Peko Publishing German Support Vehicles on the Battlefield #2 - World War Two Photobook Series

[Mike]

German Support Vehicles on the Battlefield #2

World War Two Photobook Series (9786155583551)

Peko Publishing

 

 

Although the German forces used horses for a lot more of their transport in WWII than most of us would realise, they were also pushing towards heavy mechanisation, using wheeled, half-tracked and fully tracked vehicles to move their troops, supplies, artillery, food and even injured men back and forth from the front lines, behind them, and on the battlefield on occasion.

 

This is a new volume from Peko's World War Two Photobook Series, and as the name suggests it is primarily a book of photos, which isn't too difficult to divine.  Although this is Volume 2 of the set it still covers the earlier vehicles with their relatively light armour and armament, detailing all the variations in fit and finish between the main factories that were involved in construction and adaptation of WWII German military vehicles.  There are also numerous examples of captured Russian, British and French equipment that was pressed into service, plus a few Ford trucks that had found their way into service with the Nazis, possibly thanks to Henry’s well-documented fondness for Mr Hitler.

 

 

 

It is a hardback book in landscape format, hard bound with 112 pages plus two blank inner leaves, finished in an overall white cover, and arriving protected by a layer of shrink-wrap that also helps prevent scuffs and keeps out dirt during shipping and storage. The photos are almost without exception full page, with space left only for the captions, which are in Hungarian and English, each one adding valuable insight to the photo, which may not be immediately apparent without it, especially if your eyesight isn’t too good.  For the modeller there are plenty of diorama possibilities, as well as opportunities to see how the crews actually stowed their gear on their vehicles (or otherwise) in real-world circumstances.  Seeing how they come apart when blown up is also useful for diorama purposes, but thankfully there are no grisly scenes accompanying the destroyed vehicles.  Where the photos are from private collections there are attributions in the corner as appropriate, with a number showing soldiers standing in front of damaged or abandoned vehicles after the fighting is over, plus a number of groups investigating the wreckage after a cataclysmic explosion of the vehicle by enemy action, or demolition by the escaping crew.  There are also a number of maintenance scenarios with the hatches or doors open for even more inspiration.

 

 

 

While the contemporary photos are in black and white for obvious reasons, the detail in which they are depicted would be an absolute boon to any AFV enthusiast or modeller, especially those wishing to go down the route of realism and authentic settings.

 

 

Conclusion

Whether you have models that you intend to use this book for reference, or have an interest in the subject, this book will give you all the reference pictures and some besides, as well as some realistic setting ideas for dioramas.

 

Highly recommended.

 

 

Review sample courtesy of