SERIES TWELVE (GE)SDKFZ 232( FU) 8 Rad

Light Tank M 3 A1 Stuart III and IV (US)

(A)Australian Cruiser Mk 1 Senti nal

Opel Vehicles on the 3 t on Lorry Chassis shy

Semitrack M aultier SdKfz 4 SdKfz 305 and (GE)Standard 4x2 Truck

~ MILITARY VEH CLE PRI T

A l ale prodlt1on Sd Kh 231 8 r ad o f the 7th Pan7er Divi s ion The pOSitlOn of tbe ae r i al on the t urret Iias t he sant fO T ul l Sd Kh 231 cars f roll 1937 The l llTje pO le af r ill l on tbe right band Si de appear ed lfte r the SdKiz 32 (Fu) Ith lu cumbersome lntenna was clnctll(-d Comparr Ihc v i sion S lots lind tail cover t o l h( Chicle In th d ra~d nlJ In all tbe re we re 1 2 35 vehlc)s of ~hj s scrle~ pr oduced ( WARPICS r HO TO)

COtR I LUSTfl ATI ON This is one of th e Earl y Schwt r er Pln7erspaehwllJ tmiddotn (SdKf7 43 ) ( til ) J r ad slrolll r to th at In tile st ille drlliln g However thi s vehicl e has no t bee n fitted 1( i th t he Paks chut7 add lt ional o r~u r hl ch on ly appe ared In t(r I t is s hown in t he culoun on vehicl es us e d for the Polish call1po ig n i n 1939 The bas ic colo ur is the da r k blue grey thllt had bee n standard fro ll 1935 The IJTJfo lIhlte Ba lken Krcuz Nt atlop lt~ tI 113 th E Pll nlttl r Ident if icat ion lIa rl ng$ for tb i s Hrs l opera ti on of middotU l l tzkr te so as to minleise on the possluilito of Ge r man unlu been at ist3~(n espe cially by the Luftwafft p i lots u the eneill) Vs ri OLls olh~r 113 r kl n s Show it to bclonJ to t he s i gn(l l unit of a ~Qto rize d Infanlr y Regi rwn t n nUlllbc r pla te and to t cnkopr (Oenhs head) JTov e lhi s to be onE of the wrrcn SS bri Olld~S in vo lved in t he in vas ion o f po la nd

BTiush Irmy Gene ral Stuart III (H oney) In -md colou led dese rt camounage

Schwerer Panzerspaehwagen (Sd Kfz 23 2) (Fu) (S-Rad) Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foo t) Drawn by H L Doyle

I

BELLDNA PRI ~1S SERIES 12 No 45lt1

SCHIfoIRE PANZERSPAEHWAGEN AUf 8-RAO EIiHEJTSWAGEN

HISTORICAL RESEARCH SY ~ J SPIELCERGER

The ne~d f(lr ratoriwd r eeon nlisunec units 119r le(l upon in the lale 19))$ established tho dOrnind f(lr procureoent of mo dern arQO urld reconnai ssance vehicles AVl)llahle lt thit tir~ Kere only a limited number of ir-oured troop carri ers al1eltd under the Treaty of Versailles They proved to be usel ess for their intended purpose To fill the I lIIIIediate ne ed eOllllerc llll 6 x 4 ch assis equipped dth arro llred bodies (IJaimler-BcnZ ond Buessing-llAG) were used Their cross -country abi lity_ hOlcver Ias severely restrict ed and iproved vehicl es had to be created Thes e liere to be based upon the experience gained with the multi-heel-vehlcles (VicradlgtlageJ) deve loped in secrecy from lQ20 to 1929 (DaiIllle r-8enz and ~a~irus eght-whee l 8ues~iny-NAG ten whee l vehicles) These poueued QIIplo cross -tount ry pe rformance and adeQllate Sf)(fd ra nges when street-bound

The o ri yinaL objections tha t veh ic les of thi s naure lIe re too costl) to produce conslderinq ~he econolJlic a l conditions In Ce rmany at that tillle WIS overruled In 1932 especially in vie of the lr~enc~ connect~d with the procurerl nt of SUCh vehi cles An annu al productiOn quota of 18 uni ti I~a s established

In the Teantime the production of the 6 x ltl armoured cars based upon cOQ-t rcltIl chassis lIas sleppcd up but these were to be replaced by the new 8 x ~ version as soon as possible After disc ussions I~ith the Ordnance Department production readin ess wa s to be obt31ned bet(l en 1935 and 1936 provided enoulh funds I~ere t13de available

In 1933 developoe nt work started based upltln previous experience and the addi tional knOW-hOW gatnod in the develo pcent of t he so-called Elnheltstypen A new cllaSlgtis tile Aclltrad iQen (sKh 023) was the res ult (a II ed type CSmiddot by Its Clanuiacturer Buesslng-NIC o( Lelp7ig-Wah ren t he devc loplfl nt of this 8 x 8 chassis was concluded beheen 1934 and 1935 The vehic le had Illdependent whec l sllspension wa equ l pJred llh dqh l -wheel d r ive and ei~h t-nhee l stcering On the re ar end of a ve ry sturdy convcntl ona fr ) a Bucssln1 eight-c) li nder V t ype gasoline c llqlne tPC L8V was Installo(l hile dual steerin~ r chall ism for fOlgtllir d ltJnd reverse driv ing at full speed cortpleted this speci ch assis ChiliSis weight on(lunted to 4120 kp Origlncdly the engine had an output of 150 lIP allowing iI top speed of 51 mph (82 KII) Fighting weight of the vehicle IilS 85 L OOutlche Werke AG In Kiel s responsibl e for the develo pme nt of the Ilflnourd vehitie while assemb ly also took place at the plant of F Schlehau in Elbing Th ese vehicles were representa~le of the h09vy standaro equipclOnt for Goran armoured r(gtc(lnnaissanci unit S unt 1 the end of 11011 War II Officiall y Issued to the troops tere the following versi(ln s

a Sch~er ( r 19~zersp1eh~ltIln (SdKfz 231)(8-Rad) b Schlfere r Pancerspaeh JJen (Sd f1- 232)(Fu)(B-RadJ

Heavy smoured r((onnais sance car (SdKfz 232)(Rltldio)(BvheeitdJ (SuboCt of this Bellona print) SchllererPanze rSfIllhllagen (75c - )(SdKfz 233)

d Panze r fun In~agen (Sol K [z 263)( 8 -R arJ)

Th basic 3t(IIour of ~~ese vehIcles 3S betw~en 10 afd 14 5 met bo th Lh~ Sd K(- 31 and 232 Icr c ex te rn ally identical excep t for t heir Tadlo antennae Arnarte nt eOnshted o f a 2 till KI1 J) and an IoG34 In 8 JtO deqree tr ave rse turret The COllrlanclt r sa t on tile It l t of t he tu rre t and )urlfler to t he rigllt (ro lll whcre he operated the st6cr ing Ivheel t ype traversc Jcar El eva tion IltltIS by pUSh pull contro l on tile same unit n tc re we re t~O indepenrJelH hrdr3ulic tirlnq S)st(~s fo r the MG al l OW ing it t o be fired I t her along- with the 2 cm or on Its own

Both vehicles had a four man crew Tnt first prOduction batch of t hese veh i cles was completed In februa ry 1940 and the SrJ Kfc 232 )5 o~ly produc ed until )y 1940 A second series was co~nced 1n the fall of that )ear

The rJrBdn~ represe nts an early IIOdel Ihlcl h(ls beln ritt td wI th the s(I-callCd P~kschutz hol ted La t he front of some vchicle s durin) the war to provide aQditional amour prO lect ion Late product ioll lOOolel s of the first series IncOrporHed jmprov (middot J i~lon ports and some even lh e exteral gll1l mante l Mequilte protection as aclli e-cd fo r tile radiato r by rcplJc ing the grill wi th an aTlO urcd duct Wad ing f ac ili t i es were Improveltl so tha t up to 3 ~ ( 100 el ) could be nego tiated

The per forf lnce of thc LeV en~lne was in c reas ed to 100 HP by enlar~lnJ the bore and hen this improved engine lias fI tted a road speed of nearly 02 loI PH (WO KIoI PH) Later vehicles such as s hon In our photolJrlph hld all th e-s t ir rovtu 1l1S 3nd In addit ion the final production IOde ls had a redesigned frontal lrmou r Jgt fll11 plats Incorporated in l ayout hich (15 later adoptcd for the SdKfz 231 spr ics The 2c III toil 38 no replaced th e K)oK ))

Th-- Sd Kf-233 consisted of 8 convcrtampd vehiCle wlth the turret r emolcd and 8 75 0111 KwK L24 JOO unllrI In the f ront plate This vers ion served fro m l aLt 11)41 as a close support vehic le Thc SdKfz 203 Radio vehiCle had (I

he ighten ed f1poundhling CO f )DUnt that fo rmed a rllld t urret The arma~nt consisted of only onc lG 34 Thi s veh icl e however had a fhe Jan c r ew IInu WltlS excllslYe l y a~sellb leu by the Dcu tschc crkE in liol Produc t io n ceased In Jilnua ry 1942 The product jon cilpacity re l eased by t he ab(lOdonment of the SdKh 232 lIId 203 Iodels was taken up ith the fII SPW SltI K fz 25 1 sfl lrack personnel ehicle ~Bellona Ser ies 2 10 7g) Produc t ion of a ll othe r eight wheel standard units was s topped du ri n4) he )car o f 1912 wh ik prodlletion o f the Ul e n~ine con tlnlld unti l 1914 In 1943 the tas ks 01 th~ eight wheeled Einheitsagen ~aS token Oer by the ncgt SdKfz 23lt1 scrips

poundellnlcal s peciflcatlon for Schncr PanzHspaehICIgen (Sf1 Kfz 232) (Fu) O-r a(1

(Vehicle sllown In drawing) ~chanlc31 Details

WCilt]ht laden 82 to nS_ 85 tOllne Eng ine 6 116ss lnl] M G LeV 7lt)1 ljtre C(c 4 6 cn f)O dClrec -tye

PeLrol Oli decIOplnl 155 bhpat1JOIJ rp m

b fonarrJ and rev e r _ Speed Mex Road 51 mph (82 KmPH) (3 spoEd box loith highlo ratio reHISable)

Cr os country 19li lIl ph (3Ll Suspc- nslon Inverted sf i-eIJlptlCal leaf springs

~8X ~rltldlent 27 deg re es rench 4_ (124 elll) Brakes Ioleehanlcal

Step 1-7 (48) f o r d in9 2 0 (61) Tllrnin9 CHc le 37 -5 (1 1 4 D4lTaS) Ran~e 186 106 ~i1es lt300170 Km) I x 2 cn KJon( xl wi th 180 Rds In 10 Rd 13lS

fu e l capJci ty Internal ~lai n lank 24Jals (iDB lltres) 1 x 7lt)2 IlIII1 a)G3 lt1 coaxial with

1125 Rd s In 75 Rd ~la3sAudllary Lank 6 gals (ll litrES)

Elevation plus 26 minu s 10 degrees

I x q mt 4P 38 with 192 RdsLeno)th ovcral 21-0 tb52 em) Lenl)tll o f hull 19middoto~ (580) Widt 7 -3 (220) HeiQht Inc an t ennD 9 -~~~ (29) Hei qh l 7 -10 (238) 1oanlel 15 lUll

Ground c l earHlce 11 (26) Front platts 145 ImII

Hull sidrs Olllll

lhee l b3se 13-5l (410) Wheel ~rack 5 -42 (lbil

Hull l O]) G Belly 5 IItIl

Bogl e Dast lt-1 -5 (135) EngJne s ides ltInd rcar 10 men Turret sides 8 nnBQo)le CcnLres 9o~ (275) Turret tOp 5 unheel size 210 IItII x 18

bull

Q

o 0

Llght Tank MSAl General Stuart m and IV Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foot) DrawD by D P Dyer

I

BELLONA PRINrS SERIES 12 No 46a

LIGHT TANK M3AI GEN ERAL STUART 111 and IV (1942)

The dovelopment of the Amertcan M 3 series of light tanka can be traced through preceedtng models back to the British Vickers Armstrong Six Ton Tank of 1928 as an original concept

Out of the many tens of thousandB of tacks produced in the U S A during the second World War the Stuart was the flrst to see action Eighty four were included in the flrst del1verles of arms to the Middle East Wldor Lend Lease in July 1941 By the time of OPeration Crusader to drive Rommel back from T obruk In November 1941 various cortingents of the British 4th Armou red Brigade had been equipped with 163 of them These were used t o r eptace the A9s AIOs and A13s many of which had been abandoned due to mechanical failure lthiring the abortive Greek ~ampaign or lost during the Axis thrust to rega tn Cyrenaica

A story goes that after a unit had been Jssued wUh their Orat Stuarts and bad put them through their pace8 (during the course of which they tried evor)thing that would have thron tbe tracks of a BriUsh Tank) a driver was asked what he thou ght of his new mount It s a Honey he replied The term stuck and from then on became the name by which they were affectionately known

WhUst being classed as a light tank by the Americans its weight was comparable to earl y British Cruiser Tanks Comparison to the Heavy Cruiser Mk VI c r usader 1 which weighed 5~ more shows the stuart to be evenl y matched although ~hls on1y held true when tbe C rusade r was fitted with the 2 pdr Armour thickness was somewhat similar speed was greater and the 37mm of the Stuart was a better anti-tank gun than the 2pdr as well as having the advantage of belng able to fire H E and Cannister she ll s

Many writers have derided the 37mm M6 as a similar pea shooter to the 2pdr but both of the ae guns were superior in Armour to pierclng qualities to both the Scm L42 fUted to the Pt Kpfw III up to mid 1942 and the 7 Scm L 24 which were mounted in the Pz Kpfw IV WltU the introduction of the KwK 40 also in 1942 a nd these were the German MedIum IUld Heavy Tanks of the poriod

When the Pz Kpfw 111 fir st appeared in North Africa wuh the D A K many British Cruiser tanks had a maxImum armour thickness of only ISmm which could be pIerced by the 5cm fitted to the Pz Kpfw 111 at ranges exceeding 2000 yda The Pz Kpfw tll and IV at this same period had a maximum armou r thlcknesa of 30mm which Iequired a 2pdr a rmed tank to c lose to 1 000 yards t o obtaln penetration The 37mm of the Stuart however could penetrate t he 30mm armour o f the Germans at range~ up to 2000 yards and as Us f(ontal a rmour thickness of 3Smm was effective against the 5cm L42 at anything over 750 yards and the 7 Scm L24 at ranges ove r 500 yards the position for a short whUe was r eversed completely

What it took t he British and Commonwealth troops s o long to realise after Rominel came on the Rcene and during the int roduction of the Crusader Stua rt and Grant and cont inued use of the ldatllda was that it wasn t the German tanks whlch took such a toll of thelr tanks but the Anti-tank guns These antl-tank guns the Germans eUher moved forward with their tanks or used from ambusb positions with their tanks as decoys Had the Britlsh develope d an Armour piercing shell for the 37 AA gun sooner this weapon could have been used in a slmilnr capacity to the German Eighty Eight and the outcome of many desert battles might have been a lot dUrerent

It can the r efore be concluded t hat when the M 3 Stuart 1 and il first appeared In action In 1941 they were one of the most e ffective tanks of any type in the desert However due to the Ge rmans promptly increasing the fire power and armour protection of their tanks this advanlage was quickly lost and they reverted to what they were or iginally designed as name ly r eliable reasonably well armed and armoured faol light tanks

Whilst being basically slmUar the main external difference between late production Light Tlnks M3 and theM3AI was the absence of a cupola Removal of this cupola resulted in a lowe r silhouette and helped coonte ract the Tall In the saddle description which 80 aptly described the earlier modeL Other modiflcations included power traverse (or the turret enabl ing a tunel baske t to be fitted The gun was rlued with a stabili seI In elevation to lncrea se accuracy whU st fir ing when in motion and the sponson mounted 30 cal m g s were rem oved

Production of the M3AI c ommenced in June 1942 overlapping the final few month-s production of the M3 which wa s produced by the same manufacturer The American Car and Foundry Co Before a change over to production of Us successor the M3A3 in Janu8lY 1943 a tolal of 4621 had been produced lncluding 211 wHh Diesel engines known as Stuart IV

An American Light tank M3Al with all rivened const ruction is ava ilable in the Bellona Colour Sheet Series

T echnical s pecification for Light Tank M3AI Stuart mIt

Crew 4 Suspension Vertica l volute spring T wo double Weight 2S 515 Jbs (12 7 lo~ tons wheel bogies each s ide and three return

143 short tons 125 tonnes) r oll ers Trailillg Idler

Performance Armament 1 x 37mm gun MS LS7 stabilised in elevation

Speed Max Road 36 mph (58 kmph) mounted in 3600 power traverse tUrret

Max Gradient 260

3x 30cal m gs(bow co-axtal and Al A) Fording Depth 42 (101cm) Trench Crossing 6 (1S3cm)

Ammunition StowageTurning Radius 21 (64 metres) step 24 (61cm) 111 rOWlds 370lm Range 60 mUes (96km) 7000 rounds 30 cal Fuel Capactty 50 gals imper1a1 (56 gals U S 227 lUres)

Armour - Rolled Plate except where menUoned

Lower middotFront Cast 2 (Slmm) at 200 to 900

Length overallinclucUng shovel 1410 (452 cm) Upper nose ~ (1301m) at 68 0

Width 76 (229cm) Dr ivers Front Ii (380101)He ight to tu rret top 74 (223c m)

Ground Clearance 13 (3Scm) Sides 1 (2Smm) at 00

Track on Ground 97 (290cm) Track Width 11t (29 cm) Deck 38 (lOmm) at 900

No of links 66 Floor 3S and i (10mm and 12rom) at 900

Rear Upper~ (19mm) at 00 to 600 Mechanical Details

Rear Lower 1 (25mm) at 190

Engine I x Cont inental model W670-9A Petrol TUrret Front 2 (Slrom) at 100

7 cyliodor all cooled radial 250 hp at 2400 r pm Turret Sides and rear 1i (38mm) at 00

Gearbox Synchromesh 5 forward 1 reverse T urret Top 38 (lOmm) at 75 and 900

Stee rinp Controlled different ial

bull

A l ale prodlt1on Sd Kh 231 8 r ad o f the 7th Pan7er Divi s ion The pOSitlOn of tbe ae r i al on the t urret Iias t he sant fO T ul l Sd Kh 231 cars f roll 1937 The l llTje pO le af r ill l on tbe right band Si de appear ed lfte r the SdKiz 32 (Fu) Ith lu cumbersome lntenna was clnctll(-d Comparr Ihc v i sion S lots lind tail cover t o l h( Chicle In th d ra~d nlJ In all tbe re we re 1 2 35 vehlc)s of ~hj s scrle~ pr oduced ( WARPICS r HO TO)

