Latest edit: Added Plastic Platoon German Tankers
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The German Panzerwaffe or Panzertruppe were the men responsible for operating the armored vehicles such as tanks and self-propelled anti-tank guns within the German armed forces. They were known for their black uniforms, and tight fitting, double-breasted jackets, inspired by the uniforms of former Hussars. This makes sense, considering that they were the armored evolution of the cavalry. Their piping color was pink and their insignia in caps and collars included skulls / Totenkopf which is something that they earlier Brunswick Hussars also wore, but which became problematic for the Panzertruppen particularly towards the end of the war when many of them would get shot on the spot upon capture after being mistaken for death camp guards. Within the command of the Panzerwaffe, and attached to the armored units, there were also Panzergrenadier which could be transported in half-tracked armored vehicles, or in trucks. Panzer crews would typically remain within their vehicles, as that's the way in which they could be the most lethal. It was the Panzergrenadiers, who were much better trained in infantry tactics, which were responsible for complementing the tanks offensively or defensively. The ratio of half-tracks to trucks available to transport the Panzergrenadiers would depend on the elite status of the division. Divisions such as the Panzer Lehr, raised from skilled, decorated veterans who had been transferred to the two main training schools for motorized troops, received many more armored vehicles. It was also within some of these divisions such as the Panzer Lehr, that also the Panzergrenadier wore the double-breasted jacket as their uniform, albeit in grey fabric. In terms of toy soldiers, Panzer crews have been released along with their vehicles by firms such as Forces of Valor or 21st Century Toys, however the poses are usually that of a commander standing at the turret or a driver/machine gunner taking a peek out of the front hatches. Up to now, nobody had manufactured dismounted Panzertruppen. But that changed recently. Let's take a look.
Mars German Panzer Crew
This is an original set. Typically when you see tank crew men, they are mounted in their vehicles, but when you think about it, they must have had to abandon their tanks at times due to battle damage or mechanical failure, and when doing so, it seems reasonable to expect that they had to engage in small arms combat. The set provides a nice variety of action poses depicting the urgency of the situation. What's also good about this set is that if you are into painting your figures, this uniform with a short, double-breasted jacket can be painted in a variety of color schemes, including cammo pattern and various tones of grey, as it was worn not only by panzer crews -in black-, but also self-propelled gun crews, and panzer grenadiers. What's not so great about this set is that one figure in particular -standing in the middle of the picture- has a serious manufacturing issue, with a lot of extra plastic down the middle of his face. This is not just my set, as it has been reported by other collectors. I may try to shave it off a bit or simply replace the head.
Dragon CanDo Tiger Aces
This is a special set from Dragon. They represent famous Tiger commanders such as Michael Wittman (in black standing on the turret). There's also Hans sitting up front, Georg stand off to the side wearing an officer's cap. Kurt (Knispel) - the most prolific Panzer ace- standing opposite him with a regular cap (that's the only difference between him and Georg), Woll to the right of Wittman, and Karlheinz resting his arm around the tank's gun. These guys are now not so easy to find and they can be a bit pricey of you do run into them. That's particularly true of Kurt who was only manufactured 4 times out of every 100 figures in the set. If you can find them they are a great complement to the FOV and 21C panzers.
Hanomak German Tank Crewmen
This set represents dismounted tank crews in intense close quarters combat. Well, except for the officer who seems to be taking in the action. I am not sure why they depicted him like that. This set will be a good complement to a similar set from Mars, although I am not sure that I need that much volume of dismounted tank crews. What is interesting about this set is that it was produced using digital sculpting. That's why the lines are so smooth. You notice this specially on the clothes. I have to say that I prefer the hand-sculpted figures better, but I expect that this technique will continue to improve. In fact, the 3D printing is already quite impressive. As far as the figures, they are well posed and I do like that their bodies reflect the urgency of the situation.
Hanomak German and Soviet Tank Crewmen fighting
Here is a picture of how the German guy is supposed to be combined with its Soviet counterpart. The German guy has his pistol drawn, while the Soviet guy is about to stab him. Who do you think will prevail? BTW, notice that the Soviet guy is also a tank guy, which suggests that these two crews disabled each other's tanks, which would have had to happen at very close range for them to end up fighting hand-to-hand or were part of a larger tank battle and ended up running into each other while evacuating from the battlefield. Neither scenario seems very likely to me, but hey, everything is possible in the world of plastic toy soldiers...
Plastic Platoon German Tankers, Battle of Kursk
This set came with 3 tank crew members from each side. But that's not where the symmetry ends. Each side has what looks like an officer firing a pistol, a crew man firing a sub machine gun, and another crew man firing a light machine gun from the waist - a la Rambo. The poses are all in Plastic Platoon's usual high action style. One detail that I like from this set is how they made the man firing the machine gun step over a piece of tank track. You can tell that this panzer crew is definitely having a challenging time evacuating its disabled tank! These guys will go well with the Mars and Hanomak tanker sets.
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