Reviews : Tamiya German Hanomag Sd.Kfz. 251/1 Halftrack

This kit is an old Tamiya kit from back when and is of an Ausf C. However, the kit goes together fairly well and for the most part doesn't require a lot of work. That said, you will need to spend quite a bit of time cleaning the flash off the axles so that they will actually work. If you don't want the wheels to move, then don't worry about it. There are not a lot of details, but that can be a good thing if you are just looking for some filler for your diorama. If you are going to want the front wheels to move from side to side, you will have to be extra careful to avoid getting glue bleed over, which will lock the wheels in place. The kit comes with quite a few decals to fit your needs. There are a lot of numbers for making up your unit number. Decals include 14th, 15th, 16th, and 21st panzer divisions. It also includes decals for the Grossdeutchsland panzer division. There are decals for the Afrika Korps and decals to fill out an infantry battalion, engineer battalion, or an AA battalion. I wish more kits came with such variety, especially when it comes to vehicle number. The figures are okay, but are lacking in some detail items, such as the ammo pouches for riflemen. Most people will not notice, but for the die-hard it is a little disappointing. I would recommend this kit to others, knowing that it has limited detail, etc. The price is good for what you get.

When I found a Tamiya for the price, I had my suspicions about the level of detail. Those suspicions turned out to be justified. This vehicle reminded me more of a Monogram with the detail. The front tires are solid plastic, there are no decals for the dash so that requires some research to determine what the gauges look like, and there are minimal painting instructions for the vehicle. The hook-up for the tracks is fairly dinky. When the tracks are put on, there is enough tension to pull the drive sprockets crooked. I let mine dry all day and they were still too soft requiring them to be wedged straight. You should probably let them dry day AND night to be sure they are stable. The crew on the other hand is well accessorized (guns, canteens, gas mask cases, etc.). I probably spent more time painting and assembling the crew than the vehicle. With that said, it IS still a Tamiya. The overall assembly was enjoyable as the parts went together great as you might expect a Tamiya would. You can use some mud and rust to improve the detail. I would recommend this kit for the less experienced builder, but I'm not sure it would keep an experienced builder entertained.

This is an older kit from Tamiya (stamped 1973 on the lower hull), but still very fun to assemble and paint. Part count is fairly low, but you get working front wheels and and suspension, 5 full figures (again, older figures), rubber band style tracks, and decent part fit. There is some interior detail including the drive compartment with driver and passenger seats, gear shifts, instrument panel, brake and accelerator pedals, etc. plus the rear troop benches and opening rear doors. I had to clamp the upper and lower hull parts to get a good fit, and even then I still had to use a small amount of putty to fill in some open seams. I chose the Afrika Corps version, but you can also choose an early war German grey version. The decals were a bit on the thick side but went down fine. There were several sink marks that I filled in with putty and many ejector pin marks that needed attention, but this is pretty typical for a kit this old. I had a lot of fun with this kit, and think it turned out very nice. While there are newer kits with better detail and more parts, you can't beat the low price of this Tamiya classic.

I've looked at this one in the Tamiya catalog since Star Wars was in the theaters for the FIRST time! Yes, 1976. I got back in the hobby and this was so cheap that I had to get it and have some fun! Best bang for your buck with all the figures. Note, scribe extra detail into these figures. Bring out the detail before you paint and they will look great! The Hanomag is an ok kit. The fit of the parts is not the best. It's 70's era ok? Running gear road wheels is fiddly. But the front tires are steerable, so that's a plus. The interior is pretty bad. I'm sure there should be seat backs that are missing. The included MG's are horrible by any standards. The tracks are memory lane get our your candle and x-acto knife and melt the pins type.But if you super glue the tracks to the road wheels to give them some sag, they look alright. Value level = must buy! Fit and finish = Vintage, in my day, this was a great kit and we had to walk to school uphill both ways and we liked it! Fun level = no pressure Nostalgia level = awesome

