Modeling
the Mobile V2 Batterie
THE
OPEL BLITZ; The S-type tankers and the Maultier
MARCH 2001 - In the German
Army the Opel Blitz was one of the most used 3-ton vehicles in use. The
main body (undercarriage and cabin) where constructed for two types, the
S-type a 2x4 version and the A-type a 4x4 version, there
are only small differences in the body and undercarriage. The motor hood
for the A-type is a little higher and has other side panels, and
the undercarige is modified for the front axel.
In the V2 Batterie the Opel
Blitz had differed roles, from the open lorry type, as a tanker and with
differed closed body’s even the half-track version of the Blitz, the Maultier.
The tankers and the Maultier where the S-type version. The
trucks with the closed cabins where almost all of the A-type. For
the modeller there is an S-type from Italeri in plastic. (This model
is also produced for Faller, Revell and Heller) The Opel Maultier
is also available from Italeri and Revell.
Of the A-type there
are no plastic models only Azimut has a Resin model A-type with
open body, and closed body 4x4-conversion set based on the Maultier
frame from Italeri. Italeri has made us glad with an S-type closed
body radio truck based on the old S-type open truck.
On this Italeri model there
is one major fault the motor grill is not of the right shape. I have asked
a colleague modeler, Piet van Heus, for use of his article on those
conversions and got permission to publish his article that he wrote for
the TWENOT magazine “TANK” some years ago, and now it will be published
for the first time on the internet here:
Click
here to read the Piet van Hees conversion article
With thanks to Piet van
Hees.
Now, having read the complete
conversion article from Piet, we find available from Azimut very nice 8-hole
wheel sets for our late ‘44/’45 Opel Blitz.
Of
which types do we need for our V2 Batterie?
We will need two B-Stoff
tankers and one T-Stoff tanker just for the launching site.
When we build other sections of the batterie, we need two Maultier
for the LS system, these are all S-type frames. |
We
start with the B-Stoff tanker. The firm PSP has a nice detailed
conversion set for the S-type, this conversion is molded well. But
it is pity that they did not make the backdoors open with a pump interior.
And there was (I don’t now if it is still available) a VACU model from
Airmodell (Germany) this was a reasonable model but you have to do a lot
of work to make it a well looking model.
For
the tanker group of the launching site I have chosen German Overall Green,
and for some of it - a pattern of German Yellow. I agree with some people
that there is no evidence of a camouflage scheme on the photographs that
are in all the books about the V2. But Dutch eyewitness told that there
was at least a two-tone camouflage on some of the 
