Brickmania Blog

KV-1 Suspension

The KV-1 Heavy Tank was developed by the Soviet Union shortly before the outbreak of World War II. Its intended purpose was to help infantry units blast their way through entrenched enemy positions. Its heavy armor and powerful 76mm gun were chosen based on lessons learned in Spanish Civil War, where tanks on both sides were found to be woefully lacking in both armor and armament. Manufacture of the KV-1 began in secret and about 500 were available to the Red Army at the start of Operation Barbarossa . The appearance of the KV-1 on the battlefield came as a shock to the German army commanders, whose own tanks could not knock out the heavily armored KV-1 except for a point blank shot to the rear of the hull. The KV-1s design emphasis was placed on heavy armor protection, but this came at great expense to mobility. While some KV-1s were used defensively to great affect in the early stages of the war, large number wiped out during the rapid-paced “Blitzkrieg” tactics of the highly mobile German panzertruppen. Severe losses were as much to blame on the KV-1s relative immobility as well as the inexperience of Soviet junior officers corps.

There were several variations of the KV-1 tank, including the KV-2 assault gun: this was a KV-1 tank hull armed with a 152mm howitzer mounted in a massive slab-sided turret. The KV-2 proved to be an awkward design and most of the 250 built in 1938-39 were later converted to KV-1s. Later KV-1s wpould receive increased armor protection to counter improved German weapons. There was also a number of KV-1s armed with a more powerful 85mm gun in response to the heavier armor of the Tiger and Panther tanks. Over 5000 KV-1s tanks would be built before the end of the war and they proved to be a formidable weapon system when used in its intended infantry support role. The KV-1 hull was additionally used as a basis for the Su-152 heavy assault gun, which was a more successful turretless replacement for the KV-2, and was produced from late 1942 through the end of the war. The KV-1s further development eventually evolved into the legendary JS-2 and JS-3 tanks series of heavy tanks.

Additional information about this Brickmania custom Lego® kit:

The KV-1 Heavy Tank kit has the following features:

• Fully articulated tank treads and rolls smoothly on any surface
• Turret capable of 360° rotation and a fully posable main gun
• Functioning suspension system
• Opening hatch in the tank commander’s position
• Includes one commander minifig with BrickArms PPSH submachine gun and Ushanka
• Sturdy construction for active play
• 1/35 scale to match other Brickmania models.
• Includes 696 genuine new-condition LEGO bricks elements
• Comes with a signed and numbered certificate of authenticity
• Intermediate Skill Level (4-6 years experience with LEGO is recommended)

All Brickmania model kits are made of new-condition LEGO bricks and this one includes compatable weapons by BrickArms. This model comes disassembled and includes completed printed building instructions and comes packaged in a sealed box. This is a limited edition kit and priduction may be discontinued at any time.