Italeri 1/35 Sd.Kfz.139 Panzerjager Marder III Kit First Look

By Michael Benolkin

First Look

When Germany occupied Czechoslovakia, one of the first items on the Wehrmacht's shopping list was control of the Czech armor factories that were turning out tanks with superior firepower then their Panzer I and Panzer II main tanks. These tanks would continue to be manufactured and were designated as PzKpfw 38(t).

As these tanks were later phased out of front-line service, their chassis were 'recycled' for other duties. One such application was to adapt the 38(t) chassis to carry the 75mm Pak 40 anti-tank gun, creating what would later be dubbed 'Marder III'. This self-propelled anti-tank weapon provided greater flexibility on the battlefield.

Italeri has released the Marder III representing a variant earlier than the Tamiya Marder III. The kit is molded in light gray styrene and presented on three parts trees.

The kit features a nicely detailed lower hull that has a semi-furnished driver and hull gunner's stations. The rear of the hull compartment has an interior bulkhead to separate the rear engine compartment. On the outside, the roadwheels and suspension are also nicely done.

The upper hull has separate fenders and a nice array of pioneering tools, spare track links, and other stowage stashed here and there. Atop the rear engine deck, the three gunner's platform sections provide a level place to stand for the two-man crew up top.

The Pak 40 is a nice model of its own right and the completed model installs into a transversable mount. The gun shield installs around the Pak-40 and includes stowage racks for ammo. Two figures are also included.

Markings are included for two examples:

• Marder III, German Army, France 1944
• Marder III, German Army, Russia, 1942

This kit is nicely done and will look great alongside the later variant of Marder III produced by Tamiya. This kit is highly recommended!

My sincere thanks to Testors for this review sample!