Panzerkampfwagen III Sd Kfz. 141 Ausf. G
Otherwise known as Panzer IIIG. It is a German Medium tank built from 1938 to 1943. It was armed decently and had reasonably thick armor. In battle, it proved superior due to German tactics!
The models I have built today are five Panzer III tanks made by the Russian company Zvezda. The vehicles are lower detail models designed to be playing pieces for the board game Art of Tactic. The kit has few pieces and is very easy to assemble. Detail is lacking, but at a $5 cost and some stowage from Battlefront and PSC they will look the part! I replaced the barrel with a brass version as well. They will work good for my late 1940 German Panzer force!
Unfortunately some time has passed since I purchased these kits. Since then Plastic Soldier has released their own version in plastic which has much higher detail, more options and included stowage for a similar price. Due to this, I do not recommend this kit at all, unless it can be found for under $4. Even at that price point, the alternative PSC version hold a much better value.
... Mitch
Panzer III was the common name of a medium tank that was developed in the 1930s by Germany and was used extensively in World War II. The official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen III Sd Kfz. 141 (abbreviated PzKpfw III) translating as "armoured fighting vehicle". It was intended to fight other armoured fighting vehicles and serve alongside the infantry-supporting Panzer IV. However, as the Germans faced the formidable T-34, stronger anti-tank guns were needed. Since the Panzer IV had a bigger turret ring, the role was reversed. The Panzer IV mounted the long barreled 7.5 cm KwK 40 gun and engaged in tank-to-tank battles. The Panzer III became obsolete in this role and for most purposes was supplanted by the Panzer IV. From 1942, the last version of Panzer III mounted the 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24, better suited for infantry support. Production of the Panzer III ended in 1943. However, the Panzer III's capable chassis provided hulls for the Sturmgeschütz III until the end of the war.
Development history
On January 11, 1934, following specifications laid down by Heinz Guderian, the Army Weapons Department drew up plans for a medium tank with a maximum weight of 24,000 kg and a top speed of 35 kilometres per hour (21.75 mph). It was intended as the main tank of the German Panzer divisions, capable of engaging and destroying opposing tank forces. Daimler-Benz, Krupp, MAN, and Rheinmetall all produced prototypes. Testing of the prototypes took place in 1936 and 1937, leading to the Daimler-Benz design being chosen for production. The first model of the Panzer III, the Ausf. A, came off the assembly line in May 1937, and a total of ten, two of which were unarmed, were produced in 1937. Mass production of the Ausf. F version began in 1939.
Between 1937 and 1940, attempts were made to standardize parts between Krupp's Panzer IV and Daimler-Benz's Panzer III. Much of the early development work on the Panzer III was a quest for a suitable suspension. Several varieties of leaf-spring suspensions were tried on Ausf. A through Ausf. D before the torsion-bar suspension of the Ausf. E was standardized. The Panzer III, along with the Soviet KV heavy tank, was one of the first tanks to use this suspension design. A distinct feature of Panzer III, influenced by British Vickers tanks, was a three-man turret. This meant that commander was not distracted with either loader's or gunner's tasks and could fully concentrate on maintaining situational awareness. Other tanks of the time did not[1] have this capability, providing the Panzer III with a potential combat advantage. For example the French Somua S-35, had only one-man turret crew, and the Soviet T-34 (originally) had two-men. The practical importance of this feature is signified by the fact that not only all the further German tank designs inherited it, but also later into the war, most of the Allied tanks' designs either quickly switched to the three-man turret, or were abandoned as obsolete.
The Panzer III, as opposed to Panzer IV, had no turret basket, merely a foot rest platform for the gunner.[2]
The Panzer III was intended as the primary battle tank of the German forces. However, when it initially met the KV and T-34 tanks it proved to be inferior in both armor and gun power. To meet the growing need to counter these tanks, the Panzer III was up-gunned with a longer, more powerful 50-millimetre (1.97 in) cannon and received more armour although this failed to effectively address the problem caused by the KV tank designs. As a result, production of self-propelled guns, as well as the up-gunning of the Panzer IV was initiated.
