Introduction

This introduction is as supplied by Tankograd:
A total of 408 Spähpanzer 2 Luchs eight-wheeled armoured reconnaissance vehicles were built for the modern German Army and they were used in light armoured reconnaissance platoons within divisions of the Bundeswehr. During its service period from 1975-2008, the Luchs was regarded by units as an outstanding vehicle, one that gained fame during exercises and missions abroad.

This publication pays tribute to one of the most recognisable vehicles of the modern German Army and its Wehrmacht heritage by providing in-depth technical and in-service coverage with photographs and technical scale drawings, most of which hitherto unpublished.

Review

This offering from Tankograd is a soft backed book of 72 pages. The author of this offering is a Tankograd Publishing regular ‘Peter Blume’. This offering is one of the dual language titles from Tankograd Publishing; there is German on the left of the pages and English on the right side. The book has been printed in a portrait style and I know from experience that the cover is up to the task of protecting the contents with reasonable handling.

The contents in this offering look at the following:
Development
Technical Description
Modernization
Walk Around
In Service
Organisational Examples
Missions Abroad

The Technical Description section covers a very broad area in the form of the Hull, Engine,
Gearbox, Amphibious Drive, Axles, Brakes, Steering, Wheels and Tyres, Turret and Main Armament, Secondary Armament, Optics and Sights, Aiming System, Fire Control System, Radio Communication Equipment and NBC Protection System. The text covering these elements is well written but due to available space quite short.

The walk around as you would expect has provided a great look at the specifics of the vehicle as well as the overall view of the vehicle. I was particularly pleased to see the engine bay covered both with and without the power pack in place. Another nice aspect of this area is that detailed images of the power pack out of the vehicle are also included. Tankograd Publishing has of course also gone in and on top of the vehicle and these result in a very complete walk around.

Something else that Tankograd Publishing excels at is the photographs and the captions that accompany them. Tankograd Publishing provides captions in both German and English and supplies all of the information the reader could realistic expect from a caption. The photographs are a mix of colour and black & white and with the exception of one are especially clear. One of the colour photographs suffers from the 1980’s colour effect that makes me feel it is slightly out of focus, but I have been informed it is the film that results in this effect. The real plus for me is the 1/35th scale drawings that are a big plus for the modeller.

Conclusion

I am a firm fan of these books from Tankograd Publishing and this one does not disappoint either. It offers a good mix of written information and visual data in an effort to provide as much detail as possible within the limits of the publication. The scale drawings are a great inclusion for the modeller to check there models dimensions against.