COtR I LUSTfl ATI ON This is one of th e Earl y Schwt r er Pln7erspaehwllJ tmiddotn (SdKf7 43 ) ( til ) J r ad slrolll r to th at In tile st ille drlliln g However thi s vehicl e has no t bee n fitted 1( i th t he Paks chut7 add lt ional o r~u r hl ch on ly appe ared In t(r I t is s hown in t he culoun on vehicl es us e d for the Polish call1po ig n i n 1939 The bas ic colo ur is the da r k blue grey thllt had bee n standard fro ll 1935 The IJTJfo lIhlte Ba lken Krcuz Nt atlop lt~ tI 113 th E Pll nlttl r Ident if icat ion lIa rl ng$ for tb i s Hrs l opera ti on of middotU l l tzkr te so as to minleise on the possluilito of Ge r man unlu been at ist3~(n espe cially by the Luftwafft p i lots u the eneill) Vs ri OLls olh~r 113 r kl n s Show it to bclonJ to t he s i gn(l l unit of a ~Qto rize d Infanlr y Regi rwn t n nUlllbc r pla te and to t cnkopr (Oenhs head) JTov e lhi s to be onE of the wrrcn SS bri Olld~S in vo lved in t he in vas ion o f po la nd

BTiush Irmy Gene ral Stuart III (H oney) In -md colou led dese rt camounage

Schwerer Panzerspaehwagen (Sd Kfz 23 2) (Fu) (S-Rad) Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foo t) Drawn by H L Doyle

I

BELLDNA PRI ~1S SERIES 12 No 45lt1

SCHIfoIRE PANZERSPAEHWAGEN AUf 8-RAO EIiHEJTSWAGEN

HISTORICAL RESEARCH SY ~ J SPIELCERGER

The ne~d f(lr ratoriwd r eeon nlisunec units 119r le(l upon in the lale 19))$ established tho dOrnind f(lr procureoent of mo dern arQO urld reconnai ssance vehicles AVl)llahle lt thit tir~ Kere only a limited number of ir-oured troop carri ers al1eltd under the Treaty of Versailles They proved to be usel ess for their intended purpose To fill the I lIIIIediate ne ed eOllllerc llll 6 x 4 ch assis equipped dth arro llred bodies (IJaimler-BcnZ ond Buessing-llAG) were used Their cross -country abi lity_ hOlcver Ias severely restrict ed and iproved vehicl es had to be created Thes e liere to be based upon the experience gained with the multi-heel-vehlcles (VicradlgtlageJ) deve loped in secrecy from lQ20 to 1929 (DaiIllle r-8enz and ~a~irus eght-whee l 8ues~iny-NAG ten whee l vehicles) These poueued QIIplo cross -tount ry pe rformance and adeQllate Sf)(fd ra nges when street-bound

The o ri yinaL objections tha t veh ic les of thi s naure lIe re too costl) to produce conslderinq ~he econolJlic a l conditions In Ce rmany at that tillle WIS overruled In 1932 especially in vie of the lr~enc~ connect~d with the procurerl nt of SUCh vehi cles An annu al productiOn quota of 18 uni ti I~a s established

In the Teantime the production of the 6 x ltl armoured cars based upon cOQ-t rcltIl chassis lIas sleppcd up but these were to be replaced by the new 8 x ~ version as soon as possible After disc ussions I~ith the Ordnance Department production readin ess wa s to be obt31ned bet(l en 1935 and 1936 provided enoulh funds I~ere t13de available

In 1933 developoe nt work started based upltln previous experience and the addi tional knOW-hOW gatnod in the develo pcent of t he so-called Elnheltstypen A new cllaSlgtis tile Aclltrad iQen (sKh 023) was the res ult (a II ed type CSmiddot by Its Clanuiacturer Buesslng-NIC o( Lelp7ig-Wah ren t he devc loplfl nt of this 8 x 8 chassis was concluded beheen 1934 and 1935 The vehic le had Illdependent whec l sllspension wa equ l pJred llh dqh l -wheel d r ive and ei~h t-nhee l stcering On the re ar end of a ve ry sturdy convcntl ona fr ) a Bucssln1 eight-c) li nder V t ype gasoline c llqlne tPC L8V was Installo(l hile dual steerin~ r chall ism for fOlgtllir d ltJnd reverse driv ing at full speed cortpleted this speci ch assis ChiliSis weight on(lunted to 4120 kp Origlncdly the engine had an output of 150 lIP allowing iI top speed of 51 mph (82 KII) Fighting weight of the vehicle IilS 85 L OOutlche Werke AG In Kiel s responsibl e for the develo pme nt of the Ilflnourd vehitie while assemb ly also took place at the plant of F Schlehau in Elbing Th ese vehicles were representa~le of the h09vy standaro equipclOnt for Goran armoured r(gtc(lnnaissanci unit S unt 1 the end of 11011 War II Officiall y Issued to the troops tere the following versi(ln s

a Sch~er ( r 19~zersp1eh~ltIln (SdKfz 231)(8-Rad) b Schlfere r Pancerspaeh JJen (Sd f1- 232)(Fu)(B-RadJ

Heavy smoured r((onnais sance car (SdKfz 232)(Rltldio)(BvheeitdJ (SuboCt of this Bellona print) SchllererPanze rSfIllhllagen (75c - )(SdKfz 233)

d Panze r fun In~agen (Sol K [z 263)( 8 -R arJ)

Th basic 3t(IIour of ~~ese vehIcles 3S betw~en 10 afd 14 5 met bo th Lh~ Sd K(- 31 and 232 Icr c ex te rn ally identical excep t for t heir Tadlo antennae Arnarte nt eOnshted o f a 2 till KI1 J) and an IoG34 In 8 JtO deqree tr ave rse turret The COllrlanclt r sa t on tile It l t of t he tu rre t and )urlfler to t he rigllt (ro lll whcre he operated the st6cr ing Ivheel t ype traversc Jcar El eva tion IltltIS by pUSh pull contro l on tile same unit n tc re we re t~O indepenrJelH hrdr3ulic tirlnq S)st(~s fo r the MG al l OW ing it t o be fired I t her along- with the 2 cm or on Its own

Both vehicles had a four man crew Tnt first prOduction batch of t hese veh i cles was completed In februa ry 1940 and the SrJ Kfc 232 )5 o~ly produc ed until )y 1940 A second series was co~nced 1n the fall of that )ear

The rJrBdn~ represe nts an early IIOdel Ihlcl h(ls beln ritt td wI th the s(I-callCd P~kschutz hol ted La t he front of some vchicle s durin) the war to provide aQditional amour prO lect ion Late product ioll lOOolel s of the first series IncOrporHed jmprov (middot J i~lon ports and some even lh e exteral gll1l mante l Mequilte protection as aclli e-cd fo r tile radiato r by rcplJc ing the grill wi th an aTlO urcd duct Wad ing f ac ili t i es were Improveltl so tha t up to 3 ~ ( 100 el ) could be nego tiated

The per forf lnce of thc LeV en~lne was in c reas ed to 100 HP by enlar~lnJ the bore and hen this improved engine lias fI tted a road speed of nearly 02 loI PH (WO KIoI PH) Later vehicles such as s hon In our photolJrlph hld all th e-s t ir rovtu 1l1S 3nd In addit ion the final production IOde ls had a redesigned frontal lrmou r Jgt fll11 plats Incorporated in l ayout hich (15 later adoptcd for the SdKfz 231 spr ics The 2c III toil 38 no replaced th e K)oK ))

Th-- Sd Kf-233 consisted of 8 convcrtampd vehiCle wlth the turret r emolcd and 8 75 0111 KwK L24 JOO unllrI In the f ront plate This vers ion served fro m l aLt 11)41 as a close support vehic le Thc SdKfz 203 Radio vehiCle had (I

he ighten ed f1poundhling CO f )DUnt that fo rmed a rllld t urret The arma~nt consisted of only onc lG 34 Thi s veh icl e however had a fhe Jan c r ew IInu WltlS excllslYe l y a~sellb leu by the Dcu tschc crkE in liol Produc t io n ceased In Jilnua ry 1942 The product jon cilpacity re l eased by t he ab(lOdonment of the SdKh 232 lIId 203 Iodels was taken up ith the fII SPW SltI K fz 25 1 sfl lrack personnel ehicle ~Bellona Ser ies 2 10 7g) Produc t ion of a ll othe r eight wheel standard units was s topped du ri n4) he )car o f 1912 wh ik prodlletion o f the Ul e n~ine con tlnlld unti l 1914 In 1943 the tas ks 01 th~ eight wheeled Einheitsagen ~aS token Oer by the ncgt SdKfz 23lt1 scrips

poundellnlcal s peciflcatlon for Schncr PanzHspaehICIgen (Sf1 Kfz 232) (Fu) O-r a(1

(Vehicle sllown In drawing) ~chanlc31 Details

WCilt]ht laden 82 to nS_ 85 tOllne Eng ine 6 116ss lnl] M G LeV 7lt)1 ljtre C(c 4 6 cn f)O dClrec -tye

PeLrol Oli decIOplnl 155 bhpat1JOIJ rp m

b fonarrJ and rev e r _ Speed Mex Road 51 mph (82 KmPH) (3 spoEd box loith highlo ratio reHISable)

Cr os country 19li lIl ph (3Ll Suspc- nslon Inverted sf i-eIJlptlCal leaf springs

~8X ~rltldlent 27 deg re es rench 4_ (124 elll) Brakes Ioleehanlcal

Step 1-7 (48) f o r d in9 2 0 (61) Tllrnin9 CHc le 37 -5 (1 1 4 D4lTaS) Ran~e 186 106 ~i1es lt300170 Km) I x 2 cn KJon( xl wi th 180 Rds In 10 Rd 13lS

fu e l capJci ty Internal ~lai n lank 24Jals (iDB lltres) 1 x 7lt)2 IlIII1 a)G3 lt1 coaxial with

1125 Rd s In 75 Rd ~la3sAudllary Lank 6 gals (ll litrES)

Elevation plus 26 minu s 10 degrees

I x q mt 4P 38 with 192 RdsLeno)th ovcral 21-0 tb52 em) Lenl)tll o f hull 19middoto~ (580) Widt 7 -3 (220) HeiQht Inc an t ennD 9 -~~~ (29) Hei qh l 7 -10 (238) 1oanlel 15 lUll

Ground c l earHlce 11 (26) Front platts 145 ImII

Hull sidrs Olllll

lhee l b3se 13-5l (410) Wheel ~rack 5 -42 (lbil

Hull l O]) G Belly 5 IItIl

Bogl e Dast lt-1 -5 (135) EngJne s ides ltInd rcar 10 men Turret sides 8 nnBQo)le CcnLres 9o~ (275) Turret tOp 5 unheel size 210 IItII x 18

bull

Q

o 0

Llght Tank MSAl General Stuart m and IV Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foot) DrawD by D P Dyer

I

BELLONA PRINrS SERIES 12 No 46a

LIGHT TANK M3AI GEN ERAL STUART 111 and IV (1942)

The dovelopment of the Amertcan M 3 series of light tanka can be traced through preceedtng models back to the British Vickers Armstrong Six Ton Tank of 1928 as an original concept

Out of the many tens of thousandB of tacks produced in the U S A during the second World War the Stuart was the flrst to see action Eighty four were included in the flrst del1verles of arms to the Middle East Wldor Lend Lease in July 1941 By the time of OPeration Crusader to drive Rommel back from T obruk In November 1941 various cortingents of the British 4th Armou red Brigade had been equipped with 163 of them These were used t o r eptace the A9s AIOs and A13s many of which had been abandoned due to mechanical failure lthiring the abortive Greek ~ampaign or lost during the Axis thrust to rega tn Cyrenaica

A story goes that after a unit had been Jssued wUh their Orat Stuarts and bad put them through their pace8 (during the course of which they tried evor)thing that would have thron tbe tracks of a BriUsh Tank) a driver was asked what he thou ght of his new mount It s a Honey he replied The term stuck and from then on became the name by which they were affectionately known

WhUst being classed as a light tank by the Americans its weight was comparable to earl y British Cruiser Tanks Comparison to the Heavy Cruiser Mk VI c r usader 1 which weighed 5~ more shows the stuart to be evenl y matched although ~hls on1y held true when tbe C rusade r was fitted with the 2 pdr Armour thickness was somewhat similar speed was greater and the 37mm of the Stuart was a better anti-tank gun than the 2pdr as well as having the advantage of belng able to fire H E and Cannister she ll s

Many writers have derided the 37mm M6 as a similar pea shooter to the 2pdr but both of the ae guns were superior in Armour to pierclng qualities to both the Scm L42 fUted to the Pt Kpfw III up to mid 1942 and the 7 Scm L 24 which were mounted in the Pz Kpfw IV WltU the introduction of the KwK 40 also in 1942 a nd these were the German MedIum IUld Heavy Tanks of the poriod

When the Pz Kpfw 111 fir st appeared in North Africa wuh the D A K many British Cruiser tanks had a maxImum armour thickness of only ISmm which could be pIerced by the 5cm fitted to the Pz Kpfw 111 at ranges exceeding 2000 yda The Pz Kpfw tll and IV at this same period had a maximum armou r thlcknesa of 30mm which Iequired a 2pdr a rmed tank to c lose to 1 000 yards t o obtaln penetration The 37mm of the Stuart however could penetrate t he 30mm armour o f the Germans at range~ up to 2000 yards and as Us f(ontal a rmour thickness of 3Smm was effective against the 5cm L42 at anything over 750 yards and the 7 Scm L24 at ranges ove r 500 yards the position for a short whUe was r eversed completely

What it took t he British and Commonwealth troops s o long to realise after Rominel came on the Rcene and during the int roduction of the Crusader Stua rt and Grant and cont inued use of the ldatllda was that it wasn t the German tanks whlch took such a toll of thelr tanks but the Anti-tank guns These antl-tank guns the Germans eUher moved forward with their tanks or used from ambusb positions with their tanks as decoys Had the Britlsh develope d an Armour piercing shell for the 37 AA gun sooner this weapon could have been used in a slmilnr capacity to the German Eighty Eight and the outcome of many desert battles might have been a lot dUrerent

It can the r efore be concluded t hat when the M 3 Stuart 1 and il first appeared In action In 1941 they were one of the most e ffective tanks of any type in the desert However due to the Ge rmans promptly increasing the fire power and armour protection of their tanks this advanlage was quickly lost and they reverted to what they were or iginally designed as name ly r eliable reasonably well armed and armoured faol light tanks

Whilst being basically slmUar the main external difference between late production Light Tlnks M3 and theM3AI was the absence of a cupola Removal of this cupola resulted in a lowe r silhouette and helped coonte ract the Tall In the saddle description which 80 aptly described the earlier modeL Other modiflcations included power traverse (or the turret enabl ing a tunel baske t to be fitted The gun was rlued with a stabili seI In elevation to lncrea se accuracy whU st fir ing when in motion and the sponson mounted 30 cal m g s were rem oved

Production of the M3AI c ommenced in June 1942 overlapping the final few month-s production of the M3 which wa s produced by the same manufacturer The American Car and Foundry Co Before a change over to production of Us successor the M3A3 in Janu8lY 1943 a tolal of 4621 had been produced lncluding 211 wHh Diesel engines known as Stuart IV

An American Light tank M3Al with all rivened const ruction is ava ilable in the Bellona Colour Sheet Series

T echnical s pecification for Light Tank M3AI Stuart mIt

Crew 4 Suspension Vertica l volute spring T wo double Weight 2S 515 Jbs (12 7 lo~ tons wheel bogies each s ide and three return

143 short tons 125 tonnes) r oll ers Trailillg Idler

Performance Armament 1 x 37mm gun MS LS7 stabilised in elevation

Speed Max Road 36 mph (58 kmph) mounted in 3600 power traverse tUrret

Max Gradient 260

3x 30cal m gs(bow co-axtal and Al A) Fording Depth 42 (101cm) Trench Crossing 6 (1S3cm)

Ammunition StowageTurning Radius 21 (64 metres) step 24 (61cm) 111 rOWlds 370lm Range 60 mUes (96km) 7000 rounds 30 cal Fuel Capactty 50 gals imper1a1 (56 gals U S 227 lUres)

Armour - Rolled Plate except where menUoned

Lower middotFront Cast 2 (Slmm) at 200 to 900

Length overallinclucUng shovel 1410 (452 cm) Upper nose ~ (1301m) at 68 0

Width 76 (229cm) Dr ivers Front Ii (380101)He ight to tu rret top 74 (223c m)

Ground Clearance 13 (3Scm) Sides 1 (2Smm) at 00

Track on Ground 97 (290cm) Track Width 11t (29 cm) Deck 38 (lOmm) at 900

No of links 66 Floor 3S and i (10mm and 12rom) at 900

Rear Upper~ (19mm) at 00 to 600 Mechanical Details

Rear Lower 1 (25mm) at 190

Engine I x Cont inental model W670-9A Petrol TUrret Front 2 (Slrom) at 100

7 cyliodor all cooled radial 250 hp at 2400 r pm Turret Sides and rear 1i (38mm) at 00

Gearbox Synchromesh 5 forward 1 reverse T urret Top 38 (lOmm) at 75 and 900

Stee rinp Controlled different ial

bull

Schwerer Panzerspaehwagen (Sd Kfz 23 2) (Fu) (S-Rad) Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foo t) Drawn by H L Doyle

I

BELLDNA PRI ~1S SERIES 12 No 45lt1

SCHIfoIRE PANZERSPAEHWAGEN AUf 8-RAO EIiHEJTSWAGEN

HISTORICAL RESEARCH SY ~ J SPIELCERGER

The ne~d f(lr ratoriwd r eeon nlisunec units 119r le(l upon in the lale 19))$ established tho dOrnind f(lr procureoent of mo dern arQO urld reconnai ssance vehicles AVl)llahle lt thit tir~ Kere only a limited number of ir-oured troop carri ers al1eltd under the Treaty of Versailles They proved to be usel ess for their intended purpose To fill the I lIIIIediate ne ed eOllllerc llll 6 x 4 ch assis equipped dth arro llred bodies (IJaimler-BcnZ ond Buessing-llAG) were used Their cross -country abi lity_ hOlcver Ias severely restrict ed and iproved vehicl es had to be created Thes e liere to be based upon the experience gained with the multi-heel-vehlcles (VicradlgtlageJ) deve loped in secrecy from lQ20 to 1929 (DaiIllle r-8enz and ~a~irus eght-whee l 8ues~iny-NAG ten whee l vehicles) These poueued QIIplo cross -tount ry pe rformance and adeQllate Sf)(fd ra nges when street-bound

The o ri yinaL objections tha t veh ic les of thi s naure lIe re too costl) to produce conslderinq ~he econolJlic a l conditions In Ce rmany at that tillle WIS overruled In 1932 especially in vie of the lr~enc~ connect~d with the procurerl nt of SUCh vehi cles An annu al productiOn quota of 18 uni ti I~a s established

In the Teantime the production of the 6 x ltl armoured cars based upon cOQ-t rcltIl chassis lIas sleppcd up but these were to be replaced by the new 8 x ~ version as soon as possible After disc ussions I~ith the Ordnance Department production readin ess wa s to be obt31ned bet(l en 1935 and 1936 provided enoulh funds I~ere t13de available