seeing how this kit was originally released in the early 70s, it is a little...basic. of course, that can be a great draw on kits that are easy to build and dont have a ton of little parts to fiddle with which dont really, truly make a better looking display model. in fact, as my 12 year old watched me build this kit, he asked if i could buy him one, and i have no doubt that even though he has never build a kit in his life, he will be able to bring this to a nice end. the interesting thing about this kit (and the only reason it did not get 5 stars) is that it appears the crew (and how cool is it this kit includes an entire crew? that pretty much makes this a diorama in a box) was ran from a different mold. a mold, which was perhaps a little older than the rest of the kit, and this resulted in some flash line. i dont think i cleared any flash of anything other than the moving parts of this kit. but the crew, they suffered from a little bit of flash.

This kit features the hanomag and five figures. The model can be built easily and straightforward, but it has enough detail and small parts to add interest and let the modeler figure out what to do with it. The figures are the older Tamiya type (so – short and all looking the same facially) but are still detailed enough to get the most out of them. Plus, with a price point like this, how could anyone go possibly wrong? Two notes to the modeler; the box illustrates the gunner shooting a MG42. Those MGs were not introduced until mid-1942. Couldn’t show the invasion of France with a 42, if you get my point. The other thing is that the soldiers do not have rifle ammunition on their harnesses and the model has no separate parts for the K98 pouches. Basically, the enlisted men are bailing out of their vehicle with five rounds in their rifle each. Overall, this is still a wonderful example for a modeler of any skill level.

This was my first German vehicle and my first ever half-track. As usual, Tamiya did not disappoint. This is a great kit to build. The parts are sturdy and fit very well together. I opted to keep this one clean upon completion to depict a museum display. I will put it alongside my next build which is an American half-track. Colors are pretty simple as I did mine in the traditional gray. There is another paint scheme in the instructions that is Earth Yellow for a vehicle serving in the Afrika Corps. Decals worked exactly the way they are supposed to. You will need to pay attention to the numbering instructions if you want to maintain realism. There are different decals for Afrika Corps and European theater. There are videos available on Youtube of complete build process that give a lot of insight into how it needs to be done.

I think anyone building armor in the WWII arena is bound to come across one of these. This is a fun and relatively simple build all together, however there were some areas that I found to be lacking. First the front fenders and side skirts seemed to be a bit ill fitting. This could of been due to the tooling or maybe just a bad mold? The interior could of been done a bit better, maybe it is just due to the fact that it is not a highly technical model, but my investigation into this vehicle during the build showed some very cool features that I feel could have been easily incorporated in the kit. Don't get me wrong, it was a great and fun build. I just had higher hopes I guess. Maybe I will try again but this time invest into some of the large quantity of aftermarket items out there.

Certainly an older kit from Tamiya but good overall representation. Hulls fit fine, worked from rear to front and little filler needed. Opted to fit the doors, tape them then glued together since I wasn't happy with the hinge details. Trimmed the pins back, sanded as much as reasonable and installed after fixing the doors to the assembled hull, added some fine brass wire and other bits for rear interior door details to be picked out with a wash. As I'm just re-entering the hobby again its yet another fine Tamiya kit to hone your skills on. Plan on panzer grey w dk green camo as I found several examples like this in my references. Possible putting it in a dio w a T-34 I'm working on from Tamiya that I'm plan to do as a captured tank being repainted in a German field shop.

The kit went together easily. The only problem I encountered was with track realism. The tracks worked fine but I had to glue the track to one of the road wheels to simulate the sag and, of course, once one of the road wheels is glued, the track is no longer workable. Everything went together easily and fit fine. Only had to putty a very small (1/16 of an inch)area where the top and bottom hulls went together. Not crazy about the detail on the soldiers but as this will be going in a diorama someday, I'm sure I can find a way to obscure their faces. Haven't actually painted them yet, just anticipating how they will look based on some of the pics I have seen by other users on this site. All in all, it's worth the money. I would recommend this kit.

