1:144 WWII German Krupp-Protze L2H143 kfz61

Fully painted in Panzergrau scheme, weathered. No assembling required.

The Pak 36 can be rotated.

This model is designed after the vehicle used by Gebirgspanzerjägerabteilung 44 (mountaintroop anti-tank batallion 44), of the 1.Gebirgsjägerdivision, Chateau Thierry, France, 12 June 1940

The armour might be improvised on the field but some sources indicated it was manufactured by Skoda and then applied as field conversion. The armour was said to be 8mm thick.
Source: “Lastkraftwagen der Wehrmacht” by Reinhard Frank ISBN 3-86070-859-7.

This model is a three part model. Adventurous modellers can use the chassis as bassis for conversion to other variations

HISTORY

Krupp-Protze L2H143 kfz61
The Krupp-Protze L2H143 kfz61 was a widely used 6 wheeled truck and artillery tractor in WWII. Most commonly for towing the Pak 36. In various configurations, about 7000 units were built.
Frequently instead of towing the Pak 36, crews put the whole Pak unit on top of the truck turning the vehicle into a self-propelled gun, or as in this model, permanently mounted on the vehicle without the carriage.

For more information on Krupp-Protze L2H143 kfz61, visit the following:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Krupp_Protze

Pak 36
Pak 36 was the first anti-tank gun used by the German military at the start of WWII. The 3.7 cm Pak 36, not to be confused with the 7.62 cm Pak 36(r) captured Russian gun, first saw service in the Spanish Civil War. But its small calibre gun was already out dated in 1940, useless against Allies heavy armour but still effective against their prewar light vehicles.

The Pak 36 was nicknamed by the Germans in the Eastern Front as the "Door Knocker" ("Heeresanklopfgerät", literally "army door knocking device") , because the shell just bounced off Russian T-34s.

In 1943, the Pak 36 was resurrected by the introduction of the Stielgranate 41 shaped charge. The gun could now penetrate any armour within 300 meters. Being light weighted and could easily moved by hand, the Pak 36 was issued to Fallschirmjäger units and other light troops.

The gun itself also were fitted to amoured vehicles and halftracks as light anti armour support.

For more information on Pak 36 , visit the following:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/3.7_cm_Pak_36