Historical Background
In November 1942, the State Defence Committee, after noticing the effectiveness of the German Sturmgeschutz assault gun, ordered the construction of assault guns for infantry support. While the SU-76, with a ZiS-3 76.2mm gun and the SU-122 with a M30 122mm howitzer were adequate for the task, Operation Uranus, the Stalingrad counteroffensive showed that the Red Army needed mobile heavy guns to smash German fortifications. During the operation, the Red Army still relied heavily upon towed guns which lack mobility and exarcebated by the snowy and muddy conditions, especially the heavy 152.4mm howitzers. The guns were also vulnerable to counter-battery fire and incapable to cross rivers, unless using bridges. The Red Army did have a self-propelled heavy artillery, the KV-2, armed with an M-10 152.4mm howitzer but it's silhouette was too high (consequently with a too high centre of gravity), sluggish manual turret traverse and a slow reload rate. The Committee specified that the new self-propelled was to be armed with the ML-20 gun-howitzer mounted on a casemate-style superstructure. In December 1942, three designs were submitted to the Committee, all using the KV-1S tank chassis. The design submitted by Iosef Yakovlevich Kotin was chosen for mass production. The project was designated KV-14 and started production in February 1943 at the Chelyabinsk Kirovski Zavod (ChKZ). The designation was later changed to SU-152.
Analysis of the combat performance of the SU-152 showed a need for newer model, based on the IS tank chassis. Development began in July 1943 under the designation IS-152. Trials commenced in September 1943, revealing a number of shortcomings. In October of the same year, a second variant, designated Obyekt 241 was ready. In November 1943, Obyekt 241 was accepted for production under the designation ISU-152 and in December 1943, ChKZ stopped the production of the SU-152 and replaced it with the ISU-152. Production soon went into full gear, causing a surplus of hulls which were armed with the A19S 122mm gun, creating the ISU-122. The ISU-152 followed the same design of other Soviet self-propelled guns - fighting compartment at the front and the engine and transmission to the rear. The crew was made up of five persons - driver, loader, gunner, lockman and the commander. The gun was the same with the SU-152 : the ML-20S 152.4mm gun-howitzer. Close-range self defence armament consist of a pair of PPSh-1941 sub-machine gun and 20 grenades. A 12.7mm DShK heavy machine gun can be placed by the right forward hatch for AA defence and also against enemy tank-killer squads. Because of the size of the ammunition, only 20 rounds can be stowed inside the vehicle, usually consisting of 13 HE and 7 AP/Concrete Piercing rounds.
The ISU-152 can be used for three roles: heavy assault gun, heavy self-propelled artillery and heavy tank destroyer. As a heavy assault gun, it was extremely useful for close-quarter, urban combat operations. The thick armour (sloped and 90mm thick) made it impervious against most German anti-tank guns while the heavy, high explosive rounds were excellent against enemy fortifications. The ISU-152 can also be used in the indirect fire role for preparatory or support bombardments despite the low rate of fire and medium firing range. Finally, while not specifically designed for the role, it can act as a heavy tank destroyer. In this role, it inherited the
Zveroboy (animal killer) nickname from the SU-152, for its ability to destroy the heavy 'animal' German armoured vehicles (Tiger and Panther (later joined by the King Tiger) tanks and the Elefant tank destroyer). Although the gun has a low rate of fire and the 152.4mm shell is of low velocity, its heavy charge has sufficient blast effect to blow even a Tiger's turret off. Although generally unable to penetrate armour, the concussive effect causes the interior of the target tank to spall, killing and injuring the crew. While AP rounds were developed, it was not a great improvement over the regular HE rounds. To compensate for the low rate of fire, the ISU-152s used ambush tactics with some 4 to 5 vehicles firing in salvo against a single target. The ISU-152 was used all over the Eastern Front and was especially useful when smashing the fortress cities of Konigsberg, Budapest and Berlin. The vehicle was also used to crush the Hungarian Uprising of 1956 and was probably used as late as 1991 by Iraq during the First Gulf War. A total of 3,242 vehicles were built between 1943 and 1947 and many were exported to Soviet satellite and client states.
In the 1990s, Dragon issued a number of IS tank-based model kits, from the IS-1 gun tank to ISU-series assault guns. Kit #6803 Chinese JSU-152 Howitzer was based on its baseline ISU-152 kit and was issued under their 'Korean War Series'. I did not have the opportunity to inspect the original release, but I believe that the contents of both boxings are actually the same. The parts are well-moulded and and generally have good detail. The engine deck screens are however moulded solid and have no PE alternative (save for aftermarket ones of course). The tracks are of single link type and being a 1990s kit, need to be cut off their sprues and cleaned up before assembly and painting. The ISU and IS series have two types of tracks, one being with guide tooth on every link and the other with guide tooth on every other link. For this kit, Dragon provided the former.
