Plastic model of the French B1 bis heavy tank

The plastic model of the French B1 bis heavy tank shown in the photos was built in 1:35 scale from the Tamiya kit. The Voyager accessories were used to enrich the model.

B1 bis tanks were produced between 1937 and 1940. During this period, 403 copies were made and it was one of the most powerful tanks at that time. The hull armor thickness was up to 60 mm (2.36 in), and the turret thickness up to 46 mm (1.81 in).

The tank B1 bis was armed with a 75 mm (2.95 in) howitzer in the hull, a 47 mm (1.85 in) cannon in the turret and two 7.5 mm (0.3 in) machine guns. One of the machine guns was in the turret, the other in the hull, on the right side of the howitzer.

One of the tank's drawbacks was its high failure rate. Its effectiveness was also diminished due to too many obligations the commander had. In addition to command, he also had to handle the cannon in the tower.

Some technical data:

• Length: 6.37 m (20.90 ft),
• Width: 2.46 m (8.07 ft),
• Height: 2.79 m (9.16 ft),
• Ground clearance: 0.48 m (1.57 ft),
• Mass: 31,500 kg (69,446 lb),
• Speed on the road: 28 km/h (17.40 mph),
• Off-road speed: 10 km/h (6.21 mph),
• Range on the road: 180 km (112 mi),
• Off-road range: 90 km (56 mi),
• Crew: 4.

Overcoming obstacles:

• Depth of the ford: 1.47 m (4.82 ft),
• Width of the ditch: 2.74 m (9 ft),
• Height of the wall: 0.93 m (3.05 ft).

Sources:

• https://pl.wikipedia.org/wiki/Char_B1
• https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Char_B1

9 Oct. 2022