In 1933 developoe nt work started based upltln previous experience and the addi tional knOW-hOW gatnod in the develo pcent of t he so-called Elnheltstypen A new cllaSlgtis tile Aclltrad iQen (sKh 023) was the res ult (a II ed type CSmiddot by Its Clanuiacturer Buesslng-NIC o( Lelp7ig-Wah ren t he devc loplfl nt of this 8 x 8 chassis was concluded beheen 1934 and 1935 The vehic le had Illdependent whec l sllspension wa equ l pJred llh dqh l -wheel d r ive and ei~h t-nhee l stcering On the re ar end of a ve ry sturdy convcntl ona fr ) a Bucssln1 eight-c) li nder V t ype gasoline c llqlne tPC L8V was Installo(l hile dual steerin~ r chall ism for fOlgtllir d ltJnd reverse driv ing at full speed cortpleted this speci ch assis ChiliSis weight on(lunted to 4120 kp Origlncdly the engine had an output of 150 lIP allowing iI top speed of 51 mph (82 KII) Fighting weight of the vehicle IilS 85 L OOutlche Werke AG In Kiel s responsibl e for the develo pme nt of the Ilflnourd vehitie while assemb ly also took place at the plant of F Schlehau in Elbing Th ese vehicles were representa~le of the h09vy standaro equipclOnt for Goran armoured r(gtc(lnnaissanci unit S unt 1 the end of 11011 War II Officiall y Issued to the troops tere the following versi(ln s

a Sch~er ( r 19~zersp1eh~ltIln (SdKfz 231)(8-Rad) b Schlfere r Pancerspaeh JJen (Sd f1- 232)(Fu)(B-RadJ

Heavy smoured r((onnais sance car (SdKfz 232)(Rltldio)(BvheeitdJ (SuboCt of this Bellona print) SchllererPanze rSfIllhllagen (75c - )(SdKfz 233)

d Panze r fun In~agen (Sol K [z 263)( 8 -R arJ)

Th basic 3t(IIour of ~~ese vehIcles 3S betw~en 10 afd 14 5 met bo th Lh~ Sd K(- 31 and 232 Icr c ex te rn ally identical excep t for t heir Tadlo antennae Arnarte nt eOnshted o f a 2 till KI1 J) and an IoG34 In 8 JtO deqree tr ave rse turret The COllrlanclt r sa t on tile It l t of t he tu rre t and )urlfler to t he rigllt (ro lll whcre he operated the st6cr ing Ivheel t ype traversc Jcar El eva tion IltltIS by pUSh pull contro l on tile same unit n tc re we re t~O indepenrJelH hrdr3ulic tirlnq S)st(~s fo r the MG al l OW ing it t o be fired I t her along- with the 2 cm or on Its own

Both vehicles had a four man crew Tnt first prOduction batch of t hese veh i cles was completed In februa ry 1940 and the SrJ Kfc 232 )5 o~ly produc ed until )y 1940 A second series was co~nced 1n the fall of that )ear

The rJrBdn~ represe nts an early IIOdel Ihlcl h(ls beln ritt td wI th the s(I-callCd P~kschutz hol ted La t he front of some vchicle s durin) the war to provide aQditional amour prO lect ion Late product ioll lOOolel s of the first series IncOrporHed jmprov (middot J i~lon ports and some even lh e exteral gll1l mante l Mequilte protection as aclli e-cd fo r tile radiato r by rcplJc ing the grill wi th an aTlO urcd duct Wad ing f ac ili t i es were Improveltl so tha t up to 3 ~ ( 100 el ) could be nego tiated

The per forf lnce of thc LeV en~lne was in c reas ed to 100 HP by enlar~lnJ the bore and hen this improved engine lias fI tted a road speed of nearly 02 loI PH (WO KIoI PH) Later vehicles such as s hon In our photolJrlph hld all th e-s t ir rovtu 1l1S 3nd In addit ion the final production IOde ls had a redesigned frontal lrmou r Jgt fll11 plats Incorporated in l ayout hich (15 later adoptcd for the SdKfz 231 spr ics The 2c III toil 38 no replaced th e K)oK ))

Th-- Sd Kf-233 consisted of 8 convcrtampd vehiCle wlth the turret r emolcd and 8 75 0111 KwK L24 JOO unllrI In the f ront plate This vers ion served fro m l aLt 11)41 as a close support vehic le Thc SdKfz 203 Radio vehiCle had (I

he ighten ed f1poundhling CO f )DUnt that fo rmed a rllld t urret The arma~nt consisted of only onc lG 34 Thi s veh icl e however had a fhe Jan c r ew IInu WltlS excllslYe l y a~sellb leu by the Dcu tschc crkE in liol Produc t io n ceased In Jilnua ry 1942 The product jon cilpacity re l eased by t he ab(lOdonment of the SdKh 232 lIId 203 Iodels was taken up ith the fII SPW SltI K fz 25 1 sfl lrack personnel ehicle ~Bellona Ser ies 2 10 7g) Produc t ion of a ll othe r eight wheel standard units was s topped du ri n4) he )car o f 1912 wh ik prodlletion o f the Ul e n~ine con tlnlld unti l 1914 In 1943 the tas ks 01 th~ eight wheeled Einheitsagen ~aS token Oer by the ncgt SdKfz 23lt1 scrips

poundellnlcal s peciflcatlon for Schncr PanzHspaehICIgen (Sf1 Kfz 232) (Fu) O-r a(1

(Vehicle sllown In drawing) ~chanlc31 Details

WCilt]ht laden 82 to nS_ 85 tOllne Eng ine 6 116ss lnl] M G LeV 7lt)1 ljtre C(c 4 6 cn f)O dClrec -tye

PeLrol Oli decIOplnl 155 bhpat1JOIJ rp m

b fonarrJ and rev e r _ Speed Mex Road 51 mph (82 KmPH) (3 spoEd box loith highlo ratio reHISable)

Cr os country 19li lIl ph (3Ll Suspc- nslon Inverted sf i-eIJlptlCal leaf springs

~8X ~rltldlent 27 deg re es rench 4_ (124 elll) Brakes Ioleehanlcal

Step 1-7 (48) f o r d in9 2 0 (61) Tllrnin9 CHc le 37 -5 (1 1 4 D4lTaS) Ran~e 186 106 ~i1es lt300170 Km) I x 2 cn KJon( xl wi th 180 Rds In 10 Rd 13lS

fu e l capJci ty Internal ~lai n lank 24Jals (iDB lltres) 1 x 7lt)2 IlIII1 a)G3 lt1 coaxial with

1125 Rd s In 75 Rd ~la3sAudllary Lank 6 gals (ll litrES)

Elevation plus 26 minu s 10 degrees

I x q mt 4P 38 with 192 RdsLeno)th ovcral 21-0 tb52 em) Lenl)tll o f hull 19middoto~ (580) Widt 7 -3 (220) HeiQht Inc an t ennD 9 -~~~ (29) Hei qh l 7 -10 (238) 1oanlel 15 lUll

Ground c l earHlce 11 (26) Front platts 145 ImII

Hull sidrs Olllll

lhee l b3se 13-5l (410) Wheel ~rack 5 -42 (lbil

Hull l O]) G Belly 5 IItIl

Bogl e Dast lt-1 -5 (135) EngJne s ides ltInd rcar 10 men Turret sides 8 nnBQo)le CcnLres 9o~ (275) Turret tOp 5 unheel size 210 IItII x 18

bull

Q

o 0

Llght Tank MSAl General Stuart m and IV Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foot) DrawD by D P Dyer

I

BELLONA PRINrS SERIES 12 No 46a

LIGHT TANK M3AI GEN ERAL STUART 111 and IV (1942)

The dovelopment of the Amertcan M 3 series of light tanka can be traced through preceedtng models back to the British Vickers Armstrong Six Ton Tank of 1928 as an original concept

Out of the many tens of thousandB of tacks produced in the U S A during the second World War the Stuart was the flrst to see action Eighty four were included in the flrst del1verles of arms to the Middle East Wldor Lend Lease in July 1941 By the time of OPeration Crusader to drive Rommel back from T obruk In November 1941 various cortingents of the British 4th Armou red Brigade had been equipped with 163 of them These were used t o r eptace the A9s AIOs and A13s many of which had been abandoned due to mechanical failure lthiring the abortive Greek ~ampaign or lost during the Axis thrust to rega tn Cyrenaica

A story goes that after a unit had been Jssued wUh their Orat Stuarts and bad put them through their pace8 (during the course of which they tried evor)thing that would have thron tbe tracks of a BriUsh Tank) a driver was asked what he thou ght of his new mount It s a Honey he replied The term stuck and from then on became the name by which they were affectionately known

WhUst being classed as a light tank by the Americans its weight was comparable to earl y British Cruiser Tanks Comparison to the Heavy Cruiser Mk VI c r usader 1 which weighed 5~ more shows the stuart to be evenl y matched although ~hls on1y held true when tbe C rusade r was fitted with the 2 pdr Armour thickness was somewhat similar speed was greater and the 37mm of the Stuart was a better anti-tank gun than the 2pdr as well as having the advantage of belng able to fire H E and Cannister she ll s

Many writers have derided the 37mm M6 as a similar pea shooter to the 2pdr but both of the ae guns were superior in Armour to pierclng qualities to both the Scm L42 fUted to the Pt Kpfw III up to mid 1942 and the 7 Scm L 24 which were mounted in the Pz Kpfw IV WltU the introduction of the KwK 40 also in 1942 a nd these were the German MedIum IUld Heavy Tanks of the poriod

When the Pz Kpfw 111 fir st appeared in North Africa wuh the D A K many British Cruiser tanks had a maxImum armour thickness of only ISmm which could be pIerced by the 5cm fitted to the Pz Kpfw 111 at ranges exceeding 2000 yda The Pz Kpfw tll and IV at this same period had a maximum armou r thlcknesa of 30mm which Iequired a 2pdr a rmed tank to c lose to 1 000 yards t o obtaln penetration The 37mm of the Stuart however could penetrate t he 30mm armour o f the Germans at range~ up to 2000 yards and as Us f(ontal a rmour thickness of 3Smm was effective against the 5cm L42 at anything over 750 yards and the 7 Scm L24 at ranges ove r 500 yards the position for a short whUe was r eversed completely

What it took t he British and Commonwealth troops s o long to realise after Rominel came on the Rcene and during the int roduction of the Crusader Stua rt and Grant and cont inued use of the ldatllda was that it wasn t the German tanks whlch took such a toll of thelr tanks but the Anti-tank guns These antl-tank guns the Germans eUher moved forward with their tanks or used from ambusb positions with their tanks as decoys Had the Britlsh develope d an Armour piercing shell for the 37 AA gun sooner this weapon could have been used in a slmilnr capacity to the German Eighty Eight and the outcome of many desert battles might have been a lot dUrerent

It can the r efore be concluded t hat when the M 3 Stuart 1 and il first appeared In action In 1941 they were one of the most e ffective tanks of any type in the desert However due to the Ge rmans promptly increasing the fire power and armour protection of their tanks this advanlage was quickly lost and they reverted to what they were or iginally designed as name ly r eliable reasonably well armed and armoured faol light tanks

Whilst being basically slmUar the main external difference between late production Light Tlnks M3 and theM3AI was the absence of a cupola Removal of this cupola resulted in a lowe r silhouette and helped coonte ract the Tall In the saddle description which 80 aptly described the earlier modeL Other modiflcations included power traverse (or the turret enabl ing a tunel baske t to be fitted The gun was rlued with a stabili seI In elevation to lncrea se accuracy whU st fir ing when in motion and the sponson mounted 30 cal m g s were rem oved

Production of the M3AI c ommenced in June 1942 overlapping the final few month-s production of the M3 which wa s produced by the same manufacturer The American Car and Foundry Co Before a change over to production of Us successor the M3A3 in Janu8lY 1943 a tolal of 4621 had been produced lncluding 211 wHh Diesel engines known as Stuart IV

An American Light tank M3Al with all rivened const ruction is ava ilable in the Bellona Colour Sheet Series

T echnical s pecification for Light Tank M3AI Stuart mIt

Crew 4 Suspension Vertica l volute spring T wo double Weight 2S 515 Jbs (12 7 lo~ tons wheel bogies each s ide and three return

143 short tons 125 tonnes) r oll ers Trailillg Idler

Performance Armament 1 x 37mm gun MS LS7 stabilised in elevation

Speed Max Road 36 mph (58 kmph) mounted in 3600 power traverse tUrret

Max Gradient 260

3x 30cal m gs(bow co-axtal and Al A) Fording Depth 42 (101cm) Trench Crossing 6 (1S3cm)

Ammunition StowageTurning Radius 21 (64 metres) step 24 (61cm) 111 rOWlds 370lm Range 60 mUes (96km) 7000 rounds 30 cal Fuel Capactty 50 gals imper1a1 (56 gals U S 227 lUres)

Armour - Rolled Plate except where menUoned

Lower middotFront Cast 2 (Slmm) at 200 to 900

Length overallinclucUng shovel 1410 (452 cm) Upper nose ~ (1301m) at 68 0

Width 76 (229cm) Dr ivers Front Ii (380101)He ight to tu rret top 74 (223c m)

Ground Clearance 13 (3Scm) Sides 1 (2Smm) at 00

Track on Ground 97 (290cm) Track Width 11t (29 cm) Deck 38 (lOmm) at 900

No of links 66 Floor 3S and i (10mm and 12rom) at 900

Rear Upper~ (19mm) at 00 to 600 Mechanical Details

Rear Lower 1 (25mm) at 190

Engine I x Cont inental model W670-9A Petrol TUrret Front 2 (Slrom) at 100

7 cyliodor all cooled radial 250 hp at 2400 r pm Turret Sides and rear 1i (38mm) at 00

Gearbox Synchromesh 5 forward 1 reverse T urret Top 38 (lOmm) at 75 and 900

Stee rinp Controlled different ial

bull

BELLDNA PRI ~1S SERIES 12 No 45lt1

SCHIfoIRE PANZERSPAEHWAGEN AUf 8-RAO EIiHEJTSWAGEN

HISTORICAL RESEARCH SY ~ J SPIELCERGER

The ne~d f(lr ratoriwd r eeon nlisunec units 119r le(l upon in the lale 19))$ established tho dOrnind f(lr procureoent of mo dern arQO urld reconnai ssance vehicles AVl)llahle lt thit tir~ Kere only a limited number of ir-oured troop carri ers al1eltd under the Treaty of Versailles They proved to be usel ess for their intended purpose To fill the I lIIIIediate ne ed eOllllerc llll 6 x 4 ch assis equipped dth arro llred bodies (IJaimler-BcnZ ond Buessing-llAG) were used Their cross -country abi lity_ hOlcver Ias severely restrict ed and iproved vehicl es had to be created Thes e liere to be based upon the experience gained with the multi-heel-vehlcles (VicradlgtlageJ) deve loped in secrecy from lQ20 to 1929 (DaiIllle r-8enz and ~a~irus eght-whee l 8ues~iny-NAG ten whee l vehicles) These poueued QIIplo cross -tount ry pe rformance and adeQllate Sf)(fd ra nges when street-bound

The o ri yinaL objections tha t veh ic les of thi s naure lIe re too costl) to produce conslderinq ~he econolJlic a l conditions In Ce rmany at that tillle WIS overruled In 1932 especially in vie of the lr~enc~ connect~d with the procurerl nt of SUCh vehi cles An annu al productiOn quota of 18 uni ti I~a s established

In the Teantime the production of the 6 x ltl armoured cars based upon cOQ-t rcltIl chassis lIas sleppcd up but these were to be replaced by the new 8 x ~ version as soon as possible After disc ussions I~ith the Ordnance Department production readin ess wa s to be obt31ned bet(l en 1935 and 1936 provided enoulh funds I~ere t13de available

In 1933 developoe nt work started based upltln previous experience and the addi tional knOW-hOW gatnod in the develo pcent of t he so-called Elnheltstypen A new cllaSlgtis tile Aclltrad iQen (sKh 023) was the res ult (a II ed type CSmiddot by Its Clanuiacturer Buesslng-NIC o( Lelp7ig-Wah ren t he devc loplfl nt of this 8 x 8 chassis was concluded beheen 1934 and 1935 The vehic le had Illdependent whec l sllspension wa equ l pJred llh dqh l -wheel d r ive and ei~h t-nhee l stcering On the re ar end of a ve ry sturdy convcntl ona fr ) a Bucssln1 eight-c) li nder V t ype gasoline c llqlne tPC L8V was Installo(l hile dual steerin~ r chall ism for fOlgtllir d ltJnd reverse driv ing at full speed cortpleted this speci ch assis ChiliSis weight on(lunted to 4120 kp Origlncdly the engine had an output of 150 lIP allowing iI top speed of 51 mph (82 KII) Fighting weight of the vehicle IilS 85 L OOutlche Werke AG In Kiel s responsibl e for the develo pme nt of the Ilflnourd vehitie while assemb ly also took place at the plant of F Schlehau in Elbing Th ese vehicles were representa~le of the h09vy standaro equipclOnt for Goran armoured r(gtc(lnnaissanci unit S unt 1 the end of 11011 War II Officiall y Issued to the troops tere the following versi(ln s

a Sch~er ( r 19~zersp1eh~ltIln (SdKfz 231)(8-Rad) b Schlfere r Pancerspaeh JJen (Sd f1- 232)(Fu)(B-RadJ

Heavy smoured r((onnais sance car (SdKfz 232)(Rltldio)(BvheeitdJ (SuboCt of this Bellona print) SchllererPanze rSfIllhllagen (75c - )(SdKfz 233)

d Panze r fun In~agen (Sol K [z 263)( 8 -R arJ)

Th basic 3t(IIour of ~~ese vehIcles 3S betw~en 10 afd 14 5 met bo th Lh~ Sd K(- 31 and 232 Icr c ex te rn ally identical excep t for t heir Tadlo antennae Arnarte nt eOnshted o f a 2 till KI1 J) and an IoG34 In 8 JtO deqree tr ave rse turret The COllrlanclt r sa t on tile It l t of t he tu rre t and )urlfler to t he rigllt (ro lll whcre he operated the st6cr ing Ivheel t ype traversc Jcar El eva tion IltltIS by pUSh pull contro l on tile same unit n tc re we re t~O indepenrJelH hrdr3ulic tirlnq S)st(~s fo r the MG al l OW ing it t o be fired I t her along- with the 2 cm or on Its own

Both vehicles had a four man crew Tnt first prOduction batch of t hese veh i cles was completed In februa ry 1940 and the SrJ Kfc 232 )5 o~ly produc ed until )y 1940 A second series was co~nced 1n the fall of that )ear

