"Ferdinand" - the most terrible self-propelled guns? Self-propelled guns Ferdinand - the gloomy brother of the "Beetle" in the service of the Wehrmacht, or the terrible brainchild of Porsche Comparative characteristics with the enemy

The heroes of the popular book and film “The meeting place cannot be changed”, the workers of the legendary MUR use a bus nicknamed “Ferdinand” as transport. From the mouth of the driver main character learns that the car is named for the similarity of the silhouette with a German self-propelled gun.

From this short episode, you can find out how well-known among the front-line soldiers was the self-propelled artillery installation manufactured by Ferdinand Porsche. Despite not a large number of released cars, these installations sunk into the memory of everyone who had a chance to see them in battle.

History of creation

The self-propelled breakthrough "Ferdinand" owes its birth to another, no less epic example of the German tank genius. The beginning of 1941 was marked by Hitler's personal order to two of Germany's largest design bureaus on May 26 at a meeting in the presence of senior officials of the engineering department related to the armored forces.

In the presence of representatives of the Design Bureau, the battles in France were analyzed, and the shortcomings of German combat vehicles were identified. Ferdinand Porsche and Steyer Hacker, director of Henschel, were officially given special orders. They were supposed to create a heavy tank, designed to break through the defense lines of Germany's opponents.

Another reason for the order is the ineffectiveness of most German tanks in the fight against the thick-skinned English Matilda Mk.II. If the planned operation is successful, Sea lion According to various estimates, the Panzerwaffe had to face 5,000 of these vehicles. At the same meeting, models of Porsche and Henschel tanks were presented to the Fuhrer.

The summer of 1941 influenced the development of new tanks in two ways.

On the one hand, the designers were busy finalizing the machines in the series. On the other hand, the Wehrmacht got acquainted with the KV tanks, which made a huge impression on both generals and ordinary tankers. In the autumn of 1941, work on the development of a heavy tank was continued in an accelerated mode.

The weapons department, which oversaw the creation of the machine, was on the side of the Henschel company. At their own request, the development was headed by Erwin Aders, who went down in history as chief designer tank-symbol of the Wehrmacht.

Ferdinand Porsche during this period enters into serious conflict with the Armaments Administration due to technical inconsistencies with the designed and ordered by the officials turret of the designed tank. In consequence, this will play a role in the fate of both prototypes.

Dr. Todt dies in a plane crash, Porsche's only ally in promoting his particular model. However, Ferdinand himself was confident in the success of his development. Enjoying unlimited success with Hitler, he placed at his own risk in the Nibelungenwerk company an order for the manufacture of cases for his machines.

During the tests, the enmity between the Fuhrer's pet and the officials of the Office played a role.

Despite the superiority of the Porsche model, recorded during the tests, it was recommended to adopt the Henschel model, to the horror of the German army technicians. Hitler's proposal to produce two cars was met with a restrained refusal, motivated by the inability to produce in war time two expensive, but equivalent tanks.

Failure turned to Porsche's face after it became clear in March 1942 that the powerful new assault weapons required by Hitler, equipped with an 88-mm gun, could not be created on the basis of the PzKpfw. IV as originally planned.

Here, the 92 chassis units built by the Nibelungenwerk came in handy for the Porsche design that never got into the Tiger series. The creator himself plunged headlong into the new project. Carried away by the calculations, he worked out a scheme with the location of the crew in the spacious conning tower located behind.

After agreeing with the Office of Arms and improvements, the Nibelungenwerk plant began assembling the hulls of new self-propelled guns based on the long-suffering chassis. During this period, it is not clear by whom, the course machine gun planted by Porsche was removed. This "refinement" will then play a role in the fate of the self-propelled guns.

The beginning of 1943 was marked by the exit of the first self-propelled guns from the gates and sending them to the front. In February, the Fuhrer's gift to the creator of the self-propelled guns comes - the car is officially given the name "Vater", "Ferdinand". By order of the same "possessed" self-propelled guns without acceptance go to the East. Porsche, much surprised, recalled that he was waiting for complaints from the front about his unfinished cars in a hurry, but did not receive a single one.

Combat use

The baptism of the "Ferdinands" was the battle on Kursk Bulge. Soviet intelligence, however, already on April 11 had information about new technology brought to the front line. An approximate drawing of the machine, quite similar to the original, was attached to the information. A requirement was drawn up for the design of an 85-100-mm gun to fight the armor of self-propelled guns, but before the summer offensive of the Wehrmacht, of course, the troops did not receive these guns.

Already on July 8, a radiogram came to the Main Armored Directorate of the USSR about the Ferdinand stuck in a minefield, which immediately attracted attention with its unique silhouette. The officers who arrived for inspection did not have a chance to see this car, since the Germans moved forward in two days.

The Ferdinands went into battle at the Ponyri station. Take a stand Soviet troops the Germans did not succeed, so on July 9 a powerful assault group, in whose head were "Ferdinands". In vain they fired shell after shell at self-propelled guns, Soviet artillerymen, as a result, they left their positions near the village of Goreloye.

With this maneuver, they lured the advancing group into minefields, and then, with blows from the flanks, they destroyed a large number of armored vehicles. On July 11, the bulk of the advancing equipment was transferred to another sector of the front, the remaining parts of the Ferdinand battalion tried to organize the evacuation of the damaged equipment.

This was fraught with many difficulties. The main one was the lack of sufficiently powerful tractors capable of dragging self-propelled guns to their own.

A powerful counterattack by the Soviet infantry on July 14 finally upset plans to withdraw this equipment.

