Towards the end of WWII the shortage of materials resulted in the redesign of the Sd.Kfz.11 with a new wooden cab and rear cargo tray. The chassis and suspension remained the same and many items from the Sd.Kfz.251 was incorporated into the design to further streamline production. This resulted in the cab interior using the downward facing steering wheel arrangement of the 251.

The kit retains sprues A, B and C from the earlier 3ton kit (AF35040) and has new sprues M, W and N with the parts for the late model 3ton. Consisting of 181 parts plus a small etched screen for the radiator and an additional sprue with a selection of weapons.

The chassis, suspension and tracks are the same as the first kit (see the 3ton review for a build up of the chassis) while the new cab is made up of a lower floor pan with fenders attached, the side panels, windscreen/firewall, rear panel and roof as separate parts which should fit together well. The cab interior is quite good with instrument panel, foot pedals and gear levers which can easily be seen through the large windscreen and side windows included as clear pieces. The side panels have details on both sides with NO pin ejector marks to be seen, but the doors are not separate but included with the side panels as they were in the first 3ton kit.

The engine compartment has separate side panels, hood and radiator (with the etched screen), the detail on the panels is quite nice with intake grill detail on both sides of the side panels.

The rear cargo tray is fairly straightforward in construction with the floor and all side panels featuring nice wood grain texture on both sides again with NO pin ejector marks to spoil the texture. This tray fits onto a frame which in turn sits on the chassis members, all very simple.

The tracks are also the same as the earlier kit and while nice for 'rubber band' type tracks the use of the AFV Club individual track links for the 251 (Kit No.35044) will help greatly with the final appearance.

A small sprue with a selection of weapons is also included with 4 nicely detailed Kar98s and 1 MG34 and MG42 plus the ammo for the MGs to use as required.

Markings are provided for 1 vehicle only, in basic Dark Yellow scheme of the 2nd Pz.Div, France 1944.
There is a selection of tac signs to choose from to show the vehicle in different guises.

Another very nice kit from AFV Club which like the real vehicle is quite basic in construction after the chassis and suspension. It will build into a nice model of this little know variant of the 3ton. The lack of pin ejector marks in noticeable places is noteworthy especially as this used to be a big problem with AFV Club kits of recent times.

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Leichter Zugkraftwagen 3 ton Sd.Kfz.11 Nuts & Bolts Volume 20	German Light Half-Tracked Prime Movers 1934-1945 Schiffer Publishing Ltd.	Halftracked Vehicles of the German Army 1909-1945 Walter J. Spielberger
Sd.Kfz.251 1939 to 1942 Panzer Tracts No.15-2 Covers /1 to /10	Schutzenpanzer Ryton Publications ISBN: 1930571291	SdKfz251 Ground Power Special GALILEO Publishing Co.,Ltd

AFV Club is distributed in Australia by J.B.Wholesalers