In 1942, the final version of the Panzer III, the Ausf. N, was created with a 75-millimetre (2.95 in) KwK 37 L/24 cannon, a low-velocity gun designed for anti-infantry and close-support work. For defensive purposes, the Ausf. N was equipped with rounds of hollow charge ammunition which could penetrate 70 to 100 millimetres (2.76 to 3.94 in) of armour depending on the round's variant but these were strictly used for self-defense.
The Japanese government allegedly bought two Panzer III's from their German allies during the war. Purportedly this was for reverse engineering purposes, since Japan put more emphasis on the development of new military aircraft and naval technology and relatively little on the development of new tanks. The vehicles apparently weren't delivered until 1943 however, by which time much of the Panzer III's technology had arguably already become obsolete.
Armour
The Panzer III Ausf. A through C had 15 millimetres (0.59 in) of homogeneous steel armor on all sides with 10 millimetres (0.39 in) on the top and 5 millimetres (0.20 in) on the bottom. This was quickly determined to be insufficient, and was upgraded to 30 millimetres (1.18 in) on the front, sides and rear in the Ausf. D, E, F, and G models, with the H model having a second 30-millimetre (1.18 in) layer of face-hardened steel applied to the front and rear hull. The Ausf. J model had a solid 50-millimetre (1.97 in) plate on the front and rear, while the Ausf. J¹, L, and the M models had an additional layer of 20 millimetres (0.79 in) of armor on the front hull and turret. This additional frontal armor gave the Panzer III frontal protection from most British and Soviet anti-tank guns at all but close ranges. The sides were still vulnerable to many enemy weapons including anti-tank rifles at close ranges.
Armament
Panzerbefehlswagen (command tank) III ausf E or F in Greece, fitted with a 37 mm gun and two coaxial machine guns (1941). The Panzer III was intended to fight other tanks; in the initial design stage a 50-millimetre (1.97 in) cannon was specified. However, the infantry at the time were being equipped with the 37-millimetre (1.46 in) PaK 36, and it was thought that in the interest of standardization the tanks should carry the same armament. As a compromise, the turret ring was made large enough to accommodate a 50-millimetre (1.97 in) cannon should a future upgrade be required. This single decision would later assure the Panzer III a prolonged life in the German Army. The Ausf. A to early Ausf. F were equipped with a 3.7 cm KwK 36 L/46.5 which proved adequate during the campaigns of 1939 and 1940 but the later Ausf. F to Ausf. J were upgraded with the 5 cm KwK 38 L/42 and the Ausf. J¹ to M with the longer 5 cm KwK 39 L/60 cannon in response to increasingly better armed and armoured opponents. By 1942, the Panzer IV was becoming Germany's main medium tank because of its better upgrade potential. The Panzer III remained in production as a close support vehicle. The Ausf. N model mounted a low-velocity 7.5 cm KwK 37 L/24 cannon - the same used by the early Panzer IV Ausf. A to Ausf. F models. These guns had originally been fitted to older Panzer IV Ausf A to F1 models and had been placed into storage when those tanks had also been up armed to longer versions of the 75mm gun. All early models up to and including the Ausf. F had two 7.92-millimetre (0.31 in) Maschinengewehr 34 machine guns mounted coaxially with the main gun, and a similar weapon in a hull mount. Models from the Ausf. G and later had a single coaxial MG34 and the hull MG34.
Mobility
The Panzer III Ausf. A through C were powered by a 250 metric horsepower (183.87 kW), 12-cylinder Maybach HL 108 TR engine, giving a top speed of 32 kilometres per hour (19.88 mph) and a range of 150 kilometres (93.21 mi). All later models were powered by the 300 metric horsepower (220.65 kW), 12-cylinder Maybach HL 120 TRM engine. Top speed varied, depending on the transmission and weight, but was around 40 kilometres per hour (24.85 mph). The range was generally around 155 kilometres (96.31 mi).