Another section of the front, near the village of Teploe, attacked by the Ferdinand battalion, was subjected to no less pressure. Due to the more deliberate actions of the enemy, here the losses of self-propelled guns were much less. But here there was the first case of the capture of a combat vehicle along with the crew. During the attack, having been subjected to massive shelling by heavy artillery, the self-propelled gunners began to maneuver.

As a result, the car hit the sand and "buried" in the ground. At first, the crew tried to dig out the self-propelled guns on their own, but the Soviet infantry who arrived in time quickly convinced the German self-propelled gunners. A fully serviceable machine was pulled out of the trap only in early August with the help of two Stalinets tractors.

After the end of the fighting, a comprehensive analysis was carried out of the use of the new self-propelled guns by the Germans, as well as ways to effectively deal with it. The lion's share of the vehicles were put out of action due to mine explosions and damage to the undercarriage. Several self-propelled guns were hit by heavy corps artillery and SU-152 fire. One car was destroyed by a bomb, one was burned with bottles of KS by infantrymen.

And only one car received a hole with a 76-mm projectile, in the T-34-76 defense zone from 76-mm divisional guns, the fire was fired at a distance of only 200-400 meters. Soviet soldiers were greatly impressed by the new German vehicles. The command, assessing the complexity of the fight against the Ferdinand, gave the order to award orders to those who could destroy this car in battle.

Legends about the huge number of these self-propelled guns spread among tankers and artillerymen, since they mistook any German self-propelled gun with a muzzle brake and aft warhead for the Ferdinand.

The Germans made their own, disappointing conclusions. 39 out of 90 available vehicles were lost near Kursk, 4 more vehicles were burned during the retreat in Ukraine in 1943. The remaining self-propelled guns, in full force, except for a few samples, were taken to Porsche for revision. Some parts were replaced, a course machine gun was installed, and the car went to help in the fight against the allies in Italy.

There is a widespread myth that this displacement was due to the heaviness of the system and the greater adaptability of the Italian rocky roads for them. In fact, about 30 vehicles were sent to the Eastern Front, where, during the reflections of the “10 Stalinist strikes” of 1944, the Ferdinands, one by one, went into oblivion.

The last battle with the participation of this machine was the battle for Berlin. No matter how beautiful the gun and armor were, they could not hold back the Red Army in the spring of 1945.

Taken as trophies Soviet Union"Ferdinand" self-propelled guns were used as targets for testing a new anti-tank weapons, dismantled down to the cog for study, and then were sent for scrap. The only Soviet car that has survived to our time is in the famous Kubinka.

Comparative characteristics with the enemy

Like a strong wild beast, "Ferdinand" did not have many enemies capable of engaging in single combat with him on an equal footing. If we take cars of a similar class, the Soviet self-propelled guns SU-152 and ISU-152, nicknamed “St.

You can also consider the specialized tank destroyer SU-100, which was tested on captured Porsche self-propelled guns.

• booking, the weakest part Soviet self-propelled guns in comparison with the Ferdinand, 200 mm of frontal armor versus 60 ... 75 for Soviet samples;
• gun, the Germans had an 88-mm gun against the 152-mm ML-20 and 100-mm guns, all three guns effectively coped with suppressing the resistance of almost any vehicles, but the Porsche self-propelled guns did not succumb, their (self-propelled guns) armor penetrated even 152-mm shells with great difficulty;
• ammunition, 55 shells for the Porsche self-propelled guns, against 21 for the ISU-152 and 33 for the SU-100;
• cruising range, 150 km for Ferdinand and twice the performance of domestic self-propelled guns;
• the number of models produced: 91 units from the Germans, several hundred SU-152s, 3200 ISU units, slightly less than 5000 SU-100s.

Eventually German development in terms of combat qualities, it still slightly surpasses Soviet models. However, problems with the chassis, as well as meager output, did not allow the full potential of these machines to be used.

In addition, Soviet tankers and self-propelled gunners, having received new powerful guns 85 and 122-mm tanks on the T-34 and "IS" tanks were able to fight on equal terms with the creations of Porsche, it was worth going in from the flank or rear. As often happens, in the end everything was decided by the determination and ingenuity of the crew.

Device "Ferdinand"

Hitler did not spare any materials for his favorite designer, so Porsche cars got the best. The sailors handed over part of the stocks of cemented armor, designed for huge naval calibers. The mass and thickness made it necessary to connect the armor plates “into a spike”, additionally using dowels for reinforcement. It was impossible to disassemble this structure.

Further welding of the body was carried out, rather, for sealing, and not for articulation. The armor plates of the side and stern were placed at a slight slope, increasing the projectile resistance. There were also loopholes for firing from the crew's weapons. The small size of these holes, however, did not allow aimed shooting, since the fly was not visible.

Feed felling had an armored hatch. Shells were loaded into it, the gun was changed through it. In case of damage, the crew escaped through the same door. There were 6 people inside, the layout provided for a driver-mechanic and a radio operator in the frontal part, then the engine compartment in the middle, and in the stern the gun commander, gunner and two loaders.

The movement of the car was carried out by 2 Maybach engines that ran on gasoline.

In general, the Ferdinand engines were something fantastic by the standards of tank building in the 1940s. Carburetor 12-cylinder HL 120TRM with 265 hp were located not one after the other, but in parallel. The crankshaft of the internal combustion engine had a flange to which a Typ aGV DC generator with a voltage of 385 volts from Siemens-Schuckert was attached.

Electricity from the generators was transmitted to 2 Siemens-Schuckert D149aAC traction motors with a capacity of 230 kW each. The electric motor rotated the reduction planetary gearbox, which, accordingly, its traction sprocket caterpillar.

