KPUV vz. 37/3.7cm Pak 37(t) – Czech Anti-Tank Gun

At the outbreak of the Second World War, the army of Czechoslovakia was a formidable fighting force. Skoda and other Czech companies constantly produced icon after icon; the LT vz. 35 and LT vz. 38 tanks became the mainstays of the Blitzkrieg as the Panzers 35(t) and 38(t), the KPUV vz. 38 anti-tank gun was the main armament of multiple German tank destroyers including the Panzerjager I. Had Czechoslovakia not succumbed to annexation and instead fought, German forces would’ve possibly been crippled by the equal or superior Czech weaponry. The fact that many of these weapons and vehicles never saw service with their original owners is a shame indeed. However, some did see combat with either the Germans or the Slovak Mobile Divisions, and the new Case Blue mentions one such weapon: the KPUV vz. 37.

This thirty-seven millimeter anti-tank gun was put into service in 1937 in replacement of the preceding vz. 34, though overall not too dissimilar. It had a small, low-to-the-ground carriage, and an oddly-shaped shield which offered greater protection for the crew than that of its predecessor. A small number of vz. 37s were fitted with pneumatic tires as opposed to the more common wooden spoked wheels.

When Czechoslovakia was annexed by Germany in 1939, production of guns ceased and 158 of the Czech army’s stock were transferred to newly-independent Slovakia. The 800-odd remaining guns were seized by the Wehrmacht and entered service under the nomenclature 3.7cm Pak 37(t). About 100 guns had been sold to Yugoslavia prior to the annexation, some of these ending up in German hands under the name 3.7cm Pak 156(j) and others seeing use with the Partizans. Guns in German service were used commonly during the initial phases of Barbarossa.

A good history of the gun is provided at the Flames of War blog Brushes and Bayonets: Brushes and Bayonets…: FoW: Slovak Anti Tank Artillery – 3.7cm KPUV vz.37 battery.

This file is intended mainly for resin printing. I have been able to print the gun, trails, etc. in FDM at very fine layers, but the result would take a fine bit of sanding to get in a shape suitable for the tabletop. The shield prints well in FDM and is quite solid, so a resin gun and a filament shield works well. Do note that the photos are of an in-development version of the file and not the final product; I don’t own a resin printer and so have a fellow gamer test-print files too fragile for filament. The new files are not considerably different and only add slightly more detail to the legs and a sturdier mount for the gun. The gun in the photos has a slightly crooked shield and gun, which should be fixed with these newer files. Happy printing! (and hunting German/Soviet tanks)