[chascbv]

A new Jagdpanther is in the shops now, and is meant to represent Feldwebel Carstens' mount, number 314 of sPzJgAbt 654 when in the Normandy area in July 1944.

The model is excellent and accurate for a mid-late production vehicle; it has the earlier engine deck, gun barrel, and gun mount shield, and later-type exhausts and driver's periscope. It also has zimmerit (a mandatory feature for a Jagdpanther at the time), which is correctly depicted with the right pattern.

Operation Bluecoat was launched on July 30 by British forces around Caumont; most of a squadron (14 Churchill vehicles) of 6th Guards Tank Brigade was wiped out by just a couple of sPzJgAbt 654 Jagdpanthers. The new weapon had made its deadly debut. In August, the vehicle commanded by Sargeant Carstens was damaged and captured by British forces south of Villers-Bocage at St. Pierre du Fresne. And this is where Dragon's model fails to represent the real tank - Jagdpanther No. 314 differed in many ways from the model issued by Dragon. In May 1944, sPzJgAbt 654 Jagdpanthers had received a number of field-applied mods, including the repositioning of all tools, which were moved from the sides onto the upper surfaces, most notably the engine deck, and the addition of a stowage bin at the rear of the casemate on the left side; in addition, number 314 had the earlier exhaust system (twin pipes), rather than the complex, late-model arrangement seen in the model, and no side skirts. Interestingly, while most tank hunters in this unit were fitted with the late-type gun barrel, 314 did have the version displayed by Dragon's model. All these details can be clearly seen in the attached pictures of the real tank.

So, here we have an excellent mixed-type, mid-late Jagdpanther with a beautifully represented coat of zimmerit that falls short of expectations when related to the real vehicle it attempts to represent.

[chascbv]

While Dragon and a number of sources state this vehicle belongs to an "unidentified unit", one of the references I used did identify it as a vehicle in 383rd SP Artillery Rgt, 9th Tank Corps, 3rd Guards Tank Army. Also, all photographs I have seen show these tanks with the gunsight insignia in Berlin sometime during May 1945.

In a previous thread at the time the model was initially announced by Dragon, Berkut76 provided a profile (see below) where the gunsight insignia appeared on a different location on the port side. I reviewed my sources then, and posted a comment to say that certainly the photographs available to me, as well as the scale models seen on the Internet (built from Dragon's 1/35 kit), were all in accordance with the profile provided by Berkut76. The good news is that, since then, I have managed to find a photograph that seemingly matches the scheme as issued by Dragon - if you look attentively you will see the two characters that follow the gunsight insignia just where Dragon put them, even if the insignia itself cannot be seen.

The model represents a Su-85M, an interim version on the chassis and hull of the later Su-100. All the minor differences have been included, and Dragon's rendition is as accurate as can be. Also, the model includes the new tracks with sags and all, and the painting and weathering job appears to be excellent in the pictures (I haven't received my sample yet!). All in all, here we have another little gem from this manufacturer. Do not miss this one or its white-washed sibling!

[MoMo]

Hi chascbv,

Thanks for the excellent intel on Jagdpanther number 314 of sPzJgAbt 654, Normandy, July 1944. I knew about the tools, but didn't know about the stowage bin. I always get mixed-up about the exhaust arrangements too. It's good to know that you're keeping us up to speed about Dragon's hits and misses.

However, as you say, it's a good looking cat, and I think that it's a must for most of us !

Cheers,

MoMo

[chascbv]

A must indeed, MoMo. In fact, I can't wait to lay eyes and hands on my upcoming sample!!!

Also, thanks a lot for your kind words. May Luck go your way during your Christmas shopping this weekend!!!

[chascbv]

The second Jagdpanther from Dragon is now in The Flying Mule, and is identical to the previous release except for a new livery with no markings at all. Dragon claims this is also a vehicle of schwere Panzerjaeger Abteilung 654, 2nd company, at the time of the Normandy campaign.

As with the previous release, this is an excellent mid-to-late (not early) Jagdpanther with an excellent rendition of the mandatory zimmerit (for the Normandy campaign era). As with the previous release, it is inaccurate in representing a tank hunter in sPzJgAbt 654. According to a number of sources, including the book on the combat history of this unit by Karl-Heinz Münch, the first company to receive Jagdpanthers was the 2nd, followed by the 3rd (some time later, also the 1st company would receive their new mounts). These vehicles were delivered in plain dark yellow, and then received a camouflage scheme by adding patches of both green and brown in the field before combat operations. They also received tactical numbers, and a unit-specific field modification by which all tools and fittings were moved from their usual attachments onto the rear deck, leaving small unzimmeritted areas in their original sites. A characteristic stowage bin was also added to the left side of the casemate's rear wall. None of these details has been respected by Dragon.

Dragon's model seems to be based on a profile in the Polish W. Militaria #207 book on the Jagdpanther and Jagdtiger (see below). The profile in turn seems to be based on a picture also included in this same publication (see also below). The angle of the vehicle renders the unit-specific modifications in the tank invisible, and the lighting conditions makes it appear like a yellow Jagdpanther with dark green patches on. However, a careful study of the photograph reveals that this Jagdpanther had been previously knocked out and set afire (which is given away most particularly by the burnt-out tyres on the outer wheels), and that the alleged dark green patches are the remnants of the burnt-out zimmerit coat (see the zimmerit texture in the glacis patches). Tactical numbers, crosses, and paint were all gone with their underlying zimmerit coat under the effect of flames.

As the model has no numbers or insignia, it may be considered an excellent, top-quality generic Jagdpanther; buy not only one but a platoon, add some drybrushing and decaling (using Vallejo varnishes for optimal results), and there you are!