The rJrBdn~ represe nts an early IIOdel Ihlcl h(ls beln ritt td wI th the s(I-callCd P~kschutz hol ted La t he front of some vchicle s durin) the war to provide aQditional amour prO lect ion Late product ioll lOOolel s of the first series IncOrporHed jmprov (middot J i~lon ports and some even lh e exteral gll1l mante l Mequilte protection as aclli e-cd fo r tile radiato r by rcplJc ing the grill wi th an aTlO urcd duct Wad ing f ac ili t i es were Improveltl so tha t up to 3 ~ ( 100 el ) could be nego tiated

The per forf lnce of thc LeV en~lne was in c reas ed to 100 HP by enlar~lnJ the bore and hen this improved engine lias fI tted a road speed of nearly 02 loI PH (WO KIoI PH) Later vehicles such as s hon In our photolJrlph hld all th e-s t ir rovtu 1l1S 3nd In addit ion the final production IOde ls had a redesigned frontal lrmou r Jgt fll11 plats Incorporated in l ayout hich (15 later adoptcd for the SdKfz 231 spr ics The 2c III toil 38 no replaced th e K)oK ))

Th-- Sd Kf-233 consisted of 8 convcrtampd vehiCle wlth the turret r emolcd and 8 75 0111 KwK L24 JOO unllrI In the f ront plate This vers ion served fro m l aLt 11)41 as a close support vehic le Thc SdKfz 203 Radio vehiCle had (I

he ighten ed f1poundhling CO f )DUnt that fo rmed a rllld t urret The arma~nt consisted of only onc lG 34 Thi s veh icl e however had a fhe Jan c r ew IInu WltlS excllslYe l y a~sellb leu by the Dcu tschc crkE in liol Produc t io n ceased In Jilnua ry 1942 The product jon cilpacity re l eased by t he ab(lOdonment of the SdKh 232 lIId 203 Iodels was taken up ith the fII SPW SltI K fz 25 1 sfl lrack personnel ehicle ~Bellona Ser ies 2 10 7g) Produc t ion of a ll othe r eight wheel standard units was s topped du ri n4) he )car o f 1912 wh ik prodlletion o f the Ul e n~ine con tlnlld unti l 1914 In 1943 the tas ks 01 th~ eight wheeled Einheitsagen ~aS token Oer by the ncgt SdKfz 23lt1 scrips

poundellnlcal s peciflcatlon for Schncr PanzHspaehICIgen (Sf1 Kfz 232) (Fu) O-r a(1

(Vehicle sllown In drawing) ~chanlc31 Details

WCilt]ht laden 82 to nS_ 85 tOllne Eng ine 6 116ss lnl] M G LeV 7lt)1 ljtre C(c 4 6 cn f)O dClrec -tye

PeLrol Oli decIOplnl 155 bhpat1JOIJ rp m

b fonarrJ and rev e r _ Speed Mex Road 51 mph (82 KmPH) (3 spoEd box loith highlo ratio reHISable)

Cr os country 19li lIl ph (3Ll Suspc- nslon Inverted sf i-eIJlptlCal leaf springs

~8X ~rltldlent 27 deg re es rench 4_ (124 elll) Brakes Ioleehanlcal

Step 1-7 (48) f o r d in9 2 0 (61) Tllrnin9 CHc le 37 -5 (1 1 4 D4lTaS) Ran~e 186 106 ~i1es lt300170 Km) I x 2 cn KJon( xl wi th 180 Rds In 10 Rd 13lS

fu e l capJci ty Internal ~lai n lank 24Jals (iDB lltres) 1 x 7lt)2 IlIII1 a)G3 lt1 coaxial with

1125 Rd s In 75 Rd ~la3sAudllary Lank 6 gals (ll litrES)

Elevation plus 26 minu s 10 degrees

I x q mt 4P 38 with 192 RdsLeno)th ovcral 21-0 tb52 em) Lenl)tll o f hull 19middoto~ (580) Widt 7 -3 (220) HeiQht Inc an t ennD 9 -~~~ (29) Hei qh l 7 -10 (238) 1oanlel 15 lUll

Ground c l earHlce 11 (26) Front platts 145 ImII

Hull sidrs Olllll

lhee l b3se 13-5l (410) Wheel ~rack 5 -42 (lbil

Hull l O]) G Belly 5 IItIl

Bogl e Dast lt-1 -5 (135) EngJne s ides ltInd rcar 10 men Turret sides 8 nnBQo)le CcnLres 9o~ (275) Turret tOp 5 unheel size 210 IItII x 18

bull

Q

o 0

Llght Tank MSAl General Stuart m and IV Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foot) DrawD by D P Dyer

I

BELLONA PRINrS SERIES 12 No 46a

LIGHT TANK M3AI GEN ERAL STUART 111 and IV (1942)

The dovelopment of the Amertcan M 3 series of light tanka can be traced through preceedtng models back to the British Vickers Armstrong Six Ton Tank of 1928 as an original concept

Out of the many tens of thousandB of tacks produced in the U S A during the second World War the Stuart was the flrst to see action Eighty four were included in the flrst del1verles of arms to the Middle East Wldor Lend Lease in July 1941 By the time of OPeration Crusader to drive Rommel back from T obruk In November 1941 various cortingents of the British 4th Armou red Brigade had been equipped with 163 of them These were used t o r eptace the A9s AIOs and A13s many of which had been abandoned due to mechanical failure lthiring the abortive Greek ~ampaign or lost during the Axis thrust to rega tn Cyrenaica

A story goes that after a unit had been Jssued wUh their Orat Stuarts and bad put them through their pace8 (during the course of which they tried evor)thing that would have thron tbe tracks of a BriUsh Tank) a driver was asked what he thou ght of his new mount It s a Honey he replied The term stuck and from then on became the name by which they were affectionately known

WhUst being classed as a light tank by the Americans its weight was comparable to earl y British Cruiser Tanks Comparison to the Heavy Cruiser Mk VI c r usader 1 which weighed 5~ more shows the stuart to be evenl y matched although ~hls on1y held true when tbe C rusade r was fitted with the 2 pdr Armour thickness was somewhat similar speed was greater and the 37mm of the Stuart was a better anti-tank gun than the 2pdr as well as having the advantage of belng able to fire H E and Cannister she ll s

Many writers have derided the 37mm M6 as a similar pea shooter to the 2pdr but both of the ae guns were superior in Armour to pierclng qualities to both the Scm L42 fUted to the Pt Kpfw III up to mid 1942 and the 7 Scm L 24 which were mounted in the Pz Kpfw IV WltU the introduction of the KwK 40 also in 1942 a nd these were the German MedIum IUld Heavy Tanks of the poriod

When the Pz Kpfw 111 fir st appeared in North Africa wuh the D A K many British Cruiser tanks had a maxImum armour thickness of only ISmm which could be pIerced by the 5cm fitted to the Pz Kpfw 111 at ranges exceeding 2000 yda The Pz Kpfw tll and IV at this same period had a maximum armou r thlcknesa of 30mm which Iequired a 2pdr a rmed tank to c lose to 1 000 yards t o obtaln penetration The 37mm of the Stuart however could penetrate t he 30mm armour o f the Germans at range~ up to 2000 yards and as Us f(ontal a rmour thickness of 3Smm was effective against the 5cm L42 at anything over 750 yards and the 7 Scm L24 at ranges ove r 500 yards the position for a short whUe was r eversed completely

What it took t he British and Commonwealth troops s o long to realise after Rominel came on the Rcene and during the int roduction of the Crusader Stua rt and Grant and cont inued use of the ldatllda was that it wasn t the German tanks whlch took such a toll of thelr tanks but the Anti-tank guns These antl-tank guns the Germans eUher moved forward with their tanks or used from ambusb positions with their tanks as decoys Had the Britlsh develope d an Armour piercing shell for the 37 AA gun sooner this weapon could have been used in a slmilnr capacity to the German Eighty Eight and the outcome of many desert battles might have been a lot dUrerent

It can the r efore be concluded t hat when the M 3 Stuart 1 and il first appeared In action In 1941 they were one of the most e ffective tanks of any type in the desert However due to the Ge rmans promptly increasing the fire power and armour protection of their tanks this advanlage was quickly lost and they reverted to what they were or iginally designed as name ly r eliable reasonably well armed and armoured faol light tanks

Whilst being basically slmUar the main external difference between late production Light Tlnks M3 and theM3AI was the absence of a cupola Removal of this cupola resulted in a lowe r silhouette and helped coonte ract the Tall In the saddle description which 80 aptly described the earlier modeL Other modiflcations included power traverse (or the turret enabl ing a tunel baske t to be fitted The gun was rlued with a stabili seI In elevation to lncrea se accuracy whU st fir ing when in motion and the sponson mounted 30 cal m g s were rem oved

Production of the M3AI c ommenced in June 1942 overlapping the final few month-s production of the M3 which wa s produced by the same manufacturer The American Car and Foundry Co Before a change over to production of Us successor the M3A3 in Janu8lY 1943 a tolal of 4621 had been produced lncluding 211 wHh Diesel engines known as Stuart IV

An American Light tank M3Al with all rivened const ruction is ava ilable in the Bellona Colour Sheet Series

T echnical s pecification for Light Tank M3AI Stuart mIt

Crew 4 Suspension Vertica l volute spring T wo double Weight 2S 515 Jbs (12 7 lo~ tons wheel bogies each s ide and three return

143 short tons 125 tonnes) r oll ers Trailillg Idler

Performance Armament 1 x 37mm gun MS LS7 stabilised in elevation

Speed Max Road 36 mph (58 kmph) mounted in 3600 power traverse tUrret

Max Gradient 260

3x 30cal m gs(bow co-axtal and Al A) Fording Depth 42 (101cm) Trench Crossing 6 (1S3cm)

Ammunition StowageTurning Radius 21 (64 metres) step 24 (61cm) 111 rOWlds 370lm Range 60 mUes (96km) 7000 rounds 30 cal Fuel Capactty 50 gals imper1a1 (56 gals U S 227 lUres)

Armour - Rolled Plate except where menUoned

Lower middotFront Cast 2 (Slmm) at 200 to 900

Length overallinclucUng shovel 1410 (452 cm) Upper nose ~ (1301m) at 68 0

Width 76 (229cm) Dr ivers Front Ii (380101)He ight to tu rret top 74 (223c m)

Ground Clearance 13 (3Scm) Sides 1 (2Smm) at 00

Track on Ground 97 (290cm) Track Width 11t (29 cm) Deck 38 (lOmm) at 900

No of links 66 Floor 3S and i (10mm and 12rom) at 900

Rear Upper~ (19mm) at 00 to 600 Mechanical Details

Rear Lower 1 (25mm) at 190

Engine I x Cont inental model W670-9A Petrol TUrret Front 2 (Slrom) at 100

7 cyliodor all cooled radial 250 hp at 2400 r pm Turret Sides and rear 1i (38mm) at 00

Gearbox Synchromesh 5 forward 1 reverse T urret Top 38 (lOmm) at 75 and 900

Stee rinp Controlled different ial

bull

Q

o 0

Llght Tank MSAl General Stuart m and IV Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foot) DrawD by D P Dyer

I

BELLONA PRINrS SERIES 12 No 46a

LIGHT TANK M3AI GEN ERAL STUART 111 and IV (1942)

The dovelopment of the Amertcan M 3 series of light tanka can be traced through preceedtng models back to the British Vickers Armstrong Six Ton Tank of 1928 as an original concept

Out of the many tens of thousandB of tacks produced in the U S A during the second World War the Stuart was the flrst to see action Eighty four were included in the flrst del1verles of arms to the Middle East Wldor Lend Lease in July 1941 By the time of OPeration Crusader to drive Rommel back from T obruk In November 1941 various cortingents of the British 4th Armou red Brigade had been equipped with 163 of them These were used t o r eptace the A9s AIOs and A13s many of which had been abandoned due to mechanical failure lthiring the abortive Greek ~ampaign or lost during the Axis thrust to rega tn Cyrenaica

A story goes that after a unit had been Jssued wUh their Orat Stuarts and bad put them through their pace8 (during the course of which they tried evor)thing that would have thron tbe tracks of a BriUsh Tank) a driver was asked what he thou ght of his new mount It s a Honey he replied The term stuck and from then on became the name by which they were affectionately known

WhUst being classed as a light tank by the Americans its weight was comparable to earl y British Cruiser Tanks Comparison to the Heavy Cruiser Mk VI c r usader 1 which weighed 5~ more shows the stuart to be evenl y matched although ~hls on1y held true when tbe C rusade r was fitted with the 2 pdr Armour thickness was somewhat similar speed was greater and the 37mm of the Stuart was a better anti-tank gun than the 2pdr as well as having the advantage of belng able to fire H E and Cannister she ll s

Many writers have derided the 37mm M6 as a similar pea shooter to the 2pdr but both of the ae guns were superior in Armour to pierclng qualities to both the Scm L42 fUted to the Pt Kpfw III up to mid 1942 and the 7 Scm L 24 which were mounted in the Pz Kpfw IV WltU the introduction of the KwK 40 also in 1942 a nd these were the German MedIum IUld Heavy Tanks of the poriod

When the Pz Kpfw 111 fir st appeared in North Africa wuh the D A K many British Cruiser tanks had a maxImum armour thickness of only ISmm which could be pIerced by the 5cm fitted to the Pz Kpfw 111 at ranges exceeding 2000 yda The Pz Kpfw tll and IV at this same period had a maximum armou r thlcknesa of 30mm which Iequired a 2pdr a rmed tank to c lose to 1 000 yards t o obtaln penetration The 37mm of the Stuart however could penetrate t he 30mm armour o f the Germans at range~ up to 2000 yards and as Us f(ontal a rmour thickness of 3Smm was effective against the 5cm L42 at anything over 750 yards and the 7 Scm L24 at ranges ove r 500 yards the position for a short whUe was r eversed completely

What it took t he British and Commonwealth troops s o long to realise after Rominel came on the Rcene and during the int roduction of the Crusader Stua rt and Grant and cont inued use of the ldatllda was that it wasn t the German tanks whlch took such a toll of thelr tanks but the Anti-tank guns These antl-tank guns the Germans eUher moved forward with their tanks or used from ambusb positions with their tanks as decoys Had the Britlsh develope d an Armour piercing shell for the 37 AA gun sooner this weapon could have been used in a slmilnr capacity to the German Eighty Eight and the outcome of many desert battles might have been a lot dUrerent

It can the r efore be concluded t hat when the M 3 Stuart 1 and il first appeared In action In 1941 they were one of the most e ffective tanks of any type in the desert However due to the Ge rmans promptly increasing the fire power and armour protection of their tanks this advanlage was quickly lost and they reverted to what they were or iginally designed as name ly r eliable reasonably well armed and armoured faol light tanks

Whilst being basically slmUar the main external difference between late production Light Tlnks M3 and theM3AI was the absence of a cupola Removal of this cupola resulted in a lowe r silhouette and helped coonte ract the Tall In the saddle description which 80 aptly described the earlier modeL Other modiflcations included power traverse (or the turret enabl ing a tunel baske t to be fitted The gun was rlued with a stabili seI In elevation to lncrea se accuracy whU st fir ing when in motion and the sponson mounted 30 cal m g s were rem oved

Production of the M3AI c ommenced in June 1942 overlapping the final few month-s production of the M3 which wa s produced by the same manufacturer The American Car and Foundry Co Before a change over to production of Us successor the M3A3 in Janu8lY 1943 a tolal of 4621 had been produced lncluding 211 wHh Diesel engines known as Stuart IV

An American Light tank M3Al with all rivened const ruction is ava ilable in the Bellona Colour Sheet Series

T echnical s pecification for Light Tank M3AI Stuart mIt

Crew 4 Suspension Vertica l volute spring T wo double Weight 2S 515 Jbs (12 7 lo~ tons wheel bogies each s ide and three return

143 short tons 125 tonnes) r oll ers Trailillg Idler

Performance Armament 1 x 37mm gun MS LS7 stabilised in elevation

Speed Max Road 36 mph (58 kmph) mounted in 3600 power traverse tUrret

Max Gradient 260

3x 30cal m gs(bow co-axtal and Al A) Fording Depth 42 (101cm) Trench Crossing 6 (1S3cm)

Ammunition StowageTurning Radius 21 (64 metres) step 24 (61cm) 111 rOWlds 370lm Range 60 mUes (96km) 7000 rounds 30 cal Fuel Capactty 50 gals imper1a1 (56 gals U S 227 lUres)

Armour - Rolled Plate except where menUoned

Lower middotFront Cast 2 (Slmm) at 200 to 900

Length overallinclucUng shovel 1410 (452 cm) Upper nose ~ (1301m) at 68 0

Width 76 (229cm) Dr ivers Front Ii (380101)He ight to tu rret top 74 (223c m)

Ground Clearance 13 (3Scm) Sides 1 (2Smm) at 00

Track on Ground 97 (290cm) Track Width 11t (29 cm) Deck 38 (lOmm) at 900

No of links 66 Floor 3S and i (10mm and 12rom) at 900

Rear Upper~ (19mm) at 00 to 600 Mechanical Details

Rear Lower 1 (25mm) at 190

Engine I x Cont inental model W670-9A Petrol TUrret Front 2 (Slrom) at 100

7 cyliodor all cooled radial 250 hp at 2400 r pm Turret Sides and rear 1i (38mm) at 00

Gearbox Synchromesh 5 forward 1 reverse T urret Top 38 (lOmm) at 75 and 900

Stee rinp Controlled different ial

bull

BELLONA PRINrS SERIES 12 No 46a

LIGHT TANK M3AI GEN ERAL STUART 111 and IV (1942)

The dovelopment of the Amertcan M 3 series of light tanka can be traced through preceedtng models back to the British Vickers Armstrong Six Ton Tank of 1928 as an original concept

Out of the many tens of thousandB of tacks produced in the U S A during the second World War the Stuart was the flrst to see action Eighty four were included in the flrst del1verles of arms to the Middle East Wldor Lend Lease in July 1941 By the time of OPeration Crusader to drive Rommel back from T obruk In November 1941 various cortingents of the British 4th Armou red Brigade had been equipped with 163 of them These were used t o r eptace the A9s AIOs and A13s many of which had been abandoned due to mechanical failure lthiring the abortive Greek ~ampaign or lost during the Axis thrust to rega tn Cyrenaica

A story goes that after a unit had been Jssued wUh their Orat Stuarts and bad put them through their pace8 (during the course of which they tried evor)thing that would have thron tbe tracks of a BriUsh Tank) a driver was asked what he thou ght of his new mount It s a Honey he replied The term stuck and from then on became the name by which they were affectionately known

WhUst being classed as a light tank by the Americans its weight was comparable to earl y British Cruiser Tanks Comparison to the Heavy Cruiser Mk VI c r usader 1 which weighed 5~ more shows the stuart to be evenl y matched although ~hls on1y held true when tbe C rusade r was fitted with the 2 pdr Armour thickness was somewhat similar speed was greater and the 37mm of the Stuart was a better anti-tank gun than the 2pdr as well as having the advantage of belng able to fire H E and Cannister she ll s

