Favourite WW2 Tank

Tough question.  I have a soft spot for the Panther, the first tank of which I ever owned a model.  It looks good, and it’s a fair match with the T-34 as the best medium tank of the war, but the T-34 had a significant edge when it cames to mechanical reliability and ease of production, so the T-34 would win on points despite its rougher looks.  I also rather like the Maus, which looks surprisingly sleek for such an outrageously enormous machine; it gets additional points for ambition and record-setting, but a big entry in the debit column for being wastefully impractical.  I don’t have any great affection for the Sherman, but I have to give it credit for recognizability: to paraphrase the Ronson lighter slogan that was applied to it, it’s the only WWII tank that I can “always spot the first time, every time” when I see one in a movie, due to the elongated chevron shape of its upper hull.  I’ve seen at least one low-budget WWII film (made during the war) in which a couple of obvious Shermans are being passed off as Japanese tanks by having had a rising sun flag painted on their sides.  I got a good laugh out of that one.

King Tiger Tank…

Ride of the Valkyries

Impenetrable Front armor!

Panther A or G would be my favourite, in shooting distance of 1000 meters it would penetrate almost any tank armour. After getting rid of any issues and nick nacks it was a solid and dependable tank.
A close second would be Panzer IV Ausf. F2 or H.

The Panzer IV, it was there in Poland in 1939 and still in service in May 1945. The tank was able to adapt to meet most Allied threats. Not as sexy as the Panther or Tiger, but a damn good tank.

Naturally the tiger, the timeless iconical tank of all times.

Makes me want to start up right away a new campaign on Steel Panthers: World at War, and forget everything else!

@wittmann:

Nice pic. Any idea what unit  and where it was taken?
I recognise the insignia, but cannot place it. I imagine it is attached to IISS Pz Corps. But it could be Wehrmacht.

If you Google “Friedrich Zschackel” you’ll get a bunch of hits for tank pictures, with captions.  I didn’t check them, but one of them may provide the answer.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_101III-Zschaeckel-207-12,_Schlacht_um_Kursk,Panzer_VI(Tiger_I).jpg

Sowjetunion.- Waffen-SS-Division “Das Reich” bei “Unternehmen Zitadelle” mit Panzer VI “Tiger I” während der Schlacht um Kursk; SS-PK

@CWO:

@wittmann:

Nice pic. Any idea what unit�� and where it was taken?
I recognise the insignia, but cannot place it. I imagine it is attached to IISS Pz Corps. But it could be Wehrmacht.

If you Google “Friedrich Zschackel” you’ll get a bunch of hits for tank pictures, with captions.� I didn’t check them, but one of them may provide the answer.

Was a very good idea!

I found a profile pic for myself.

And something else  :-D

@moilami:

I found a profile pic for myself.

Are you referring to the top one or the bottom one?

Moilami,

I think you should use THIS pic for your avatar. You can send the other one to ME since you don’t need it. I’m single, too! haha.

“Tall Paul”

Now chose another one. A tank killer. Stug was rather good design.