Hi guys, I am hoping someone can help me out. I've been searching for a WW2 german tank crew for my Takom Tiger. Really I am looking for a gunner and a loader, in summer dress. The idea is to build the kit with the crew inside and all the turret hatches open. I am not a good figure builder so modifying a figure would be a challenge.

I've been searching, but am hoping someone here has seen something close that I could use.

Thanks for the help
Mike

MiniArt should have something that fits the bill.

Try Miniart spg crew riders 35054. The sitting figure there should work as a gunner. Miniart Self-propelled crew 35008 has a good figure for a loader.

Alternatively you could use one of the standing figures from the first set with hands reposted to hold a shell.

Hope that helps.

Also the old Tristar had a set of self propelled gun crew in action, which probably would work out nicely, too.
Jacob

http://www.miniart-models.com/index.htm?/35060.htm
zou should grab this set, i have it and it is great

If you're looking at putting the whole crew inside then you're going to be struggling to do it with one set as you'll need to pick up a few different ones to get the nearest poses to what you want. DML do a stack of panzer crews in various poses plus Miniart as the others have mentioned. Altering a pose isn't actually that difficult so do some experimentation on old figures. Pins through the arm is a favourite of mine as they work like bones for want of a better way of describing it so you can get arms into exactly the position you want. Do you want them sitting or standing inside the tank? You didn't say.

You might have size troubles,I bought some beautiful resin figures for inside my Trumpeter BTR-80 supposedly the same scale,but there was no way they would fit,way to big.Same with a T-34 driver,I couldn't modify him to fit in the seat.As you say if you are not good at modifying you may have some difficulty,as all companies don't build to each other's kits.

And they especially don't do crew to stuff inside the interior of a vehicle. People fold themselves up very tiny to stuff inside of tanks and makers seem to be loathe to do that. I had to hack off half the rear end and legs of a figure to fit in the driver's seat of a Stuart.

Combat SOP would call for all hatches to be closed. The commander often had his open for better control and vis. but not the others.
If you are having the cmdr and loaders' hatches open then you would not be able to see the gunner anyway. Just my two cents.
J

I have to admit, I am a little embarrassed. I totally forgot about MiniArt! I found a couple of sets there that should work great!

I do realize that in typical combat situation the crew would have all the hatches shut, but I really want to show off the inside of the turret so I'm planning the commander up in his cupola with a set of binoculars while the gunner and loader are doing their thing. Then have the back hatch open so they can toss out the spent shells. Should end up a cool little vignette if all goes according to plan.

Thanks all for the help! This project is third in the que, but the others should go quick!

Mike

The rear hatch was an escape hatch , very heavy , with no way to pull it back up from inside , so I don't think a crew would have it open in a combat zone . IRC the Tiger II had a small round port on the roof to toss spent shells out of .

You should spend the time and look up Tank figures. I am sure they probably have what you want. They are great figures.

Re the commander being up in his turret in combat, I recently watched a video on You Tube of a walkaround a Panther. The guy doing the video is an ex-tankie so knew what he was talking about. On the Panther (at least) there was the facility to lock the commanders turret about 9 inches open so he could have all round vision without being half out of the turret. He could poke his head up and look round, effectively wearing an armoured hat so there would be no need to have the hatch open and stand up. I don't think I've ever seen any footage of tank commanders engaged in combat standing in their turrets. Don't forget they'd make a fantastic target silhouetted as they would be. As an ex-infantryman that would be a fantastic and very easy target. Kill the commander and the crew would be lost as to what to do next. What you're probably better off doing if you want to do something like that is to go for something like a Panzer IV where you can open the side hatches and have it being rearmed with figures inside and outside passing ammo in. Don't forget just how cramped conditions are in WW2 tanks. If say you're building something with a full interior you'll really struggle to crew it. As a couple of people have mentioned different manufacturers work at different sizes albeit in the same scale allegedly. Also you're going to have to do heavy duty surgery to get them to fit the inside. Having given it some more thought Dragons Stug Crew Reloading 6192 is a good option as you won't need to do anything to them except paint their uniforms a different colour. I actually bought these with a Tiger rearming dio in mind. You can have the loader reaching out for a shell while his buddy passes it down to him. Have a look and see what you think.

Just so you know it was German procedure to fight the tank with the tank commander's open. The TC would stick his head up and out as needed. That's what tankers are supposed to do. The Russians were the ones whose SOP was to fight buttoned up.

Abrams supposedly had his cupola hatches welded open to remove the temptation of closing them and losing control of the battlefield.

Speaking as a tanker, you want to see and know what's going on? That hatch is open. If it's not, you're blind.

A TC who is worth his rank and that means situational awareness, won't get shot by a "crunchie" Air bursts of artillery are something else and then you button up.

Nothing is easier for ground pounder to kill than a buttoned up tank with a clueless crew. He won't see you coming until the sticky bomb is on the track. Close the hatches and you lose control and awareness of the battlefield.

What I see will be engaged and what I engage will be killed. But first you got to see it and that means : hatch open, head out and scan...