The low-voltage circuit is made in a single-wire circuit. Some devices (radio station, lighting, fan) were powered by 12V, some (starters, independent excitation windings of electric machines) from 24V. Four batteries were charged from 24-volt generators located on each engine. All electrical work was done by Bosch.

The problem was created by the exhaust system. At the 5th track roller there was an exhaust pipe outlet, everything around was heated, grease evaporated from the bearings, and the rubber bandage quickly failed.

Chassis Porsche took the self-propelled unit from his own Leopard tank, invented in 1940. A feature in it was the presence of a cart for torsion bars, 3 per side, and not installing them inside the hull. This earned Ferdinand the love of German technicians, who turned gray only at the mention of the chassis of the Henschel Tiger.

It took Dr. Porsche about 4 hours to change the roller, the same operation on the Tiger took about a day.

The rollers themselves were also successful due to the bandages inside the wheel. This required 4 times less rubber. The principle of shear operation increased the threshold of the bandage service.

The introduction of rollers of a similar design to heavy tanks at the end of the war can be called recognition of the success of the experience. One side took 108-110 tracks 64 centimeters wide.

The armament of the self-propelled unit was an 88-mm gun, with a barrel length of 71 calibers (about 7 meters). The gun was installed in a ball mask, in the frontal part of the cabin.

This design turned out to be unsuccessful, as splinters and splashes of lead from bullets fell into the cracks in a multitude. In the future, to correct this defect, special protective shields were installed. The Ferdinand gun, one of the most powerful developments in german army, was originally anti-aircraft. After fine-tuning, they put him on a self-propelled gun.

Its shells effectively hit almost any Soviet or allied armored vehicles from a long distance. Ammunition included armor-piercing and sub-caliber shells, as well as high-explosive fragmentation, separate loading.

The absence of a machine gun on early vehicles noted above can be explained as follows. According to German tactics, assault self-propelled units must move in the second line of attack, behind tanks and infantry, covering them with gun fire. Near Kursk, a high concentration, and, most importantly, the effectiveness of artillery fire forced them to throw self-propelled guns forward, with minimal cover.

The optics was represented by a monocular sight, providing guidance to the gun at a distance of 2 km.

The internal communication was supported by an intercom, the radio operator was responsible for external communication (he is also a shooter in the modernized Elefant).

Contribution to culture and history

The Porsche car, despite its small circulation, left a bright mark on the history of the Second World War. Along with the "Tiger" and "Messerschmitt", this self-propelled gun is a symbol of the Wehrmacht. Having made the glory of the German self-propelled systems, she was a real horror for the enemy.

Of course, you can learn to fight with any enemy, but in 1943 a real "Ferdinandophobia" began in the troops. Cunning Germans took advantage of this by putting buckets on the barrels of other self-propelled guns, simulating a muzzle brake.

Judging by the memoirs, only Soviet troops destroyed about 600 Ferdinands during the fighting, with a total release of 91 units.

The Germans were not far behind. The more difficult and unsuccessful the war was for them, the greater was the number of destroyed Soviet tanks. Often in their memoirs, tankers and self-propelled gunners cite the numbers of wrecked vehicles that are twice the number of armored vehicles on the front. In both cases, the self-propelled units in question played a huge role.

Much attention is paid to ACS in the literature. Piece of art“In war as in war”, describing Soviet self-propelled gunners, contains a description of the battlefield after the meeting of a German self-propelled gun with a group of thirty-fours, not in favor of Soviet technology. The fighters themselves speak of him as a worthy and dangerous opponent.

Often found "Ferdinand" and in computer games based on World War II.

Actually, it's easier to name those games in which there are no self-propelled guns. It is worth noting that the characteristics and descriptions in such crafts often do not correspond to reality. For the sake of playability, developers sacrifice the real characteristics of the machine.

You can independently make and put on the shelf a legendary car. Many modeling firms make building kits in different scales. You can name the brands Cyber ​​Hobby, Dragon, Italeri. The Zvezda company produced and launched the ACS series twice. The first issue, number 3563, had many inaccuracies.

The patterns copied from Italeri represented the "Elephant", and had many inaccuracies. The next model, 3653, is the first Ferdinand to be baptized near Kursk.

World War II and Great Patriotic War gave many technical samples that have become legends. Among self-propelled guns German made"Ferdinand" takes, of course, the first place.

Video

Ferdinand of non-commissioned officer Fritz Walkenhorst, mid-October 43rd, in the vicinity of Dnepropetrovsk.
This is the last Sd Kfz 184 that left the assembly line with serial number 150100, which received tail number 234 (i.e., the fourth vehicle of the 4th platoon of the 2nd company of the 653rd battalion of the 656th regiment of heavy tank destroyers, which is part of the XXXXI tank corps Army Group "Center").

Suffered unfinished construction - almost 2 years (with interruptions, of course). Lot's been shoveled e-books including "The History of the 653rd Battalion" (KarlHeinz Munich's book "The Combat History of German Heavy Anti-Tank Unit 653 in World War II"). Therefore, I can write a lot, both about the construction, and about the "Uncle Fedya" itself - it somehow boiled. But I'll try to squeeze it in.

First for those who have never been interested in the Ferdinands.
Before they turned into elephants (I'm talking about the latter =)), field modernization took place.
The appearance of the Ferdinands on the battlefield always caused a concentration of fire from all types of Russian guns (a downed Ferdinand threatened him with an order). Starting from August the crews became:
* hide equipment (BOX, sledgehammer, JACK, BEAM) from damage to the stern;
* report to the authorities about the acute shortage of melee weapons, because they are tired of firing machine-gun fire through the muzzle of an 88-mm cannon;
* cut off the lower handrails at the stern of the cabin to prevent unauthorized penetration of enemy infantry;
* unfold the shield on the tool mask for ease of installation;
* weld corners on the frontal part of the cabin to drain rainwater from the engine compartment.