[chascbv]

It seems that sometime during the Normandy campaign the notion dawned on some British soldier serving in the Coldstream Guards that borrowing a couple 60-pound rockets with their launching rails from a Hawker Typhoon would make a nice addition to their Sherman Cruiser Tank. He was successful in knocking out a Tiger, so they say, and the idea spread all across the 1st battalion, who started installing these air-to-land rockets along their way to the Netherlands, and using them in combat, most particularly during the Rhine crossings into Germany itself.

Documentation on the Tulip is astonishingly sparse, and I could only find a few brief descriptions and a handful of pictures. According to the latter, the conversion was also carried out in Sherman tanks other than the Mk.V, in contrast to what some sources claim - Mk.I, Mk.IC, and Hybrid variants also had these rockets installed. There was no aiming device, so precision was scarce and the rockets had to be fired at almost point-blank ranges, targets being roadblocks, buildings, damaged vehicles, pillboxes, and the like. Some sources also report that a few tanks were lost after having one of their rockets detonated by a shot.

Dragon has released two such Shermans, both of the Mk.V type (M4A4, the one with the longer hull). As with all Sherman models in the Dragon range, these are splendid little models in all respects, and the rocket-launcher units look very, very good indeed. I managed to find a photograph of one of the versions offered by dragon (see below), where you will see a detail that is absent from the scale model - appliqué armour plates! In fact, all of the Tulips I have seen in wartime pictures had these plates installed, which renders these otherwise excellent models mildly inaccurate.

[fsrpcunha]

Here is another inaccuracy:

If you see that angle at which the rocket is positioned in the picture is bigger than the angle on the model. If you fired the rocket with the angle shown on the model the rocket would land just in front of the tank.... This point was brought up at ML when someone present his recently build Tulip.

Anyhow it is still a great model. Worth buying.

Cunha

[chascbv]

Originally Posted by fsrpcunha

Here is another inaccuracy:

If you see that angle at which the rocket is positioned in the picture is bigger than the angle on the model. If you fired the rocket with the angle shown on the model the rocket would land just in front of the tank.... This point was brought up at ML when someone present his recently build Tulip.

Anyhow it is still a great model. Worth buying.

Cunha

Thanks for your comment, Cunha. Just to complement your remark, I read somewhere that, having no aiming device for the rockets, each tank commander decided the angle of the rockets on his vehicle depending on what he wanted to shoot at; usually, the two rockets in one tank were seemingly mounted at varying angles, one for shorter- and one for longer-distance shots.

Have ye all a happy new year 2008! And may the god of models bring us all dozens of new types in quality reproductions. So be it!

[chascbv]

Dragon's new Bradley, an M2A3 IFV, is now available from The Flying Mule, the place where I borrow many of the pics I post. It represents a 7th Cavalry vehicle North of Baghdad in 2004.

The 7th Cavalry must be one of the better known US Army regiments worldwide, and it sure brings to mind memories of Lt. Col. Custer's last stand by the Little Bighorn river back in 1876, with Garry Owen still ringing in our ears. In November 2004 the 2nd Battalion, 7th Cavalry rode on their M2A3s - as modeled by Dragon - into the fiercest urban combat since WW2: Operation Dawn or the battle for Fallujah against Iraq's Islamic insurgency. This was a tough battle that also became famous worldwide for a number of controversies (you can read about it elsewhere), but that should not detract from its strategic relevance or the gallantry of those who served there. The accompanying photograph shows one of these 7th Cavalry M2A3 vehicles returning to combat after refueling, and clearly shows how good Dragon's rendition of this Bradley variant is.

Dragon Armor Bradleys are all very good models, and the present release is no exception. It has all the modifications an A3 variant should have (GPS & IFF antennas, CITV), and is also fitted with the explosive reactive armour array exhibited by the real tank in the photograph included. Detailing and overall accuracy are excellent all throughout given the small scale (in fact, they'd still be excellent in a larger scale!).

This new Bradley is a must for me, and I just can't wait to have it in my collection.

[chascbv]

Dragon's M4A2 is finally in the Flying Mule, and represents - according to Dragon - a vehicle in USMC 1st Amphibious Tank Battalion at Tarawa. This is the most serious error in this model, as the tank is a vehicle of Co D (see the name "Destroyer") and only Co C landed in Tarawa to fight the Japanese. Co D would fight much later at Guam, and then in Iwo Jima, and the various markings on the hull seem to tell the tale.

This vehicle belongs to Co D, 3rd Marine Tank Bn, a unit derived from the one mentioned by Dragon in the box. The white elefant has been inherited from the parent unit, and was certainly displayed by Co C tanks in Tarawa. However, the USAAF-style National insignia was adopted by this unit after operations in Guam, so this is a post-Guam vehicle. Other markings include the USMC 3rd Division embarkation marking, and Co D's inverted triangle. Thus, the accompanying picture of the real vehicle was probably taken in Guam just before the unit was embarked for the Iwo Jima campaign in February 1945. Also of note is the fact that all markings look like recently applied or touched up, the vehicle is clean, and the mood of the marines in the background seems a bit down. US marines had the toughest of times during the island-hopping campaigns in the Pacific; the men in this 3rd Division had fought for each and every inch of ground in Guam against a fanaticised enemy, and now the prospect of another fierce battle at Iwo Jima lay ahead.

The model is excellent, as all Dragon Shermans are, even in the presence of a few minor nits to pick. An oil filler cap should have been present on the engine deck just behind the engine access hatches, a rear-hull rack was common on Marine M4A2s and should have been provided, there is no antenna mount, and the grilles on the engine deck are somewhat simplified. Not that there is much to complain about, as you may see.

I for one am very happy with this release, which will be included in my collection as soon as it makes it to my side of the pond.