Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

 Review of the Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

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Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB
Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

This model was a gift from my mother and carries many firsts for me. Not only is it the most complicated Trumpeter model kit I’ve built, I think it is also the most complicated model I’ve ever done.

It is also the first tracked non-fighting/combat support vehicle I’ve built and is also the first model I have ever airbrushed. It is also the most time consuming in its construction.

Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB
Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

It has many good points and some bad points. I always find it makes a model that more fun when you get to build the inside of them and you have access to see it, such as my Zelda & Bradley and I’m always left baffled as to why you would build the insides, but you don’t get to see them or you build crew positions but there are no crew men to make. This was also the case with this model as I got to build a gearbox and crew positions but had to cover them up.

Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB
Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

There was a lot more detail in making the lower hull with this model than normal. The suspension arms are normally 1 piece, but were 5 with this model. Some of the completed road wheels went on perfectly, but there were some that the hole was too tight so I had to make them bigger with a drill.

With this in mind, when it came to the tracks I had the choice of either making the tracks by joining 192 pieces together or using the rubber track, which I think was a good option to have. I went with the rubber track as I knew I had had trouble with the road wheels and if I went to the trouble of making the tracks and they didn’t fit, I would have been bloody annoyed!

Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

The only other bad point was some type of rail or storage rack on the right hand side of the hull. I didn’t have any trouble making the metal rack arms, by folding them into shape by following the lines on them. However hard I tried the glue would not hold the metal to the plastic hull and in the end I just left them off.

Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

Building the actual bridge and its cradle was great fun as well as tying the ropes in.

Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

The instructions were fairly helpful, except towards the end at the last couple of pages, where it wasn’t fully clear where the ropes were to go nor which points the bridge was to be secured to the cradle and ramp.

Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB

On the whole I love the model and its great to finally have a combat support vehicle and will be looking out for more to build in the future.

Trumpeter Brückenleger 4B AVLB