Product Features and Details
Artitec 87.057 Highlights:
Model: Artitec's 87.057 1/87 scale German Army Tiger I w. Zimmerit 1944 is a resin kit and is unpainted.
Prototype: The most feared opponent of Allied tank crews was the Panzerkampfwagen VI or Tiger tank. Designed following the German invasion of the Soviet Union, the Tiger broke with the previous German doctrine of building well-balanced tanks in relation to protection, armament, and speed. This was due to the Panzer III and IV’s initial inability to effectively counter the better armed and armored Soviet T-34 and KV-1 tanks. The Tiger was armed with the Krupp-designed 8.8 cm KwK 36 L/56 gun which could penetrate 83 mm of armor at 2,000 m, immediately making it a lethal tank killer. Its 100 mm frontal armor and 60-80 mm side armor made it nearly impervious to attack from medium to long range until more effective guns were mounted on Allied tanks late in the war. The Tiger was also easy to drive with a steering wheel with automatic steering as well as a semi-automatic pre-selector gearbox. All of these benefits came at a price however; the Tiger’s immense weight of 54 tons caused frequent engine, suspension, and gearbox breakdowns. Its weight and Schachtellaufwerk interleaved wheel configuration caused difficulties in muddy, off-road operations. Finally the intricate suspension, transmission, and electrical systems, requiring significantly more production time, as well as a steep price tap (four times that of a StuG III) meant that the Tiger could not be effectively mass-produced – only 1,347 Tigers were produced over two years.