The original Hanomag was the mainstay of German transport and modifications for many roles. I chose the first of the series for a diorama incorporating the Italeri Smoke Projector or infamous Nebelwerfer which was a very potent weapon used against the Allies. Crew served by Tamiya figures from the 75mm Anti Tank Gun set I was able to re-create a loading scene and the Hanomag as the vehicle to tow and supply the Nebelwerfer. As with the 251/9 and other 251 variants the tracks and road wheels go together quite well when you follow the sequence in the directions. This kit has been re-issued over time as far back as I can remember and along with over 50 military models finds its home.

I purchased this model a few weeks ago and I still haven't completed it. Shafts B16 and B18 and B17 were off center from the mold and the parts don't turn properly. The whole interior of the model does not seem to be a 1/35 scale. Regular 1/35 scale Tamiya figures do not fit in the cab or troop area. It could be this model only, but I am very disappointed with is model. I would not buy this Tamiya Hanomag Sdkfz251/1 Item 35020 again and would not recommend to a friend. Maybe I expected too much from this kit. Tamiya quality is usually much better. Again, this is from my experience with this kit. I have enjoyed all the other Tamiya models that I have purchased.

This was a very fun kit to build, and also a pretty good deal. A quality model plus 5 figures to go with it made this an easy buy. I was very pleased with how well all the parts went together. I barely had to do any filling with putty. Detail was also quite good, though a more expensive kit will obviously have better. The decals were very good like in most tamiya kits, and offers about 4 different units, africa Korps, plenty of numbers, and more. The only issue I had was that where you attach the wheel, there are really bad seams that make it tricky, so that will take a little more work. Even with that, it's a model to build and would definitely recommend it.

This is an old kit and does show it's age in a lot of ways. If you are looking for a relatively easy project, this kit is ideal. You don't find many kits this good for this price. I didn't find any parts that did not fit well. Where you have to take extra care is the rear doors and fitting the shafts for the road wheels. Even though they all look pretty much the same, the inner wheel shafts are different from the outer wheel shafts. Study the instructions carefully to get them in the right positions. The figures included are just OK. My biggest beef is that the faces for each soldier look identical ( quintuplets ), but the poses are good.

This is a tremendous value. For the price, I can have a fleet of these, pulling quad 20's, my cook wagons, and other small tows. I found this to be a nice learning medium. There were many parts dropped, I dropped the whole thing once, and the Krazed Killer Kommie Kat had two rounds with this and my other track. so now, this track is back in the regimental repair shops. Buy a couple of these. for the price, they fill in the blanks left by the not so many tracked rifles

After almost 50 years modeling this is still one of my favorite kits. Over the years I must have built a dozen of them, it was actually one of my first armor kits back in the 70's. It goes together pretty simple with very little hassle. Sparse on extra detail but that just leaves room for you to be creative. Old rubber tracks go together well and it comes with some of my favorite Tamiya figures. Highly recommend for a beginner or expert. Great all around kit.

This was a great kit! Great detail on the vehicle itself as well as the figures too! They have some great action poses! The kit went together without any issues and the decals included soldier marking as well which is always great. This will go perfectly with my 37mm anti tank gun which attaches to the back of the Hanomag as if the gun came with this kit! Will get another for sure in the future, highly recommend for any skill level.

Besides always after the fact, remembering not to put the small breakable parts on until after you & your household pets have admired your handwork, the kit is a great starter kit, and for that matter, for all armor enthusiast's & for diorama's. Room for additional add on features, 5 unit choices for decals. Once you build one, you're probably going to wish you had bought two. So what are you waiting for?