The choice fell on "234" quite by accident: purely visually, I liked the more or less intelligible camouflage in combination with the red identification rectangle on the stern ... Only later it turned out that this was the last 150100 drawn in chalk in the Nibelungenwerk.
The main alterations (I still don’t remember already):
* the two-chamber muzzle brake did not have a partition between, in fact, the cameras;
* mudguards made of thick aluminum foil;
* fiddled with the sight for a long time - drilled out the plastic and inserted the lens from the DVD-ROM;
* I inserted prisms from CD into the optics of the driver;
* fastening of cables, jack, bar, sledgehammer made of blisters (rather pliable material - it is easily glued with the end and keeps its shape well);
* wire loops for fastening the tarpaulin inserted into pre-drilled holes;
* cables and thimbles are self-made, as well as all inventory with trophies (I will never weave a basket again!);

Initially, Ferdinand was planned for a diorama, so he made the running gear as “alive” as possible. Stacked plastic tracks were drilled and connected with wire fingers (EACH of 230 pieces). In order to make a complete impression of realism on the person who picked up the model, Ferdinand's weight was brought up to a scale of 1.5 kg with copper and lead (the engine of his grandfather's electric razor and shot). Later, this weight played its fatal role, when the work was completed by 98%, he fell off the table. As a result, many months of depression ... and not so "live" chassis, but (!) metal tracks from Friul Models. =)
Let them call me a psycho, but for the effect of realism, I first assembled the classic Ferdinand (before Kursk) in sand color, in June the paint “burned out” and slightly “drained” with rain, applied camouflage, again “rain” - July! And only after that he applied the aforementioned front-line modernization along with the rest of the aging. Traces of a box, a sledgehammer, jack fasteners and a bar are visible. The crews painted over the replaced barrel, the deployed shield and the gaping rectangle with an impromptu brush - a rag on a branch.
And, of course, the creation of the mustache antenna of the same cat Max is crowned !! God bless him and his owner.

Good day, dear users of the project.

BOX WITH MODEL

Ferdinand tank destroyer: 3653: 1/35: Star: Box with model

BRIEF HISTORICAL SUMMARY

"Ferdinand" (German: Ferdinand) is a German heavy self-propelled artillery installation of the period of World War II of the tank destroyer class. Also called "Elephant" (German Elefant - elephant), 8.8 cm StuK 43 Sfl L / 71 Panzerjäger Tiger (P), Sturmkanone mit 8.8 cm StuK 43 and Sd.Kfz.184.

This fighting machine, armed with an 88 mm cannon, is one of the most heavily armed and heavily armored representatives of German armored vehicles of that period. Despite its small number, this machine is one of the most well-known representatives class of self-propelled guns, a large number of legends are associated with it.

Self-propelled guns "Ferdinand" was developed in 1942-1943, being in many ways an improvisation based on a chassis not accepted for service heavy tank Tiger (P) designed by Ferdinand Porsche.

The Ferdinand's debut was the Battle of Kursk, where the reservation of this self-propelled guns demonstrated its low vulnerability to the fire of the Soviet main anti-tank and tank artillery, but the tank destroyer turned out to be completely defenseless against the Soviet infantry, since Porsche did not equip the self-propelled gun with a machine gun; also had low undercarriage reliability and poor cross-country ability.

In the future, these vehicles participated in the battles on the Eastern Front and in Italy, ending their combat path in the suburbs of Berlin.

The Ferdinands made their debut in July 1943 near Kursk, after which they actively participated in the battles on the Eastern Front and in Italy until the end of the war. These last fight self-propelled guns accepted in the suburbs of Berlin in the spring of 1945.

Battle of Kursk
As of July 1943, all Ferdinands were part of the 653rd and 654th heavy anti-tank battalions (sPzJgAbt 653 and sPzJgAbt 654). According to the Citadel operation plan, all self-propelled guns of this type were to be used for attacks against the Soviet troops defending the northern face of the Kursk salient.

Heavy self-propelled guns, invulnerable to the fire of standard anti-tank weapons, were assigned the role of an armored ram, which was supposed to break through a well-prepared Soviet defense in depth.

The massive use of Ferdinands by the Germans began on July 9 in the area of ​​Ponyri station. To storm the powerful Soviet defense in this direction, the German command created a strike group consisting of the 654th Ferdinand battalion, the 505th Tiger battalion, the 216th Brumber assault gun battalion and some other units of tanks and self-propelled guns.

On July 9, the strike group broke through the May 1 state farm, but suffered losses in minefields and from anti-tank artillery fire. July 10 was the day of the most fierce attacks near Ponyry, the German self-propelled guns managed to reach the outskirts of the station.

Massed artillery fire of all calibers, including 203-mm B-4 howitzers, was fired at German armored vehicles, as a result of which many self-propelled guns, trying to maneuver, went beyond the cleared passages and were blown up by mines and land mines. On July 11, the strike group was greatly weakened by the redeployment of the 505th battalion of the Tigers and other units, the intensity of the attacks of the Ferdinands decreased significantly.

The Germans abandoned attempts to break through the Soviet defenses, on July 12 and 13, engaging in attempts to evacuate wrecked armored vehicles. But the Germans failed to evacuate the wrecked Ferdinands, due to their large mass and the lack of sufficiently powerful repair and evacuation equipment.