Many writers have derided the 37mm M6 as a similar pea shooter to the 2pdr but both of the ae guns were superior in Armour to pierclng qualities to both the Scm L42 fUted to the Pt Kpfw III up to mid 1942 and the 7 Scm L 24 which were mounted in the Pz Kpfw IV WltU the introduction of the KwK 40 also in 1942 a nd these were the German MedIum IUld Heavy Tanks of the poriod

When the Pz Kpfw 111 fir st appeared in North Africa wuh the D A K many British Cruiser tanks had a maxImum armour thickness of only ISmm which could be pIerced by the 5cm fitted to the Pz Kpfw 111 at ranges exceeding 2000 yda The Pz Kpfw tll and IV at this same period had a maximum armou r thlcknesa of 30mm which Iequired a 2pdr a rmed tank to c lose to 1 000 yards t o obtaln penetration The 37mm of the Stuart however could penetrate t he 30mm armour o f the Germans at range~ up to 2000 yards and as Us f(ontal a rmour thickness of 3Smm was effective against the 5cm L42 at anything over 750 yards and the 7 Scm L24 at ranges ove r 500 yards the position for a short whUe was r eversed completely

What it took t he British and Commonwealth troops s o long to realise after Rominel came on the Rcene and during the int roduction of the Crusader Stua rt and Grant and cont inued use of the ldatllda was that it wasn t the German tanks whlch took such a toll of thelr tanks but the Anti-tank guns These antl-tank guns the Germans eUher moved forward with their tanks or used from ambusb positions with their tanks as decoys Had the Britlsh develope d an Armour piercing shell for the 37 AA gun sooner this weapon could have been used in a slmilnr capacity to the German Eighty Eight and the outcome of many desert battles might have been a lot dUrerent

It can the r efore be concluded t hat when the M 3 Stuart 1 and il first appeared In action In 1941 they were one of the most e ffective tanks of any type in the desert However due to the Ge rmans promptly increasing the fire power and armour protection of their tanks this advanlage was quickly lost and they reverted to what they were or iginally designed as name ly r eliable reasonably well armed and armoured faol light tanks

Whilst being basically slmUar the main external difference between late production Light Tlnks M3 and theM3AI was the absence of a cupola Removal of this cupola resulted in a lowe r silhouette and helped coonte ract the Tall In the saddle description which 80 aptly described the earlier modeL Other modiflcations included power traverse (or the turret enabl ing a tunel baske t to be fitted The gun was rlued with a stabili seI In elevation to lncrea se accuracy whU st fir ing when in motion and the sponson mounted 30 cal m g s were rem oved

Production of the M3AI c ommenced in June 1942 overlapping the final few month-s production of the M3 which wa s produced by the same manufacturer The American Car and Foundry Co Before a change over to production of Us successor the M3A3 in Janu8lY 1943 a tolal of 4621 had been produced lncluding 211 wHh Diesel engines known as Stuart IV

An American Light tank M3Al with all rivened const ruction is ava ilable in the Bellona Colour Sheet Series

T echnical s pecification for Light Tank M3AI Stuart mIt

Crew 4 Suspension Vertica l volute spring T wo double Weight 2S 515 Jbs (12 7 lo~ tons wheel bogies each s ide and three return

143 short tons 125 tonnes) r oll ers Trailillg Idler

Performance Armament 1 x 37mm gun MS LS7 stabilised in elevation

Speed Max Road 36 mph (58 kmph) mounted in 3600 power traverse tUrret

Max Gradient 260

3x 30cal m gs(bow co-axtal and Al A) Fording Depth 42 (101cm) Trench Crossing 6 (1S3cm)

Ammunition StowageTurning Radius 21 (64 metres) step 24 (61cm) 111 rOWlds 370lm Range 60 mUes (96km) 7000 rounds 30 cal Fuel Capactty 50 gals imper1a1 (56 gals U S 227 lUres)

Armour - Rolled Plate except where menUoned

Lower middotFront Cast 2 (Slmm) at 200 to 900

Length overallinclucUng shovel 1410 (452 cm) Upper nose ~ (1301m) at 68 0

Width 76 (229cm) Dr ivers Front Ii (380101)He ight to tu rret top 74 (223c m)

Ground Clearance 13 (3Scm) Sides 1 (2Smm) at 00

Track on Ground 97 (290cm) Track Width 11t (29 cm) Deck 38 (lOmm) at 900

No of links 66 Floor 3S and i (10mm and 12rom) at 900

Rear Upper~ (19mm) at 00 to 600 Mechanical Details

Rear Lower 1 (25mm) at 190

Engine I x Cont inental model W670-9A Petrol TUrret Front 2 (Slrom) at 100

7 cyliodor all cooled radial 250 hp at 2400 r pm Turret Sides and rear 1i (38mm) at 00

Gearbox Synchromesh 5 forward 1 reverse T urret Top 38 (lOmm) at 75 and 900

Stee rinp Controlled different ial

bull

Australian Cruiser Mark 1 SenLine Scale 176 (4 mm to 1 foot) Drawn by D P Dyer

i

BELLONA PRINTS SERIES 12 No 48 Cia

AUSTRALIAN CRUI SER mark 1 SENTINEL

Due t o Briti s h tank production capac ity being compleh ly absor bed in producing vehic les to resist the expected Germut invasion after the fall of frances In June 1940 Ill1d thlOUgh Ameri can Tank product ion belng nearl y non existant at this period It wa s deci ded by the Australians th at the only way in which they could oblain tanks wou ld be to manufacture th em themselveS The need for tanks as Imperative both for home defence and to equip their forces in the Middle East

In view of Au st ralia being mainl y a n agricultural COWltry without even an a utomobile industry it is little wonde r that whilst the necessity of producing their own tank was obvious the possibility of ever doing so was continually in doubt Anyone studying the evolution of the Australi an Cruiser can nol hell) but be impressed by the in surmount~bl e problems that had to be ove rcom e in this projec t It wa s not just a cas of designing a tank and plac lng the orders but of ascertaining facilities and possibilities and tayloring the design to suit these very ltmited facilities T he or iginal pion to produce 2000 1620 Ton tanks wit h product ion commenc in in July 194 1 at the rate of 10 a month was therefo re fantastically optim istic

The design which eventually evolved as a pilot mode l in January 1942 was de spite compro mises innovations and Improvisations a very creditable veh icle Except for the engine s wh ich we r e assembled from parts Impa rted froro the U S A and va rious s mall items such as bearlngs (whe re these cou ldnt be replaced by solid bearings) and tracks these tanks werG manufactured comple tely In Au stralia from Austral ian re sources

Out of the many innovations the greatest was the cast ing of th e complete hull in one piece The powe r unit was composed of three Cadill ac engines joined togethe l in a clover leaf des ign and the transmission wh il s t berng based a n t he American designs for their M 3 lle dium was greatly Simplified

Du ring the period from conce ption to lhe first prodUc tion vehicle comin g off the assembly line in Augu st 1942 America had commenccd on her massive tank production program and In fact the 1st Australian Armoured Division had already teen equipped with GrantS a nd Stuarts The AC 1 was being bu ilt at a s tead il increasing (ate boweve ( a nd It was not until Ju ly 1943 that a cCs sation of productIOn was ordered ny Lhls time suffic ient American tanks had arrived in Austraha to equip three divisions and it was decided that th e labour requiled to carry on produc ing Austrnllan tanks cou ld be utili sed to a better advantage

A total of 66 AC l we re de live red 1u the Army but were never used opelnUonall y be ing used for tra ining purposes under the name Senllnel unt il they were decl jlfd obsol e te in 1946

1he AC 11 was a proposa l for a lighter tan k to be built utiliSing heavy lony components to b sUl)l)IJed by America An order for 4 00 sets W3S pl3ced in June 1941 but subsequentl y cancelled

Whilst the turret ring diame ter of the AC 1 wa s fairl y early on agreed at 54 to all ow for fittin g th e Australian ploduced 6pdr th( ~ ~ere alway s in too short a supply Not to be detGrred and realising thl necesslty of nttlng a larger gw) than the 2pdr th~ AC lll incorpora ted a redes igned hull l nd tU lTel wit h a turret r ing dia mete r of 64 enabling them to mount the Aust ra li an 25 pdr The bow Vic lte r s wat(l cooled m l and gunne r were to be obv i3ted th ereby 3li owlng more stornge space for the large r ammunition A prototype was tested in Pe )luary 1943 wh ich lavOurably impressed all observers and It wa s dec ided th aL production o( the schiduled 66 AC i s was to be loll owed Immed iately by t hiS lutil mode l As production of Australian tank s was halted soon lfter t hiS however It is nut thought th at lny production models of the AC

111 appeared

Following tests with two 25pd lS mounted tDg-ethe r In a turret a nd fired simultaneously it was deci ded that the tank was capable of withstanding the heavy recoil loads o f a 17pdr and a prUlotype of t he AC IV mullnting th is gun was produce d

which wou ld have becn J flrSl c lasS vehicle

Techn ica l Spec ification for Austr3l1an Cruiser Ma rk 1

SuSI)()Osion Horizonta l Vol ute Sp ring th ree bogies of twoCICW 5 wheel s Cach s ide of Hitchkiss lYl)e Th niWeight Jade n 62720 Ibs (28 ton s l1 -1 s horl tons rcluln rollels each s ide27 5 tonne s)

Armamen t 1 x 2pdr (40mm) L52 in eleclrica lly rotated turret

Sl)etd Mtx Road 30 mph (48 km ph)

Perfo rmance

with JGOo traver Sl Fording Depth 48 (l2 2c m) 1 x 303 Vicke r s Wate r Cooled m g co- lliu l TIenc h C ross ing 9 6 (290c m) I x 303 Vickers W1ler Cooled m g fleXIble in bow muunt Rlngc 200 miles (322km) 1 xbull 30a Bren mg AA 1 x Thom pson sub machine gun Gra de 350 (70) Obstacle 24 (61cm)

Ammllnit ion Stow~ge

~ 130 rounds 2pdr Lenb1h 21 (640cm) 4250 r ou nds 303 In belts for Vickers m gs Width 91 (277cm) 900 rounds 303 for Bren m g Height 85 (2S6cm) 300 rounds 45 for Thompson S M G GroWld c1ealo nct l Si (39cm) 12 Signal flares 6 Hand Grenades Tr1ck Width 16 (40cm)

~ Mech1nic11 Deta ils

Hull front 2~ (63mm) En~ine 3 x Cad illac va Liquid Coaled Petrol rated at Hu ll sides and rear IJ (44 mm)

11 7hp each Hull top front 78 (22mm) Gta imiddotbox C Iash type SF - lR Hull n oors 58 (IGmm) Slecrlng Controlled Differential Turre t front sides an d rear 2~ (63mm) Roof 1 (25mm)

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BELLONA PRINTS SERIES 12 No 48g

OPEL VEHICLES WITHIN THE SfAN DAR D 3 TON TRUCK CLASS - 1937 - 49

HISfORlCAL RESEARCH BY WJ SPIELBERGER

A now motorization programme called the Schell Program established in 1938 suggested lhal certain types of automobUes to be used for both mUHary and clvUlan purposes

Within the framework or this programme the Army abandoned the development of special purpose vehicle designs such as the former 6 x 4 and 6 x 6 (Einheitsdiesel) developmenls and agreed to be content with some reltable basic t)lleS which would provide simple but adequate transport vehicles

The basis for these universal serlos of trucks having load claS8iS of 1 5 3 45 and 65 wns or payload was formed by a regular 4 x 2 standard type (8 type) A similar vehicle equtpped with four-wheel drive (A type) would be produced mainly for mllltary purposes Minor deviations were incorporated to allow for Lhe need of specialized vehicles such as buses and ambulances

The following manufacturers embarked upon the production oC 3 Lon load carrier vehicles

Adam Opel AG Werk Brandenburg Daimler-Benz AG Werke Mannhelm and Gaggenau Kloeckner-Humbolt-Deutz Werk iVlaglrus - Ulmj Ford Werke AG Keeln C rW Borgward or Dremen

One of the most numerous built during the War wore those produced by Opel a subsidiary of General Motors The basic Opel 4 x 2 vehicle (5 typ) - was based on very conventional design principals This was the type S 3 6 - 36 which was built from 1937 to 1945 Only a five-speed gear box was provided so cross-country performance WIlS rather r estricted Nevertheless lMs vehicle saw extensive service In most theatres aod proved to be quite reHable Opel showed a production planning for 1945 of 17990 vehicles of this type

During 1944 Daimler-Benz ceased to produce tho type SA 3000 their 3 ton load carrier and started to build the Opel vehicle under license This vehicle was designated L 701 I Their production target was to manufacture during 1945 22400 S typ units The official designation of Lhe flat bed truck was m LKW 3t offen (0)11 (0) standing for standa(d commercial vehicle Maaufacturer and type was normally added to complete the nomenclature

Its couoterpart the 4 x 4 A type carried the official designation m LKW 3 ton (A Typ) and was In Its technical layout almost identical to the type 36-36 S The Opel designation was 36-6700 Typ A or Blitz 3t It had B

6 (15cm) shorter wheel base and a two speed transfer that allowed for a total of ten forward and two reverse gears Thus it had a substantially Dproved cross-country performance

Long wheel base versions (153-1465 em) were usually fitted with bus bodies This WehrrnachtashyOmnibus was really a multi-purpose vEihlcle provldlng 26 seats as a bUS hi t accommodat Ing up to 23 wounded personnel if used as an ambulance Since all interior fittings could be removed easily it also served as a command centre

During adverse weather periods especially on the Russian front even the A type vehicles proved to be inadequate in their abllity to supply front line units In order to secure these suppltes a large number of standtrd truck wore ordered to be buUt as semt-track vehicles The tracked suspenSion unit developed for this purpose by the WaHen-5S was based upon a Carden-Lloyd Idea and utUized the track ur Lhe PzKw 1 and II The conversion needed few basic changes tbe rear axle was moved forward the drive train shortened and the frame reinforced Tho original brake drums were retained for track steering and two levers to operate them were added to the controls Offi c ial nomenclature for converted vehicles was Glelsketlen-LKW 2 t l)auJtier Sd Kh 4 The increase in overall elght because of the new suspenslon decreased ~he pay load rating of these vehicles La 2 tons

The 3 ton (S typ) truck s bum by Opel KHD and Ford were used for these conversions Most were done in occupied France 1000 of these unlls were buih allhe French Ford Factory In Asnlere s

Available to the German Army on August 1 1943 were 5403 MlUitier vehicles The production was phased out by June 1 1943 with the new design of the aWS t aking over the functions of the Maultier and the Zgkw 5 ton Maultlcr will be retUured Later in this e e ries

Many of these 3 ton vehicles both 4 x 2 and 4 x 4 w()re equipped with tho box-like body shown on the type A drawn This so-called Wehrmachts-Einhe ltskoHerau(bau served for a large varIety o[ functions at least 100 dUferent versions are offlC-ially loown ranging from radio stations to delousing-vans The standard Kh designation for box-type body equipped vehicles was 305 regardless of the make of the chassis

Few iI3ultler vehicles werEi similarly equipped and some of these served with V-2 rocket units Also fire -fighting apparatus tanker vehicles and other special body equipment were mounted on the standard 3 ton cha ssis

1944 saw the replacement of the original steel cabs with the so-cllled Wcftrmachts-Einheitsfahrerbaua This Ersatz cab as shown on the drawing of thc 3 6-368 was made of pressed cardboard and wood components a nd eliminated the need for costly metal cabs It was the same size and style for all vehicles of the 1 5 3 45 and 65 ton classes It was still In use on most post-war vehicles built in Germany up to 1947

The vehicles of the 3 ton class provided tbe backbone for civil1an transports in the immediate post-war years Without changes Ford continued to produce 3 ton trucks days after the occupation Borgward and KHD did the same somewhat later since damage to their plants was more extensive Daimler-Benz buUt the Opel vehicles until 1949 since Opel factory in Brandenburg was completely dismantled by the Russians

Teohnical specification for ttl LKW 3t Opel

36-36 Typ S 36middot6700 Typ A 3 6-36 Typ SSSM

Crew (seats) 23 23 23

Weight laden 5 7 tons (5800) 6 tons (6100) 58 tons (5930)

Chassis weight L 75 tons (1800) 2 Loos (2100) 3 7 tons (3800)

TraUer weight 2 tons 3 tons

PERFORMANCE

Road speed 53 m p b (85Kmh) 50 m p h (80Kmh) 0 m p h (8Kmh)

Max gradIent 19 degrees 35 degrees 24 degrees

Fording l5 (44 cm) l7t (50) 15i (44)

Turning oircle -430 (13 1m) 509 (157) 48 (15)

Range mUes (Km) 260230 (400360) 230122 (350200) 10662 (165100)

Internal fuel cap 20 gals (92 ltr) 20 (92) 18 (82)

=

f iu AUSl r a liln Cr uI se r i la r k I Senl inel was 3 ery fine tank whe n It i s considered tha i Aus l ra lian had ne ve r beroTe an cmtcd IV bu ild suc h he3 ~ vehicles The RAC T ank Iuseum at Bovington England has one of the se SenllnBI tanks n d l srll ~middot

(Phot v cou rte sy of the Australian T lllk C01middotPS )

An Opel 36middot6700 typ with convent iona l fl a t t r uck bed ilnd l ilt No t e lhe r ack fo r add i t iona l fu e l can

The 36 - lt17 t yp 5 ~as 9 Ion) whee lbase ve rS ion of t he Ope l chassis and WilS ~i1 inl ) used for thi s so -Cl led We h nllc hu-OrrnbJJ$ Th is was a mul t i purpo se ehi cl e as the i nterio r f i l l inls coul d be r elllOv(d to co nve r t i I into rd)ullnce o r middotCOII ~3nd ce ntre

A Ford ~l lu I t i e r Vh i th h ad th e s ame s us Ile ns i o n sys lem as t he Ope l conve rsi on

Techniclil s pcc lf iCtltlon (o r LX l t on Oeel (con t inued)

Enlline 3amp26 cC6 c) L I nlln middotHlte rcoo led pet rol dcve loplng 75 lInp at JOO rpm

Ge arbox Ope l 5 (ong fd anll J rcerse (Two s peed I flns fc r box on l )p~ on ly glv ill) 10 r 2 R)

Sus pensio n Lon9 i 1lldi na l le af spnnl s L I1 af RndSp ir a l

EleC l ric)1 s)s l tn Bosch 12 vo lt Olle 00 3IIph r ba tte r y

Tyre oze 190 lC 20 lO x lO l QO x 20 IHrl ns i ons Se c dr awi n)s fo r octa l Is

Gr ound CI jr allce 8li (22 cm) 91f (25 ) 10 (26 5)

nceltr ack fr ont sOt ( 15lt1 2 ) 5 lt1 ( 103) 5 Olf ( 1542)

5 3 ( 162) 5 41( (1 61 2) 6$Ir (l70)

hee lbll5c II 0 l3GO) 11 1 (345)

Note Ar JlO lIrcd ve r s ion s of lhc 0Plj llU l t ier il be diiStr ibed i n iI lalcr is sue

