Krec
Posts: 548
Joined: 3/9/2001 From: SF Bay Area Status: offline
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Here is food for thought. The following is fromWorld War Two Tanks by George Forty page 96:
" Panther, as the new tank was named, first rolled off the production line at MAN in November 1942. The first model was initially known as the Ausf A,although this was later changed to Ausf D.Development was undoubtedly rushed and this led to many problems, such as transmission and steering faults, because the parts were designed for use on the lighter less powerful AFVs. Even the engine was prone to overheating. Everyone was worried,Guderian writing in his diary for example. that he had...'spent 15 June worrying about our problem child, the Panther;the track,suspension and drive were not right and the optics were also not yet satisfactory'. The gun, however, lived up to its expectations according to one battlefield trials report, knocking out a T-34 with the first round at an unbelievable range of 7,224metres! The same report did not, however,make entirely satisfactory reading: of the 200 Panthers involved in this trial in Russia, 160 were out of action by the end of the first day and nine days later, there were only 43 serviceable. Many had broken down between the railhead and the battlefront and because of their weight towing was extremely difficult. Eventually, these mechanical problems were cured and Panther gained a reputation for all-round excellence,just under 6,000 gun tanks being built, with many others using the same chassis."
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"No bastard ever won a war by dying for his country. He won it by making the other poor dumb bastard die for his country." Patton ![](http://www.military.cz/panzer/tanks/usa/sherman/image/sherman_5.jpg)
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