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Assembling The Plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon

Assembling The Plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon
with Blake Coster

Armed with two MG42 machine-guns for each squad, the Panzergrenadier Platoon can unleash a substantial volume of firepower. Mounted in their armoured Sd Kfz 251/1 half-tracks, they travel into battle and can fight on foot or assault from their vehicles. These elite troops are now the latest additions to the Flames Of War plastic miniatures range.

Learn more about the Panzergrenadier Platoon here...

In this article, I'll demonstrate how to assemble the contents of the new plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon, so let's break out the hobby tools and plastic cement and get started!

But before we begin any assembly, let's ensure the contents of the Panzergrenadier Platoon box set are all present and correct. If you have any problems or issues with the contents of your box set, please feel free to contact our Customer Service team at: [email protected].
The Contents for the Panzergrenadier Platoon Box Set
Assembling The Plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon
Description of Components
a. 4x Plastic Sd Kfz 251/1 Half-track sprues.
Assembling The Plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon
Description of Components
a. 2x Plastic Panzergrenadier infantry sprue.
Assembling The Plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon Half-track
Crew Sprue

Description of Components
a. 4x Plastic half-track crew sprues.
Assembling The Plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon

Half-track
Decal Sheet

Description of Components
a. 1x Half-track decal sheet.

Assembling The Plastic Panzergrenadier Platoon Bases
Description of Components
a. 1x Small three-hole base.
b. 3x Medium four-hole bases.
c. 3x Medium five-hole bases.
Components Required For The Basic Sd Kfz 251/1 Half-track
The components required to assemble the basic Sd Kfz 251/1 half-track can be seen below highlighted in green on the half-track sprue.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Assembling The Basic Sd Kfz 251/1 Half-track
Step 1. Begin assembly by attaching the deck of the fighting compartment the lower hull section.
Tip: Although regular Hobby Glue can be used to assemble plastic vehicles, we recommend that you use good quality plastic cement instead. It gives the strongest bond when gluing plastic to plastic.
Below: Attach the fighting compartment deck to the lower hull.
Below: The fighting compartment deck attached correctly to the lower hull section.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Step 2. Next, attach the rear doors to the back of the hull.
Below: Examples of the rear doors correctly attached to the rear of the hull.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Tip: When referring to left- or right-hand side in regards to a Flames Of War miniature, the orientation is determined as if looking at the vehicle from the rear.
Step 3. Attach the driver figure to left-hand seat of the half-track. Note: The driver figure can be found on the crew sprue included in the box set. Step 4. With the driver in place, it's time to attach the upper superstructure to the lower hull.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: The upper superstructure attached correctly to the lower hull section. Step 5. Next, attach the tracks to the lower hull section.

Note: Each track has been keyed to correspond with a particular side of the lower hull; this aids in ensuring the correct orientation of the tracks when assembling the miniature.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: The tracks correctly attached to each side of the half-track.
Step 6. Next, attach the front axle to the front of the half-track.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: The front axle attached correctly to the underside of the hull. Step 7. Attach the front wheels to the front axle.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: Both front wheels correctly attached to the front axle.
Below: With the front wheels in place, the basic Sd Kfz 251/1 half-track is now fully-assembled.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Arming The Sd Kfz 251/1 Half-track
There are a number of different weapons that can fitted to the Sd Kfz 251/1 half-track. These can be seen below highlighted in green on the half-track sprue.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Step 1. Attach the gun shield for the Hull MG to the top of the half-track.
Below: The gun shield attached correctly.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: The machine-gun options: an MG34 (top) or an MG42 (bottom). Step 2. Attach the machine-gun to the gun shield.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Step 3. Next, attach the Passenger-fired AA MG to the rear of the half-track. Below: The Passenger-fired AA MG attached correctly to the rear of the half-track.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: The Sd Kfz 251/1 with both a Hull MG and Passenger-fired AA MG. Optional Upgrade: The Sd Kfz 251/1 half-track in the HQ Section can be upgraded to an Sd Kfz 251/10 (3.7cm) with the addition of a 3.7cm PaK36 anti-tank gun. To do so, begin by attaching the gun shield to the side of the 3.7cm PaK36.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: The 3.7cm PaK36 complete with gun shield.
Step 3. Next, replace the Hull MG with the 3.7cm PaK36 to create the Sd Kfz 251/10 (3.7cm).
Below: The fully assembled Sd KFz 251/10 (3.7cm) half-track.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Add Crew To The Sd Kfz 251/1 Half-track
There are four different crew figures included on the Half-track crew sprue. An officer (highlighted in green); a machine-gunner (highlighted in red); two seated passengers (highlighted in yellow) and the driver (highlighted in blue) who we have already used earlier in this article.

