carefully.

The older style tyres are quite basic in detail and have no sidewall embossing while the new sandwich style have the now familiar “CONTINENTAU” embossing, it’s an easy task to use the tip of a sharp #11 blade to turn the U into an L should you wish?

The front suspension has the full width leaf spring, front axle, steering arm, the stabilizer bar and shock absorbers as separate parts that fit together easily with just the fine mould seams to be removed. The axles are fixed in the neutral position but it wouldn’t be too difficult to alter the angle should you want animate the steering position. There is a small mounting bracket (part A72) for the stabilizer bar that again is not shown in the instructions and this should be glued to the hull before the rear stabilizer bar pivot pin is fitted into place.

This is the same engine from the Sd.Kfz.10/5 kit and I have posted a sub-section covering the Maybach HL 42 TRKM engine as the kit engine is very basic indeed and doesn’t actually represent the HL 42 TRKM engine of the Sd.Kfz.10/250 series very well at all with a fair bit of work needed for an accurate HL 42 TRKM engine should you want to display the engine hoods open?

DML have done a better job with the Gearbox/Transmission assembly with the large square gearbox having nice details and also includes the gear shift lever assembly missing from the previous kit. The multi-part vacuum generator sits on top with basic plumbing but there is considerable more needed with some excellent photos in the W&W Sd.Kfz.10 in detail book listed below.

The transmission is in one piece with fairly simplified details such as the perforated drive shaft heat shields but there are also some very fine linkages provided that give a good appearance to the assembly.

The five part fuel tank is nicely detailed and fits together well but note the filler pipe (part 39) should be placed as far to the side as it will go to leave room for the Driver’s seat.

The assembled gearbox/transmission, fuel tank and storage box fit to a lower mounting plate that in turn fits to the lugs in the lower hull without any problems with the three part seats which have separate frame and cushions for a nice appearance then added to the assembly.

Added between the central hull sides is a large box support for the 3.7cm gun and fenders which is made up of 5 parts but the instructions make a bit of a meal of this. The box is made up of parts D14x2, D15, D16 and D17 yet the instructions only indicate part D16 and incorrectly numbered ends as B8, D9, so take note when assembling this box.

The top of the fuel tank and small storage box will need to be reduced in height to fit under the support box and test fitting will determine the amount of trimming required to allow the box to site flat between the hull sides.

The side fenders are attached to the hull sides using the notches on the undersides of the support box and rear compartment as guides to the proper alignment and added to the fenders are the two rear extensions with etched mud flaps for a good appearance as well as the large side supports for the gun.

The engine firewall has the opening for the engine clutch housing and separate brake and clutch pedals added along with the full width instrument panel that had nice engraved instrument cluster and other details. Decals are provided for the instrument dials to add a good appearance although the instructions don’t alert you of their existence with the dials just lurking on the decal sheet.

Added to the instrument panel are small side panels with more open louvers and the engine door mounting panel. When fitting the firewall/instrument panel to the hull tub make sure the panel side panels sit flush with the hull tub top sill otherwise the fit of the engine hoods could be compromised.

The windscreen and frame is a single clear part to which is added the wiper motors and wiper blades plus the driver’s visor and care is needed when gluing these to the clear screen to avoid damage, also you may want to leave off the wiper blades till after painting for easier handling? For this purpose the kit includes painting masks for the four windscreen segments (two either side) to make the task easier.
The windscreen is held in place with two attachment brackets that allow you to fold the windscreen forward should you wish at any stage.

Added to the side of the firewall panel are the very fine turn indicator stalks and rear view mirror on the driver’s side, these are the early style different from the previous kit so make sure you use the correct parts as indicated in the instructions.

The engine compartment panels and hoods have impressive open louvers for a very good appearance, there is some fine mould seams on the insides of the louvers that when removed with a sharp #11 blade will improve the look further. The hinge and other details on the engine panels are also well done but the engine hoods are a little on the thick side should you show these open and thinning the edges will again improve the appearance if shown open?

You need to take care when fitting the engine panels as there are no actual locating lugs and the two lower side panels (parts A28, A31) must be aligned perfectly level with the front of the chassis to ensure the radiator housing fits correctly, temporarily fitting the radiator housing while gluing the side panels will avoid any later fit issues.
There are very fine T brackets that can be fitted in the ‘open’ or ‘closed’ position depending on the position of the engine hoods.

