Bill Plunk provides an In-Box review of the 1/35 Bronco 7.5cm Pak 40 (Sf) Auf Geschutzwagen 39(f) or Marder I as it is more commonly known.

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Thanks!

Thanks for the review, Bill, I didn't even realize this was getting ready to be released. Something I'd like to pick up, though with what you have noted I'll wait until it's around $35. Hopefully that chickenwire needs to be trimmed, 'cause I've never seen anybody cut it in that manner (unless they've been drinking).

Bill, thanks for the review. I wondered about this kit, now I know. I'll have to wait till I get a camera before shelling out for this kit.
Joe

James,

I don't think this is a "new" release in the usual sense, only that the US distributor for Bronco (Stevens International) just sent it along as a sample since we didn't have it on the site and they've begun providing us samples directly of late for the Bronco items. I believe it's actually been out for a little while given the numbering as kit #35004 whereas their recently released LWS is kit #35015. Unlike the kit that Frank Glackin reviewed recently, the H38/39 kit # 35019, this one doesn't seem to be an updated reissue of an earlier kit.

Joe, my pleasure and hope you're able to get a good camera, I know you've been waiting a while to get one.

Thanks Bill. I have the Trumpeter one on the stash which is definitely cheaper. Any idea how it compares? (having the individual track links is better though). And what does "Marder" mean -- been looking around for its english translation for a while now. Cheers -- Tat

Is the Pak 40 from Bronco or it is AFV Club or Dragon
It looks better them Trumpeter.

Tat,

"Marder" translates to "Marten"...a type of fur-bearing creature in the weasel family. I can't help you with a comparison to the Trumpeter offering, didn't even know they had one until you mentioned it in your post.

Jose,

The Pak 40 parts appear to be a Bronco tooling given how they are arranged on the sprues along with the other parts. I don't recognize any of the parts as having anything in common with the AFV or DML kits other than, of course, they are parts for a Pak 40. HTH.

I'm only seeing this as a pre-order at this time, Bill, with a tentative release date of Dec./Jan.? Whenever, I'm still going to wait for the price to come down

Interesting, I checked Great Models and they show the same status for both this and kit # 3505 (but 3505 wasn't sent as a review sample yet) that mounts the 10.5cm leFh 18, so I stand corrected about the release status. Guess that means I need to get started on building it sooner than I thought!

Thanks Bill. Trumpeter also released a 10.5cm leFH18. That's why for a while back, I thought Trumpeter and Bronco were related (ala DML and CyberHobby). Cheers -- Tat

Based on my Build Log experiences, I've edited the original Review in light of a major flaw uncovered in regards to the barrel length on the Bronco aluminum barrel. The following has been added to the original review and the overall score evaluation adjusted accordingly:

***** Edit *****
In the course of the build-up a dimensional error regarding the aluminum barrel has been discovered. After comparing to the 1/35 scale plans in Nuts & Bolts #18, the Bronco barrel is 5mm too long overall and has the “step” in the barrel where the recoil sled attaches too far out in the barrel as a result. The rest of the gun mount including the recoil sled itself are the correct dimensions but the extra length of the barrel means that the gun breech has to be positioned too far back on the recoil tray as a result when the gun is fully assembled and installed. The only way to resolve this is to replace the barrel entirely with an after-market one that has the correct dimensions. This is a significant error in the kit in regards to what should’ve been considered a plus with the aluminum barrel and has resulted in the overall score evaluation being lowered to 75% from the initial 85% rating and the kit recommended only with reservations as a result, especially given the price.

Trumpeter's kit is a reengineering of a resin one originally produced by On-Track Models and not related to Bronco's kit. It may have been issued as a spoiler by Trumpeter in the age that it took Bronco to get theirs into production.

David

I have both kits from trumpeter but these Bronco releases seem much better, despite the problems with the gun dimensions. The price tag doesn't help ..