A Good 1/35 Panther

[Shawn C.]

I'm more of an aircraft guy, but do build armor. I will probably only ever build one 1/35 Panther kit so I'm wondering what the definitive version of this tank was and what might be a good kit (in production) to represent it. I don't want to let my ignorance steer me towards a kit of some weird one-off or a low production version. I want something that says "yep, that's the ubiquitous Panther." I don't care if the variat I'm looking for usually had zimmerit applied or not, nor on what front it primarily fought. The only other factor is the availability of a good, general PE set to perhaps jazz it up a bit. I acutally like dealing with PE; it's fun!

Hopefully, I can find something that fits the bill and shop for it during the upcoming National Convention.

[Tankcommander]

Either the newer Tamiya or Dragon Panthers should fit the bill. Dragon for detail or Tamiya for ease of assembly. Dragon had a D, E and G, Tamiya late Gs are nice. I sure there is a ton of aftermarket PE its German.

TC

[Shawn C.]

Thanks, man. I read some reviews of the Dragon Panther G "smart kit" after reading your post. It sure looks like a winner so I will keep my eyes open for it.

[RKKA]

dragon, best you can get

[toadwbg]

Thanks, man. I read some reviews of the Dragon Panther G "smart kit" after reading your post. It sure looks like a winner so I will keep my eyes open for it.

I got this kit, haven't built it yet but it looks like a real winner in the box. Looking forward to building it.

[timc]

I've never heard of a Pzkfw Mk. V, Ausf. E before. I think this is a typo and he may have meant A or F. Dragon makes the Panther D, A, G, F and the Panther II in 1/35 scale. Only the very early D's and the later G's, F's and the Panther II won't have zimmerit on the surfaces. The Panther F and the Panther II were not mass produced and I don't believe were combat ready by the time Germany surrendered. Cyber Hobby also has some Panther releases which are basically Dragon kits with added features (and may include some PE) and depending on the box, may come with figures. The orange box Cyber Hobby kits are around the same price as Dragon kits. Some of the Dragon Panthers will have aluminum barrels within the kit. This is a nice touch as plastic barrels in some instances lack the detail and precision of the turned aluminum barrel. Definitely not required in any sense but it is a nice addition. If you look around, you can usually find decent pricing on these kits as they're not rare.

If you're an aircraft builder than you won't be stunned by the number and/or size of some of the parts in the Dragon kits. Some of the parts are very small but they do make the kit that much more detailed and accurate. To reiterate what was posted earlier, I don't believe you'll find a better kit than the Dragon Panthers in 1/35. If you keep to either the Tamiya kits or the Dragon kits, you'll not run into too many issues. Having said that, you'll need to determine whether or not you feel like dealing with individual track links or the Dragon Styrene track links (aka rubber band tracks). Tamiya has only the rubber band type and they're not that well done (no hollow track guide teeth) whereas the Dragon individual links and the Dragon Styrene links do have hollow track guide teeth. It'll boil down to what you feel like working with; both have their advantages and disadvantages. I can't remember off hand which Dragon kits come with which type of tracks but I do believe the late Panther G "Smart Kit" has individual track links and does not require zimmerit so there's two traits that may help you in your decision. I too have the Panther G "Smart Kit" and it is very nice. I have seen them built up and they do indeed look like Panthers; nobody will mistake it for a Tiger, I can tell you that (unless they've no idea what German WWII armor looks like).

Edited January 4, 2014 by timc