On July 14, unable to withstand the attack of the Soviet troops, the Germans withdrew, having lost 21 Ferdinands, blowing up part of the equipment that was not subject to evacuation. Another formation of heavy self-propelled guns (653rd battalion) operated in the area of ​​​​the village of Tyoploe on July 9-12. The fighting here was less intense, the losses of German troops amounted to 8 Ferdinands.

Later, during the retreat of the German troops in July - August 1943, battles of small groups of Ferdinands with Soviet troops periodically took place. The last of them took place on the outskirts of Orel, where the Soviet troops got several damaged Ferdinands prepared for evacuation as trophies.

In mid-August, the Germans transferred the remaining combat-ready self-propelled guns to the regions of Zhytomyr and Dnepropetrovsk, where some of them stood up for current repairs - the replacement of guns, sights, cosmetic repairs of armor plates.

Tank destroyer "Ferdinand": 3653: 1/35: Star: Prototype

Fights near Nikopol and Dnepropetrovsk
Due to heavy losses, the 654th battalion handed over the remaining self-propelled guns to the 653rd battalion and left for reorganization in Germany. The remaining Ferdinands took part in fierce battles on the Nikopol bridgehead. At the same time, 4 more self-propelled guns were lost, and the combat score of the Ferdinands reached by November 5, according to German data, 582 Soviet tanks, 133 guns, 3 self-propelled guns, 3 aircraft and 103 anti-tank guns, and the crews of two self-propelled guns knocked out 54 Soviet tanks.

Italy
In January 1944, the first company of the 653rd battalion, consisting of 11 "Elephants" (modernized "Ferdinands"), one repair and recovery vehicle also based on the chassis of the Tiger (P) tank and two ammunition transporters was transferred to Italy to counter the offensive of the British American troops. Heavy self-propelled guns participated in the battles near Nettuno, Anzio, Rome.

Despite the dominance of Allied aviation and the difficult terrain, the company has proven itself from the very better side, so, according to German data, only on March 30-31 on the outskirts of Rome, two self-propelled guns destroyed up to 50 American tanks, armored personnel carriers and cars and were blown up by the crews after the fuel and ammunition were used up. On June 26, 1944, the company, in which two combat-ready Elefants remained, was withdrawn from the front and transferred first to Austria, and then to Poland to join the 653rd battalion.

Ukraine
The two remaining self-propelled gun companies in April 1944 were transferred to the Eastern Front, in the Ternopil region. In addition to 31 Elephanta, the companies included two repair and recovery vehicles based on the chassis of the Tiger (P) tank and one based on the Panther tank, as well as three ammunition transporters.

In heavy battles at the end of April, the companies suffered losses - 14 vehicles were disabled; however, 11 of them were quickly restored, and the number of combat-ready vehicles even increased due to the arrival of repaired vehicles of the 1st company from the factories. In addition, by June, the composition of the companies was replenished with two unique samples of armored vehicles - Tiger tank(P) with frontal armor reinforced to 200 mm and a Panther tank with a turret tank PzKpfw IV, which were used as command vehicles. In July, a large-scale offensive by the Soviet troops began, and both companies of the "Elephants" were embroiled in heavy fighting.

On July 18, they were thrown without reconnaissance and training to help the SS division "Hohenstaufen" and suffered heavy losses from the fire of Soviet anti-tank and self-propelled artillery. The battalion lost more than half of the vehicles, and a significant part of them were to be restored, however, since the battlefield was left behind by the Soviet troops, the damaged self-propelled guns were destroyed by their own crews. On August 3, the remnants of the battalion (12 vehicles) were transferred to Krakow.

Germany
The 653rd battalion, which suffered heavy losses from the Soviet troops, began to receive new Jagdtigr self-propelled guns from October 1944, and the remaining Elefants were reduced to a separate 614th heavy self-propelled anti-tank company (sPzJgKp 614). Until February 1945, this company, which consisted of 13 self-propelled guns, was in reserve.

On February 25, 1945, the company was transferred to Wünsdorf to strengthen the anti-tank defense German units. Recent fights"Elephants" were held in Wünsdorf, Zossen and Berlin.

Tank destroyer "Ferdinand": 3653: 1/35: Star: Prototype

The fate of captured self-propelled guns in the USSR
In the Soviet Union at different times there were at least eight captured complete Ferdinands. One car was shot down near Ponyry in July - August 1943 when testing its armor; another one was shot in the fall of 1944 while testing new types of weapons.

At the end of 1945, at the disposal various organizations there were six self-propelled guns. They were used for various tests, some of the machines were eventually dismantled in order to study the design. As a result, all of them, except for one, were scrapped, like all cars captured in a badly damaged condition.

PROTOTYPE VIDEO

ASSEMBLY INSTRUCTIONS

Tank destroyer "Ferdinand": 3653: 1/35: Star: Assembly instructions

PHOTO CLICKABLE

CONTENTS OF THE BOX

Tank destroyer Ferdinand: 3653: 1/35: Star: Box contents

PHOTO CLICKABLE

CLOSE-UP DETAILS

Ferdinand Tank Destroyer: 3653: 1/35: Star: Close-up details

PHOTO CLICKABLE

Add-ons from the store Armata-models.ru

PHOTO CLICKABLE

CONCLUSIONS:

The first thing I would like to start with is plastic.

It seems that the type of plastic from which this model is cast affects the success of a particular model of this manufacturer. If the plastic is gray or orange like here, then all the details will be well shed, clearly visible. And the assembly will be really pleasant and comfortable.

If the model is cast from green or black (like the Boreas) plastic, then hemorrhoids await us.