Good straight forward build. I feel like a little bit more detail would be nice in some places such as interior and undercarriage. The decals also included two sets of numbers 0-9 so you could pretty much build any half track you could ever see. Also if you get a little creative with some dirt, foliage and a lighter to melt and bend the fenders, You can take this model to a whole new level.

this is the first time i built this type of kit, all the part fit good and the soldiers were fun to build. i have never been not good at building soldiers but i did a nice job on them. i will take some pictures and post them here soon. the only issue i has was putting the back hatches on, i ended up glueing them in the open position. but overall a good model to build.

Very good panel lines. The cabin port holes could have able to be in open positions, but; what is molded is very good. Parts fitting together went well. Had a little difficulty with the hinges for the rear doors. Base cut out and painted with water color paints. Added a ruined corner wall with a scattering of asorted bits and pieces of scale debris. Overall fun build.

For 15 dollars this kit is very good, the 5 extra figures are a nice addition as well. I would not recommend using this kit for dioramas, however, becasue like some other older kits it isnt in true 1/35 scale. The interior of this kit looks more like its in 1/48 scale than 1/35, and when you put figures inside it is really obvious. Other than its a good kit.

Another well made Tamiya kit. I built one years ago and was impressed on how detailed it was and how easy it was to build. I purchased two of these model as I intend to use them in a diorama. An excellently priced kit. My only issue is with the supplied vinyl tracks, but that is what most kits came with when this one was first introduced. A very minor point.

This is a good starter kit. I opened the box to find well detailed parts with very little flash. Our youngest son who is 11 yrs wanted to get started into military models. We purchased this kit and was very pleased with how he was able to build this kit with no help from Dad. Would highly recommend as an entry kit into the world of military modeling.

Typical Tamiya simplicity and design and goes together well. The door hinges were a little pain but overcame. But a second Hanomag so that I could attach the 3.7cm Anti Tank Gun as that kit shows how it is done and even gives the required extra pieces to upgrade the Hanomag. Looking to upload some pictures before and after diorama setting.

employed throughout the war on all fronts in a variety of roles, the hanomag provides infinite possibilities for dioramas. they can be found supporting armor breakthroughs, towing artillery or in solo recon roles. complaints about poorly fitting parts are more likely a reflection of inadequate modeler skill level: fit twice, glue once

This kit has nice details for being produced in the 70s-80s. The tracks are rubberband style meaning it is one piece vinyl. Decal sheet allows you to mark it as either Russian front or Afrika Korps. The rear doors open up and this kit has posable steering. The interior has decent diamond plated flooring.Comes with a squad of soldiers.

I did not build any plastic models for the last 30 years and this was the perfect kit to get back into it. It is very easy to build and looks great when it is done and painted. Easy to follow instructions, good detailed pieces and almost perfect fit make this model great for beginners and people who are getting back into the hobby.

This was my first armored vehicle I built coming back into the hobby. It is a great kit to start out with and not overly expensive. Parts fit well. The only issue I encountered was the rear hatch doors. I found them difficult to work with and opted to have them glued shut. Definitely going to be building another in the near future.

My first build at this scale. I usually focus on 1/350 scale ships, but I thought I would change it up and have an attempt at a diorama. The figures had enough detail to them, though the torso overlapped a bit. The half track was a great build with easy enough to follow instructions. I'll probably be getting more of these.

If need a bunch of half tracks and don't wanna spend a ton of money, this is for you! The figures that come with this set are not worth building because they are just so old. You can use the spare parts from the figures and the parts of the figures to make custom figures. This kit is really fun to build and is pretty easy!

Though I would build it cause it was something different and I enjoyed it. Tamiya quality was great as expected. But it opened my eyes to other kits. Pros- kit went together great. The doors on the back can be open or closed. Cons- none. The only thing I can think of that the kit was missing is rubber tires.

