ICM 1/35 Panther Ausf.D

[Jan01]

My entry into this SiG

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[Jan01]

Not looking forward to doing the tracks.

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[Jan01]

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The figure that I will be adding to this ''CAT''

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[Jan01]

As in Chief's post this kit also looks pretty good apart from the missing numbers on the sprue. Not really looking forward to doing the tracks but hayho I will do this kit OOB.

A bit of history taken from Wiki.

Panther is the common name of a medium tank deployed by Nazi Germany in World War II from mid-1943 to the end of the European war in 1945. It was intended as a counter to the Soviet T-34, and as a replacement for the Panzer III and Panzer IV. While never replacing the latter, it served alongside it and the heavier Tiger tanks until the end of the war. The Panther's excellent combination of firepower, mobility, and protection served as a benchmark for other nations' late war and post-war tank designs, and it is regarded as one of the best tanks of World War II.[3]

Until 1944, it was designated as the Panzerkampfwagen V Panther and had the ordnance inventory designation of Sd.Kfz. 171. On 27 February 1944, Hitler ordered that the Roman numeral V be deleted from the designation.

The Panther tank was a compromise of various requirements. While having essentially the same engine as the Tiger I tank, it had better frontal armor (including the benefit of a sloped armor, increasing effective armor depth), better gun penetration, was lighter and thus faster, and could traverse rough terrain better than the Tigers. The tradeoff was weaker side armor. The Panther proved to be deadly in open country and long range engagements, but vulnerable in close-quarters combat. Also, the 75 mm gun fired a slightly smaller shell than the Tiger's 88 mm gun, providing less high explosive firepower against infantry.

The Panther was also far cheaper to produce than the Tiger tanks, and only slightly more expensive than the Panzer IV, as its design came to fruition when the Reich Ministry of Armament and War Production was making great efforts to increase war production. Key elements of the Panther design, such as its armor, transmission, and final drive, were compromises made specifically to improve production rates and address Germany's war shortages, whereas other Over-engineered elements such as its highly compact engine and its complex suspension system remained. The result was that Panther tank production was far higher than what was possible for the Tiger tanks, but not much higher than what had been accomplished with the Panzer IV. At the same time, the simplified final drive became the single major cause of breakdowns of the Panther tank, and was a problem that was never corrected.

The Panther tank arrived in 1943 at a crucial phase in World War II for Germany. Rushed into combat at the Battle of Kursk with un-corrected teething problems, which resulted in breakdowns and other equipment failures, the Panther tank would thereafter only be fighting outnumbered in Germany's steady retreat against the Allies for the remainder of World War II. Its success as a battlefield weapon was thus hampered by Germany's generally declining position in the war, with the loss of airpower protection by the Luftwaffe, the loss of fuel and training space, and the declining quality of tank crews. Nevertheless, the Panther tank commanded respect from the Allies, and its combat capabilities led directly to the introduction of heavier Allied tanks such as the Soviet IS-2 and the American M26 Pershing into the war and the development of the formidable British Centurion Tank, even though it appeared too late to participate in World War II.

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Panther Ausf. D tanks, 1943. The D model can best be recognized by the drum-shaped cupola.

[chief5437]

Good luck with the tracks! Lol! Would it be wrong if I waited til you make yours first? Lol!

[Jan01]

Good luck with the tracks! Lol! Would it be wrong if I waited til you make yours first? Lol!

We could give each other tips when we get to the tracks.

[chief5437]

Sounds like a plan or a recipe for disaster! lol!

[mannloon]

I'd rather have those tracks than Tamiya vinyl.

[NAMBiohazard]

Looks to be great kit

Damn.......This is gonna be a hard SIG to follow...
So many beautiful Panthers

[PaulAyrey]

Great start, I have recently finished this figure, an excellent product - can't beat Alpine. Look forward to your progress

[HotziSlayer]

Be sure to check the Motorhatch on the upper hull. I built the Revell Panther Ausf. D (same kit different box) and the hatch just would'nt fit.

Apart from that, its a good kit. I'll watch!

[Jan01]

On we are off....

Today's update:

As mentioned before there are no numbers on the sprue's so a bit challenging to ensure you get the correct piece. Like all (or most) vehicles you start with the running gear. Some cleaning up of seams and some excess molding had to be done.
The bottom part of the hull comes in one piece and a couple of small spots needed cleaning up.
This what I managed to do today, will carry on with the rest of the running gear tomorrow.

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[martin57]

good luck with it

[Jan01]

good luck with it

Thanks

[Jan01]

Update 2

Today just finished off the running gear

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[MarkVerploeg]

Hmm i never build the ICM before
Doesn't look bad at all but is it the same hard and brittle styrene they use in other kits? Because that would be a shame
Nice progress so far
Cheers Mark

[Jan01]

Well after a couple of weeks of a busy period at work, I can finally get back to my panther.

Last night I started on the turret, it was quite an easy fit so all went well together.

Added the figure just to see what its like

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[Jan01]

Tonight I started back on the hull, had some problems with the plate where the drivers hatches are. The hole was too small and I couldn't down size the plate as there is bolts all around it. So had to open up the hole, as you can see it was a disaster. Just have to wait for the glue to completely set and then get some filler out

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[Jan01]

Finally got around to doing some more, well I did some filling in on the hatch where I went over the top.

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Also managed to do all the tools and spare tracks that go on the side of the hull

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[PaulAyrey]

Super start and great troubleshooting!

[Jan01]

Finally got everything together (except the tracks). Had no problems with the few pieces all went together well.

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Now just to prime it and then on with the painting and weathering.

[Jan01]

While waiting for the panther to completely dry (the glue that is), I started on a couple of figures that I'm going to add.

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It took me less than 24hrs to get to this stage (well I am on vacation )

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[UKguyInUSA]

Looking great so far and came together quickly!

[felisbarcinonensis]

Looking good so far

[Jan01]

Thanks guys

[martin57]

well done so far so good

[AchtungPanzer]

Good work, keep it up

[mick]

great work