1:35 Spanish Civil War # 6. Kl. Befehls Pz I Ausf B and BT-5. Nationalist and Republican markings.

The command Panzer I and the BT-5 in Spain, 1:35 scale

This decal set rests on an unusual pairing: it covers two vehicles that stood against each other in the Spanish Civil War. On one side the small command Panzer I Ausf B, on the other the Soviet fast tank BT-5. According to the name it holds markings for both sides of the conflict, so from one sheet you can mark two models of completely different origin. A kit is not included.

The real subject

The command version of the Panzer I came about from the Ausf B chassis in such a way that, instead of a rotating turret, the vehicle received a fixed angular superstructure with room for a radio set and a map table. It was not a combat tank but a means of leading a unit, and it kept behind the front line. The BT-5 represented the opposite philosophy: a wheel-cum-track machine with an aircraft engine, exceptionally fast on roads, with a 45 mm gun and armor that barely stood up to machine guns. In Spain both vehicles found themselves in a setting they had never been built for, in fighting for towns and for mountain passes, where neither speed nor communications made up for the missing protection.

Application and painting tips

Because the sheet covers both sides of the conflict, separate the markings by allegiance right at the start and always work only with the part you need at the time. It is all too easy to end up with the opponent's design on your model. Store the unused designs flat and out of direct light. Even the base under the markings out with gloss varnish, and on the angular superstructure of the command vehicle watch the corners, where the film tends to lift.

Who the set is for

• modelers of the Spanish Civil War
• builders of German and Soviet interwar hardware
• dioramas where vehicles of both sides stand against each other
• collectors of markings for light tanks in 1:35 scale