Feel free to experiment with crew placement till you're happy with a combination. I've provided some examples below that may help you on your way.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: The Machine-gunner manning the Hull MG.
Below: Examples of the seated passengers inside the Sd Kfz 251/1 half-track.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below: An example of a Sd Kfz 251/1 with seated passengers and machine-gunner.
Below: An example of the Sd Kfz 251/10 (3.7cm) completed with officer figure.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Assembling The Panzergrenadier Platoon:
What Is A Panzergrenadier Platoon?
Along with the Sd Kfz 251/1 half-tracks the Panzergrenadier Platoon also contains the infantry who ride in them. This platoon is made up of four separate parts: an HQ section, which contains the Command MG team, and three Panzergrenadier Squads, each of which contain two MG teams.

The standard organisation for a Gepanzerte Panzergrenadier Platoon can be seen in the diagram on the right taken from Grey Wolf. The HQ section can be seen at the top with a three Panzergrenadier Platoons below. 

Right: The
standard organisation for a Gepanzerte Panzergrenadier Platoon.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Assembling The Command MG Team
The Command MG team is made up of an Officer, an NCO and a Rifleman on a small three-hole base. There are also options to upgrade your Command team with a different weapon: in this example, a Panzerknacker or Panzerfaust. To do this, we simply replace the Rifleman with the chosen upgrade.

Highlighted below are the figure options required for the Command MG team; I've kept with the same colour coding as seen on the back of the box. Therefore, to create the Command MG team you'll need the Officer (highlighted in red), an NCO (any figure highlighted in white) and a Rifleman (any figure highlighted in blue). For the Command Panzerknacker SMG team you'll need the Officer (highlighted in red), an NCO (any figure highlighted in white) and the Panzerknacker (highlighted in yellow). Finally, for the Command Panzerfaust SMG team you'll need the Officer (highlighted in red), an NCO (any figure highlighted in white) and the Panzerfaust (any figure highlighted in green).
Tip: You would have noticed that some of the figures required are available in several different poses, for example, the Riflemen or Panzerfaust figures while others such as the Officer or Panzerknacker have just a single pose. So feel free to use whichever pose you feel suits if multiple poses are available.
Figures Required For The Command Team
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below are examples of the three types of Command teams available to the Panzergrenadier Platoon.
Below: An example of a Command MG team.
Below: An example of a Command Panzerknacker SMG team. Below: An example of a Command Panzerfaust SMG team.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Assembling The Panzergrenadier Squads
A Panzergrendier Squad is made up of two MG teams. One MG team contains five figures: an NCO (highlighted in white), a machine-gun (any pair of figures highlighted in black) and two Riflemen (any two figures highlighted in blue). The other MG team contain only four figures; a machine-gun (any pair of figures highlighted in black) and two Riflemen (any two figures highlighted in blue). When modelling these teams, use either the medium four or five-hole bases included in the box set.
Tip: The machine-gun is manned by a two-men crew, a gunner and a loader. These pairs have been put next to each other on the figure sprue to aid in identication. The gunner is either carrying or firing the machine-gun, while the loader is either carrying ammunition boxes or acting as a human bipod.
Figures Required For The MG Teams
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
Below is an example of a Panzergrenadier Squad.
Below: The five-man MG team.
Below: The four-man MG team.
Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76) Panzergrenadier Platoon (GBX76)
To create the other two Panzergrenadier Squads, simply repeat the process I've outlined above and you'll have a full-strength Panzergrenadier Platoon fully assembled in no time.

I hope you found this article helpful while assembling your Panzergrenadier Platoon. Happy modelling!

~ Blake.


Last Updated On Thursday, May 29, 2014 by Blake at Battlefront