Panzer VI Tiger STGB Chat

[Robert Stuart]

Browsing for Tiger tank images, I ran across a series of images that must have been sourced from the Bundesarchive.

Thought I'd see what they have ...

 

https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/cross-search/search/_1553105858/

 

Searches are not saved, try ...

 

Go to: https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/

 

In the search panel at the top

 

first box enter tiger

second box 1942 (or whatever)

third box 1950 (or leave blank)

 

A search of the Bundesarchive for Tiger between 1942 and 1950

Fulltext: "tiger", Archives: "Picture archive", Year from: "1942", Year to: "1950", Sortorder: "Date ascending"

 

I found 390+ images across 17 pages

 

 

 

Yes, I know, this really ought to wait for the reference section to open up, but I may forget by then ...

Edited March 20, 2019 by Robert Stuart
Searches are not saved

[Rogue705]

Hi again @Ozzy. Regarding on what I may build, undecided. Have just finished pulling my Tigers from the attic stash, where they have lain dormant for a few years

 

First up is the only 1/48 entry, though i'm unsure if it will pass STGB criteria as it has a die-cast lower hull???

 

 

After that, all 1/35 ... Will make a call closer to the start time if thats ok?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Ozzy]

1 hour ago, Rogue705 said:

Hi again @Ozzy. Regarding on what I may build, undecided. Have just finished pulling my Tigers from the attic stash, where they have lain dormant for a few years

 

First up is the only 1/48 entry, though i'm unsure if it will pass STGB criteria as it has a die-cast lower hull???

 

 

After that, all 1/35 ... Will make a call closer to the start time if thats ok?

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Wow, I could think of worse decisions to have to make. The 1/48 kit is fine, the metal hull was fairly standard in early Tamiya 1/48 kits.

[Rogue705]

Thanks @Ozzy. Will give my choice some due consideration 🙂

[John]

Well I have some holiday time during this GB so there's at least a chance that I can finish something 🙂

Count me in. 

John 

[Ozzy]

4 minutes ago, John said:

Well I have some holiday time during this GB so there's at least a chance that I can finish something 🙂

Count me in. 

John 

Nice one John, looking forward to your build.

[John]

1 minute ago, Ozzy said:

Nice one John, looking forward to your build.

Don't get your hopes up too far... 😁

 

John 

[Enzo the Magnificent]

It's not the completing that counts.  It's the joining in and having fun. 

[Plasto]

 Is the E100 allowed?  Based on MiG eaters diagram,the allowance of the VK 45.02 and the fact E series tanks were to standardise on the Tiger II roadwheel and the prototype used gearbox and steering components from Tiger II. There is a ‘strong family resemblance’

 

 

 

Thanks

 

Plasto..

[Ozzy]

1 hour ago, Plasto said:

 Is the E100 allowed?  Based on MiG eaters diagram,the allowance of the VK 45.02 and the fact E series tanks were to standardise on the Tiger II roadwheel and the prototype used gearbox and steering components from Tiger II. There is a ‘strong family resemblance’

 

 

 

Thanks

 

Plasto..

Definitely Plasto, looking forward to your build.

[BIG X]

Having been too 'poorly' to actually do any modelling for the last couple of weeks - I have been spending some time doing some research for this GB.  It seems I'm not the only one who is getting a bit 'excited' about this one.  My three Revell King Tigers are now sat quietly in the cupboard - getting ready to roar.

 

BTW - I think the voting method - by scale - on the Panzer IV GB is working well.  I've only done one other GB - Classic Airfix - where there wasn't a vote - because there were just too many entries for a poll to work.  On the basis that 'a good big one always beats a good little one' it is nice to see the little ones getting a look in.

[Mig Eater]

If the E-100 & VK 45.02 are ok for this GB then I guess the E-50 & E-75 can be included too? At that point though you might as well just call this the German Heavy Tank GB as the only thing that would be missing from the list is the Maus.

Edit: Added the E-50 & E-75 to my diagram on the previous page.

 

Edited March 24, 2019 by Mig Eater

[Ozzy]

3 hours ago, BIG X said:

Having been too 'poorly' to actually do any modelling for the last couple of weeks - I have been spending some time doing some research for this GB.  It seems I'm not the only one who is getting a bit 'excited' about this one.  My three Revell King Tigers are now sat quietly in the cupboard - getting ready to roar.

 

BTW - I think the voting method - by scale - on the Panzer IV GB is working well.  I've only done one other GB - Classic Airfix - where there wasn't a vote - because there were just too many entries for a poll to work.  On the basis that 'a good big one always beats a good little one' it is nice to see the little ones getting a look in.

Hope you feel better soon Steve, I’m sure with your modelling skill you can tame those kitty’s. I do like the voting method, I’m not sure how it will all workout as I’ve got 1 prize to give out, maybe the number of votes will be the deciding factor?

[Ozzy]

1 hour ago, Mig Eater said:

If the E-100 & VK 45.02 are ok for this GB then I guess the E-50 & E-75 can be included too? At that point though you might as well just call this the German Heavy Tank GB as the only thing that would be missing from the list is the Maus.