Combat use
The Panzer III was used in the campaigns against Poland, France, the Soviet Union and in North Africa. A handful were still in use in Normandy, Anzio, Finland and in Operation Market Garden in 1944. In the Polish and French campaigns, the Panzer III formed a small part of the German armored forces. Only a few hundred Ausf. A through F were available in these campaigns, most armed with the 37-millimetre (1.46 in) gun. They were the best medium tank available to the Germans and outclassed most of their opponents such as the Polish 7TP, French R-35 and H-35 light tanks. Around the time of Operation Barbarossa, the Panzer III was numerically the most important German tank. At this time the majority of the available tanks (including re-armed Ausf. E and F, plus new Ausf. G and H models) had the 50-millimetre (1.97 in) KwK 38 L/42 cannon which also equipped the majority of the tanks in North Africa. Initially, the Panzer IIIs were outclassed and outnumbered by Soviet T-34 and KV tanks. However, the most numerous Soviet tanks were the T-26 and BT tanks. This, along with superior German tactical skill,[8] crew training, and the good ergonomics of the Panzer III all contributed to a rough 6:1 favourable kill ratio for German tanks of all types in 1941.[citation needed]
With the appearance of the T-34 and KV tanks, rearming the Panzer III with a longer, more powerful 50-millimetre (1.97 in) cannon was prioritised. The T-34 was generally invulnerable in frontal engagements with the Panzer III until the 50 mm KwK 39 L/60 gun was introduced on the Panzer III Ausf. J¹ in the spring of 1942 (the gun was based on infantry's 50 mm Pak 38 L/60). This could penetrate the T-34 frontally at ranges under 500 metres (1,600 ft). Against the KV tanks it was a threat if armed with special high velocity tungsten rounds. In addition, to counter antitank rifles, in 1943 the Ausf. L version began the use of spaced armour skirts (schürzen) around the turret and on the hull sides. However, due to the introduction of the upgunned and uparmoured Panzer IV, the Panzer III was, after the Battle of Kursk, relegated to secondary roles, such as training, and it was replaced as the main German medium tank by the Panzer IV and the Panther.
The Panzer III chassis was the basis for the turretless Sturmgeschütz III assault gun, one of the most successful self-propelled guns of the war, and the single most-produced German armored fighting vehicle design of World War II.
By the end of the war, the Pz.III had almost no frontline use and many exemplars had been returned to the factories for conversion into StuG assault guns, which were in high demand due to the defensive warfare style adopted by the German Army by then.
| Production history | |
|---|---|
| Designer | Daimler-Benz |
| Designed | 1935-1937 |
| Manufacturer | Daimler-Benz |
| Produced | 1939–1943 |
| Number built | 5,774 (excluding StuG III) |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 23.0 tonnes (25.4 short tons) |
| Length | 6.41 m (20 ft) |
| Width | 2.90 m (9 ft 6 in) |
| Height | 2.5 m (8 ft 2 in) |
| Crew | 5 (commander, gunner, loader, driver, radio operator/bow machine-gunner) |
| Armor | 5–70 mm (0.20–2.8 in) |
| Main armament | 1 × 3.7 cm KwK 36 Ausf. A-F 1 × 5 cm KwK 38 Ausf. F-J 1 × 5 cm KwK 39 Ausf. J¹-M 1 × 7.5 cm KwK 37 Ausf. N |
| Secondary armament | 2-3 × 7.92 mm Maschinengewehr 34 |
| Engine | 12-cylinder Maybach HL 120 TRM 300 PS (296 hp, 220 kW) |
| Power/weight | 12 hp/t |
| Suspension | Torsion-bar suspension |
| Operational range | 155 km (96 mi) |
| Speed | Road: 40 km/h (25 mph) Off-road: 20 km/h (12 mph) |
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