I intend to build this Panther, in the future. I was wondering if anybody could help me determine what army/division it belongs to.? I know it is a "D", but that is as far as my knowledge goes. TIA

Off the top of my head I recall a thread on ML some years ago in which 9. or 116. PD were suggested as possible candidates. It's a Befehlspanzer Panther Ausf. A, by the way - note the antenna rod extensions on the side and the Sternantenne armoured pot on the rear deck.

Found more info - looks as though it belongs to II./PR.33, which was part of 9.PD.

Looks like an early Ausf. A, a pistol plug on the rear turret and just dual exhausts, no extra pipes.

ETA, maybe not a pistol port, maybe the handle from the can??

I had the same plan for an old DML Panther A "Early". There are some more pictures around.

http://www.network54.com/Forum/47207/thread/1044911261
http://www.network54.com/Forum/47207/thread/1024478356/Swedish+Befehlspanther+turret+marking

From the front picture you can see it looks more like an Ausf A actually. It has the ball MG-mount, not the letterbox characteristic of Ausf D. Yet it has early features like the small turret pistol ports, the single exhaust pipes or the horizontal jack mounts.

By the way I have myself one question. Befehlspanthers like this should be manufactured only by MAN...but the zimmerit looks like more the patterns that were used during a time by Daimler-Benz and MNH, roughened-up zimmerit later cut by vertical and horizontal lines making square forms. The MAN pattern has the classical ridges plus this simmilar cut lines forming squares. It might be I just don´t have pictures of enough quality and I can barely see only the square pattern and not the finer classical ridges. Anyone knows?
Nacho

I plan on using Zvezda's Panther D. Most of the finer details, I can handle. I thought that the D had the two single pipes.? All of the photos I have seen are for the two solitary pipes. Are there any other differences between the two versions? I know that late A's were also relabeled as "D1"'s.

Hey Matt: You have the Panther production progression a little confused.

The first ones were Ausf D -- with the drum cupola and vertical slit glacis MG port.

Later, came the Ausf A, which replaced the drum cupola with the cast cupola as in your photo. Shortly in the production run, they replaced the vertical slit for the bulbous "kugelblende" MG port. Late "A"s were not relabeled D1s. (after, came the Ausf Gs)

I've read some references to "D1" and "D2" but they aren't backed by Jentz' authoritative "Panther: Quest for Combat Supremacy" which is pretty much the Panther Bible. Frankly, the info contained in wikipedia aligns with Jentz' research.

Some of the bad sources also state that the switch over from Ausf D to Ausf A was the kugelblende and not earlier the switch from drum to cast cupola. According to Jentz' notes, it was the cupola. Thus the earliest As had MG slots, all with cast cupolas. Hope this helps.

There are other differences btn an Ausf D and an Ausf A but I don't have my references with me right now.

In December 1942, a new and improved model, designated Ausf D, was ready. In February 1943, 20 Ausf A tanks were re-designated Ausf D1. These Ausf D1 models were exclusively used as test vehicles and later for training.
http://www.achtungpanzer.com/panzerkampfwagen-v-panther-sd-kfz-171.htm#panther

The first few were called Ausfuehrung A1, later renamed D1 to avoid confusion with the latter series.
http://www.tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/nazi_germany/Panzer-V_Panther.php

These are two sources responsible for my confusion considering the "D1" designation.

The latest definitive sources on these matters are still Jentz & Doyle's books, from the GPT cited by Roy to the Panzer Tracts series. Personally I wouldn't tackle any Panther (or other WW2 German) projects without the relevant PT book, which at under USD30 are cheaper than a Dragon kit and an absolute bargain. I'd pretty much ignore most other sources (honourable exception for McDougall's book about MAN) on Panther as they tend to be based on rehashed old secondary data or sometimes the author's guesswork or imagination.

To clarify something Roy said, the drum cupola turns out not to be diagnostic either between D and A; it is the turret construction that defines the difference. Sometimes it seems that everything we know is just wrong!

achtungpanzer says this: "This was the Null-Serie, or Zero Series. Those 20 tanks were designated Panzerkampfwagen V Panther Ausfuehrung A and were technically different from later Ausf A production models."

Spielberger notes that early factory drawings of the initial production vehicles show Ausfuhrung A. But upon commencement of actual production vehicles, they were designated Panther Ausfuhrung D. 842 ausf D were produced between Jan to Sep 1943. They were followed by the later Ausf A production (2000 made between Sep 43 to Jul 44.

Neither Speilberger nor Jentz mention anything about "D1" -- regardless, the oddity of the initial batch being built from "ausf A" labelled drawings, in reality, produced the production Panther Ausf D vehicles. Those sites' mentioning of the "D1" does make me want to research more, however.

One clear mistake in the achtungpanzer info is the distinction point between the production Ds and As. It says the ball mount. In Jentz' book, the initial As have these distinct features from the Ausf Ds

cast cupola, loader's periscope, redesigned mantlet, variable speed power traverse, simplifed azimuth indicator 24 bolt roadwheels and zimmerit (Sep 43)

The next major batch of changes during the ausf A run happens in Nov 43

the ball mount enters production, Maybach HL 230 Governed at 2500rpm, center tow coupling on rear hull, monocular sight

I will purchase Jentz' book, before I begin my build. I may simply build the D as a D and purchase an A to build the photo.

Yes. D1's are not discussed much. They really open the door to many paper tanks. I also came across what I imagine is a D1, as a Panther hull with Pz.IV H turret(one of the few pz. IV's I don't have in my stash). I can see myself getting lost in these builds.

Wartime tanks were improved piecemeal, with new parts introduced as they became available. The early A models had single exhaust pipes, but the tank had a fire problem. The engine was so inefficient that substantial amounts of unburned gasoline was present in the exhaust. When the engine was shut down abruptly, external air would rush into the exhaust system, which was so hot that the fuel/air mix would explode, sometimes fracturing the exhaust manifold. The short term fix introduced early in the A series, was to add two small intake pipes to provide cooling air for the exhaust manifold, making an explosion less likely. These pipes did not run hot, which is why they didn't rust.

The good thing with this tank is that you got pictures from almost every side, you can model its features, regardless it was a D or an A.

Thank you for clearing that up.

Yes, I like having a walk around to build from.

Speaking the Panther A, how does Dragon kit 6160 compare to real life? Would it be easier to backdate Dragon 6168 or 6358?

are those bar stools on the back deck?

I believe they are tables and the reason I want to build it.