Forces Of Valor Unimax 1/32 German Jagdtiger Tank Germany 1945
Jagdtiger ("Hunting Tiger") is the common name of a German tank destroyer of World War II. The official German designation was Panzerjäger Tiger Ausf. B. The ordnance inventory designation was Sd. Kfz. 186. It saw service in small numbers from late 1944 to the end of the war on both the Western and Eastern Front. The Jagdtiger was the heaviest armored fighting vehicle operationally used during World War II. Due to an excessive weight the Jagdtiger was continuously plagued with mechanical problems.
In early 1942 a request was made by the Army General Staff to mount a 128 mm gun on a self-propelled armored chassis. On May 18, 1942 Adolf Hitler ordered that the 128 mm gun be utilized in the tank destroyer role, rather than for infantry support.
By early 1943 a decision was made to install a 128 mm gun on a Tiger II chassis as a heavy assault gun. Two prototypes were produced; a version with the eight road wheel Porsche suspension system (number 305001) and a version with the Henschel nine overlapping wheel suspension system (number 305002), as used on the production Tiger II. It was originally designated as Jagdpanzer VI, but was later named the Jagdtiger. It received the inventory ordnance number Sd.Kfz.186.
The Jagdtiger used a boxy casemate superstructure, with its sides completely integral with the hull's sides, on top of a lengthened Tiger II chassis. The resulting vehicle featured very heavy armor and the 128 mm PaK 44 L/55 gun, capable of defeating any tank fielded in World War II, even at very long ranges (over 3,500 m (2.2 mi)). It had 250 mm (9.8 in) armor on the front of the casemate and 150 mm (5.9 in) on the glacis plate. The main gun mount had a limited traverse of only 10 degrees; the entire vehicle had to be turned to aim outside that narrow field of fire.
The Jagdtiger suffered from a variety of mechanical and technical problems due to its immense weight and under-powered engine. The vehicle had frequent breakdowns; ultimately more Jagdtigers were lost to mechanical problems or lack of fuel than to enemy action.
150 Jagdtigers were ordered but only half that number were produced. Eleven of them, serial numbers 305001 and 305003 to 305012, were produced with the Porsche suspension (8 roadwheels); all following used the Henschel suspension (9 roadwheels).
Only two heavy antitank battalions (schwere Panzerjäger-Abteilung), numbered 512 and 653, were equipped with Jagdtigers, with the first vehicles reaching the units in September 1944.
The Forces of Valor replica is a German Sd. Kfz. 186 Jagdtiger heavy tank destroyer, which was attached to sPzJgAbt. 653, deployed in Germany during early 1945.
Die cast metal and plastic construction.
Upper chassis is metal.
Hatches open.
Removable spare tracks.
Working vinyl tracks.
Two tow cables.
Elevating barrel.
Comes with assorted gear and other accessories.
Comes with a commander figure.
