The Modelling News: Three popular items in Hobbyboss' September kit new release preview...

We waited until we had the images of the sprues, colours, decals, plastic & everything else before we did our preview of Hobbyboss' new September items. A pint-sized Scud, a colourful Warthog & "nobody suspected a" Panther G are amongst their latest in our preview...

Three popular items in Hobbyboss' September kit new release preview...

German Panther G - Late version

Kit No #84552

1/35th scale

Product link at Hobbylink Japan

Panther is the common name of a medium tank fielded by Nazi Germany in World War II that served from mid-1943 to the end of the European war in 1945. The Panther's excellent combination of firepower, mobility, and protection served as a benchmark for other nations' late war and immediate post-war tank designs, and it is frequently regarded as one of the best tank designs of World War II.

The colour choices supplied with this kit

While sharing essentially the same engine as the Tiger I tank, it had better frontal armour, better gun penetration, was lighter overall and thus faster, and could handle rough terrain better than the Tigers. The tradeoff was weaker side armour; the Panther proved to be deadly in open country and shooting from long range, but vulnerable to close-quarters combat. Also, the 75 mm gun fired a slightly smaller shell than the Tiger's 88 mm gun, providing less high explosive firepower against infantry, though it was still quite effective.

The decals supplied with this kit

The Panther was also far cheaper to produce than the Tiger tanks, and only slightly more expensive than the Panzer IV, as its design came to fruition at the same time that the Reich Ministry of Armament and War Production was making great efforts to increase war production. Key elements of the Panther design, such as its armour, transmission and final drive, were compromises made specifically to improve production rates and address Germany's war shortages, whereas other elements such as its highly compact engine and its complex suspension system remained with their elegant but complicated engineering. The result was that Panther tank production was far higher than what was possible for the Tiger tanks, but not much higher than what had been accomplished with the Panzer IV. At the same time, the simplified final drive became the single major cause of breakdowns of the Panther tank, and was a problem that was never corrected.

Model Length: 264mm Width: 97.7mm

Total of 26 sprues, upper hull, lower hull and turret

The kit consists of over 1300 parts

Individual tracks

Photo etched parts included

The plastic sprues of the kit

Multi-slide moulded lower hull , turret

Clear parts & metal cable are included

A-10C “THUNDERBOLT” II

Kit No #81796

1/48th scale

Product link at Hobbylink Japan

The A-10 fleet of USAF was modernised under the Precision Engagement Program, resulting in the A-10C, which first flew at Eglin in 2005.

The colour choices supplied with this kit, including special markings for Warthogs.

The A-10C adds color cockpit MFDs, a Helmet Mounted Cueing System (HMCS), hands-on throttle and stick, digital stores management, improved fire-control, GPS-guided weapons, Litening/Sniper pods, advanced data links, and integrated sensors. The A-10C debuted during combat in Iraq in 2007.

The decals supplied with this kit

Model Length: 338.7mm Wingspan: 366mm

Total of 13 sprues and tires

The kit consists of over 230 parts

-Rubber tires

Clear parts

- The plastic sprues of the kit

SOVIET 9P117M1 W / R-17 BALLISTIC MISSILE SCUD B

Kit No #83894

1/72nd scale

Product link at Hobbylink Japan

The first use of the term Scud was in the NATO name SS-1b Scud-A, applied to the R-11 ballistic missile. The R-11 used technology gained from the V-2 as well, but was a new design, smaller and differently shaped than the V-2 and R-1 weapons. The R-11 was developed by the Korolyev OKB[1] and entered service in 1957. The most revolutionary innovation in the R-11 was the engine, designed by A.M. Isaev. Far simpler than the V-2's multi-chamber design, and employing an anti-oscillation baffle to prevent chugging, it was a forerunner to the larger engines used in Soviet launch vehicles.

The colour choices supplied with this kit

Further developed variants were the SS-1c Scud-B in 1961 and the SS-1d Scud-C in 1965, both of which could carry either a conventional high-explosive, a 5- to 80-kiloton nuclear, or a chemical warhead. The SS-1e Scud-D variant developed in the 1980s can deliver a terminally guided warhead capable of greater precision.

The decals supplied with this kit