introduction

Griffon Model produce a wide array of upgrade sets for the 3.7cm Flak, along with the Sd.Kfz. 7/2, that are available in bundled sets (Royal and Premium) as well as individually. This small set of ammo storage containers that hold 16 rounds in their zinc tubes will help enhance your 3.7cm Flak and is designed for all brands of kits.

contents

Contained in a plastic sleeve stapled to a cardboard header are:
• 1 Photo etch fret
• 1 Decal sheet
• 1 Copper wire 0.7mm x 50mm
• 4 ABS rods 1.5mm x 50mm
• Instruction sheet

The PE fret is also taped to a cardboard backer to further protect the contents, and to date I have not received any Griffon sets that were damaged...so their packaging works quite well.

review

Contained on the thin (.12mm) fret are enough pieces to construct four ammo containers and, as is typical with Griffon, there are extras of the smallest pieces...which I always seem to need. Each box is made up of 10 parts, not counting the ammo tubes. With no working hinges on these (fine by me!), the option still exists to have the lids depicted opened or closed, albeit in a permanent position.

The supplied ABS rod will provide 16 ammo tubes (one full box), if more are desired they will need to be sourced from your stock or filler blocks laid in the container underneath the tubes. These will need to be cut to the same length, a 'chopper' or homemade jig will ensure they look good.

The small decal sheet provides markings for the outside of the box and a choice of two (#2 or #3) for the inner lid if depicted in the opened position. The carrier film is excessive and quite thick, so trim as close as possible. Although not of the highest quality, the markings provide a nice extra touch to the ammo containers and look great to the naked eye. A few squiggly lines painted in black would also do the trick if the decals don't appeal to you.

Each finished box measures approximately (without the handle):
11.75mm L
6.75mm W
6.75mm H

As is usual with PE, the true test is how it builds, so I decided to quickly construct one of the boxes. Construction is fairly simple, with two areas I found a bit more difficult. First were the two brackets (A7) for the carry handle. The handle is made from the supplied copper wire cut to length, with the two brackets being formed around the wire, pinched in the back, transitioned into stand-offs with tabs bent at the end. Forming these pieces wasn't overly difficult, although fastening the assembly to the box was...having an extra pair of hands would help. Having fine pointed tweezers and magnification is a must.

The lid was another piece that presented a small challenge since there are triangular pieces that need to be folded over after the basic shape is complete. There are no etched bend lines as, I'm assuming, the lid had rounded edges. This makes it more difficult to get clean edges and with the size of this box I would venture a guess that having bend lines would give a better appearance. Using the edge of a bending tool makes shaping the lip of the lid easier for the ends, without distorting the triangles. Also, the instructions show the triangular pieces folded in the wrong direction, the package pictures show the correct way.

Conclusion

All in all a neat set of ammo crates to dress up your Flak. Not Griffon's greatest work, but not too bad either. The mistake in the instructions doesn't take away from the set, as the color images on the cover sheet are more than enough of a construction guide. Providing more than 16 ammo tubes would have been a benefit, as well as etched bend lines for the lid.