Why does armored kits that should have zims have flat surfaces? I mean, why didn't the manufacturer add the zim in the first place? I understand some early German tanks were outfitted with zims in the battlefield but what about tanks that already appeared "zimmed" before battle?

hehe. Lordette Shonen, some Italeri tiger has zimmerit, but was not so hot. and the new DML 72nd kit, some of them have zimmer. Actually I think if a kit comes with molded zimmerit is in direct violation of crazy over tiny details...

And it's not the early panzer that had zimmerit, it's more like the mid war of them that had it. you need to get a book in panzers, so you can be sure which to apply zimmerit, which not.

HTH.

Also Italeri Panther has Zimm option.

Zimm is apply to the tank like paint. So in a strict sense, plastic manufacturers give you the tank as it was when it came off the production line, and you paint it the way you choose, Zimm inclusive.

And to mold the Zimm on the plastic hull, the texture will be simplified, and will most likely in a very regular way. Such may not be good enough for a "serious" modeler. Then if you want to remove them, detail them, or rework them, the work will be very tedious.

If memory serves me, there were a few kits that did have zimmert molded on, during the early days. Monogram was one. But most modellers didn't like it, and complained about how inaccurate and soft the detail was, that the practice was discontinued. Back in those days, we use to use either a hot knife or a heated screwdriver to make the zimmert.
Yes I actually did build a few German tanks in my wayward youth days.

yea the kit was the monogram brumbar kit. It had the molded on zimmerit. And if I remember right the Panzer IV kit they had , had damaged skirting included in the kit.

Well, I was just curious though. I haven't built anything German yet.




Well, kinda. The harder the better :-)

One of the reasons why companies don't make their kits with Zimmerit is because the patterns could vary from one vehicle to the next ..If you look at some pictures of Tiger tanks you can see that the turret zimmerit is wider than that on the hull ,while others have the same pattern for both... Now Panthers have a wide variety of zimmerit patterns as well as Panzer IV 's .. What about battle damage? It would be harder to represent if it were molded in place . So you see it makes more sense for companies not to add it to their kits.

Rick

Not being an expert on zimmerit or its use or application, I have noticed a couple of my newer 1/72 scale kits have zimmerit surfaces molded on.

My Dragon Tiger I SdKfz 181 Ausf E (kit #7203) comes with zimmerit applied to the vertical turret and hull surfaces. It looks finely done and the boxside states "World's First 1/72 Scale Injection Zimmerit Paste™" (Patent Pending).

The boxside also advertises the Bergepanzer Tiger I w/zimmerit (7210) so they do at least two zimmerit kits.

Also my 1/72 scale AMC Models Bergepanzer Tiger (72101) also comes with zimmerit molded onto the sides. Not as nice as the Dragon stuff, but not bad.

I also have a set made by Italeri of WW2 German tank accessories and it gives styrene sections of zimmerit to cut and fit for use.

Dragon had a Jagdpanther kit that had Zimmerit molded on. Right now with the Cavalier paper thin resin and Eduard brasssheets, zimmerit is an easy way to go. Just cut and paste!

I use putty to create zimmerit which in a way recreates the original way of aplying it to the surface. It also gives you the opportunity to create damged/repaired areas as required. As I like to built my models to look as if they have been in theater for some time, that works better than PE. Also considerably cheaper!!
Whilst on the subject, I can't find any reliable reference for the Jagdpanther Late Model. Zimmerit or not? Toolrack on side or rearhull?? Anybody know a good site? cheers

Freedom is not appreciated untill it's lost

dragon should make there own resin zim.
to add to the kit. or they should use Cavalier
zim. tayima did that with the PE zimm

i am too scared to use putty or a hot knife to apply zimm i just dont apply it i know its not accurate to the time most of my german tanks come from but iam too afraid i will ruin them trying apply zimm. Plus zimm in 1:72 whould be a pain in the but to do. I recently bought the Dragon 1:72 Tiger I Ausf E. w/ zimm an dit looks good to me its not quite as detailed as the revell kit but is pretty damn close.

Hi Guys
I used Eduard pe zimmerit on my DML Elefant and to be honest from 4 feet away it's practically invisible.Also it's too regular,even and undamaged.
Pete

I thought it was more towards the after market products getting more money.