Italeri Sturmpanzer IV Brummbär Build in 1/72 Scale

This is the 1981 ESCI kit of the Sturmpanzer IV Brummbär Sd. Kfz. 166 which was reboxed by Italeri with new decals in 2007. I picked up this kit from a vendor at the Indy show for a good price, which is always a weakness of mine.

Inside you will find all the parts needed to build the ESCI Panzer IV (without turret Schürzen) plus an extra sprue with the upper hull and other parts needed for the Brummbär. The original rubber band tracks have been replaced with a sprue of link and length injection tracks, a generic substitution in all the Italeri Panzer III- and Panzer IV-based vehicles I have encountered so far.

The suspension is not as well detailed as modern kits but it went together okay. I weighted the hull with BBs and epoxy.

There are gaps in the underside of the hull which will allow light to get through from certain angles so I filled the gaps with card. The periscopic sight which pokes through the roof looked fragile so I beefed up the mounting with more card.

Some vehicles had pistol ports in the side armor which I replicated with the help of a Waldron punch set.

Zimmerit can be simulated with Mr. Surfacer 500 and a small jeweler’s flathead screwdriver. I like the texture and it is relaxing to add this effect – any mistakes can be erased or even removed with thinner and you can try again.

Priming turns the model into a 3-D CADD render!

The model was airbrushed freehand in one of the many variations of the German late-war three color scheme using Mr. Color paints.

Decals are from the Italeri boxing. Jerry cans are resin prints and are held in place with straps made from PE runners.