Takom's new Jagdpanther G2 "Blitz" kit in 35th scale...

Takom has already released a Jagdpanther Ausf.G2 kit in 35th scale—this was a full interior kit. The other end of the scale from the same manufacturer now with a 100% new-tooled kit in the "blitz" series with no interior focused on an easy build with all the detail. We have the CAD features in our preview...

Takom's new Jagdpanther G2 "Blitz" kit in 35th scale...

It seems that Takom is super serial about their new Blitz build kits. This Jagdpanther G2  is a 100% new-tooled kit, with metal, link, and length tracks to speed up the process without loosing too much detail. We will look at the real thing and what this Ausf.G2 Jagdpanther in 35th scale offers.

Jagdpanther Ausf G2

German Tank Destroyer Sd.Kfz.173

From Takom

Product No. #35002

1/35th scale

Six marking choices included

Link & Length Tracks

Metal main gun barrel included

The "Hunting Panther" in real life

The Jagdpanther is one of the most iconic tank destroyers of World War 2. Based on the Panther chassis, the famous tank destroyer was produced from 1943 up until the end of the war in 1945. Mechanically more reliable than the Ferdinand/Elephant and the Köningstiger, armed with the 88 mm (3.5 inch) Pak 43 “Panzerknacker” and with up to 100 mm (3.9 inch) of frontal armour (on the mantlet), it was a formidable opponent for any tank at the time. During the war, over 400 tanks were produced, seeing action on both the Eastern and Western European fronts. After the war, captured Jagdpanthers were used by the French army, along with Panthers and other German tanks, up until the 1950’s. Overall,the Jagdpanther was a great mix of mobility, firepower, and armour.

Jagdpanther in action—France

The Jagdpanther mainly saw action on the Western front from its deployment in March 1944, with deployment to the Eastern front only occurring from January 1945 onwards. The first unit to receive the new Jagdpanther was the Schwere Panzerjäger-Abteilung 654. It wasn’t possible to bring the 654th to full strength before being sent to the front in June 1944. The first action the Jagdpanthers engaged was a squadron of Churchill tanks near St. Martin de Bois. In a two-minute action, three Jagdpanthers managed to take out eleven Churchills before an additional squadron of Churchills rushed in to help. The 6th Guards tank brigade reported the capture of two Jagdpanthers, which had been left behind due to track damage. Nonetheless, this encounter showed the strength of the new tank destroyer and helped cement its reputation as a threat to any tank that encountered it.

Ardennes Offensive

In preparation for the Ardennes Offensive, the OKH had planned to fully equip five tank hunter battalions with Jagdpanthers. Three of the five units were already at the front and, as such, weren’t at full combat strength. Due to supply problems, only 27 of the 56 planned Jagdpanthers made it to the battalions before the start of the offensive, with only 17 of them being operational.

Eastern front

Many of the tanks that were sent to the Eastern Front weren’t destroyed by Soviet troops, but at the hands of their crew. The main problems that plagued the Panzer divisions were a lack of spare parts, fuel, and delays in the production process that prevented more Jagdpanthers from reaching the front. In January 1945, the 563rd s.H. Pz.Jg. Abteilung managed to take out 53 tanks whilst only losing four Jagdpanzer IVs and one Jagdpanther to enemy fire. The bulk of their losses were credited to tanks being blown up lest they fall into enemy hands. For example, a stunning 12 Jagdpanthers and 17 Jagdpanzer IVs were destroyed by their crews in the 563rd alone. The rapidly deteriorating situation meant that many of the Jagdpanther crews sent to the front in 1945 had received little or no training, which reduced the already impaired effectiveness of the tank destroyer battalions.

The Jagdpanther Ausf. G2

The G2 Jagdpanther used a Panther Ausf. G engine deck, a larger gun mantlet bolted externally (to cut down on production time?) and a two-piece KwK.43/4 L/71 gun. Some later G1 models may have possessed G2 features such as the larger G2 mantlet because changes to the design were implemented gradually and lack of spares turned many Jagdpanthers into 'hybrids'. Zimmerit was applied to G1's up to September 1944, when it was withdrawn for fear of fire risk and to speed up production time. Early Jagdpanthers' had two vision openings for the driver, whereas late versions had only one. The main gun originally had a monobloc gun barrel, but from May 1944 on it was gradually replaced by a two-part barrel, which was more economical as barrel wear was not even. Today, only 10 of the Jagdpanthers are left, spread across various museums worldwide.

Takom's earlier Jagdpanther G2 (full interior) kit:

The earlier Takom Full interior JagdpantherG2 (Kit 2118) sure was a lot of work, but an impressive beast.

The CADs of this new tooled kit:
This 100% new-tooled kit is designed to fit into Takom's "Blitz" series of simplified but still detailed kits. The aim here is easy to build without anything; you do not need to create the vehicle.

The main gun on this kit is also offered in turned metal, taking that out of the picture. Phoito etch is included for only the finest parts of the kit that are hard to replicate in scale accuracy in plastic. The engine is replesents as exposed if you like, with a single cast piece replacing a long, full construction.

We also have link and length tracks with those joined-together roadwheels, which you either love or hate, but they seem to work very well on these multi-wheeled kits. 

Of course the barrel can be posed on both main and MG guns.

There are several choices to customise the rear deck, with alternate stowage bins, early and late, and muffler choices also. You can leave the side-skirts on or off also with this kit.

This new kit will be available soon from Takom's Website or their distributors worldwide.