Edit: Added the E-50 & E-75 to my diagram on the previous page.

 

The late Tiger hull is pretty versatile along with the road wheel layout, which Tiger being in the title of some. With bigger king tiger looking tanks in others, they would sit nicely into this STGB.

[Badder]

I dug my Tiger I early, Tiger I late, and Tiger II out and checked which of those I had purchased PE and zimmerit for. And discovered that the Tiger I early was missing its tracks. I'd purchased it from Hobbycraft, and suspected I'd been the victim of the kind of modeller who visits LHS, opens up boxes and steals kit parts to replace those that he or she has lost, damaged, or in some way ruined!

 

I double checked the 3 boxes, but nope, there were definitely only 2 sets of rubber bands in there. Never mind, I was going to get friuls for the 'early' anyway.

 

It was only several hour later that I realised the 'late' NEVER had rubber band tracks and had link and length tracks.. And I'd accidentally put the 'early' rubber bands in that box!

 

Silly billy,

 

 

BTW I've changed my mind about representing Wittmann's Snow Tiger - instead going for an abandoned winter tiger from his unit.

 

Badder

Edited March 24, 2019 by Badder

[Plasto]

On 3/24/2019 at 11:23 PM, Mig Eater said:

If the E-100 & VK 45.02 are ok for this GB then I guess the E-50 & E-75 can be included too? At that point though you might as well just call this the German Heavy Tank GB as the only thing that would be missing from the list is the Maus.

Edit: Added the E-50 & E-75 to my diagram on the previous page.

 

You could also probably make a reasoned argument for the Maus given its the ultimate development of the Porsche line of  Heavy AFV’s using Petrol electric drive and transmission As the Elephant / Ferdinand and VK45.01P did. 

 

Its a a big old thing with Takoms New 1/35 kits out you’d have the option of prototype or ‘production’ versions..

 

cheers

[Mig Eater]

I've actually been working on an Takom Maus, the 300 parts for the suspension & another 300 for the tracks was a real test of endurance. I'm also using the Voyager PE set which adds a few hundred more tiny parts to the build. So far it's taken me about six months on & off, so definitely not a project I'd like to squeeze into the GB's time limit 😝 The V2 kit isn't representative of a "production" version BTW (it isn't even an accurate V2), there were several other prototypes in development (V3-V7 hulls were build but not fitted out) that included several changes & there were plans for a new simplified turret for production too.

Well with practically the full width of Germany heavy tank development available for this GB I'm not sure what I'm going to build now...

Edited March 26, 2019 by Mig Eater

[Badder]

My first model, upon returning to this hobby, was Tamiya's Tiger I mid production. It wasn't a very good effort and found itself removed from its diorama and relegated to Death Row. The barrel was snapped off, the tracks broken up, and most of the tools ripped off, But somehow it has hung on and refuses to die.

 

And a good job too. Because now it has a chance to be reborn - at least in parts - donating fenders, exhaust parts and engine access hatches to my Tiger I (Early) in THIS  STGB.

 

So my build will now be of a Tiger I which suffered fatal damage to the engine. I will have a look for Tiger Interior kits, but will also consider 3D printing, and of course scratch-building options.

 

Badder

 

 

 

 

 

 

[BerndM]

Hi Guys. I have Revells Pz.Kpfw VI Tiger Ausf.H in 1:72 in my stash. The kit covers the Tigers used in Tunesia, 1943.

Also the Eduard Pz.Kpfw IV Tiger II Ausf.B in 1:35 is in the house. If someone has already placed these kits let me know.

 

Cheers

Bernd

[Ozzy]

5 hours ago, BerndM said:

Hi Guys. I have Revells Pz.Kpfw VI Tiger Ausf.H in 1:72 in my stash. The kit covers the Tigers used in Tunesia, 1943.

Also the Eduard Pz.Kpfw IV Tiger II Ausf.B in 1:35 is in the house. If someone has already placed these kits let me know.

 

Cheers

Bernd

Hope your well Bernd,

 

sounds like a nice little stash of Tigers, even if there are others building those kits it’s always nice to have someone else’s take on the kit.

[BerndM]

12 hours ago, Ozzy said:

Hope your well Bernd,

 

sounds like a nice little stash of Tigers, even if there are others building those kits it’s always nice to have someone else’s take on the kit.

Hi Ozzy i am fine hope you are well too.

Yes these are both fine kits in their own way and this GB brought me back to the question how These "Afrika" Tigers were painted. 

The opinions go from gray over green to brown/dark yellow.

[Badder]

Ahem........

 

I've got my mad head on.

 

Like a few others, I suspect, I'm building this:

 

It may be one of the oldest Tamiya Kits around, but it's still a great kit, AND of the most aesthetically pleasing Tiger I's of them all, IMHO, what with the S-mine dischargers, the raised commander's cupola, and the air intake/filtration and exhaust systems at the rear.

 

However, it's a pretty simple and quick kit to build - unlike the Nashorn I've just-about-finished, and the Up-armoured Sherman I made in the first AFV STGB.

