1:48 Pz.Kpfw.VI Tiger Ausf.E (Mid Production Model)

A Tiger of the middle production stage

The Pz.Kpfw.VI Tiger Ausf.E changed gradually over two years of series manufacture. You will recognize the vehicles of the middle stage by the commander's cupola with vision slits, by the simplified fenders and by the missing grenade launchers on the sides of the turret. The markings offered in 1:48 aim at precisely this form of the machine.

Eleven vehicles from five battalions

The selection leads a modeler from the Apennines all the way to the Eastern Front. There is a tank of the 508th Heavy Tank Battalion from the fighting for Rome in the spring of 1944 and its companion from the bridgehead at Anzio and Nettuno. The Russian winter of 1944 is represented by two vehicles of the 501st Battalion, the Tarnopol area by a machine of the 507th Battalion, which carries a single letter instead of a number. The Ukrainian turn of 1943 and 1944 falls to the 506th Battalion. The rest of the sheet belongs to the 3rd company of the 101st Waffen-SS battalion: a pair of tanks from Normandy in June 1944 and a pair from their Belgian station of January of the same year.

Working the motifs

All the motifs are printed on a common backing, so each is cut out separately. A glossy layer under the film and a drop of softener prove themselves, forcing the decal to follow the rivets, the welds and the coarse texture of the Zimmerit. The white outlines around the tactical numbers keep the contrast on a dark yellow base as well as on a winter finish.

Which kits it suits

The set makes up the furnishing for a 1:48 model of the Tiger from the usual makers; the kit is sold separately. Eleven variants will be enough for several finished examples or for a collection of one battalion.