1:100 KV-1 with Simplified Turret Tank

KV-1 with the simplified turret in 1:100 scale (Zebranomodel)

A model of the Soviet KV-1 heavy tank in the version with the simplified turret, that is with a turret whose shape wartime production reworked so that it could be made faster. The 1:100 scale belongs on tabletop wargames and in dioramas with several vehicles; the finished tank is about seven centimeters long.

The real subject

The KV-1 was a Soviet heavy tank named after Kliment Voroshilov. Its thick armor gave it the upper hand in 1941, but it paid for that with great weight, a demanding transmission and the unreliability that crews had to deal with throughout its service. As the war went on, production looked for ways to build the machine faster and with less machining. The turret therefore received coarser, simplified shapes; one of the recognition features is the more angular transition under the turret overhang. That did not change the fighting qualities, it changed the time in which a tank left the factory.

Building and painting tips

Cut the parts off a little away from the shape with a sharp blade and sand the surface down; match the type of glue to the material of the parts, super glue holds on resin, cement for plastic on polystyrene. The turret is the main distinguishing feature of this version, so take your time seating it and check that it sits level. Put a dark wash into the gaps over a green base and run a lighter shade along the edges; at a small scale the result comes from contrast, not from the amount of detail.

Who the model is for

• for players of tabletop wargames of the Eastern Front
• for collectors of Soviet vehicles in a single scale
• for dioramas of the fighting on the Eastern Front
• for modelers who compare the versions of one machine side by side

The model is supplied unassembled and unpainted. Glue, paints and accessories are not included in the package, unless stated otherwise.