GERMAN DECORATIONS WORrBY PERSONNEL OF PANZER PANZER CRENADIER AND ARjIOURED UNITS

OR WITH SUPPORTING A RlIS 1936-1945 - PART r BY B L DAVIS

rNTROOUCTION Ger man decorations med9ls and awards Issued Immediately prior- to and duri ng the Second Volld War- we re an essentLaI part of the Ger-man war effort The 3rd Rolch authorlUes we r e well aware o r the importance to good fighting mo ral due the p r e sentation or such awards

As the war progressed new badges we re designed and introduced and olhers were c reated 10 [Ill those ~Urgt8 hetwoen such existing awards a nd the need to recognhe th080 members of tho Ge rman Armed Forces that had tlhILln~UI~hcd

the mselves In contJnuous and In many c ases ext remely dange rous a rmed engag ment s w ith the e ne my

The decorations f~Olured are jUst a few of the more ImportanL of these awards

THE 1936 PA NZE R ASSAULT BADGE

(1936 PAN ZERKAMPFABZEICHEN)

Worn by those membe r s of Colonel von Thomas Pun1er Korps which sen-elt1 In Spilin doIrlnl( the Spanish Civil Wa r Authorised o r wear by von Tho ma tuwanJs thtl c nd or the 1936 the badge WlS conUr mcd UI( In u Uicini dccorl tl tlo hy the Cerm9ll High Com mnnd on 100h July 19W II Wllt

struck In sliver only

Worn on thc loft brenst lunlc pOCket

PANZER ASSAULT BADGE (PANZERKAiI-lPFAIlZEICIIE N)

Class In Oront~L Founded 1st Ju ne HHU

Awarded to Personne l of Panzcr Crcnnd icr Regiments Pan zer Aufklaerung s (Reeconnlssancej Battalions and Panzerspaehwagcn units Also to iImiddottcdleal pcrsonnel who went fonvQrd Into letlon In tanks and attended the wounded In the fighting tone Awarded for Thrtc panzer a ssa ults on three different dlYs

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tunic pocket

Class In Sliver Founded 20th Dccemb~r 194 0

Awarded to Officers and rilen of Pall1cl Unit s for at least three engagements on three separate days

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tlUlle pocket

NUMBERED PANZER ASSAULT BADGES (DIE srUfEN ZU M PANZ ERABZEICHEN)

Classes In Silve r and Bronze Each class numbered 255015 amp 100

Founded after July 1943

Av-arded to those personnel eligible for the IwO lower g rades o r tbe Panzer Assault Badge for long and continuous front line combat service with Armoured Un itS The figures 255075 amp 100 Indicate the number of Pnnzer engagements completed by the recipient

WO ln on the lower pa rt of the le rt middotbreast tWllc pockel

THE TANK DESTRUCTION BADGE (SONDERABZEIC HEN FUR OAS NIEOERJ(AEt IPFEN VON PANZ ERKAM PFWAGEN usw DURCH EIN ZELKAEM PFER)

Class in Sliver Founded 9th March 1943

Awarded to Soldiers (and In 80me cases LuftwAffe t r oops) who fuHflUed the ollowlng the s ingle-handed destruction of an enemy tank o r armoured vehicle In c lose combat us ing only such wcapons as an anti - tank rifle grenades pole charges etc Each award repr esentoo oDe e oemy lank dest royed and 4 such awards in silver could be awarded to any one man

Worn on the upp6r 16ft arm one award worn di r ectly bel ow

the other

Cl ass in GoI Founded January 1943

Awarded to and for the sa me rea sons as for the 81 he r clnss The Gold bldge representing a 5th enemy tank destroyed Worn on the left upper arm of the tunic Immediately above the four Silver badges

An SS-oberacharfullhrer wearing the five TANK DE$TRUCTON BADGES ( 10 lhe background a P~Kw Tiger I)

The officer seen he r e lndtc3tlng positions on the map is wea r ing the 1936 PANZER ASSAULT BADCe

Published by Bellona Publications Model ampAllied Publications Ltd 1335 Bridge Street Hemel Hempstead Herts

BELLONA PRINTS SERIES 12 No 48 Cia

AUSTRALIAN CRUI SER mark 1 SENTINEL

Due t o Briti s h tank production capac ity being compleh ly absor bed in producing vehic les to resist the expected Germut invasion after the fall of frances In June 1940 Ill1d thlOUgh Ameri can Tank product ion belng nearl y non existant at this period It wa s deci ded by the Australians th at the only way in which they could oblain tanks wou ld be to manufacture th em themselveS The need for tanks as Imperative both for home defence and to equip their forces in the Middle East

In view of Au st ralia being mainl y a n agricultural COWltry without even an a utomobile industry it is little wonde r that whilst the necessity of producing their own tank was obvious the possibility of ever doing so was continually in doubt Anyone studying the evolution of the Australi an Cruiser can nol hell) but be impressed by the in surmount~bl e problems that had to be ove rcom e in this projec t It wa s not just a cas of designing a tank and plac lng the orders but of ascertaining facilities and possibilities and tayloring the design to suit these very ltmited facilities T he or iginal pion to produce 2000 1620 Ton tanks wit h product ion commenc in in July 194 1 at the rate of 10 a month was therefo re fantastically optim istic

The design which eventually evolved as a pilot mode l in January 1942 was de spite compro mises innovations and Improvisations a very creditable veh icle Except for the engine s wh ich we r e assembled from parts Impa rted froro the U S A and va rious s mall items such as bearlngs (whe re these cou ldnt be replaced by solid bearings) and tracks these tanks werG manufactured comple tely In Au stralia from Austral ian re sources

Out of the many innovations the greatest was the cast ing of th e complete hull in one piece The powe r unit was composed of three Cadill ac engines joined togethe l in a clover leaf des ign and the transmission wh il s t berng based a n t he American designs for their M 3 lle dium was greatly Simplified

Du ring the period from conce ption to lhe first prodUc tion vehicle comin g off the assembly line in Augu st 1942 America had commenccd on her massive tank production program and In fact the 1st Australian Armoured Division had already teen equipped with GrantS a nd Stuarts The AC 1 was being bu ilt at a s tead il increasing (ate boweve ( a nd It was not until Ju ly 1943 that a cCs sation of productIOn was ordered ny Lhls time suffic ient American tanks had arrived in Austraha to equip three divisions and it was decided that th e labour requiled to carry on produc ing Austrnllan tanks cou ld be utili sed to a better advantage

A total of 66 AC l we re de live red 1u the Army but were never used opelnUonall y be ing used for tra ining purposes under the name Senllnel unt il they were decl jlfd obsol e te in 1946

1he AC 11 was a proposa l for a lighter tan k to be built utiliSing heavy lony components to b sUl)l)IJed by America An order for 4 00 sets W3S pl3ced in June 1941 but subsequentl y cancelled

Whilst the turret ring diame ter of the AC 1 wa s fairl y early on agreed at 54 to all ow for fittin g th e Australian ploduced 6pdr th( ~ ~ere alway s in too short a supply Not to be detGrred and realising thl necesslty of nttlng a larger gw) than the 2pdr th~ AC lll incorpora ted a redes igned hull l nd tU lTel wit h a turret r ing dia mete r of 64 enabling them to mount the Aust ra li an 25 pdr The bow Vic lte r s wat(l cooled m l and gunne r were to be obv i3ted th ereby 3li owlng more stornge space for the large r ammunition A prototype was tested in Pe )luary 1943 wh ich lavOurably impressed all observers and It wa s dec ided th aL production o( the schiduled 66 AC i s was to be loll owed Immed iately by t hiS lutil mode l As production of Australian tank s was halted soon lfter t hiS however It is nut thought th at lny production models of the AC

111 appeared

Following tests with two 25pd lS mounted tDg-ethe r In a turret a nd fired simultaneously it was deci ded that the tank was capable of withstanding the heavy recoil loads o f a 17pdr and a prUlotype of t he AC IV mullnting th is gun was produce d

which wou ld have becn J flrSl c lasS vehicle

Techn ica l Spec ification for Austr3l1an Cruiser Ma rk 1

SuSI)()Osion Horizonta l Vol ute Sp ring th ree bogies of twoCICW 5 wheel s Cach s ide of Hitchkiss lYl)e Th niWeight Jade n 62720 Ibs (28 ton s l1 -1 s horl tons rcluln rollels each s ide27 5 tonne s)

Armamen t 1 x 2pdr (40mm) L52 in eleclrica lly rotated turret

Sl)etd Mtx Road 30 mph (48 km ph)

Perfo rmance

with JGOo traver Sl Fording Depth 48 (l2 2c m) 1 x 303 Vicke r s Wate r Cooled m g co- lliu l TIenc h C ross ing 9 6 (290c m) I x 303 Vickers W1ler Cooled m g fleXIble in bow muunt Rlngc 200 miles (322km) 1 xbull 30a Bren mg AA 1 x Thom pson sub machine gun Gra de 350 (70) Obstacle 24 (61cm)

Ammllnit ion Stow~ge

~ 130 rounds 2pdr Lenb1h 21 (640cm) 4250 r ou nds 303 In belts for Vickers m gs Width 91 (277cm) 900 rounds 303 for Bren m g Height 85 (2S6cm) 300 rounds 45 for Thompson S M G GroWld c1ealo nct l Si (39cm) 12 Signal flares 6 Hand Grenades Tr1ck Width 16 (40cm)

~ Mech1nic11 Deta ils

Hull front 2~ (63mm) En~ine 3 x Cad illac va Liquid Coaled Petrol rated at Hu ll sides and rear IJ (44 mm)

11 7hp each Hull top front 78 (22mm) Gta imiddotbox C Iash type SF - lR Hull n oors 58 (IGmm) Slecrlng Controlled Differential Turre t front sides an d rear 2~ (63mm) Roof 1 (25mm)

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BELLONA PRINTS SERIES 12 No 48g

OPEL VEHICLES WITHIN THE SfAN DAR D 3 TON TRUCK CLASS - 1937 - 49

HISfORlCAL RESEARCH BY WJ SPIELBERGER

A now motorization programme called the Schell Program established in 1938 suggested lhal certain types of automobUes to be used for both mUHary and clvUlan purposes

Within the framework or this programme the Army abandoned the development of special purpose vehicle designs such as the former 6 x 4 and 6 x 6 (Einheitsdiesel) developmenls and agreed to be content with some reltable basic t)lleS which would provide simple but adequate transport vehicles

The basis for these universal serlos of trucks having load claS8iS of 1 5 3 45 and 65 wns or payload was formed by a regular 4 x 2 standard type (8 type) A similar vehicle equtpped with four-wheel drive (A type) would be produced mainly for mllltary purposes Minor deviations were incorporated to allow for Lhe need of specialized vehicles such as buses and ambulances

The following manufacturers embarked upon the production oC 3 Lon load carrier vehicles

Adam Opel AG Werk Brandenburg Daimler-Benz AG Werke Mannhelm and Gaggenau Kloeckner-Humbolt-Deutz Werk iVlaglrus - Ulmj Ford Werke AG Keeln C rW Borgward or Dremen

One of the most numerous built during the War wore those produced by Opel a subsidiary of General Motors The basic Opel 4 x 2 vehicle (5 typ) - was based on very conventional design principals This was the type S 3 6 - 36 which was built from 1937 to 1945 Only a five-speed gear box was provided so cross-country performance WIlS rather r estricted Nevertheless lMs vehicle saw extensive service In most theatres aod proved to be quite reHable Opel showed a production planning for 1945 of 17990 vehicles of this type

During 1944 Daimler-Benz ceased to produce tho type SA 3000 their 3 ton load carrier and started to build the Opel vehicle under license This vehicle was designated L 701 I Their production target was to manufacture during 1945 22400 S typ units The official designation of Lhe flat bed truck was m LKW 3t offen (0)11 (0) standing for standa(d commercial vehicle Maaufacturer and type was normally added to complete the nomenclature

Its couoterpart the 4 x 4 A type carried the official designation m LKW 3 ton (A Typ) and was In Its technical layout almost identical to the type 36-36 S The Opel designation was 36-6700 Typ A or Blitz 3t It had B

6 (15cm) shorter wheel base and a two speed transfer that allowed for a total of ten forward and two reverse gears Thus it had a substantially Dproved cross-country performance

Long wheel base versions (153-1465 em) were usually fitted with bus bodies This WehrrnachtashyOmnibus was really a multi-purpose vEihlcle provldlng 26 seats as a bUS hi t accommodat Ing up to 23 wounded personnel if used as an ambulance Since all interior fittings could be removed easily it also served as a command centre

During adverse weather periods especially on the Russian front even the A type vehicles proved to be inadequate in their abllity to supply front line units In order to secure these suppltes a large number of standtrd truck wore ordered to be buUt as semt-track vehicles The tracked suspenSion unit developed for this purpose by the WaHen-5S was based upon a Carden-Lloyd Idea and utUized the track ur Lhe PzKw 1 and II The conversion needed few basic changes tbe rear axle was moved forward the drive train shortened and the frame reinforced Tho original brake drums were retained for track steering and two levers to operate them were added to the controls Offi c ial nomenclature for converted vehicles was Glelsketlen-LKW 2 t l)auJtier Sd Kh 4 The increase in overall elght because of the new suspenslon decreased ~he pay load rating of these vehicles La 2 tons

The 3 ton (S typ) truck s bum by Opel KHD and Ford were used for these conversions Most were done in occupied France 1000 of these unlls were buih allhe French Ford Factory In Asnlere s

Available to the German Army on August 1 1943 were 5403 MlUitier vehicles The production was phased out by June 1 1943 with the new design of the aWS t aking over the functions of the Maultier and the Zgkw 5 ton Maultlcr will be retUured Later in this e e ries

Many of these 3 ton vehicles both 4 x 2 and 4 x 4 w()re equipped with tho box-like body shown on the type A drawn This so-called Wehrmachts-Einhe ltskoHerau(bau served for a large varIety o[ functions at least 100 dUferent versions are offlC-ially loown ranging from radio stations to delousing-vans The standard Kh designation for box-type body equipped vehicles was 305 regardless of the make of the chassis

Few iI3ultler vehicles werEi similarly equipped and some of these served with V-2 rocket units Also fire -fighting apparatus tanker vehicles and other special body equipment were mounted on the standard 3 ton cha ssis

1944 saw the replacement of the original steel cabs with the so-cllled Wcftrmachts-Einheitsfahrerbaua This Ersatz cab as shown on the drawing of thc 3 6-368 was made of pressed cardboard and wood components a nd eliminated the need for costly metal cabs It was the same size and style for all vehicles of the 1 5 3 45 and 65 ton classes It was still In use on most post-war vehicles built in Germany up to 1947

The vehicles of the 3 ton class provided tbe backbone for civil1an transports in the immediate post-war years Without changes Ford continued to produce 3 ton trucks days after the occupation Borgward and KHD did the same somewhat later since damage to their plants was more extensive Daimler-Benz buUt the Opel vehicles until 1949 since Opel factory in Brandenburg was completely dismantled by the Russians

Teohnical specification for ttl LKW 3t Opel

36-36 Typ S 36middot6700 Typ A 3 6-36 Typ SSSM

Crew (seats) 23 23 23

Weight laden 5 7 tons (5800) 6 tons (6100) 58 tons (5930)

Chassis weight L 75 tons (1800) 2 Loos (2100) 3 7 tons (3800)

TraUer weight 2 tons 3 tons

PERFORMANCE

Road speed 53 m p b (85Kmh) 50 m p h (80Kmh) 0 m p h (8Kmh)

Max gradIent 19 degrees 35 degrees 24 degrees

Fording l5 (44 cm) l7t (50) 15i (44)

Turning oircle -430 (13 1m) 509 (157) 48 (15)

Range mUes (Km) 260230 (400360) 230122 (350200) 10662 (165100)

Internal fuel cap 20 gals (92 ltr) 20 (92) 18 (82)

=

f iu AUSl r a liln Cr uI se r i la r k I Senl inel was 3 ery fine tank whe n It i s considered tha i Aus l ra lian had ne ve r beroTe an cmtcd IV bu ild suc h he3 ~ vehicles The RAC T ank Iuseum at Bovington England has one of the se SenllnBI tanks n d l srll ~middot

(Phot v cou rte sy of the Australian T lllk C01middotPS )

An Opel 36middot6700 typ with convent iona l fl a t t r uck bed ilnd l ilt No t e lhe r ack fo r add i t iona l fu e l can

The 36 - lt17 t yp 5 ~as 9 Ion) whee lbase ve rS ion of t he Ope l chassis and WilS ~i1 inl ) used for thi s so -Cl led We h nllc hu-OrrnbJJ$ Th is was a mul t i purpo se ehi cl e as the i nterio r f i l l inls coul d be r elllOv(d to co nve r t i I into rd)ullnce o r middotCOII ~3nd ce ntre

A Ford ~l lu I t i e r Vh i th h ad th e s ame s us Ile ns i o n sys lem as t he Ope l conve rsi on

Techniclil s pcc lf iCtltlon (o r LX l t on Oeel (con t inued)

Enlline 3amp26 cC6 c) L I nlln middotHlte rcoo led pet rol dcve loplng 75 lInp at JOO rpm

Ge arbox Ope l 5 (ong fd anll J rcerse (Two s peed I flns fc r box on l )p~ on ly glv ill) 10 r 2 R)

Sus pensio n Lon9 i 1lldi na l le af spnnl s L I1 af RndSp ir a l

EleC l ric)1 s)s l tn Bosch 12 vo lt Olle 00 3IIph r ba tte r y

Tyre oze 190 lC 20 lO x lO l QO x 20 IHrl ns i ons Se c dr awi n)s fo r octa l Is

Gr ound CI jr allce 8li (22 cm) 91f (25 ) 10 (26 5)

nceltr ack fr ont sOt ( 15lt1 2 ) 5 lt1 ( 103) 5 Olf ( 1542)

5 3 ( 162) 5 41( (1 61 2) 6$Ir (l70)

hee lbll5c II 0 l3GO) 11 1 (345)

Note Ar JlO lIrcd ve r s ion s of lhc 0Plj llU l t ier il be diiStr ibed i n iI lalcr is sue

GERMAN DECORATIONS WORrBY PERSONNEL OF PANZER PANZER CRENADIER AND ARjIOURED UNITS

OR WITH SUPPORTING A RlIS 1936-1945 - PART r BY B L DAVIS

rNTROOUCTION Ger man decorations med9ls and awards Issued Immediately prior- to and duri ng the Second Volld War- we re an essentLaI part of the Ger-man war effort The 3rd Rolch authorlUes we r e well aware o r the importance to good fighting mo ral due the p r e sentation or such awards

As the war progressed new badges we re designed and introduced and olhers were c reated 10 [Ill those ~Urgt8 hetwoen such existing awards a nd the need to recognhe th080 members of tho Ge rman Armed Forces that had tlhILln~UI~hcd

the mselves In contJnuous and In many c ases ext remely dange rous a rmed engag ment s w ith the e ne my

The decorations f~Olured are jUst a few of the more ImportanL of these awards

THE 1936 PA NZE R ASSAULT BADGE

(1936 PAN ZERKAMPFABZEICHEN)

