Opel Blitz 3 t Van 3.6-36 S
ESCI 1:72 Scale Vehicle Review
Standard house type van body mounted on an Opel Blitz S-Type 4×2 truck chassis. The ESCI kit depicts a medical equipment truck or dental clinic vehicle of the Kfz. 305 series which also served as a photo lab, motor vehicle repair shop, telephone exchange, and radio vehicle. The house type body added 1500 kg of weight to the Opel Blitz 3-ton cargo truck, thereby limiting its payload to only 1800 kg.
Contents
Opel Blitz Type 3.6-36 S with standard house type van body
- Type: Medium Truck 3 t (4×2)
- Length: 6750 mm
- Width: 2250 m
- Height: 2860 m
- Weight: 6,690 kg (4,000 kg empty)
- Speed: 85 km/h
- Range: 320 km (230 km cross-country)
- Production: 1937–1944
Evaluation
Excellent choice of subject, the Kfz. 305 was a standard military vehicle which served in many important roles. Opel Blitz cargo trucks are readily available, but the ESCI Kfz. 305 is unique in this scale. With a standard frame antenna attached to the roof, this vehicle can be used as a radio van.
Scale model with much detail. Hinges, panel lines, radiator grille, lights, and tire treads are nicely sculpted.
Very easy to build, only 65 parts. The model went together very well, no filling was required.
Fun to paint. Kfz. 305 served on all front, throughout the war, and it can be painted in a variety of camouflage patterns.
Compatible with Hasegawa, Italeri, Revell, and CDC.
The rear doors are hinged, they may be opened and closed. Unfortunately, the Ambulance is completely empty inside. We decided to glue the doors shut permanently. Anyone who has access to scale drawings of the Ambulance interior may want to consider detailing it.
The manual show the front axle as part № 14, but it’s actually № 22.
The manual does not explain how the three stowage boxes (№ 32) are to be attached. The boxes belong underneath the van body, just behind the cab, but their exact location is not apparent. There is room for two boxes on the left side of the vehicle. The third box can be placed next to the spare tire, on the right side.
The manual mistakenly lists the length of the vehicle as 6.10 m, which is the lenght of the Opel blitz cargo truck, the van was only 5.60 m long. The model is longer than it should be, it scales out to 5.80 m, the height and width are correct. The vehicle can be shortened a little by reducing the wide gap between the cab and the van body. Cut the chassis directly behind the cab, shorten the chassis by 1.5 mm, and glue the parts back together.
Three ejector pin marks are clearly visible on the outside of both rear tires, damaging the wheel rim. Filling and sanding may fix this problem.
The box cover shows an attractive multi-colour camouflage scheme, but the manual recommends only Humbrol HM1 »8th Army Desert Yellow« as the overall vehicle colour.
There is no driver. Unless the model is used to portray a stationary vehicle, a suitable driver will have to be scrounged from another kit.
Markings are limited to the medical equipment or dental clinic version, only the license plates would be suitable for other variants of the van. Tactical markings may be scrounged from other kits.
If a simple frame antenna had been included in the kit, the vehicle could have been built as a radio van in addition to the ambulance version.
Historical Employment
Wehrmacht Multi-purpose House Type Van, 1937 – May 1945
- Kfz. 305/3 Fernschreibvermittlungs-Kraftwagen – Telex Exchange Van
- Kfz. 305/8 Fernsprechvermittlungs-Kraftwagen – Telephone Exchange Van
- Kfz. 305/76 Sanitätsgeräte-Kraftwagen – Medical Equipment Van
- Kfz. 305/86 Zahnklinik-Kraftwagen – Dental Clinic Van
- Kfz. 305/87 Zahnlabor-Kraftwagen – Dental Laboratory Van
- Kfz. 305/88 Röntgen-Schirmbild-Kraftwagen – X-Ray Van
- Kfz. 305/89 Röntgen-Schirmbild-Dunkelkammer-Kraftwg. – X-Ray Darkroom
- Kfz. 305/90 Bild-Kraftwagen I – Photo Laboratory
- Kfz. 305/91 Bild-Kraftwagen II – Photo Laboratory
- Kfz. 305/117 Kraftfahrzeugwerkstatt-Kraftwagen – Motor Vehicle Repair Shop
Possible Conversions
- Kfz. 305/20 Funk-Kraftwagen – radio van (frame antenna), 1937 – May 1945
The ESCI kit of the Kfz. 305 is a must-have. The vehicle is easy to build, and it looks very nice when painted in one of the many camouflage patterns used by the Wehrmacht. Wargamers have a strategic interest in this kit, they’ll convert the medical equipment truck or dental clinic to a radio van by adding a frame antenna on the roof.