The Pz.Kpfw. I, or Panzer I, was a tiny thing compared to the tanks we’re used to, being more akin sizewise to the Universal Carrier ( Bren Carrier ) than the Tiger, essentially a tracked carrier with an enclosed turret more so than a tank. When the first Pz.Kpfw. Is enclountered Russian T-26 tanks during the Spanish Civil War they were found to be seriously undergunned. An “on the spot” remedy was a field modification that raised the turret roof to allow the fitting of an Italian Breada 20mm gun. Although it is unclear how many of these were converted or if they were used beyond the Spanish Civil war the lessons learnt here went into the Pz.Kpfw. II which got a 20mm gun of its own.
This kit from Masterbox comes in a small, sturdy, tray and lid style box, and due to the small size of the real Pz.Kpfw I not surprisingly there isn’t a huge ammount of parts, being two light grey sprues for the tank and two black sprues for the individual link tracks. But what you do get is fairly well presented with a just some areas of flash and some mould seams to cleanup detracting from the appearance of the parts. There are also some light knock out marks though they are where-ever possible in locations that won’t be seen. Despite the flashing clean-up is still quick, easy, and painless. The instructions are clear and easy to follow and this kit goes together well.
As far as I can tell from reference material the kit is accurate in detail, though few photos of the Breda turret exist. It also has some nice touches such as the individual link tracks ( patience and good tweezers are definitely two important requirements for assembling these ) and photo-etch parts for the exhaust covers and engine grille. These are nice features to see in a kit as cheap as this one.
The lower hull and suspension are all made up of separate parts rather than being a single hull tub with simplified suspention. Here is where you will find most of the flashing on this kit as the road wheels will all need to be cleaned up, particularly inside.
The upper hull is very straight forward though for a small kit still manages to include a lot of small parts including separate hatches and vision port covers on the casement, though there is no interior if these were to be modelled open. The engine deck is a single piece and here also there is some flashing to be cleaned out of the engine grilles beofre adding the photo-etched parts. One area where this part could be improved would be with the addition of weld beads.
The turret also includes a separate hatch, though again there is no interior detail. The gun is a simple, single piece with a separate flash hider. The barrel needs some flashing removed and again the turret could benefit from the addition of weld beads.
The decals included cover one vehicle, though no information is given as to what unit or vehicle they are for. The Panzer I in Spain served with the German Condor legion supporting the Nationalists so I can only assume they are meant to represent that unit.
The main downside to this kit is the ammount of flashing that needs to be removed, but other than that, and the fact that the tracks will probably take as long to assemble as the vehicle itself, this is a quick and simple build that makes up into a very nice, not to mention inexpensive, kit that really cries out to be displayed with figures to give viewers the sense of scale really needed to show just how small this vehicle is.
Click thumbnails to enlarge images.
