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Scale Comparison - 1/48th vs. 1/35th

Up Scale or Down Scale
I have built armor almost exclusively in 1/35th scale and aircraft in 1/48th scale. As a diorama builder I always wanted to build a ‘mixed’ diorama of aircraft and armor. The smaller scale armor was never really available to me so the project and desire never materialized.

With the recent influx of 1/48th scale armor by Tamiya my desires have been rekindled. I started to do some market research to find out what the best kits are and where to get them. While I was reading threads and reviews I found that there are ‘two sides’ to the story: Die Hard 1/35th vs. 1/48th Converts. There didn’t seem to be too many cross-over people. I read arguments/comments on ‘soft details’, ‘lack of detail’, poor sizing, don’t want to start a new size.

With 1/48th scale aircraft under my belt I decided to take a closer look and break down some ideas of our small scale brethren. This feature will compare and contrast a Kubelwagen in 1/48th scale vs. 1/35th scale.

The Pair
When this whole idea came up I was working on a 1/48th scale review and realized I had what I need on my shelves. I wanted to do as fair a comparison as possible and one that the majority of readers would be able to relate to. I settled on using a Kubelwagen. It’s a ubiquitous vehicle, AFV builders and Diorama builders both can relate. I wanted it simple enough to show the comparison and not so specific that you had to be an expert on the subject to be able to understand. The two kits I chose were the Tamiya Kubelwagen and the Bandi Kubelwagen.

They were both manufactured in the ‘70s, they are both injected plastic, they are both the same vehicle (no variant/model differences). Both of the kits are about the same ‘level’ of quality, neither are a ‘super kit’ with extra ‘bells and whistles.’ So having balanced the kits for comparison, what I compared was:
  1. Detail
  2. Build
  3. Size/Scale accuracy
  4. Extendibility (scratch building or AM add on capabilities)
  5. Finishing
  6. Overall Equality (kit generalities – instructions, completeness, moldings, etc)

About the Author

About Scott Lodder (slodder)
FROM: NORTH CAROLINA, UNITED STATES

I modeled when I was a teenager. College, family and work stopped me for a while. Then I picked it back up after about 12 years off. My main focus is dioramas. I like the complete artistic method of story telling. Dioramas involve so many aspects of modeling and I enjoy getting involved in the ...