172
Trumpeter E-100 Ausf-B

  • move
Introduction
Just the kind of kit to provoke disdain in some quarters: 1/72 scale, rubber band tracks, moulded on tools, tabs for handles, moulded mesh, and worst of all, spare track moulded to the turret. But ’46 Paper Panzers seem popular, and Jim wanted a build review or a feature, so it fell to me to cut the bits from the sprue.

Starting with the customary history, from the box side: “Super heavy tank designed as an alternative to the Maus, it used a modified Maus turret with the 150mm KwK 44 with plans to upgrade it to the 170mm KwK 44…” Stop. This kit doesn’t use the modified Maus turret with the 150mm or 170mm KwK 44. Its turret was designed by Panzermeisterkünstler Michael Rinaldi in 2002, using a 128mm Jagdtiger barrel. The hull may have existed as a one-off, but the turret is pure fiction. Trumpeter have been here before, releasing a 1/35 kit in 2008, followed by an agreement over copyright between Trumpeter and Mr Rinaldi, with the “hypothetical” aspect acknowledged by the use of that word on the web page for the 1/35 version, but not repeated on the page for this kit. Remarkably, Modelcollect have this year released their 1/72 version of the same design, with the statement “Design Copyright by Michael Rinaldi 2004” on the box top.

No such mention on the lid of this Trumpeter E-100 (photo 1) - instead something stranger: a photo of their 1/35 scale kit! Unnoticeable at first, because it’s normal for Trumpeter’s 1/72 kits to feature a photo of a not too well made and painted model, so that you could reasonably confuse this photo of the over a foot long 1/35 version for braille scale. The first thing that gives it away is the not-moulded-on spare track; then the bolts around the mantlet; then there’s the separate tools, the turret lifting rings, engine deck lifting hooks, open handles, periscope lenses, and etched mesh. The final – quite undignified – confirmation that the model ON the box isn’t the model IN the box is that the wheels are on the wrong way round, the wheels with the long bolted hubs being on the outside, a mistake impossible to make with the 1/72 kit as the inner row are moulded as one piece, so you could never make such a silly error.

Anyway, that’s all quite entertaining, but on to building and reviewing the contents of the box. So I’ve already given away that the kit has various unappealing features, and at first I pondered if I could build it, and present a one word review, that just said “No.” But something started to happen as the parts came off the sprue, and it was that thing that we all look for when building models: enjoyment. Putting aside the simplifications and shortcomings of the kit design, and a couple of awkward moments that we’ll get to, this kit has very nice mouldings, goes together easily and quickly, and for a small scale model, it provides an unusually big, uncluttered canvas for painting.
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move
  • move

About the Author

About Matthew Lenton (firstcircle)
FROM: ENGLAND - SOUTH EAST, UNITED KINGDOM

Earliest model memory is a Super Sabre my grandmother bought for me around 1972. Have always dabbled in painting and making things, and rediscovered doing that with plastic in 2008. Vowed then to complete the 30 year old stash, and have made some progress. Hobby goes hand in hand with BBC Radio 3...


Comments

This isn't a Paper Panzer, Trumpeter delibrately changed the shape of the turret in this kit to make it closer to that on King Tiger, which the Germans never planned to do
OCT 12, 2017 - 07:46 PM
Tim... Internetiquette supertip: Never comment without reading the article. The turret was designed by Mike Rinaldi, Trumpeter copied his kitbashed / scratched turreted E-100 model. Seriously, please read at least the first page of the feature which explains it, otherwise you're just asking for Mike himself to come back on here (possibly with a big exasperated sigh as he has) to explain it "one more time..." By the way, what did you (and Patrick) think of the feature apart from that?
OCT 12, 2017 - 08:18 PM
Matthew, While "Paper Panzers" are not in the slightest an area of my interest, your feature article rather captured my interest and especially your build and finishing explanations and accompanying images. Although an overall simple vehicle as far as its "lines" are concerned your finishing of it was superb and brings this otherwise "plain shaped" subject to life. I must particularly comment on the marvellous paint job you achieved on the vehicles' figure. The size of this model is also quite impressive especially when you compare it to a 1/72 Abrams that measures out at 110 X 52 mm. The article appears quite concise and informative and I for one appreciate the effort that you must have put in to complete it. Seems to me like it might possess a winning combination of points to win notice in a model show or competition. Cheers, Jan
OCT 12, 2017 - 09:16 PM
Whatever you do, don't mention "Paper Panzers" - I mentioned it once but I think I got away with it... So I used the terms '46 and PPs, partly I wasn't sure if Panzer'46 or Panzerwaffe46 was copyright, but now I think not. Anyway, I get the distinction Mike made above, although I guess this model is a mix of both. Jan, thanks for the compliments, particularly on the figure, who doesn't look too bad when viewed at real size, despite the fact that I think I accidentally removed most of one his ears while cleaning up the mould line on the polythene Caesar head; slightly ironic as one of the things I didn't like about the original CMK head was that the head was tiny, but the ears a bit too prominent - FA Cup syndrome. Thanks too to Mike R for the positive feedback.
OCT 12, 2017 - 10:35 PM
You've got your facts and intentions confused. Paper Panzers is an actual term referring to proposed armor concepts/designs on the drawing board during the war. It's been in use for years, long before video games reinvented it's definition. They are a collective finite groups of designs. We see them in the modern era as redrawn by Hilary Doyle in the well known Panzer Tracts books. Panzer 46 (and Luft 46) is a term(s) used to describe the what-if fantasy collective of the hypothetical ideas and vehicle concepts -- loosely based on what happened regarding vehicle design and production during the war. (There are also Allied designs, as such too). That's what this model is, it's fictional what-if, loosely based on a Paper Panzer, but by definition NOT one of them. Panzer 46 is more appropriate term for this group of vehicles. Politics have nothing to do with this terminology, that's not what any of this is about.[/quote] +1
OCT 13, 2017 - 03:13 AM
Thanks for sharing Matt. Hey, I see that you've used blue tack -- I remember reading something about using toothpaste as mask Seriously, I commend the effort you put on this very detailed build feature, especially the finished product. Good to see as well that the photos are now sorted in ascending order. Having read the exchanges on terminologies got me curious as to the origins of the term "paper panzers". Anyways I guess that may be best for separate thread. Cheers, Tat
OCT 13, 2017 - 04:23 AM
Thanks Tat. I have used toothpaste before, but this camouflage is quite big and simple so blue tack seemed easier, although it did cause the breakage of one of the hooks on the engine deck, ringed in photo 69, which had to be replaced with wire and repainted. As Mike said, Paper Panzers goes back at least to the two Panzer Tracts books on the subject that used that term as part of the title, published in 2002, I think. I don't know if there is a record of it being used much before that.
OCT 13, 2017 - 01:48 PM
"Paper Panzer." "Panzer 46." Politics? (Yyyyaaaawwwwnn.) Matthew, wonderful feature building this little-big Paper Panzer 46. I like what you wrote, "... something started to happen as the parts came off the sprue, and it was that thing that we all look for when building models: enjoyment." Your build with the weathering really does the kit justice. Thanks for taking up the challenge.
OCT 15, 2017 - 11:59 PM
Awesome build; great feature. Thank you
OCT 30, 2017 - 03:56 PM
Of course I know Michael built the model that Trumpeter based the turret for this kit on, you were still calling it a Paper Panzer when it's a invented design that was never even on paper/blueprints.
OCT 31, 2017 - 12:11 AM