This is an amazing kit. I had almost no problems with the construction, and the figures are pretty good. It includes a good, detailed interior and markings for two different fronts: Russian and North African. I would recommend it to beginners, but advanced modelers can easily create an impressive halftrack.

most ofthis kit is very strait forward it has 3 trouble spots,1 the filer onthe lower left tword the front,2 study the instructionsfor the rear doors very carefully. 3the gunner fur the front mg,needs something to stand on. that said ; this is a very good kit,figures are good lots of equipment, enjoy

Great halftrack model. Detail is authentic and very accurate. The five figures included allows you to stage a diorama or portion thereof. The decal detail is amazing allowing you to accurately depict various theaters. I highly recommend this model as an addition to any German armor collection.

Just realized that cast for model is made in 1975. So far its the best and easiest Halftrack model to make and paint. Comes with not so many parts, but also those parts are really strong. This is 3rd same model i bought. its really go when you want to do hard mod. Plastic is high quality.

I'm a novice and I found it a bit more difficult to build compared to tanks I have done. Looks great - did the Africakorps-style paint. For the price, grab a few for a cool display. The sprocket and wheel assembly could have been more robust as the track was a bit tight on mine.

This was a fun kit to build, and has some good detail, the kit pairs nicely with the pack gun from Tamiya. I painted it in the desert form, along with the gun in the desert/tropic form. Although I haven't painted the troops, but I plan on doing so soon. 10/10

This is relatively simple kit with the reliable engineering of Tamiya. The level of details on the interior could have been better, but it is a solid kit and for the price it is perfect. the figures included are good and provide great animation fro any diorama.

The instructions told you to paint the German soldiers and 3 other things, but there are not instructions on how to paint the rest of the model. And this was my first model from Tamiya. other wise it looks like a good model. GO CLEMSON!!!!!!!!!!!!! ;)

Most of the kit went together quite easily and fit quite snugly. Only the rear doors provided some challenge (pinning two pegs between the top and bottom half of the chasis proved troublesome). Good quality molding, even if the kit is dated.

This is a very cool halftrack. It is the first one I built, and it looks so nice. The troops that come with it are very lifelike, and would make a great diorama. Decals went on nice, and the kit was not hard to build. No fit issues, either!

This was a reasonably easy model to build except for the track wheels they were a bit more difficult.I used clothe pins to hold the back floor in till the glue set.I'll tell you the front pins will have to be glued for them to stay in.

I think this is a great model for anyone making World War II dioramas. The model went together fairly easily and I think is a great product for the price. The inclusion of figures just adds to the value. Plan on purchasing more.

I had a lot of fun with this build. great kit and great looking model when complete.The men are a must to complete this tank. They give it a finished look. They were some of the best detailed men I have received in any kit.

Over time I've built this kit several times. Likes:Minimum mold flash, parts glue nicely together. Highly detailed model once finished. Dislikes:NONE. Makes a nice stand-alone or diorama addition. See my photo - Tennessee Reb

This was a really fun build for me. Even though it was cool, it does have its drawbacks. The machine gun on the back is really difficult to mount and the antennas kept breaking. I suggest painting the seats a tan color.

I highly recommend this kit for beginners, Definitely not for experienced. It was a fun kit to build. It does not have engine interior what so ever, so that is a little upsetting lol.But hey, fun kit. Highly recommend it!

This German Armored car was an easy build and had authentic figures. It did need some tweaking to get some of the parts to fit but when completed fit right in with the rest of my German vehicles. Great for a beginner.

I am currently building this kit. the tracks are far better than i was expecting and the interior is very nice and detailed. Plenty of options with the decals and yes the Afrika corps decals are including that symbol !

Very good kit especially for the price. It is almost less than a Tamyia German infantry set and you get the 251 too It is lacking in accurate details such as missing front bumper but looks great and easy to customize.

I'm getting back into this hobby after a long hiatus and this is a great kit to use. Low cost kit, plenty of pieces to work with, and it makes a nice platform to use for painting and practicing details and weathering.