This time I was led to such thoughts by the assembly of the Zvezdovsky Iskander-M. Not only that, as always, there are errors in the instructions and some of the parts do not fit into place, but there is also a feeling of poor-quality casting.

And it seems that all the details are as it should be constructively. And you can see a slight blurring, turning into a feeling of poor quality work.

Here, on the Ferdinand, there are simply no such problems.

All details are perfectly molded. Clear edges for each structural element.

This set does not cause any rejection.

So, a huge request, guys - use quality plastic when creating models.

Everything else raises no objections. On first inspection.

Perhaps there are flaws in the instructions, something is mixed up somewhere - but now it will not be possible to identify this. Need a test build.

In general, this model should not cause problems with the assembly.

Caterpillars, like on most BTT Zvezda models, are of a semi-composite type. Cast quite well. Assembly does not require special show off.

What really arouses interest is the bleeding kit from the Armata-models.ru online store.

It includes a metal barrel, a muzzle brake and a cover for it. As well as the painting scheme and decal for the captured "Ferdinand", captured in the battles near the village of Podmaslovo on July 15-18, 1943.

These additions will help enhance the visual effect of the finished model, bringing it closer to the historical prototype.

RATING: 4

In general, this set turned out to be quite sane. And for connoisseurs of BTT of this time period, it will be a good replacement for the old whales from Italeri.

Even if there are inaccuracies in the layout of parts and instructions, they will not become a stumbling block that will force you to transfer the assembly to an uncertain, foggy future.

Not so long ago "Star" withdrew from sales the model of the German self-propelled guns "Ferdinand", which was a repackaging of the old Italeri. And now, the domestic manufacturer has already released a completely new model of this machine under the catalog number 3653 .

Packing and equipment.

More than standard for most models of armored vehicles from "Stars"– orange plastic sprues packed in new type transparent package, and all this is hidden in a cardboard box with a colorful print on the front side. The set also includes sprue with transparent details, nylon mesh, decals and b/w instructions.

Workmanship, detailing, pluses of the set.

We have no complaints about the overall quality of the castings at all. During the inspection, no serious technological shortcomings were revealed - flash is absent in any significant amount, traces of pushers on the inner sides of the parts. You can see it for yourself by looking at the photo. I managed to find a couple of small weights, but it seems not on critical parts.

Various small things on the model are also very pleasing - both in quantity and quality. The heads of the bolts and rivets are cast well and without offsets. Various fasteners, clasps and even wiring look good. Even the handrails were molded thinly enough. Model abounds large quantity well-simulated welds, they are even on the protective strips of the hatches of the radio operator and the driver!

Observation devices are given with transparent details. The barrel is made in ONE piece, just like on their own Pz.IV model. From the "vnutryanka" there is a breech of the gun.

But most of all we liked the caterpillars. They are molded very openwork, there are traces of pushers only on a few copies. The main thing is that they correspond to their prototype - without chevrons, with two "grooves" on each track and with a crest "through one". The tape is assembled from individual links and ready-made parts. How good or bad this is depends on the preferences of a particular person.

The model is generally very accurate in terms of materiel and repeats many of the typical features of its prototypes. Here are the engineers "Stars" They put a lot of effort into it, which is great. Made a lot of subtle, but significant details. For example, the fender mounts to the hull, the antenna case, the wiring to the convoy lamp and its armor, and so on. A special difference will be noticed by those who sawed the early "Ferdinand" from the old Zvezda set, which contained a late copy of this car (better known as the "Elephant"). There is also a slight variation in the assembly of some parts, but here we already need to start from photographs of specific prototypes.

The instructions are clearly printed, understandable and made in the format of a book. Decals without a noticeable thick backing. There are three options for coloring and marking.

Cons set that can be improved.

Unfortunately, I did not really like the implementation of the cable. He himself and the thimbles are well made, but the attachments to the body molded with him whole spoil the whole picture. Although at the same time, the jack mount, for example, is made in two separate parts. Those wishing to put a metal cable will have to make efforts to self-manufacturing fasteners.

On the decals of the crosses, the black color seems to be not completely printed, whitish “bald spots” are visible. Maybe we got such a copy, check before buying. The nylon mesh looks rough, but it should not be noticeable. Eyes for dismantling the engine plate look somewhat thick. Cushion under the jack is made without any imitation of wood texture. Standard springs for mudguards should be replaced with thin wire ones.

Conclusions and comparison with analogues.

In our opinion, "Stars" it turned out a worthy implementation of the famous German self-propelled guns "Ferdinand". The model is different good quality manufacturing and high level historical authenticity. Of course, you can purposefully look for “fleas” in her materiel (and they will definitely do this), but do you need it? For assembly at your pleasure out of the box or with minimal modifications, this set is more than suitable. In addition, he should not have competitors in this price category.

True, by latest information, the firm "Modelist" also got its own "Fedya". We have not looked into the box yet, but probably there are Italeri sprues known to everyone for a long time.

Our set rating: 4.5 out of 5.

I present to your attention a review of the novelty of Zvezda, released at the end of last year - german fighter tanks Ferdinand. Probably, the novelty is not so hot anymore, but so much the better, because we had time to carefully consider and collect it!
Ferdinand became a household name for almost all German self-propelled guns. His fame and dissemination (and even hackneyedness) can only be compared with the Tiger or Panther. Surprisingly, until recently, only one company made the Ferdinand model in 35th scale - this is the good old Dragon. And this is with a colossal number of Tigers and Panthers, which only the lazy one does not let out! At the same time, Elephants are much more popular with manufacturers. They are released by the same Dragon, Italeri and Tamiya. But let's be fair, this is still a different combat vehicle and with a binding under Battle of Kursk You can't collect Elephanta. Apparently, this is the unpopularity of Ferdinand. Western modellers and Western model firms are interested in prototypes that were used by the Germans on Western front, and the Ferdinands did not light up there. Thus, Zvezda quite logically released "our" domestic Ferdinand, who managed to fight only on the Eastern Front before being upgraded to Elefant.

