PanzerBricklabs
Crusader Mk. II | 1:45 Scale.
Crusader Mk. II | 1:45 Scale.
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Difficulty: 4/5
Model Features:
- Functional rolling tracks.
- 360-degree rotating turret.
- 1:45 Minifig Compatible Scale
Package Features:
- 491 New Construction Elements.
- Paperback printed instruction manual.
- 6 One-sided UV-printed parts and assemblies.
- 1 Exclusive UV-printed Ammunition Crate.
Kits are prepared and packaged upon purchase. Please allow 5-7 days for processing.
History:
The A15 Crusader was the successor to the British interwar design of the A16 Heavy Cruiser. They mainly saw action on the North African front against the Italians and German Afrika Korps early in the campaign.
The first Crusader tanks were quickly shipped to Egypt to take part in the opening stages of the North African campaign against the Italians, where they performed well against Italian armor—however, the early Crusader Mk. I tanks lost their edge when Rommel arrived in January 1941, equipped with Panzer III and IV tanks. In an attempt to combat the threat, the Crusader Mk II featured increased armor and the addition of Sand Skirts on the sides of the hull, helping better to protect the Crusaders against Rommel’s Panzer III Tanks. The turreted Besa 7.92 MG, a feature initially desired by the Mechanization Board, was often removed to reduce the crew count and weight of the tank.
Overall, the Crusader tank was considered very effective after its debut in mid-1940, performing better than the Lend Lease M3 Stuarts against the Italians. The Crusader quickly showed its age, and it was slowly phased out of frontline service as Axis armor began to improve. The Crusader would serve as an inspirational basis for the A24 Cavalier, which was later developed into the famous Cromwell.
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I’ll start with the overall customer experience, which is fantastic. The shipping is quick and simple which is rather impressive considering it’s being shipped from the US to England. The packaging keeps the contents safe and the bags within keep everything nicely organised. The instructions are also kept in a bag to ensure they’re safe which is a great extra touch. There are even a good number of spare elements supplied to prevent any missing parts.
Next, the build experience. It is hard to decide, but this is possibly the best thing about the Crusader! The instructions are nicely printed on high quality paper (much better than most modern Lego instructions) and have a nice summary of the history of the vehicle at the beginning. The instructions themselves are easy to follow and almost without flaw.
There is a small mistake on step 115 whereby a part is missing, however this is fairly easy to spot and most people will quickly work out that an extra 1x2 plate is needed. Putting the model together is a blast with some rather fun techniques, plenty of SNOT action and some very subtle angles that I didn’t expect.
Any experienced builder will find the Crusader a joy to put together, but it’s also suitable for beginners due to the well thought out instructions.
Onto the Crusader itself, and to be completely frank, this is by far one of the best looking models in my collection! It has an outstanding mix of complex angles, small details and incredible clean joints that flow together amazingly well. The turret is certainly the highlight of this and accentuates all the great features of the model. All of this detail and shaping hasn’t come at the price of strength and stability either, the model is built like a brick and has no easy to knock off details. The tracks surprisingly roll rather well too, especially on carpet or other rough surfaces.
In terms of scale, this is a new experience for me as a 35th builder. 45th had always seemed a tad small for my liking before I built this model, but now seeing it in the flesh next to a minifigure has opened my eyes to the advantages. The main downside of the model however is that it’s not strictly 1/45th scale. In fact measuring it I’ve found it’s closer to 1/38th. In my opinion this is a small compromise that allowed the designer to capture the shapes and the details faithfully, and thus I am unbothered by this, however there are some who may feel more strongly.
The model is also helped by the 8 custom printed elements on the Crusader that depict all the important insignia, really elevating the design. In addition to this, there is also a printed ammunition crate and a Panzer Bricklabs logo on a 2x4 tile. The crate will be very handy for anyone interested in making a diorama with the tank. The print quality is rather good and very clear, not quite Lego quality but rather close.
Given the near 500 elements, instructions, many printed elements and the build quality, the list price of £113 is rather fair even with £24 shipping to the UK added to that. If you’re interested, it’s absolutely worth the price.
All things considered, this is a 9.5/10 from me and I wholeheartedly recommend it!
A really well designed build with loads of fun techniques. It's the sturdiest built I've bought so far, especially the tracks. The turret is a bit challenging to construct but once you get the angels right it to is quite sturdy. And as always PanzerBricklabs has design this model to perfectly represent the real tank in 1/45 scale, the camouflage and printed parts make for a beautiful model. 10/10
an amazing set, I am gad that i bougt it but it costed a lot more then i fist tougt due to shipping.
Very well built tank. Scale is perfect and looks historically accurate