Went together great. Had a little trouble with the front wheels and axle. But enjoyed the build thinking about adding more of them to my diorama. Great utility veicle. Could be used in many way in a ww2 setting.

this is a fun kit to build. very easy and straight forward. Some parts did not match up correctly and i did have to do some filling here and there but nothing major. also one of the better decal sets

I've put together for a diamora. Plus I'm using the machine gun miniatures. I learned that it's best to paint before you glue the smaller pieces on it. I broke a couple of pieces painting

Instructions were good - model was quite easy to put together. Figures add a definite plus to the kit. I would definitely recommend to anyone who is interested in military history.

Good kit builds well and if one is interested go to tankencyclopedia.com for some good info and color schemes. Nice to get a good number of German troops with the kit,

This is by far my favorite kit. It was really easy to assemble and has so many things you can do to it to make it your own. I have several all done in different ways.

For my first model I very pleased with how everything went together very easily. The instructions are pretty clear and the detail on the model itself is awesome.

Great model, went together nice..easy to build. All parts fit. Although there are some parts that are fragile. So be careful when cutting and sanding.

I had this kit as well when I was younger. It's going to look great in my Africa Korp diorama. Am looking forward to buying more kits soon.

Looks so realistic, perfect addition to my diorama thanks again for fast delivery, I will be ordering more kits in the near future

Lots of small parts but well detailed and easy to assemble - Line drawing instructions are sometimes difficult to interpret

Great halftrack kit for beginners, works well with most German figure sets, especially the German Machine Gun Infantry.

The only problem was my fault I didn't think it thru. Some steps were done out of order .this caused some problems

This is an ok kit. Not a lot to it but affordable for the modeler on a budget or if you need several for a diorama.

The best kit ever, the only annoying thing was the back doors. I would recommend having some extra hands for it.

Done 4 so far. With a little imagination, the right decals and research you can build some pretty neat variants.

very fun to assemble and paint good figures and decals looks great in large dioramas . well worth the cost

very good awesome model but not something for a beginner some small pieces sometimes hard to handle

Figures expressions are great to get a gorgeus diorama, also the details of the vehicles. Recommended

very easy to put together. back doors a litlle difficult. I have an 88 flak gun connected to mine.

Nice little kit, great subject and good details. It's a great addition to my collection.

This a great German piece that looks great while battling my Americans on the battle field!

A very nice model, I found it to be a joy to build. good detail and the price is right too.

This was a fun kit to build. Had some flexibility with it allowing me to make it my own.

great easy model kit to build , goes together so easy painted well great figures too

Good size and fairly detailed, haven’t put it together yet but the dry fit is good.

well........its from tamiya its a great,easy project. i plan to get one or two more.

German Hanomag Sd.Kfz. 251/1 Halftrac works great in apanorama or making a war scene

excellent kit. good detail and very easy to assemble. highly recommend to all.

This is a great kit with fantastic interior details and accompanying figures!

That's a nice kit. Very easy build, took me like a weekend to finish it

it was an awesome model to have an look at my brother got a kick out of it

Great project for me and my 9 year old. 30 years later and it's still fun.

Great kit. Highly detailed and fairly easy to assemble. Highly recommended

Excellent kit, it was what I expect, I will recommend to other modellers.

I think it is a good kit with detailed parts and is good for beginners.

I have not put this model together yet but I look forward to doing it

great model to do . nice detail in molding of modeling. a must have .

great model, fun to build. 5 figures can all fit into the vehicle.

Really cool model easy build good quality great price great edition

great easy kit! i highly recommend if looking for a fun cheap kit!

Very happy with the fast delivery and communication from Hobbyinc!

This is a great kit with easy clear instructions and nice detail

love it great kit easy to build.looks nice when done.right on!

Very good model like all tamiya. Detailed and easy to build.

cant go wrong with tamiya kits a good model at a great price

This was my first Tamiya build and first kit from Hobbylinc.

This thing is a beast. It is amazing and a great model.

An enjoyable build that looks great when completed.