The radiator fits into the radiator shroud with this assembly fitting to the front of the chassis between the two side panels with the support rods between the radiator and firewall; this has to be fitted before the radiator housing.

The radiator housing has open louvers and the correctly positioned engine crank hole for another impressive moulding with the name badge “DEMAC” provided in etched brass. Note this says “DEMAC” instead of “DEMAG” but from a distance the difference between a C and G is marginal as the letters are only 2mm in height.
The radiator cap (part A17) is not called out in the instructions nor does it appear in any of the illustrations so don’t forget to add this to the radiator?  You should also note there is a small lip around the edges of the housing, this should be there but as the sprue attachments are on this lip it is inevitable some damage will result during the clean-up process.

Added to the chassis are the two separate fenders, these have revised details for this kit and have very positive locating pins/holes for a precise fit with a two part muffler added to the left side, the short solid exhaust pipe is not well done and this will benefit from being replaced with a short section of brass tubing (or similar) for a better appearance. The muffler cover box also has fine open louvers and these again can be opened up a little more with the sharp #11 blade to improve the appearance.

Added to the fenders are the headlights that have clear plastic glass and the light bulb moulded inside to hollow light housing for added detail but there are no black out slit covers for the lights as there should be for wartime use. There is no Notek light fitted to the early vehicle depicted in the kit plus two early style width indicator stalks.

The gun is from various previous DML kits such as 3.7cm PaK35/36 w/crew (kit #6152) and subsequent kits and is really showing its age compared to the newer parts in this kit. There is a new tooled lower carriage but the simple gun assembly has fairly heavy detail especially with the gun shields that are overly thick with some pin marks on the inner face. These really could do with etched replacements which are already available for the earlier 3.7cm PaK update sets.

The barrel is in two halves with a four part breech and rather thick breech guard plus separate hand wheels and carriage parts. The two trail arms will need the mould seams eliminated with the completed gun attached to the mountings on the rear body.

As with previous DML instructions the layout gets quite confusing at times and you really do have to study the sequences carefully before assembly. But again there are parts that don’t get a mention as well as miss-numbered parts that can cause confusion?

This issue has been mentioned on many occasions by various people but still continues to be a problem with DML kits and it would appear a little more care does need to go into the kit instructions overall.

The decal sheet is well printed with markings for a single vehicle from the 13th Panzer Division as this is a one-off field conversion as mentioned above.There are also instrument dials with the large colour dial and smaller dials as well as an assortment of data placards to add as required with a small diagram in the guide showing the placement of these items on the instrument panel.

Option 1: 13.Pz.Div., Eastern Front, 1941

As with the previous Sd.Kfz.10/5 kit this new kit overall has a high standard of moulding with clean crisp details and few if any blemishes apart from the 3.7cm PaK which is showing its age somewhat. The kit is dimensionally accurate overall apart from a few specific areas mentioned above and has some very good details such as the hull tub, engine panel louvers, driver’s cab interior and overall good fit of parts that will build into a very nice kit OOB.

But as we have seen previously there are areas that need attention for a truly accurate kit. The engine requires a considerable makeover for an accurate HL 42 TRKM engine, the undersized drive sprockets result in track compromises including incorrectly shaped guide teeth to fit the sprockets as well as the inner road wheel detail that all needs attention.

Rating 7.5/10

Footnote: As DML have already announced a kit of the early 2cm FlaK 30 (Cyberhobby kit #6722) we can confidently assume a kit of the Sd.Kfz.10/4 will follow shortly as the majority of these vehicles were fitted with the early style road wheels included with this kit.

We can only hope the incorrect detail on the inner road wheels is corrected but unfortunately history shows this won’t happen as no attempt has been made to correct the undersized drive sprockets, which is a little disappointing.

But this does give plenty of opportunities for aftermarket companies to produce corrected parts for those who do prefer a bit more accuracy with their builds.

Sprue images
Click on thumbnails for larger view


Build images

Sprue detail images

Leichter Zugkraftwagen 1t (Sd.kfz.10) Ausf.A and B and Variants Panzer Tracts No.22-1 ISBN 0-9815382-5-8	Halftrack Vehicles of the German Army 1395-1945 Schiffer Military History ISBN: 0-88740-758-7
Sd.Kfz.10 Demag in detail Wings & Wheels Publications R 057 ISBN 978-80-86416-92-2	German Light Half-Tracked Prime Movers 1934-1945 Schiffer Publishing Ltd.

Thanks to my credit card and for the review kits.