1952

Arrivals For the Week Ending October 18,  2025 –

October 13, 2025

German Mine Clearing Vehicle

by Gil Gonsoulin

There was only one of these German Mine Clearing Vehicles made, whose purpose was to clear minefields. And it was captured by the United States. It weighed 130 tons and was 15 meters long.  It’s official name was Krupp Raumer SS Super Heavy Mine Clearing Vehicle.

The wheels were staggered – – close together in the front, wide in the rear  – – to allow a wider clearing path.

There is what seems to be a design flaw in the real vehicle: the mufflers are armored but the two hydraulic cylinders underneath are not. Since its job was to explode mines, wouldn’t it have made more sense to armor those too?  I mean, sooner or later it’s not going to be able to turn after the seals or piston are blown.

I painted the Mine Clearer with Valejo RLM26 and then used Windsor Newton red, yellow and white oils to give it a faded look. The tires and steel pads were painted with Tamiya Tire Black. The kit is made by Takom and is in 1/35 scale.

September 30, 2025

SdKfz 7 Half Track

by Scott Nicolich

This 1/35 Trumpeter SdKfz 7 Half Track has a fully workable suspension. Each Track link is three pieces: the link, the pad, and the pad frame.

The front wheels also turn. I used Eduard Photo Etch and added resin wheels. The front grill is photo etched and the vents can be turned to show the photo etched radiator.

The winch (under the body) has rope attached to a tow hook which hooks to the rear of the vehicle.

This is the most complicated kit I have ever built. It is a lot more detailed than the Dragon kit.

The front grill is Photo etched and the vents can be turned to show the photoetched radiator grill.

Rosebud

Hub Hobby’s original building on Broad St in New Orleans has been demolished. Word of it being torn down spread like wildfire.

One of our customers, Jim Letten, was emailed by his friend Martin about the demolition of their childhood hang-out.

The subject line was: ROSEBUD

“Rosebud” was the dying word spoken by Orson Welles in the movie Citizen Kane: a reference to his childhood sled – the symbol of memories of youthful innocence.

Read it here