Bronco 1/35 Gaz-69 2P26 'Baby Carriage'

GAZ-69 is a four wheel drive light truck, produced by GAZ (ГАЗ, or Gorkovskij Awtomobilnyj Zavod) between 1953 and 1955. From 1954 until 1972 it was produced by UAZ, as UAZ-69, though they were commonly known as GAZ-69s as well.

Basic variant GAZ-69 has a pair of doors only and most often appears with standard canvas top and upper sides. Further variant GAZ-69A (UAZ-69A) has two pair of doors. It was also produced under licence by ARO in Romania, as Muscel M-59, later modernized as the Muscel M-461. From the UAZ-69 there were developed off-road van and light truck UAZ-450 and newer jeep UAZ-469. 

The 3M6 Shmel (Russian: 3М6 «Шмель»; English: bumblebee) is the MCLOS wire-guidedAnti-tank missile of the Soviet Union. "3M6" is its GRAU designation. Its NATO reporting name is AT-1 Snapper.

Too large to be man portable, it was typically deployed from specialised vehicles or helicopters. The missile was intended to supplement traditional anti-tank weapons like the100 mm anti-tank gun whose accuracy beyond 1500 m is poor. The missiles' accuracy in contrast remained high as far as its maximum range of 2000 m.

The 3M6 Shmel was based on the western ATGMs of the time such as the Nord Aviation SS.10, however it is considerably larger. It was developed by the Special Mortar Design Bureau (SKB Gladkostvolnoi artillerii) in Kolomna who were also responsible for the AT-3 Sagger.

Development of the missile proceeded rapidly, the first unguided flights in April 1958 followed by controlled flights in June and July 1958. On 28 August 1959, new technology was shown to the command of armed forces. On 1 August 1960 it was accepted into the service. It was first publicly displayed in 1963.

I have to say that I was pretty intrigued by this kit. I've never seen such a thing and have to admit that it is a pretty neat way of doing things. Basically, one takes the standard GAZ-69 kit and adds all the bits for the AT-1 anti-tank missiles. The framework of the missile launching platform is what gives it the 'baby carriage' nick name.

Bronco's kit is molded in grey plastic and contains a small photo etch fret. This fret is for the engine fan, upper front grille section, sun visors, plate brackets and various latches and other small bits, some of which are for the missiles and assembly. The kit is superbly molded as one has come to expect from Bronco kits. There are several parts on the sprues that won't be used for this version. As you can tell from the etched bits, this one does have a full engine and one can display the hood open if one chooses. Other options are to have the doors open and you can choose between the travelling and the firing position for the missiles. There is no canvas top for the framework that fits over the missiles, despite what is shown on the box art. The inventive can probably duplicate this with white glue soaked tissue.

The interior is also well equipped with everything one would want from a well detailed kit, including frame seats, battery stowage box, all the usual pedals and a very basic dash. There is a full engine and complete drive train that includes the transfer case and detailed suspension. The wheels are those that have a separate wheel section for one side, making painting the wheels easy to do. The missiles and the launch assembly are very nicely molded and each missiles is a mini-kit in itself.

Instructions are very nicely drawn with some detail drawings to show how parts are fit in relation with each other. Color information is provided through the build in generic paint terms, though on the full color markings guide there is a chart that cross references to several major paint brands. Both vehicles are dark olive green with black chassis and wheels. Missiles are a lighter green with a black nose and red steering fins. There are two options shown, but only one of them has any unique markings, that being the Czech version with insignia on the doors and license plates as shown on the box art. The second decal sheet is for various data and instructional markings. The two sheets are well done and should offer no problems in the build.

This makes for a very unique looking model when done. It was one of only two mobile platforms and was used operationally by the Egyptians with some success.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/AT-1_Snapper

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/GAZ-69

August 2011

Thanks to www.dragonmodelsusa.com for the preview kit. Get yours today at your local shop or on-line retailer.

If you would like your product reviewed fairly and quickly, please contactme or see other details in the Note toContributors.

Back to the Main Page

Back to the Previews Index Page