Zvezda 1/35 scale ZiS-3 Soviet Anti-tank 76mm Gun with Crew plastic model kit review

In 1942, the ZiS-3 appeared in service with the Soviet army, and soldiers liked its reliability, durability, and accuracy. Easy to maintain, its light carriage allowed the ZiS-3 to be towed by trucks and heavy jeeps and even moved by hand if required. Captured guns were quite popular with the Wehrmacht, and German factories were retooled to produce ammunition for it. Over 103,000 ZiS-3s were built and served until the early 1990s.

The Zvezda 1/35 scale kit of the ZiS-3 Soviet Anti-tank 76mm Gun with Crew plastic model kit contains 128 parts and is molded in gray plastic. The instruction sheet has four pages and seventeen steps of good illustrations but study them carefully.

Step 1 starts with the barrel and presents two versions: one with the muzzle brake and one without. The ZiS-3 version has a muzzle brake and combines the single-piece barrel and brake (parts A8 and A12).

In Step 2, do not glue parts A50 and A51 to A39 until you’ve adjusted the barrel to the desired angle. The instructions alert you to which parts should and shouldn’t be glued using black and white arrows.

In Step 4, the two housings (parts A28 and A29) will have a gap on the top that should not be closed or filled; it’s supposed to be there.

For the most part, I assembled the pieces following the instructions, but on steps 6 and 8, I didn’t attach parts A66 and A67, leaving them off to ease painting.

You assemble the wheels and tires from five parts, which include two pieces for each side of the wheel. This makes painting easier because you don’t need masks.

The three figures in steps 13, 14, and 15 fit correctly. Make sure the legs touch the ground evenly. If you plan to display the gun with its crew, adjust the figure’s arm (Part C22) in Step 15 to the crank wheel (Part A15) before gluing them.

I found no significant problems with the Zvezda 1/35 scale ZiS-3 76mm anti-tank gun with crew kit. It’s an excellent kit, and the well-molded parts fit together nearly perfectly, it took me 24 hours to build my ZiS-3. You need to pay careful attention to the instructions — though well drawn, they can be a bit confusing, making the kit better suited for modelers with at least a couple of builds to their credit.