At the beginning of the review, I want to draw your attention to the fact that this model has nothing to do with the old Ferdinand model from Zvezda (art. 3563). That model was a repackaging of the ancient Elephanta from Italeri and was not Ferdinand in any way, even despite the inscription on the box))). Let's send it to the dustbin of history!))

WHAT IS INSIDE

So what do we have? The first impression is a very nice box art, a handy instruction booklet, a photo of the assembled model on the back of the box. No matter what anyone says, but these are quite important factors. It is much more pleasant to start work with a model that is beautifully and efficiently designed, although this is of course subjective factors. The objective is the strong reliable packaging, which guarantees the safety of the contents when traveling by the merciless Russian Post. And this is a huge plus for most star novelties.

I propose to turn to the most important thing - to the sprues! Immediately I want to note the excellent quality of casting. I did not notice sinking, flashing or any other defects. In my opinion, this model is another confirmation that Zvezda has seriously reached a qualitatively new level and is confidently competing with the leaders. model market. Don't worry about casting! In its appearance and texture, the plastic itself is a bit like Tamiya, and for most colleagues this is the standard of quality ( we are talking about the plastic itself). All bolts, nuts, casting numbers, welds are just perfect.

CONTENT OF THE SET:

Sprue L

Sprue E

Sprue F

Sprue K x 3pcs

Sprue D x 2pcs

Sprue C х2pcs

Enclosure bath

Sprue A with transparent details and mesh.

LET'S LOOK AT THE DETAILS:

The simulation of welds is very convincing.

The same can be said about the seams on the felling parts. Please note that the cutting surface is perfectly smooth like glass. there is also no cutting texture at the ends of the armor plates.

The sides and stern of the felling are assembled into a spike. Please note that the loophole plugs are cast in separate parts, although they do not have a reverse side with a spacer and a chain, so without etching they still cannot be made open.

Cabin feed and engine deck. Very well poured holes in the gratings. Once upon a time, only Tamiya was capable of such a thing.

Frontal armor plate. Bulletproof bolt heads and welds are very coolly molded.

Cabin roof. Welded seams are also very pleased. The rain visor of the periscope is molded as a separate piece.

The roof of the engine compartment and the hatches of the driver and radio operator.

The barrel is molded in one piece, which is great! You don’t have to adjust the halves and painfully grind them with an abrasive, reducing the diameter or getting an oval in cross section. Just a light readout of the seam from the joint of the molds with fine emery and that's it!

The muzzle is cast in the best traditions of recent years - as a single piece, and not from two halves, as before.

The armored shield of the gun mask pleased with beautiful welds.

The front mudguard mount looks pretty tolerable. A little wash and the knot will look great even without replacing it with etched hinges and wire.

The corrugated texture of the fenders looks very good. But the back cut is noticeably thick. I recommend sharpening it with a needle file or a sharp cutter. Then the entire fender will look more delicate. There is one more nuance - corrugation should also be on the side flanging of the shelf.

The headlight covers worked great. Look at the six microscopic bolts around the perimeter!

The welds on the access hatches were simply gorgeous. They really are real!

The same can be said about the seams on the hatches of the rear periscopes. This is not a seam, but a work of art!

But I didn't like the ropes. Thin, and the braid of the thimbles looks unreliable. But, in any case, the cables, in my opinion, need to be changed. In plastic, they always look very conditional. regardless of manufacturer.

The SPTA box is given in two variations (smooth and with stampings). Well molded clasps. The jack fastener is visible. A bit thick, but if you slightly remove the thickness with a needle file or cutter, it will be quite convincing.

The star is molded very well. Looks like herself. The only thing is that you need to drill through the holes, which are given only by recesses.

Towing eyelets with metal inserts welded into them are perfectly detailed. Type and armor plug of the pistol port. It lacks a lot of depth, so you can't make it open. Especially. that you also need a fastener-spacer with a chain, which can be reliably made only in etching.

The rear sprockets also have excellent casting and authenticity.

The elegantly molded hex nuts are clearly visible. They will hardly be visible on the finished model, but it warms the soul, you see!))

Rollers pleased with excellent casting and detailing. Please note that there are washers under the bolts.

In addition, molding numbers are imitated on the rinks. Even Dragon couldn't do that.

Details of bogies. They can be made to swing.

Trucks were especially impressive. Basically, they are cast in segments. Only those tracks that go around the sprockets are cast piece by piece.

The close-up is impressive. Lightweight holes, molding numbers and characteristic rounds are well molded. The relief of the outer part of the tracks. It would be a pity to spoil such beauty!

FROM inside the tapes are cast with the same quality and meticulously. The flanging of the edges on the tracks, which is without a comb, was very successful.

Please note that the sag is already set. I was pleased with the small number of rounds from the pushers of the mold. It is also important that they are easily accessible for processing.

DECAL
As for the decal, it upset me. First, she offers only two prototypes from the 653rd Battalion and completely ignores the existence of the 654th Battalion with much more spectacular and interesting markings, by the way. And secondly, the very style of writing side numbers does not at all correspond to how it was done on real Ferdinands. However, this is not at all a reason to be upset, because this joint is easily solved using the wonderful Colibri decals. Two sets are issued for the 653rd and 654th battalions, which allow you to make any of the 90 Ferdinands who made their debut near Kursk. I will prepare a review of these decals in the near future.

