BTR-152 – the USSR/ Poland/ German Democratic Republic/ Iraq armored transporter

Soviet BTR-152V armored personnel carrier, built on the chassis of the ZiL-157 truck, with a winch and an external tire pressure regulation system. The BTR-152 is an early Cold War era Soviet-made armored personnel carrier. During World War II, the USSR army was in dire need of armored transporter. During the war, Soviet forces used both the Nazi German Sd.Kfz 251 and the American M3 half-track armored transporters. After the war, both half-track and wheeled prototypes were tested, the second being more economical to produce and requiring less maintenance. The BTR-152 was built on the chassis of the ZiS-151 truck. It has a monocoque armored hull, at the rear there is a large open landing compartment. Armament could be mounted on one or more mounting units. Since tire pressure had a significant impact on off-road performance, various tire pressure regulation systems were used, both external and internal. Later, armored vehicles were built on the ZiL-157 truck chassis. At the end of the production cycle, with the nuclear battlefield in mind, the BTR-152K with a covered top was introduced. The main armament of the BTR-152 consisted of a 7.62 mm SGMB machine gun. This is a heavier weapon, than a general-purpose machine gun and can fire continuously. Some transporters were equipped with a 12.7 mm DShKM heavy machine gun, although this was quite unusual. Specialized anti-aircraft vehicles were equipped with a large circular turret ZTPU-2 with two 14.5 mm KPV heavy machine guns. Steel armor protects against small arms fire and shell fragments. The armor in the front part was sharply sloping; the sides of the landing compartment were vertical. The large open roof posed a great danger from small arms fire, artillery shells and in the event of the use of a nuclear weapon. The tires were also quite vulnerable. The BTR-152K and command post transporters had a closed armored top and filtration systems to protect the crew in the event of a nuclear attack. The BTR-152 had very good road mobility. The 6x6 chassis provided acceptable driving on any terrain. The BTR-152 was quite heavy for its chassis, which suffered from its pass ability on soft ground. The tire pressure could be adjusted to ensure better off-road performance. Compared to the Soviet and German half-track trucks of the Second World War, the BTR-152 required much less maintenance and was more reliable. The maximum speed on the road was 65 km/h. Large quantities of BTR-152 were purchased by the USSR Armed Forces. Many of them were exported to the USSR's allies. The German Democratic Republic purchased more, than 750 transporters, Poland - more than 400, Egypt - about 1000 transporters, which they used in various conflicts with Israel. A small number of BTR-152 are still used in Asia, South America and Africa, mainly as a reserve.

A complex, well-designed and maximally detailed (engine compartment, chassis and its suspension, cabin interior, armament, exterior detailing, landing compartment, transmission) armored transporter model for only medium-experienced and experienced modelers. There is a large stock of colors, You can make one of 5 paint versions (Polish People's Army, Polish Militia, USSR, GDR and IRAQ armies), You can make opening doors and hatches, rotating and steerable wheels, opening storage compartments. The textual instructions are large and detailed; the graphic ones are exemplary