1:35 StuG III return rollers Alkett late Pattern 1

Late StuG III return rollers, the first form

Of the range of late running gear parts this is the variant the name marks with the number one. Beside it there is also a second late form, so the word late alone is not enough to choose by here and it is exactly that number that decides. For a builder that means one thing: before buying the set, they should have a photograph chosen and compare the shape against it. The differences between the two forms are small, but on a model at this scale they can be told apart.

Where this variant differs

The rollers carry the top run of the track and belong to the parts that changed most often during production. They were made by various suppliers, by various processes and in various periods, and although they served the same function, their shape diverged. That is exactly why a whole series of numbered forms arises, among which the builder chooses. A vehicle from late production could moreover carry a combination of parts from several deliveries, so now and then rollers that do not look alike at first glance met on one machine.

Working on the running gear

The fitting is planned before the hull is closed up and painted. Remove the original parts, level the flash and just lay the new rollers in place first, so that you can check the straightness of the whole row. It is worth painting them off the model and gluing them last, because on a finished build a brush reaches them less well. Apply the final dusting from above, so that the deposit looks natural.

Who it is intended for

• Builders who tell the individual late forms apart
• Modelers working from a period photographic subject
• Anyone interested in faithful running gear in the largest of the common scales