Artitec 387.305 Highlights:
Model: Artitec's 387.305 1/87 scale Panzer III F is fully assembled and painted Dunkelgrau, is armed with a 5 cm KwK 38 L/42 gun. All the new Artitec finished models are highly detailed works of art. They are all hand painted and finished using the highest quality resin, plastic and metal parts. Add a few to your collection today before they are sold out. Models are made in small production runs so don't delay in ordering.
Prototype: The Panzerkampfwagen III (Sd.Kfz. 141) or Panzer III, designed during the mid-1930s by Daimler-Benz, was the main battle tank of the Wehrmacht in production at the outbreak of the Second World War. Its intended role was to combat enemy armor, being selected as the main tank for the Wehrmacht’s growing Panzer divisions. Production began in 1937 and continued until 1943 with 5,774 units built. Initially the Panzer III was armed with the 3.7 cm KwK 36 L/45 gun, similar to the 3.7 cm Pak 36 which was the standard German antitank gun until 1941. Production models beginning in 1939 had 30 mm of armor on all sides, later upgraded to 50 mm and supplemented further as time went on. Panzer IIIs, as with all subsequent German tanks, were equipped with radios allowing commanders instant communication. In 1939-1940, the Panzer III proved to be the best medium tank on Europe’s battlefields (perhaps with the exception of the SOMUA S35) but when it came up against the better-armed and armored Soviet T-34 and KV-1 tanks, it was completely outclassed. Armament was upgraded to the 5 cm KwK 38 L/42 gun beginning in 1940 but with an armor piercing shell it could only penetrate a T-34’s side armor from a maximum distance of around 800 m. Panzer IIIs remained competitive longer in North Africa until the British began receiving significant numbers of American Grant and Sherman tanks in 1942. The Panzer III’s hull remained in production throughout the rest of the war, being used as the platform for a successful series of Sturmgeschützen or assault guns, most notably the StuG III.
PLEASE NOTE: These models are all handmade and painted which makes every one unique. This means the paint patterns may vary a little and the detail parts like sandbags, turret tracks, antennas, etc. may also be arranged differently. This was also the case in real life. These models are very prototypical.
