The German Medium Tank, Panzer III was developed by Daimler Benz in 1936 with production starting in 1937. It became the backbone of the German Army during the early stages of the war, participating in the Polish, 'Low Countries', and French campaigns before being used against the Soviets. There it fought in the battles for Moscow and Stalingrad. The early 'ausf F' had a 37mm main gun with 131 rounds and two 7.92mm machine guns. Later production versions used a 50mm main gun. The Panzer III series had many different variants and included the famous StuG III assault guns.
 

THE KIT

As you can see from the image, you get a LOT of medium grey sprues with this one. Detail on the parts is really top notch. I'm not much of an armor builder, but the the detail that is there is crisp and well done. This is quite noticeable on the upper fenders where there is a grate pattern. None of the ejector pin marks are where they can be seen and they are all easily filled or filed off if you wish to do so. There is no flash and I had to really hunt to find even the slightest depression of a sink mark. The tracks are vinyl so those who don't like multiple piece tracks don't have to worry and those that do will simply replace them. It may just be my kit, but none of the sprues were bagged in any way. From what I can see in the instructions, there are no optional parts, but that is not so unusual in my limited experience with tank kits. There is no interior, but lots of room to install one, should you be so inclined.

Instructions are on almost entirely in Russian, other than a very brief historical section and a few warnings. The construction sequences are almost photo-real and all parts are clearly marked. No 'underway' painting advise or info is provided. Markings are for three tanks; all of them in Panzer grey. One is a captured version and the other two are of unknown units operating in the Eastern Front during 1941, differing only in hull number. The decals look as if they'll work ok, but they also disappear on the decal sheet. It would be nice if some of these companies would stop using white or ivory backing paper to their decals so we can see the decals. Makes it quite difficult, even for those who don't have poor eyesight! You can see what I mean from the image to the right.

CONCLUSIONS

Overall it looks to be an excellent armor kit. Italeri reboxes a lot of Zvezda kits and everyone seems to like them just fine.

You can find this kit and many others at