1/700 Scale WW2 German Army Pz.Kpfw. I Ausf. C Light Tank.
Contains 10 highly detailed tanks.
Contains:- 10x Pz.Kpfw. I Ausf. C Light Tanks
Pz.Kpfw. I Ausf. C Light Tank
The
Panzer I was a
light tank produced in
Germany in the 1930s. The name is short for the German
Panzerkampfwagen I ("armored fighting vehicle mark I"), abbreviated
PzKpfw I. The tank's official German ordnance inventory designation was
SdKfz 101 ("special purpose vehicle 101").
Design of the Panzer I began in 1932 and mass production began in 1934. Intended only as a training tank to introduce the concept of
armored warfare to the
German Army, the Panzer I saw combat in Spain during the
Spanish Civil War, in
Poland,
France, the
Soviet Union and
North Africa during the
Second World War, and in China during the
Second Sino-Japanese War. Experiences with the Panzer I during the Spanish Civil War helped shape the German Panzerwaffes'
invasion of Poland in 1939 and
France in 1940. By 1941, the Panzer I chassis design was used as the basis of
tank destroyers and
assault guns. There were attempts to upgrade the Panzer I throughout its service history, including by foreign nations, to extend the design's lifespan. It continued to serve in the
Spanish Armed Forces until 1954.
The Panzer I's performance in combat was limited by its thin
armour and light armament of two
machine guns. As a design intended for training, the Panzer I was not as capable as other light tanks of the era, such as the Soviet
T-26. Although weak in combat, it formed a large part of Germany's tank forces and was used in all major campaigns between September 1939 and December 1941. The small, vulnerable light tank would be surpassed in importance by other German tanks, such as the
Panzer IV,
Panther, and
Tiger; nevertheless, the Panzer I's contribution to the early victories of Nazi Germany during World War II was significant. Later in that war the turrets of the then obsolete PzKpfw Is and PzKpfw IIs were repurposed as gun turrets on specially built defensive bunkers, particularly on the
Atlantic Wall.
Two more combat versions of the Panzer I were designed and produced between 1939 and 1942. By this stage, the design concept had been superseded by medium and heavy tanks and neither variant was produced in sufficient numbers to have a real impact on the progress of the war. These new tanks had nothing in common with either the Ausf. A or B except name. One of these, the Panzer I Ausf. C, was designed jointly between
Krauss-Maffei and Daimler-Benz in 1939 to provide an amply armoured and armed reconnaissance light tank. The Ausf. C boasted a completely new chassis and turret, a modern
torsion-bar suspension and five
Schachtellaufwerk-style interleaved roadwheels. It also had a maximum armor thickness of 30 millimeters (1.18 in), over twice that of either the Ausf. A or B, and was armed with an EW 141 semi
autocannon, with a 50-round drum, firing 7.92mm anti-tank shells. Forty of these tanks were produced, along with six prototypes. Two tanks were deployed to
1st Panzer Division in 1943, and the other thirty-eight were deployed to the LVIII Panzer Reserve Corps during the
Normandy landings.
Cleaning Information
Some part cleanup will be necessary. The 3D printing process uses a waxy substance to support certain part features during the printing process. Although the parts are cleaned by Shapeways, some waxy residue may remain. It can be safely removed with water and a mild aqueous detergent like "Simple Green" using an old, soft toothbrush, Q-tips or pipe cleaners. During the printing process, liquid resin is cured by ultraviolet light. Microscopic bits of resin may remain uncured.
Let your parts sit in direct sunlight for a few hours to fully cure the resin.
Water-based acrylic paints meant for plastics is strongly recommended. Other paints, especially enamels, may not cure on Frosted Detail 3D-printed plastics.
Use dedicated model sprue cutters to remove parts to minimise the risk of damage to parts.
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