Decal. Alas, but this weakness models. The writing style of the numbers does not match the originals.

INSTRUCTIONS

The manual is in the form of a book, which makes it easier to work. The book takes up much less space on the table than the classic instruction sheet or folding bed. Yes, and with the search for the order of stages of construction, there will definitely be no problems. As for clarity, I liked the instructions. Everything is illustrated very clearly and intelligibly. Will not cause difficulties for beginners.

In my opinion, coloring schemes should be printed on colored paper. This will make the model noticeably more attractive in the eyes of inexperienced and novice modellers. In addition, not all people have the same well-developed imagination. And on the colored sidewalls, you can immediately see exactly how the model will look like with a particular color scheme. In the end, it is the bright sidewall that can become the decisive argument in favor of the purchase!

ADVANTAGES
+ Particularly impressive were the tracks, which have a very openwork detailing with through holes and molding numbers, as expected. They are made segmentally, and the upper segments have a sag. I would like to emphasize that there are not many marks from the mold pushers on the tracks (and on all parts of the model) and, most importantly, they are easily accessible for processing. This will save a lot of time and nerves for modellers!
+ Rollers and undercarriage bogies are coolly cast, molding numbers and hex heads of bolts with washers are even imitated on the rollers. If desired, carts can be made working. If you suddenly want to change plastic tapes to metal ones from Friul or MasterClub, this will be quite appropriate.
+Impressive and welds, which are made almost everywhere where they should be and are very similar to the original. Many firms ignore them on their models, and this is a very important component of the appearance of any model.
+ I will dwell separately on the jack, which is divided into several parts and detailed in the best traditions.
+ Pleased with the presence of a sprue with transparent details of periscopes.
+It is interesting that the cutting armor plates are assembled into a spike, just like on the real Ferdinand. This avoids unnecessary butt joints that will have to be puttied. By the way, before that, I met such an approach only at Tristar on Brummber.
+ U-shaped handles on the engine plate are cast in separate parts. Before the Star, no one did this. At Ferdinand from Dragon they are made in the form of rectangles cast integrally with the surface. True, they are somewhat thick, but this is easy to fix by simply turning them with a knife or emery.
+ The advantages of the set include the partial presence of the cabin interior. In particular, the gun breech will be visible through the open hatches, which will make the model much more visually interesting. If the modeler builds a model with closed hatches, then the details of the breech can simply not be assembled.

LIMITATIONS
As you know, ideal models do not exist. Several shortcomings were also found in Ferdinand. I am glad that all of them are easily fixable.
-Firstly, the model completely lacks the texture of rolled armor. All armor plates are smooth as glass, which does not look very convincing. However, this can be easily treated by applying Mr.Surfacer 500 or 1000, or model putty with a stiff brush.
-There are also no characteristic cutting marks on the ends of the armor plates. They are also perfectly smooth. However, this is not a problem either. The texture is imitated with a sharp cutter in a matter of minutes.
-I didn't really like the towing ropes. They are thin, have a strange imitation of braid and are molded together with fasteners. Accordingly, when replacing a cable with a wire one, you will have to come up with something with fasteners. Although, when using photo-etching, this issue will disappear by itself.
-The mesh that comes with the kit is rough and not to scale, but this is not such a problem, given that it can only be seen by turning the model over and looking at a certain angle. Well, a meticulous modeler, in any case, will put etching. He doesn't need this thread at all.
-Churbak under the jack is absolutely smooth and has no wood texture. But it can be easily imitated with the tip of a sharp cutter.

I am very pleased that all the shortcomings are easily corrected and are not associated with serious alterations. I think that out-of-the-box modellers will most likely not even notice these shortcomings, having received maximum pleasure from the assembly. And orthodox-minded modellers can easily fix them.

ASSEMBLY EXPERIENCE
The model left an excellent impression during the construction! Everything is processed and joined almost perfectly. I also liked the plastic. It interacts well with super-liquid glue. What surprised me was the excellent fit of the track elements. Everything just clicked into place. And this despite the fact that the tracks are usually the most problematic node in any model. I recommend taking your time and more thoughtfully collecting cutting elements. It is important to observe the correct angles so that the cabin fits well on the hull. Well, especially meticulously treat the assembly of the bow of the model, where it is important to correctly set the angles and distances between the details of the “muzzle” and the fenders. Otherwise, unwanted gaps may appear.

The cabin is assembled. Please note that the cutting texture is simulated at the ends of the armor plates. It only took a few minutes.

Lower body assembly.

View from the underside. Carts and rollers installed.

The photo clearly demonstrates that the tracks and the sprocket fit together perfectly.

It is most convenient to assemble the caterpillar track into a single piece and paint and tint it in this way. This will require increased accuracy, but it will save a lot of time.

Photos of the assembled model:

CONCLUSIONS
I want to note that against the background of Ferdinand from Dragon, the star model looks just fine and surpasses the competitor in all respects! Considering the much more humane price, the set is definitely the best Ferdinand in 35th scale.
I highly recommend it to both beginners and experienced modellers.

PS The most attentive modelers who have read the review to the end will be rewarded! When buying Ferdinand in our store in Novosibirsk on Krasny Prospekt 17 or on our website, say or indicate in the comments to the order the password "I read Ferdinand's review to the last line" and get a 10% discount!

Vladimir Yashin
Novosibirsk 2018
www.site
www.genscher-shop.ru
vk.com/genschershop