Strangely, Dragon did not include parts for the DShKM 12.7mm AA MG. Sure, not all vehicles were fitted with it but I think it should be included as an option. Regarding accuracy, the kit actually included a mish-mash of features from early production to post-World War 2 vehicles. However, internet websites and online forums provided advice and pointers in order for modelers to accurize their kits. And, being of the same mould with the rest of Dragon's IS series, the kit suffers from undersized roadwheels and too low a hull. The kit provides five marking options, and rather strangely, despite its title, only one of the markings is for a PLA ISU-152:
- Chinese PLA Artillery Regiment, 1951
- Guards Heavy Assault Gun Brigade, near Berlin 1945
- Third Baltic Front 1945
- Polish LWP 13th SP Artillery Regiment, Warsaw 1945
- Soviet Heavy Assault Gun Brigade, Berlin 1945
As the normal practice for AFV kits, construction starts at the lower hull. But first, two sets of idlers, two sets of sprocket wheels and 12 sets of roadwheels have to be assembled. The suspension arms fitted nicely into their slots although I still have to lay the lower hull flat on the table to ensure that all the wheels would touch the ground. Afterwards, all the wheels were cemented, with the exception of the sprocket wheels, which remain free. Holes were cut into the front plate to accommodate the spare track links - a rather tedious work as the plastic was quite thick (holes were also made into the upper hull, which is thicker than the lower hull). The lower hull was then painted and set aside for a while. The track links were painted on the sprue and once dry, were cut off them, the paint retouched and were put into a container. The assembly of the links however took some time as they have too tight a fit and I had to sand / file the mating surface for a better fit. The IS series of vehicles have notable sag of their tracks and to achieve that, after laying the upper run of the tracks, I simply push the tracks down at the appropriate locations once the cement were nearly dry. As stated before, Dragon's hull is too low and should be raised by 1.5mm using plastic strips. Lacking the necessary items at the time, the hull was left as it is.
Moving on to the upper hull, Dragon rather bafflingly instructed the modeler to drill two holes for the gun travel lock....appropriate for the turreted IS tanks, but not for the ISU with its casemate-mounted gun (how the hell the crew is supposed to turn the gun around?), so I skipped off this task. The engine access hatches were moulded in situ; nothing wrong with that but I think the engraved panel lines were too fine. The grills were also moulded on and are best replaced with PE replacements. I also fit all the external fuel tanks. Each was made of six parts (main body halves, ends and two pylons) - there is a visible seam between the halves and need to be cleaned up. All of the hull fixtures and fittings were also fitted, save for the pioneer tools. The
tankovy desant rails were cemented at this time but I discovered, too late, that the foremost pair of handrails were actually a post-World War 2 addition and were only suitable for the Chinese marking option. Yes, I can simply cut them off and sanded the stub but I decided not to. The gun assembly was next. Together with the upper hull, there is no interior detailing, not even a rudimentary breech. The big gun mantlet feature respectable cast pattern, although lacking the casting numbers.The barrel is a two-part assembly, and with careful alignment, can be mated together without a seam line. The upper hull assembly was then mated to the lower half, and the low hull of the Dragon kit became immediately apparent when there is hardly a room between the track guard/sponson and the track itself, especially at the return rollers and the sprocket and idler wheels.
The model was painted in Russian Green, made from a mixture of Tamiya XF61 Dark Green, XF2 Flat White and XF3 Flat Yellow. Chipped paint were then added selectively using XF61 Dark Green. For markings, I was split between two options - the second with number 65 and the slogan 'Liberated Kirovskaya' or the third, with number 25 and slogan 'Death to German Occupiers' (I think). I eventually settled for the latter, as it includes a drawing of an arrow-pierced heart. The decal has somewhat yellowed with age but still good. The model was then subjected to a black-brown wash process.
The remaining parts, such as the pioneer tools and the spare track links were cemented onto the model. I also robbed the DShKM heavy machinegun from my old Dragon IS-2 kit, and fit it on the right side of the commander's hatch (my IS-2 actually do not need it as photos of the real tank '414' show that it was not fitted with the weapon). This was followed by the remainder of the weathering process. The tracks were given a wash of red brown-black mix, a bit thicker this time. Once dry, the tracks were subjected to silver drybrushing. Afterwards Mig Productions' pigments were applied in a slurry all over the model - thicker on the lower hull and the running parts and lighter on the rest of the model. I used a mixture of Rubble Dust, European Dust and a bit of Gulf War Sand. When dry, the excess was removed using a stiff brush. Tamiya Weathering Master Rust and Soot were applied onto the exhausts and X19 Smoke was applied onto the external tanks and the rear deck.
A figure from MiniArt's Soviet Tanker At Rest was used to round up the build. While assembling the figure, I noted that there is an extra part not mentioned in the instructions. After scratching my head for a while, I realized that the said part is actually the left sleeve of the tanker's overall! I could not find where it should be cemented to (yes, I know, the left shoulder of the overall, but exactly where as the figure is in the act of putting on the overall). Google came to the rescue after I searched for pics of completed figures. The figure was then painted using acrylics but somehow my paint mix for his uniform went wrong and it dried with a slight sheen....hmphhh!!!
Despite being overtaken by Tamiya's JSU-152 kit, the Dragon version can still hold its own. Sure, it was dimensionally less accurate than the contemporary Zvezda offering but the finer surface details made up for it. After all, it's shortcomings are not really a deal breaker as they can be overcome with minimal work. While the roadwheels were undersized, they were not grossly so and can be safely ignored. I however find some omissions annoying, such as the lack of the AA MG and tow cables. A good substitute for the Tamiya kit with a lower price. Dragon has also tweaked the kit, increasing the height (although the original roadwheels remain) and use their Magic Track track-link concept in their 3-in-1 ISU-152/ISU-122/ISU-122S kit.
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