Worn by those membe r s of Colonel von Thomas Pun1er Korps which sen-elt1 In Spilin doIrlnl( the Spanish Civil Wa r Authorised o r wear by von Tho ma tuwanJs thtl c nd or the 1936 the badge WlS conUr mcd UI( In u Uicini dccorl tl tlo hy the Cerm9ll High Com mnnd on 100h July 19W II Wllt

struck In sliver only

Worn on thc loft brenst lunlc pOCket

PANZER ASSAULT BADGE (PANZERKAiI-lPFAIlZEICIIE N)

Class In Oront~L Founded 1st Ju ne HHU

Awarded to Personne l of Panzcr Crcnnd icr Regiments Pan zer Aufklaerung s (Reeconnlssancej Battalions and Panzerspaehwagcn units Also to iImiddottcdleal pcrsonnel who went fonvQrd Into letlon In tanks and attended the wounded In the fighting tone Awarded for Thrtc panzer a ssa ults on three different dlYs

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tunic pocket

Class In Sliver Founded 20th Dccemb~r 194 0

Awarded to Officers and rilen of Pall1cl Unit s for at least three engagements on three separate days

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tlUlle pocket

NUMBERED PANZER ASSAULT BADGES (DIE srUfEN ZU M PANZ ERABZEICHEN)

Classes In Silve r and Bronze Each class numbered 255015 amp 100

Founded after July 1943

Av-arded to those personnel eligible for the IwO lower g rades o r tbe Panzer Assault Badge for long and continuous front line combat service with Armoured Un itS The figures 255075 amp 100 Indicate the number of Pnnzer engagements completed by the recipient

WO ln on the lower pa rt of the le rt middotbreast tWllc pockel

THE TANK DESTRUCTION BADGE (SONDERABZEIC HEN FUR OAS NIEOERJ(AEt IPFEN VON PANZ ERKAM PFWAGEN usw DURCH EIN ZELKAEM PFER)

Class in Sliver Founded 9th March 1943

Awarded to Soldiers (and In 80me cases LuftwAffe t r oops) who fuHflUed the ollowlng the s ingle-handed destruction of an enemy tank o r armoured vehicle In c lose combat us ing only such wcapons as an anti - tank rifle grenades pole charges etc Each award repr esentoo oDe e oemy lank dest royed and 4 such awards in silver could be awarded to any one man

Worn on the upp6r 16ft arm one award worn di r ectly bel ow

the other

Cl ass in GoI Founded January 1943

Awarded to and for the sa me rea sons as for the 81 he r clnss The Gold bldge representing a 5th enemy tank destroyed Worn on the left upper arm of the tunic Immediately above the four Silver badges

An SS-oberacharfullhrer wearing the five TANK DE$TRUCTON BADGES ( 10 lhe background a P~Kw Tiger I)

The officer seen he r e lndtc3tlng positions on the map is wea r ing the 1936 PANZER ASSAULT BADCe

Published by Bellona Publications Model ampAllied Publications Ltd 1335 Bridge Street Hemel Hempstead Herts

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BELLONA PRINTS SERIES 12 No 48g

OPEL VEHICLES WITHIN THE SfAN DAR D 3 TON TRUCK CLASS - 1937 - 49

HISfORlCAL RESEARCH BY WJ SPIELBERGER

A now motorization programme called the Schell Program established in 1938 suggested lhal certain types of automobUes to be used for both mUHary and clvUlan purposes

Within the framework or this programme the Army abandoned the development of special purpose vehicle designs such as the former 6 x 4 and 6 x 6 (Einheitsdiesel) developmenls and agreed to be content with some reltable basic t)lleS which would provide simple but adequate transport vehicles

The basis for these universal serlos of trucks having load claS8iS of 1 5 3 45 and 65 wns or payload was formed by a regular 4 x 2 standard type (8 type) A similar vehicle equtpped with four-wheel drive (A type) would be produced mainly for mllltary purposes Minor deviations were incorporated to allow for Lhe need of specialized vehicles such as buses and ambulances

The following manufacturers embarked upon the production oC 3 Lon load carrier vehicles

Adam Opel AG Werk Brandenburg Daimler-Benz AG Werke Mannhelm and Gaggenau Kloeckner-Humbolt-Deutz Werk iVlaglrus - Ulmj Ford Werke AG Keeln C rW Borgward or Dremen

One of the most numerous built during the War wore those produced by Opel a subsidiary of General Motors The basic Opel 4 x 2 vehicle (5 typ) - was based on very conventional design principals This was the type S 3 6 - 36 which was built from 1937 to 1945 Only a five-speed gear box was provided so cross-country performance WIlS rather r estricted Nevertheless lMs vehicle saw extensive service In most theatres aod proved to be quite reHable Opel showed a production planning for 1945 of 17990 vehicles of this type

During 1944 Daimler-Benz ceased to produce tho type SA 3000 their 3 ton load carrier and started to build the Opel vehicle under license This vehicle was designated L 701 I Their production target was to manufacture during 1945 22400 S typ units The official designation of Lhe flat bed truck was m LKW 3t offen (0)11 (0) standing for standa(d commercial vehicle Maaufacturer and type was normally added to complete the nomenclature

Its couoterpart the 4 x 4 A type carried the official designation m LKW 3 ton (A Typ) and was In Its technical layout almost identical to the type 36-36 S The Opel designation was 36-6700 Typ A or Blitz 3t It had B

6 (15cm) shorter wheel base and a two speed transfer that allowed for a total of ten forward and two reverse gears Thus it had a substantially Dproved cross-country performance

Long wheel base versions (153-1465 em) were usually fitted with bus bodies This WehrrnachtashyOmnibus was really a multi-purpose vEihlcle provldlng 26 seats as a bUS hi t accommodat Ing up to 23 wounded personnel if used as an ambulance Since all interior fittings could be removed easily it also served as a command centre

During adverse weather periods especially on the Russian front even the A type vehicles proved to be inadequate in their abllity to supply front line units In order to secure these suppltes a large number of standtrd truck wore ordered to be buUt as semt-track vehicles The tracked suspenSion unit developed for this purpose by the WaHen-5S was based upon a Carden-Lloyd Idea and utUized the track ur Lhe PzKw 1 and II The conversion needed few basic changes tbe rear axle was moved forward the drive train shortened and the frame reinforced Tho original brake drums were retained for track steering and two levers to operate them were added to the controls Offi c ial nomenclature for converted vehicles was Glelsketlen-LKW 2 t l)auJtier Sd Kh 4 The increase in overall elght because of the new suspenslon decreased ~he pay load rating of these vehicles La 2 tons

The 3 ton (S typ) truck s bum by Opel KHD and Ford were used for these conversions Most were done in occupied France 1000 of these unlls were buih allhe French Ford Factory In Asnlere s

Available to the German Army on August 1 1943 were 5403 MlUitier vehicles The production was phased out by June 1 1943 with the new design of the aWS t aking over the functions of the Maultier and the Zgkw 5 ton Maultlcr will be retUured Later in this e e ries

Many of these 3 ton vehicles both 4 x 2 and 4 x 4 w()re equipped with tho box-like body shown on the type A drawn This so-called Wehrmachts-Einhe ltskoHerau(bau served for a large varIety o[ functions at least 100 dUferent versions are offlC-ially loown ranging from radio stations to delousing-vans The standard Kh designation for box-type body equipped vehicles was 305 regardless of the make of the chassis

Few iI3ultler vehicles werEi similarly equipped and some of these served with V-2 rocket units Also fire -fighting apparatus tanker vehicles and other special body equipment were mounted on the standard 3 ton cha ssis

1944 saw the replacement of the original steel cabs with the so-cllled Wcftrmachts-Einheitsfahrerbaua This Ersatz cab as shown on the drawing of thc 3 6-368 was made of pressed cardboard and wood components a nd eliminated the need for costly metal cabs It was the same size and style for all vehicles of the 1 5 3 45 and 65 ton classes It was still In use on most post-war vehicles built in Germany up to 1947

The vehicles of the 3 ton class provided tbe backbone for civil1an transports in the immediate post-war years Without changes Ford continued to produce 3 ton trucks days after the occupation Borgward and KHD did the same somewhat later since damage to their plants was more extensive Daimler-Benz buUt the Opel vehicles until 1949 since Opel factory in Brandenburg was completely dismantled by the Russians

Teohnical specification for ttl LKW 3t Opel

36-36 Typ S 36middot6700 Typ A 3 6-36 Typ SSSM

Crew (seats) 23 23 23

Weight laden 5 7 tons (5800) 6 tons (6100) 58 tons (5930)

Chassis weight L 75 tons (1800) 2 Loos (2100) 3 7 tons (3800)

TraUer weight 2 tons 3 tons

PERFORMANCE

Road speed 53 m p b (85Kmh) 50 m p h (80Kmh) 0 m p h (8Kmh)

Max gradIent 19 degrees 35 degrees 24 degrees

Fording l5 (44 cm) l7t (50) 15i (44)

Turning oircle -430 (13 1m) 509 (157) 48 (15)

Range mUes (Km) 260230 (400360) 230122 (350200) 10662 (165100)

Internal fuel cap 20 gals (92 ltr) 20 (92) 18 (82)

=

f iu AUSl r a liln Cr uI se r i la r k I Senl inel was 3 ery fine tank whe n It i s considered tha i Aus l ra lian had ne ve r beroTe an cmtcd IV bu ild suc h he3 ~ vehicles The RAC T ank Iuseum at Bovington England has one of the se SenllnBI tanks n d l srll ~middot

(Phot v cou rte sy of the Australian T lllk C01middotPS )

An Opel 36middot6700 typ with convent iona l fl a t t r uck bed ilnd l ilt No t e lhe r ack fo r add i t iona l fu e l can

The 36 - lt17 t yp 5 ~as 9 Ion) whee lbase ve rS ion of t he Ope l chassis and WilS ~i1 inl ) used for thi s so -Cl led We h nllc hu-OrrnbJJ$ Th is was a mul t i purpo se ehi cl e as the i nterio r f i l l inls coul d be r elllOv(d to co nve r t i I into rd)ullnce o r middotCOII ~3nd ce ntre

A Ford ~l lu I t i e r Vh i th h ad th e s ame s us Ile ns i o n sys lem as t he Ope l conve rsi on

Techniclil s pcc lf iCtltlon (o r LX l t on Oeel (con t inued)

Enlline 3amp26 cC6 c) L I nlln middotHlte rcoo led pet rol dcve loplng 75 lInp at JOO rpm

Ge arbox Ope l 5 (ong fd anll J rcerse (Two s peed I flns fc r box on l )p~ on ly glv ill) 10 r 2 R)

Sus pensio n Lon9 i 1lldi na l le af spnnl s L I1 af RndSp ir a l

EleC l ric)1 s)s l tn Bosch 12 vo lt Olle 00 3IIph r ba tte r y

Tyre oze 190 lC 20 lO x lO l QO x 20 IHrl ns i ons Se c dr awi n)s fo r octa l Is

Gr ound CI jr allce 8li (22 cm) 91f (25 ) 10 (26 5)

nceltr ack fr ont sOt ( 15lt1 2 ) 5 lt1 ( 103) 5 Olf ( 1542)

5 3 ( 162) 5 41( (1 61 2) 6$Ir (l70)

hee lbll5c II 0 l3GO) 11 1 (345)

Note Ar JlO lIrcd ve r s ion s of lhc 0Plj llU l t ier il be diiStr ibed i n iI lalcr is sue

GERMAN DECORATIONS WORrBY PERSONNEL OF PANZER PANZER CRENADIER AND ARjIOURED UNITS

OR WITH SUPPORTING A RlIS 1936-1945 - PART r BY B L DAVIS

rNTROOUCTION Ger man decorations med9ls and awards Issued Immediately prior- to and duri ng the Second Volld War- we re an essentLaI part of the Ger-man war effort The 3rd Rolch authorlUes we r e well aware o r the importance to good fighting mo ral due the p r e sentation or such awards

As the war progressed new badges we re designed and introduced and olhers were c reated 10 [Ill those ~Urgt8 hetwoen such existing awards a nd the need to recognhe th080 members of tho Ge rman Armed Forces that had tlhILln~UI~hcd

the mselves In contJnuous and In many c ases ext remely dange rous a rmed engag ment s w ith the e ne my

The decorations f~Olured are jUst a few of the more ImportanL of these awards

THE 1936 PA NZE R ASSAULT BADGE

(1936 PAN ZERKAMPFABZEICHEN)

Worn by those membe r s of Colonel von Thomas Pun1er Korps which sen-elt1 In Spilin doIrlnl( the Spanish Civil Wa r Authorised o r wear by von Tho ma tuwanJs thtl c nd or the 1936 the badge WlS conUr mcd UI( In u Uicini dccorl tl tlo hy the Cerm9ll High Com mnnd on 100h July 19W II Wllt

struck In sliver only

Worn on thc loft brenst lunlc pOCket

PANZER ASSAULT BADGE (PANZERKAiI-lPFAIlZEICIIE N)

Class In Oront~L Founded 1st Ju ne HHU

Awarded to Personne l of Panzcr Crcnnd icr Regiments Pan zer Aufklaerung s (Reeconnlssancej Battalions and Panzerspaehwagcn units Also to iImiddottcdleal pcrsonnel who went fonvQrd Into letlon In tanks and attended the wounded In the fighting tone Awarded for Thrtc panzer a ssa ults on three different dlYs

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tunic pocket

Class In Sliver Founded 20th Dccemb~r 194 0

Awarded to Officers and rilen of Pall1cl Unit s for at least three engagements on three separate days

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tlUlle pocket

NUMBERED PANZER ASSAULT BADGES (DIE srUfEN ZU M PANZ ERABZEICHEN)

Classes In Silve r and Bronze Each class numbered 255015 amp 100

Founded after July 1943

Av-arded to those personnel eligible for the IwO lower g rades o r tbe Panzer Assault Badge for long and continuous front line combat service with Armoured Un itS The figures 255075 amp 100 Indicate the number of Pnnzer engagements completed by the recipient

WO ln on the lower pa rt of the le rt middotbreast tWllc pockel

THE TANK DESTRUCTION BADGE (SONDERABZEIC HEN FUR OAS NIEOERJ(AEt IPFEN VON PANZ ERKAM PFWAGEN usw DURCH EIN ZELKAEM PFER)

Class in Sliver Founded 9th March 1943

Awarded to Soldiers (and In 80me cases LuftwAffe t r oops) who fuHflUed the ollowlng the s ingle-handed destruction of an enemy tank o r armoured vehicle In c lose combat us ing only such wcapons as an anti - tank rifle grenades pole charges etc Each award repr esentoo oDe e oemy lank dest royed and 4 such awards in silver could be awarded to any one man

Worn on the upp6r 16ft arm one award worn di r ectly bel ow

the other

Cl ass in GoI Founded January 1943

Awarded to and for the sa me rea sons as for the 81 he r clnss The Gold bldge representing a 5th enemy tank destroyed Worn on the left upper arm of the tunic Immediately above the four Silver badges

An SS-oberacharfullhrer wearing the five TANK DE$TRUCTON BADGES ( 10 lhe background a P~Kw Tiger I)

The officer seen he r e lndtc3tlng positions on the map is wea r ing the 1936 PANZER ASSAULT BADCe

Published by Bellona Publications Model ampAllied Publications Ltd 1335 Bridge Street Hemel Hempstead Herts

BELLONA PRINTS SERIES 12 No 48g

OPEL VEHICLES WITHIN THE SfAN DAR D 3 TON TRUCK CLASS - 1937 - 49

HISfORlCAL RESEARCH BY WJ SPIELBERGER

A now motorization programme called the Schell Program established in 1938 suggested lhal certain types of automobUes to be used for both mUHary and clvUlan purposes

Within the framework or this programme the Army abandoned the development of special purpose vehicle designs such as the former 6 x 4 and 6 x 6 (Einheitsdiesel) developmenls and agreed to be content with some reltable basic t)lleS which would provide simple but adequate transport vehicles

The basis for these universal serlos of trucks having load claS8iS of 1 5 3 45 and 65 wns or payload was formed by a regular 4 x 2 standard type (8 type) A similar vehicle equtpped with four-wheel drive (A type) would be produced mainly for mllltary purposes Minor deviations were incorporated to allow for Lhe need of specialized vehicles such as buses and ambulances

The following manufacturers embarked upon the production oC 3 Lon load carrier vehicles

Adam Opel AG Werk Brandenburg Daimler-Benz AG Werke Mannhelm and Gaggenau Kloeckner-Humbolt-Deutz Werk iVlaglrus - Ulmj Ford Werke AG Keeln C rW Borgward or Dremen

One of the most numerous built during the War wore those produced by Opel a subsidiary of General Motors The basic Opel 4 x 2 vehicle (5 typ) - was based on very conventional design principals This was the type S 3 6 - 36 which was built from 1937 to 1945 Only a five-speed gear box was provided so cross-country performance WIlS rather r estricted Nevertheless lMs vehicle saw extensive service In most theatres aod proved to be quite reHable Opel showed a production planning for 1945 of 17990 vehicles of this type

During 1944 Daimler-Benz ceased to produce tho type SA 3000 their 3 ton load carrier and started to build the Opel vehicle under license This vehicle was designated L 701 I Their production target was to manufacture during 1945 22400 S typ units The official designation of Lhe flat bed truck was m LKW 3t offen (0)11 (0) standing for standa(d commercial vehicle Maaufacturer and type was normally added to complete the nomenclature

Its couoterpart the 4 x 4 A type carried the official designation m LKW 3 ton (A Typ) and was In Its technical layout almost identical to the type 36-36 S The Opel designation was 36-6700 Typ A or Blitz 3t It had B

6 (15cm) shorter wheel base and a two speed transfer that allowed for a total of ten forward and two reverse gears Thus it had a substantially Dproved cross-country performance

Long wheel base versions (153-1465 em) were usually fitted with bus bodies This WehrrnachtashyOmnibus was really a multi-purpose vEihlcle provldlng 26 seats as a bUS hi t accommodat Ing up to 23 wounded personnel if used as an ambulance Since all interior fittings could be removed easily it also served as a command centre

During adverse weather periods especially on the Russian front even the A type vehicles proved to be inadequate in their abllity to supply front line units In order to secure these suppltes a large number of standtrd truck wore ordered to be buUt as semt-track vehicles The tracked suspenSion unit developed for this purpose by the WaHen-5S was based upon a Carden-Lloyd Idea and utUized the track ur Lhe PzKw 1 and II The conversion needed few basic changes tbe rear axle was moved forward the drive train shortened and the frame reinforced Tho original brake drums were retained for track steering and two levers to operate them were added to the controls Offi c ial nomenclature for converted vehicles was Glelsketlen-LKW 2 t l)auJtier Sd Kh 4 The increase in overall elght because of the new suspenslon decreased ~he pay load rating of these vehicles La 2 tons

The 3 ton (S typ) truck s bum by Opel KHD and Ford were used for these conversions Most were done in occupied France 1000 of these unlls were buih allhe French Ford Factory In Asnlere s

