Master Box 1/35 Typ 170 V Tourenwagen

[Dave Ward]

My Barchino will shortly be finished & I've been pondering my next build, and I've decided on this...............

Not the most inspiring of boxarts! - It is of course a Mercedes-Benz, but obviously trade marks get in the way of naming it!
I've had this for quite a time & I've been hesitant to start it, as my track record with Master Box is poor! I've had major problems with fit & poor instructions ( mostly figures ), and my completion rate is low! Reading reviews on this model is generally good, but it seems that vague instructions are also present ( or not present! ). Having made quite a few cars recently, I think now is the time to have a go at this.
I'll put some sprue shots & detail shots up tomorrow.........................
Dave

[Tim Marlow]

I built this a long time ago, before joining Internet forums. I remember it fitting quite well but the plastic was a little brittle. The winter radiator cover and closed in windows are a nice touch and the engine detail was pretty good..

[Dave Ward]

Sprue Shots.......................

Parts look pretty crisp, no flash - plastic feels a little soft.
A few detail shots

Kar 98K rifles


Tubular steel chassis


Double leaf springs


Radiator ( no winter coat option )


Small parts look well moulded - although 7 ingates on the bumper seems excessive.


The colour call outs - all overall Panzergrau! No information on the decals - although 9 pairs of number plates are supplied, Wehrmacht, Luftwaffe, Field Police & Navy. I believe, as these were second line vehicles, camouflage wasn't applied.

Instructions - well, they are on 1 1/2 sides of a multi folded A2 sheet - the other bit is model tips in several languages. Quite the largest instructions I've seen for a small model!

I'm not keen on these render style guides, unless the printing is very good ( it's not! ). You lose detail in the half-tones, due to the printing process. Simple ISO line diagrams are much clearer.
Looks OK so far, the crunch will come in actually fitting bits together...................
Dave

[Jim R]

Hi Dave
Sprue shots look to show decent detail. Personally I'm not a fan of those rubbery tyres. Roof up or down?
Jim

[Dave Ward]

Hi Dave
Sprue shots look to show decent detail. Personally I'm not a fan of those rubbery tyres. Roof up or down?
Jim

Jim,
hood down, I don't want to spend time on the interior & then hide it.....................
I'm not a fan of the vinyl tyres, either, but I'll have to make the best of them!
Dave

[Tim Marlow]

Sorry Dave. Led you astray a bit there. Just looked….I made the 170 VK….
Looks very similar though….

[Dave Ward]

Sorry Dave. Led you astray a bit there. Just looked….I made the 170 VK….
Looks very similar though….

Tim,
I wondered about that - the VK is the 2-door version, odd, the vast majority of the parts must be the same, I wonder why they dropped the thermal blanket for the rad?
Dave

[Allen Dewire]

The 170 VK kit came out a year after the one you're doing Dave. It's 4 door and has the winter set up for the windows and radiator....


I guess you have to wonder if it had a good heater in it though..........

[JR]

Just imagine it with four figures, driver plus
3 officers!
Are you going to have any Dave ?

[Dave Ward]

Just imagine it with four figures, driver plus
3 officers!
Are you going to have any Dave ?

John,
I have some German drivers, somewhere - I'll look them out. I have a visualisation of the car, driven by an officer, with the back seat filled with crates of purloined French wine & champagne!........................
But then again, maybe not! :tongue-out2:
Dave

[Guest]

I’m picturing a little diorama representing the opening scenes of Das Boot … I mean, the Kaleu and Werner are obviously driving a Mercedes there

[Dave Ward]

I’m picturing a little diorama representing the opening scenes of Das Boot … I mean, the Kaleu and Werner are obviously driving a Mercedes there :smiling3:

Hmm,
where do I get a dozen drunken sailors? and they'd need modifying...........................
Dave :smiling4:

[RonGlass]

:smiling6:

[Dave Ward]

Finally got to the bench! A hours or so has produced this:

The tiny engine has lo less than 16 parts - the chassis is a single moulding - a touch of over engineering, I think.
One thing that I had not picked up on is that the parts are not numbered on the sprues - it means constantly referring back to the sprue layout pics - which on an A2 sheet is a real pain! Each sprue starts at one ie A1, B1, C1, etc, so there are multiple parts called 8 foe example. The halftone instructions aren't printed at a good enough resolution to be clear.
Apart from that the parts are pretty clean, and no fit problems so far.....................
Dave

[Tim Marlow]

I’d forgotten the lack of sprue labels…..engine is a lot of parts but does look good when it’s done….