10TP ir 4TP – the Polish light tanks - prototypes

Before World War II, the Polish army was in dire need of a new light tank - fast and maneuverable, capable of driving on roads and carved terrain, capable of fighting with German Pz. Kpfw. I and II and Soviet high-speed tanks T-26 and BT. Under the leadership of Major Rudolf Gundlach, a wheeled-crawler tank 10TP was built in 1937. The tank is designed and manufactured in Poland without copying anything. Numerous experiments under various conditions have gained much experience, which has been used to produce a prototype of the 14TP tank (it was destroyed during the events of September 1939). The 10TP tank, despite not being mass-produced, performed the tasks, assigned to it. Its production proved, that Polish designers could design, and the industry could produce modern tanks, and the prototype itself became the starting point for the design and production of future Polish tanks.

In the 1930s, the main reconnaissance tanks in Poland were the TK-3 and TKS tankettes, but they were weakly armed, so their combat value was low. In 1935, it was decided to modernize this type of weapon. Therefore, the State Engineering Workshop was ordered to build two prototypes: floating (PZInž. 130) and reconnaissance (PZInž. 140) tanks. By December 1936, documentation for the reconnaissance tank had been prepared. The tank was later marked 4TP (4 tons, Polish) and in August 1937 an unarmed prototype was handed over for army testing. After the autumn tests, the prototype was returned to eliminate the observed defects, in May 1938 the tests were continued and the results were good and a decision was made to produce it in series, and by 1942 480 units will were produced, but these plans were not realized.

The models are uncomplicated, but well designed and well detailed to this level, perfect for beginners and inexperienced modelers. And you won’t need the help or supervision of any more experienced colleagues. And if You are experienced, using the information on the Internet and a second magazine, You can "squeeze" a lot out of these models.