Available to the German Army on August 1 1943 were 5403 MlUitier vehicles The production was phased out by June 1 1943 with the new design of the aWS t aking over the functions of the Maultier and the Zgkw 5 ton Maultlcr will be retUured Later in this e e ries

Many of these 3 ton vehicles both 4 x 2 and 4 x 4 w()re equipped with tho box-like body shown on the type A drawn This so-called Wehrmachts-Einhe ltskoHerau(bau served for a large varIety o[ functions at least 100 dUferent versions are offlC-ially loown ranging from radio stations to delousing-vans The standard Kh designation for box-type body equipped vehicles was 305 regardless of the make of the chassis

Few iI3ultler vehicles werEi similarly equipped and some of these served with V-2 rocket units Also fire -fighting apparatus tanker vehicles and other special body equipment were mounted on the standard 3 ton cha ssis

1944 saw the replacement of the original steel cabs with the so-cllled Wcftrmachts-Einheitsfahrerbaua This Ersatz cab as shown on the drawing of thc 3 6-368 was made of pressed cardboard and wood components a nd eliminated the need for costly metal cabs It was the same size and style for all vehicles of the 1 5 3 45 and 65 ton classes It was still In use on most post-war vehicles built in Germany up to 1947

The vehicles of the 3 ton class provided tbe backbone for civil1an transports in the immediate post-war years Without changes Ford continued to produce 3 ton trucks days after the occupation Borgward and KHD did the same somewhat later since damage to their plants was more extensive Daimler-Benz buUt the Opel vehicles until 1949 since Opel factory in Brandenburg was completely dismantled by the Russians

Teohnical specification for ttl LKW 3t Opel

36-36 Typ S 36middot6700 Typ A 3 6-36 Typ SSSM

Crew (seats) 23 23 23

Weight laden 5 7 tons (5800) 6 tons (6100) 58 tons (5930)

Chassis weight L 75 tons (1800) 2 Loos (2100) 3 7 tons (3800)

TraUer weight 2 tons 3 tons

PERFORMANCE

Road speed 53 m p b (85Kmh) 50 m p h (80Kmh) 0 m p h (8Kmh)

Max gradIent 19 degrees 35 degrees 24 degrees

Fording l5 (44 cm) l7t (50) 15i (44)

Turning oircle -430 (13 1m) 509 (157) 48 (15)

Range mUes (Km) 260230 (400360) 230122 (350200) 10662 (165100)

Internal fuel cap 20 gals (92 ltr) 20 (92) 18 (82)

=

f iu AUSl r a liln Cr uI se r i la r k I Senl inel was 3 ery fine tank whe n It i s considered tha i Aus l ra lian had ne ve r beroTe an cmtcd IV bu ild suc h he3 ~ vehicles The RAC T ank Iuseum at Bovington England has one of the se SenllnBI tanks n d l srll ~middot

(Phot v cou rte sy of the Australian T lllk C01middotPS )

An Opel 36middot6700 typ with convent iona l fl a t t r uck bed ilnd l ilt No t e lhe r ack fo r add i t iona l fu e l can

The 36 - lt17 t yp 5 ~as 9 Ion) whee lbase ve rS ion of t he Ope l chassis and WilS ~i1 inl ) used for thi s so -Cl led We h nllc hu-OrrnbJJ$ Th is was a mul t i purpo se ehi cl e as the i nterio r f i l l inls coul d be r elllOv(d to co nve r t i I into rd)ullnce o r middotCOII ~3nd ce ntre

A Ford ~l lu I t i e r Vh i th h ad th e s ame s us Ile ns i o n sys lem as t he Ope l conve rsi on

Techniclil s pcc lf iCtltlon (o r LX l t on Oeel (con t inued)

Enlline 3amp26 cC6 c) L I nlln middotHlte rcoo led pet rol dcve loplng 75 lInp at JOO rpm

Ge arbox Ope l 5 (ong fd anll J rcerse (Two s peed I flns fc r box on l )p~ on ly glv ill) 10 r 2 R)

Sus pensio n Lon9 i 1lldi na l le af spnnl s L I1 af RndSp ir a l

EleC l ric)1 s)s l tn Bosch 12 vo lt Olle 00 3IIph r ba tte r y

Tyre oze 190 lC 20 lO x lO l QO x 20 IHrl ns i ons Se c dr awi n)s fo r octa l Is

Gr ound CI jr allce 8li (22 cm) 91f (25 ) 10 (26 5)

nceltr ack fr ont sOt ( 15lt1 2 ) 5 lt1 ( 103) 5 Olf ( 1542)

5 3 ( 162) 5 41( (1 61 2) 6$Ir (l70)

hee lbll5c II 0 l3GO) 11 1 (345)

Note Ar JlO lIrcd ve r s ion s of lhc 0Plj llU l t ier il be diiStr ibed i n iI lalcr is sue

GERMAN DECORATIONS WORrBY PERSONNEL OF PANZER PANZER CRENADIER AND ARjIOURED UNITS

OR WITH SUPPORTING A RlIS 1936-1945 - PART r BY B L DAVIS

rNTROOUCTION Ger man decorations med9ls and awards Issued Immediately prior- to and duri ng the Second Volld War- we re an essentLaI part of the Ger-man war effort The 3rd Rolch authorlUes we r e well aware o r the importance to good fighting mo ral due the p r e sentation or such awards

As the war progressed new badges we re designed and introduced and olhers were c reated 10 [Ill those ~Urgt8 hetwoen such existing awards a nd the need to recognhe th080 members of tho Ge rman Armed Forces that had tlhILln~UI~hcd

the mselves In contJnuous and In many c ases ext remely dange rous a rmed engag ment s w ith the e ne my

The decorations f~Olured are jUst a few of the more ImportanL of these awards

THE 1936 PA NZE R ASSAULT BADGE

(1936 PAN ZERKAMPFABZEICHEN)

Worn by those membe r s of Colonel von Thomas Pun1er Korps which sen-elt1 In Spilin doIrlnl( the Spanish Civil Wa r Authorised o r wear by von Tho ma tuwanJs thtl c nd or the 1936 the badge WlS conUr mcd UI( In u Uicini dccorl tl tlo hy the Cerm9ll High Com mnnd on 100h July 19W II Wllt

struck In sliver only

Worn on thc loft brenst lunlc pOCket

PANZER ASSAULT BADGE (PANZERKAiI-lPFAIlZEICIIE N)

Class In Oront~L Founded 1st Ju ne HHU

Awarded to Personne l of Panzcr Crcnnd icr Regiments Pan zer Aufklaerung s (Reeconnlssancej Battalions and Panzerspaehwagcn units Also to iImiddottcdleal pcrsonnel who went fonvQrd Into letlon In tanks and attended the wounded In the fighting tone Awarded for Thrtc panzer a ssa ults on three different dlYs

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tunic pocket

Class In Sliver Founded 20th Dccemb~r 194 0

Awarded to Officers and rilen of Pall1cl Unit s for at least three engagements on three separate days

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tlUlle pocket

NUMBERED PANZER ASSAULT BADGES (DIE srUfEN ZU M PANZ ERABZEICHEN)

Classes In Silve r and Bronze Each class numbered 255015 amp 100

Founded after July 1943

Av-arded to those personnel eligible for the IwO lower g rades o r tbe Panzer Assault Badge for long and continuous front line combat service with Armoured Un itS The figures 255075 amp 100 Indicate the number of Pnnzer engagements completed by the recipient

WO ln on the lower pa rt of the le rt middotbreast tWllc pockel

THE TANK DESTRUCTION BADGE (SONDERABZEIC HEN FUR OAS NIEOERJ(AEt IPFEN VON PANZ ERKAM PFWAGEN usw DURCH EIN ZELKAEM PFER)

Class in Sliver Founded 9th March 1943

Awarded to Soldiers (and In 80me cases LuftwAffe t r oops) who fuHflUed the ollowlng the s ingle-handed destruction of an enemy tank o r armoured vehicle In c lose combat us ing only such wcapons as an anti - tank rifle grenades pole charges etc Each award repr esentoo oDe e oemy lank dest royed and 4 such awards in silver could be awarded to any one man

Worn on the upp6r 16ft arm one award worn di r ectly bel ow

the other

Cl ass in GoI Founded January 1943

Awarded to and for the sa me rea sons as for the 81 he r clnss The Gold bldge representing a 5th enemy tank destroyed Worn on the left upper arm of the tunic Immediately above the four Silver badges

An SS-oberacharfullhrer wearing the five TANK DE$TRUCTON BADGES ( 10 lhe background a P~Kw Tiger I)

The officer seen he r e lndtc3tlng positions on the map is wea r ing the 1936 PANZER ASSAULT BADCe

Published by Bellona Publications Model ampAllied Publications Ltd 1335 Bridge Street Hemel Hempstead Herts

f iu AUSl r a liln Cr uI se r i la r k I Senl inel was 3 ery fine tank whe n It i s considered tha i Aus l ra lian had ne ve r beroTe an cmtcd IV bu ild suc h he3 ~ vehicles The RAC T ank Iuseum at Bovington England has one of the se SenllnBI tanks n d l srll ~middot

(Phot v cou rte sy of the Australian T lllk C01middotPS )

An Opel 36middot6700 typ with convent iona l fl a t t r uck bed ilnd l ilt No t e lhe r ack fo r add i t iona l fu e l can

The 36 - lt17 t yp 5 ~as 9 Ion) whee lbase ve rS ion of t he Ope l chassis and WilS ~i1 inl ) used for thi s so -Cl led We h nllc hu-OrrnbJJ$ Th is was a mul t i purpo se ehi cl e as the i nterio r f i l l inls coul d be r elllOv(d to co nve r t i I into rd)ullnce o r middotCOII ~3nd ce ntre

A Ford ~l lu I t i e r Vh i th h ad th e s ame s us Ile ns i o n sys lem as t he Ope l conve rsi on

Techniclil s pcc lf iCtltlon (o r LX l t on Oeel (con t inued)

Enlline 3amp26 cC6 c) L I nlln middotHlte rcoo led pet rol dcve loplng 75 lInp at JOO rpm

Ge arbox Ope l 5 (ong fd anll J rcerse (Two s peed I flns fc r box on l )p~ on ly glv ill) 10 r 2 R)

Sus pensio n Lon9 i 1lldi na l le af spnnl s L I1 af RndSp ir a l

EleC l ric)1 s)s l tn Bosch 12 vo lt Olle 00 3IIph r ba tte r y

Tyre oze 190 lC 20 lO x lO l QO x 20 IHrl ns i ons Se c dr awi n)s fo r octa l Is

Gr ound CI jr allce 8li (22 cm) 91f (25 ) 10 (26 5)

nceltr ack fr ont sOt ( 15lt1 2 ) 5 lt1 ( 103) 5 Olf ( 1542)

5 3 ( 162) 5 41( (1 61 2) 6$Ir (l70)

hee lbll5c II 0 l3GO) 11 1 (345)

Note Ar JlO lIrcd ve r s ion s of lhc 0Plj llU l t ier il be diiStr ibed i n iI lalcr is sue

GERMAN DECORATIONS WORrBY PERSONNEL OF PANZER PANZER CRENADIER AND ARjIOURED UNITS

OR WITH SUPPORTING A RlIS 1936-1945 - PART r BY B L DAVIS

rNTROOUCTION Ger man decorations med9ls and awards Issued Immediately prior- to and duri ng the Second Volld War- we re an essentLaI part of the Ger-man war effort The 3rd Rolch authorlUes we r e well aware o r the importance to good fighting mo ral due the p r e sentation or such awards

As the war progressed new badges we re designed and introduced and olhers were c reated 10 [Ill those ~Urgt8 hetwoen such existing awards a nd the need to recognhe th080 members of tho Ge rman Armed Forces that had tlhILln~UI~hcd

the mselves In contJnuous and In many c ases ext remely dange rous a rmed engag ment s w ith the e ne my

The decorations f~Olured are jUst a few of the more ImportanL of these awards

THE 1936 PA NZE R ASSAULT BADGE

(1936 PAN ZERKAMPFABZEICHEN)

Worn by those membe r s of Colonel von Thomas Pun1er Korps which sen-elt1 In Spilin doIrlnl( the Spanish Civil Wa r Authorised o r wear by von Tho ma tuwanJs thtl c nd or the 1936 the badge WlS conUr mcd UI( In u Uicini dccorl tl tlo hy the Cerm9ll High Com mnnd on 100h July 19W II Wllt

struck In sliver only

Worn on thc loft brenst lunlc pOCket

PANZER ASSAULT BADGE (PANZERKAiI-lPFAIlZEICIIE N)

Class In Oront~L Founded 1st Ju ne HHU

Awarded to Personne l of Panzcr Crcnnd icr Regiments Pan zer Aufklaerung s (Reeconnlssancej Battalions and Panzerspaehwagcn units Also to iImiddottcdleal pcrsonnel who went fonvQrd Into letlon In tanks and attended the wounded In the fighting tone Awarded for Thrtc panzer a ssa ults on three different dlYs

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tunic pocket

Class In Sliver Founded 20th Dccemb~r 194 0

Awarded to Officers and rilen of Pall1cl Unit s for at least three engagements on three separate days

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tlUlle pocket

NUMBERED PANZER ASSAULT BADGES (DIE srUfEN ZU M PANZ ERABZEICHEN)

Classes In Silve r and Bronze Each class numbered 255015 amp 100

Founded after July 1943

Av-arded to those personnel eligible for the IwO lower g rades o r tbe Panzer Assault Badge for long and continuous front line combat service with Armoured Un itS The figures 255075 amp 100 Indicate the number of Pnnzer engagements completed by the recipient

WO ln on the lower pa rt of the le rt middotbreast tWllc pockel

THE TANK DESTRUCTION BADGE (SONDERABZEIC HEN FUR OAS NIEOERJ(AEt IPFEN VON PANZ ERKAM PFWAGEN usw DURCH EIN ZELKAEM PFER)

Class in Sliver Founded 9th March 1943

Awarded to Soldiers (and In 80me cases LuftwAffe t r oops) who fuHflUed the ollowlng the s ingle-handed destruction of an enemy tank o r armoured vehicle In c lose combat us ing only such wcapons as an anti - tank rifle grenades pole charges etc Each award repr esentoo oDe e oemy lank dest royed and 4 such awards in silver could be awarded to any one man

Worn on the upp6r 16ft arm one award worn di r ectly bel ow

the other

Cl ass in GoI Founded January 1943

Awarded to and for the sa me rea sons as for the 81 he r clnss The Gold bldge representing a 5th enemy tank destroyed Worn on the left upper arm of the tunic Immediately above the four Silver badges

An SS-oberacharfullhrer wearing the five TANK DE$TRUCTON BADGES ( 10 lhe background a P~Kw Tiger I)

The officer seen he r e lndtc3tlng positions on the map is wea r ing the 1936 PANZER ASSAULT BADCe

Published by Bellona Publications Model ampAllied Publications Ltd 1335 Bridge Street Hemel Hempstead Herts

GERMAN DECORATIONS WORrBY PERSONNEL OF PANZER PANZER CRENADIER AND ARjIOURED UNITS

OR WITH SUPPORTING A RlIS 1936-1945 - PART r BY B L DAVIS

rNTROOUCTION Ger man decorations med9ls and awards Issued Immediately prior- to and duri ng the Second Volld War- we re an essentLaI part of the Ger-man war effort The 3rd Rolch authorlUes we r e well aware o r the importance to good fighting mo ral due the p r e sentation or such awards

As the war progressed new badges we re designed and introduced and olhers were c reated 10 [Ill those ~Urgt8 hetwoen such existing awards a nd the need to recognhe th080 members of tho Ge rman Armed Forces that had tlhILln~UI~hcd

the mselves In contJnuous and In many c ases ext remely dange rous a rmed engag ment s w ith the e ne my

The decorations f~Olured are jUst a few of the more ImportanL of these awards

THE 1936 PA NZE R ASSAULT BADGE

(1936 PAN ZERKAMPFABZEICHEN)

Worn by those membe r s of Colonel von Thomas Pun1er Korps which sen-elt1 In Spilin doIrlnl( the Spanish Civil Wa r Authorised o r wear by von Tho ma tuwanJs thtl c nd or the 1936 the badge WlS conUr mcd UI( In u Uicini dccorl tl tlo hy the Cerm9ll High Com mnnd on 100h July 19W II Wllt

struck In sliver only

Worn on thc loft brenst lunlc pOCket

PANZER ASSAULT BADGE (PANZERKAiI-lPFAIlZEICIIE N)

Class In Oront~L Founded 1st Ju ne HHU

Awarded to Personne l of Panzcr Crcnnd icr Regiments Pan zer Aufklaerung s (Reeconnlssancej Battalions and Panzerspaehwagcn units Also to iImiddottcdleal pcrsonnel who went fonvQrd Into letlon In tanks and attended the wounded In the fighting tone Awarded for Thrtc panzer a ssa ults on three different dlYs

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tunic pocket

Class In Sliver Founded 20th Dccemb~r 194 0

Awarded to Officers and rilen of Pall1cl Unit s for at least three engagements on three separate days

Worn on the lower part of the left breast tlUlle pocket

NUMBERED PANZER ASSAULT BADGES (DIE srUfEN ZU M PANZ ERABZEICHEN)

Classes In Silve r and Bronze Each class numbered 255015 amp 100

Founded after July 1943

Av-arded to those personnel eligible for the IwO lower g rades o r tbe Panzer Assault Badge for long and continuous front line combat service with Armoured Un itS The figures 255075 amp 100 Indicate the number of Pnnzer engagements completed by the recipient

WO ln on the lower pa rt of the le rt middotbreast tWllc pockel

THE TANK DESTRUCTION BADGE (SONDERABZEIC HEN FUR OAS NIEOERJ(AEt IPFEN VON PANZ ERKAM PFWAGEN usw DURCH EIN ZELKAEM PFER)

Class in Sliver Founded 9th March 1943

Awarded to Soldiers (and In 80me cases LuftwAffe t r oops) who fuHflUed the ollowlng the s ingle-handed destruction of an enemy tank o r armoured vehicle In c lose combat us ing only such wcapons as an anti - tank rifle grenades pole charges etc Each award repr esentoo oDe e oemy lank dest royed and 4 such awards in silver could be awarded to any one man

Worn on the upp6r 16ft arm one award worn di r ectly bel ow

the other

Cl ass in GoI Founded January 1943

Awarded to and for the sa me rea sons as for the 81 he r clnss The Gold bldge representing a 5th enemy tank destroyed Worn on the left upper arm of the tunic Immediately above the four Silver badges

An SS-oberacharfullhrer wearing the five TANK DE$TRUCTON BADGES ( 10 lhe background a P~Kw Tiger I)

The officer seen he r e lndtc3tlng positions on the map is wea r ing the 1936 PANZER ASSAULT BADCe

Published by Bellona Publications Model ampAllied Publications Ltd 1335 Bridge Street Hemel Hempstead Herts