Tamiya 35203 WWII German Jagdpanther Late Production 1/35 Scale Model Kit

Description

Tamiya ventured into the modeling business in 1948, with a scale wooden ship model kit. Since then, Tamiya has been striving to offer merchandise that can truly be called ‘First in Quality Around the World.’ Now Tamiya is offering more than 300 different products, both in the fields of precision static models and high performance radio control vehicles. These products are not only sold in Japan but also exported in vast quantities to the United States, Europe, South East Asia, and to many other parts of the world. The standard of excellence achieved by Tamiya is regarded as among the very finest in the world of model hobbies. The German Jagdpanther is regarded by the ordnance experts as one of the best tracked weapons systems during the World War 2. The awesome Pak 43/3, L71 88mm gun was mounted on the proven Panther medium tank chassis. The gun was installed into the box shaped superstructure which used thick steel armor of 80mm at the front and 50mm at the sides. These frontal and side armor plates were effectively inclined to obtain an improved protection. The gun mantlet called ‘Saukopf’ (sow head) had a thickness of 100mm. A ball mounted MG42 bow machine gun was installed at the right side of the main gun. Weighing in at 46 tons and propelled by the powerful Maybach V12 cylinder engine, this tank destroyer had a well-balanced fire power, protection and mobility to high standards. Mass production started in January 1944 at MIAG firm, and during its production career, several improvements and alterations were made with feedback from the front lines. Early production models used a nearly flush gun mantlet collar, but it was replaced with a larger, bolt-fixed collar in October 1944. Larger diameter idler wheels were introduced at the same time. A heater for the crew compartment, and the same exhaust covers as equipped on the late production Panther G tanks were added, beginning from December. The Jagdpanther was first deployed to the Normandy campaign in June 1944, and 415 units were produced until April 1945. This finely detailed plastic model kit requires assembly and painting.