Nuts & Bolts 26

Nuts & Bolts: Volume 26 Review

Nuts and Bolts #26 is the logical following of volume #19 dedicated to the 15cm s.I.G. 33 auf Pz.kpfw. I Ausf.B. This issue focuses on the 15cm sIG 33/1 (Sf) auf GW 38(t) “Grille” (Sd.kfz.138/1) prior to the Ausf. M described on volume #22. Therefore you can find some commons among these volumes while there is also a small chapter with updates and corrections to Nuts & Bolts #22.

As usual, the authors start by explaining the needs of a ‘fast moving artillery‘ along the German blitzkrieg tactics and so the birth of AFV’s such as the Wespe, Hummel, Grille and others.

After the development & technical descriptions we find a very interesting comparative table with the differences between the prototype version and the production vehicle. Very important for modelers who want to build up a prototype version or start a conversion from a vehicle to another.

A small chapter talks about Camouflage & Markings but gives important information to the reader and it opens many possible solutions to the modeller.

The technical/historian will be happy to have a large technical construction data table with along a monthly production report.

What follows are chapters about the organization of a schwere Geschutz-kompanie, delivery to units and the service history until 1945. These few topics are dewscribed in 15 pages. The service history covers in detail all delivery status to all Panzer divisions and units. This comes out as an useful tool to trace and locate Grille’s for any exeact sort of diorama ambientation.

After the above topics we find a Modelling section that usually it takes part at the end of the book. The section deals with modelling the Grille H in 1:35 scale in production and prototype versions. The model depicted as representing a vehicle from the 2nd Panzer Division is Dragon’s 6470 kit for the Standard Production type.
While the prototype version is built using Dragon’s 6270 kit with Griffon Model detail sets. In both cases models are of an high level quality.

As tradition there is a list of available models and improvement kits. All possible scales are enumerated.

All the above covers the first 34 pages. Since now till the end (145 pages), it’s all a following of an anormous amount of photos, with all possible details of both production and prototype Grille H versions. Each photo has also a detailed caption.

Most important there are photos regarding a recent discovery and recovery of a ‘Early Grille‘ in the River Enns, Austria. As the authors write ‘The Vehicle was to say the least in a remarkable condition considering it had spent over fifty years buried in the silt and sediment of a river’. Nearly 140 color photos are provided!

The volume ends with some other 15 colored pages dedicated to previous describet scale models.

We are happy to see that this issue has acquired a major coverage on the ‘hobby’ side of the entire book so, as usual is a ‘must have‘ book if you want to build and paint your Grille H.

You can buy Nuts & Bolts in good assorted book- and modelshops or directly at hfd.duske@t-online.de

I would like to thank  Heiner F. Duske of the Nut’s and Bolts team for the chance to review this book.!