Armored version of the Sd.Kfz. 8

The diorama was made in 1:35 scale. The armored version of the artillery tractor Sd.Kfz. 8 was made from the Trumpeter set. The modeller added ammunition chambers in the model basing on the photos of the original he had taken. The original Trumpeter kit did not include such chambers. Photo-etched holders from Aber for attaching tools were also added to the model vehicle.

The second model is the 12,8 cm PaK 44 anti-tank gun from the Great Wall Hobby box.

The series-produced vehicle differed from that in the diorama. The armor added to the series version significantly changed the appearance of the vehicle. It is not known exactly how many armored version of the tractor were produced. No documents have survived. It is said that a short series was sent to the Eastern Front after testing.

However, it was known that two vehicles sank in the Pilica , near Tomaszów Mazowiecki, during the withdrawal of the Germans in January 1945. One of them survived until 1999. It was excavated from sand and restored in the following years. It is the only known surviving vehicle of this type in the world, and in addition driveable. It is located in the "Open Air Museum of the Pilica River" (pl:"Skansen Rzeki Pilicy") in Tomaszów Mazowiecki.

You can see the PaK 44 anti-tank gun ready to use on the another diorama. You can read some information about the gun there.

The resin model of the PaK 44 anti-tank on the Rheinmetall chassis

Sources:

• http://skansenpilicy.pl/o-niezwyklym-pojezdzie-slow-kilka/

26 Mar 2020

Modeller: Artur Stańczyk

Photographer: Ender

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