So, this wasn't going to be much of a challenge, UNLESS I whitewashed the thing. I think, though, that I've just about figured out my whitewashing technique (knowing now that I should have 'interwoven' at least SOME coats of varnish between the layers of white) so even this challenge might prove 'too easy'.

 

And then I had the idea to depict an abandoned whitewashed Tiger - and furthermore: a knocked-out whitewashed Tiger.

And more challenging still, a knocked-out whitewashed Tiger, which was hit almost 'up the jacksie', destroying the cooling fans at the rear RH corner, with shrapnel blowing open the access hatch which itself tears the air intake tubes,  meanwhile the AP round continuing on to penetrate the engine compartment and take out the engine.

 

Luckily, the crew were able to bale out, and beat a hasty retreat. Of course, they could count themselves lucky to have survived, but they had their Tiger's health to worry about. Maybe the damage wasn't great, maybe some essential wires, or lines had been cut and were repairable, and the engine was otherwise fine? In due course, with the battle over, attempts are made to repair or recover the Tiger. The turret is traversed, enabling the lifting of the engine compartment cover. A mechanic opens it up, looks down and says.... 'Nicht auf der Nellie'.

 

So, that's my project sorted for this NOT-HERE-SOON-ENOUGH STGB, and the thread title sorted, to boot.

 

 

 

BTW, whilst researching engine compartment cover and associated grills for the rear deck, I came across a Tiger I with full interior, which the maker had 'laid bare' like a filleted fish on a plinth. To give a view of the fuel tanks, he'd opened up the two panels directly either side of the engine compartment panel, those panels 'propped up' on their hinges.

 

Sadly - and I could honestly, almost, cry for him - those panels are not hinged and do not open up like the engine cover below:

 

 

The hinges on those panels either side of the engine cover, are in fact the hinges that allow the opening of the cooling fan covers. rearmost of the interior.

 

 

Below are the remains of my very first 'entry' in BM - the rear deck of my Tiger I Mid,  from my Villers Bocage diorama.

I thought I'd see if it was going to be an 'easy' process to remove, replace and open up the cover on my 'waiting' Tiger.

The amputated section is the cover for the fan compartment and flips upwards and back towards the larger cover over the RHS fuel tank. THAT cover is fixed down, and cannot be 'flipped' open.

 

 

BTW, the large 'screws' (blue crosses) are where the fuel and (water?) go in.

The dotted line above shows where the engine cover is hinged, the blue arrows denote the direction of 'swing'.

 

While I've removed and subsequently trimmed the fan cover down to size to see if removing and replacing the one on my 'waiting' Tiger was going to be easy, I've discovered that the pattern of holes in the grill is different. It could be a Tamiya 'error', but maybe it isn't. I'll have to have a think about it all when the GB starts.

 

Badder

Edited March 27, 2019 by Badder

[Enzo the Magnificent]

Sounds to me like you're already having fun!

 

Years ago, I saw a similar mistake on a model.  It was a superbly detailed Airfix 1/24 Harrier.  The engine doors were open to show the Pegasus within.  Sadly, they weren't just the engine doors ahead of the wing.   The incredibly skillful builder had added some totally fictional doors over the centre section of the wing, which is actually a massive fuel tank.  You can get to see the engine that way, but you have to take the whole wing off.

[Churchill]

This turned up in the post today, and I mean to build it in this GB:

 

 

 I was at Bovington tank museum yesterday, mining a rich seam of material for the SYWWTGTWI GB chat, and their gift shop is well supplied with model kits from a variety of manufacturers, also etch and resin detailing kits, armour specific paint sets from Mig, and plenty of reference books too. My friend very kindly offered me my choice of kit as a late birthday present. 

 

So, while we're waiting for the GB to start, hands up everyone who wants to see me build this Sturmtiger? 

 

 

 

[Robert Stuart]

1 hour ago, Enzo Matrix said:

Sounds to me like [@Badder's]  already having fun!

He's not alone

3 hours ago, Badder said:

NOT-HERE-SOON-ENOUGH STGB

Same thoughts, you are reading my mind?

 

If I can do it, I hope to build this one ...

 

Caption   German PzKpfw VI Tiger I heavy tank and its crew, near Kursk, Russia, summer 1943

Photographer   Heinz Mittelstaedt

Source  https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/cross-search/search/_1553716757 German Federal Archive

Identification Code   Bild 101I-022-2949-05

 

 

Caption   German tank crew transferring rounds of ammunition into a Tiger I heavy tank, near Kursk, Russia, summer 1943

Photographer   Paul Wolff

Source   https://www.bild.bundesarchiv.de/archives/barchpic/search/_1553716603/ German Federal Archive

Identification Code   Bild 101I-022-2948-24

 

I'm fairly confident those two images are the same vehicle (with no date evidence, I believe they were taken on the same day).

More images can be found on this page - http://www.alanhamby.com/gallery5.shtml, including bent fenders, battle damage and people eating sarnies.

 

Putting 2 and 2 together, coming up with 5 ¹/2 and guessing this must have been produced between November 1942 and January 1943.

 

Any thoughts guys?

 

 

2 minutes ago, Churchill said:

hands up everyone who wants to see me build this Sturmtiger? 

@Churchill  🖐️🤚