Introduction

Dragon model continues to cover all possible variants of the Panzer IV and aftermarket companies continue releasing upgrades for them! To the satisfaction of modellers we have plenty of choice according to our demands and skills. E.T. Model is new to me and I was really interested in what the company offers. This particular set contains the Schurzen and their mountings for the Panzer IV ausf. G that was released by Dragon this past spring.

review

Packed in a clear plastic bag with a cardboard header are 4 PE frets together with 2 pages of instructions. Two of the frets are the side-skirts (schurzen) and the other two contain turret-skirt and side-skirt armor plates, as well as mounting brackets and bolt heads.

The instructions are quite clear, although it is not marked what you need to remove/fill on the original styrene parts. Part numbers appear to be correct apart from E13 – this number corresponds to both rear mounting bracket and the filler piece of the middle mounting brackets.

Construction is pretty straightforward and you will definitely need a folding tool for the hanging rail (I don’t think it is possible to bend it without) and CA gel glue or soldering skills, especially if you decide to add PE fenders to your model too. I don’t know if it is really worth substituting the original aluminum side-skirts from Dragon, but the rest of the set is an improvement over the plastic parts.

The build begins with making the mounting brackets for hull side-skirts and you have to add bolt heads to them which are very small, so work patiently and use really small amounts of glue. After you are finished with the brackets - bend the rail and glue/solder it to the brackets. The small brackets that attach the side-skirts to the rail have imitation weld seams – a small but pleasant surprise! I don’t know who will look at that element when the vehicle is finished, but it is great to know that E.T. Model care about research.

Unfortunately there is no brass rod included and you have to source it elsewhere (size 0.4mm). Remove the lower plastic brackets from the fenders and attach the PE ones. After that you can place the desired number of Schurzen (according to reference images or preferences) at their place. These hang in place so there is no need to permanently attach them and will ease the painting process.

Assembly of the turret schurzen also begins with brackets and their form is more complicated. Check with original plastic parts and you won’t make any mistakes. The rear segment could be bent around the styrene one and there is a part (E3) that imitates a wood strip on a lower rim of it. The side doors will be workable at the end; you will need some brass rod again.
As a bonus you have a PE stencil for balkenkreuz.

Conclusion

A well produced set that will increase the detail level of your model and allow you to do realistic battle damage on the schurzen.