Review - Canadian Leopard C1 in West Germany 1977-93
Author - Carl Schulze
Tankograd Publish 2012
Pages: 64
Photos: 115
canadian leopard c1
The Leopard C1 was the main battle tank in Canada from 1977 until it was replaced by the Leopard 2 during the Afghanistan War. The Leopard C1 replaced the aging Centurion fleet after much political back and forth. The tank served Canada during the end of the Cold War, allowing Canada to meet its NATO commitments. During the early 2000s the Canadian Department of National Defence(DND) started a program to refit the aging C1s with turrets from surplus Leopard 1A5 bought from Germany. In the fall of 2006 a small number of the 'new' Leopard C2s were sent to Afghanistan, where the C2s were not up to the task. The Canadian military borrowed a number of Leopard 2s from Germany, thus starting the end of the Leopard C1 in the Canadian Army.
the book - canadian leopard c1 in west germany 1977-93
Tankograd has recently released a new book, covering the use of the C1 in West Germany until the end of the Cold War. The book is soft cover, 8.5"x11"(approx) format and printed in full colour on glossy paper. There are 64 pages packed full of a description of the C1 and 115 plus full colour pictures. The text is both in German and English, in a column fashion in the written text part, and stacked for photograph descriptions.
The cover of the book starts it off with two great shots of the iconic (in Canada) Leopard C1 in West Germany. Opening the book, it starts with about 14 pages of text, describing almost everything you need to know about the C1. The text covers a lot of information, starting with the history of Canada at the end of World War 2, moving on to how Canada acquired the Leopard 1s and their deployment within the Canadian Armed Forces(CAF). It then goes on to describing CAF unit assignments of the C1s in West Germany and back in Canada, with description of the two main units to deploy the C1 in West Germany.
The text then moves on to describe the Canadian Leopard C1 including describing the power pack, running gear, armament and fire control, ammunition, and other systems. There is even a section on camouflage and markings, as well as call signs.
After the text the non-stop parade of images of the C1 start. I found the images to be of great quality, full colour, sharp, and including descriptive text. In some cases there are multiple pictures of the same vehicle, but that does not take away from the book. In most cases there are two images per page, with some smaller and some bigger. There are no true 'walk around' images, but there are some scattered throughout the book. The majority of the images of the C1 seem to be taken while on exercise, with few at home in the depot.
While most of the photos are of the Leopard C1, towards the back there are sections covering variants of the Leopard used by Canada in West Germany, to include units with blade and mine roller attachments. There are also a few sections on the 'Engineering' Leopards, the ARV, AVLB, and AEV.
Overall, the Canadian Leopard C1 in West Germany is a great book, containing both a great description of the C1 and great photographs. To me, this book is a great tribute the Canadian Leopard and to the troops that manned and maintained these vehicles during the Cold War.
I would like to thank Tankograd Publishing for providing this book for review.
SUMMARY
Highs: Good description of the Canadian Leopard C1, great photographsLows: None to reportVerdict: A great addition to any collection, highly recommended.
Our Thanks to Tankograd Publishing! This item was provided by them for the purpose of having it reviewed on this KitMaker Network site. If you would like your kit, book, or product reviewed, please contact us.
I am an IT Consultant and father, with a passion for plastic models. I mostly prefer 1/35 Armor and 1/48 Aircraft. My main interests are anything Canadian, as well as WW2 German and British Armor and Aircraft. I have been building models since I was a young kid, got away from it for awhile, but r...
It is a great book and very humbly I was very pleased as punch as an ex-Leopard C1 Crew Commander to help out Carl Schulze on the accuracy of the text.(thanks to Carl for acknowledging my assistance on the last page).
Just a few clarification points about the first paragraph of the review...
The Leopard C1 was not replaced by the Leopard 2 in Afghanistan. The Leopard C1 was replaced by the Leopard C2 between 1999 and 2001.
An entire Squadron of Leopard C2s were sent to Afghanistan in 2006...they weren't new but they were uparmoured with MEXAS.
The Leopard C2 served in Afghanistan were it eventually served along side the Leopard 2A6M CAN and the Leopard 2A4M CAN. It will continue to serve in Canada until it is totally replaced by the Leopard 2 variants.
The Leopard C1 was not replaced by the Leopard 2 in Afghanistan. The Leopard C1 was replaced by the Leopard C2 between 1999 and 2001.
An entire Squadron of Leopard C2s were sent to Afghanistan in 2006...they weren't new but they were uparmoured with MEXAS.
The Leopard C2 served in Afghanistan were it eventually served along side the Leopard 2A6M CAN and the Leopard 2A4M CAN. It will continue to serve in Canada until it is totally replaced by the Leopard 2 variants.
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I've got a 10 percent built straight Leopard IIA2 from about 1990. Did Canada use that version? I ask because I am thinking about putting Canadian markings on it when finished.
Hi Jim,
Do you mean a Leopard 2A2 or a Leopard 1A2?
Canada rented two Squadrons of Leopard 1A2 from 1977 to 1978. There is a section in the new book covering the Canadian Leopard 1A2s.
I am actually building a Canadian Leopard 1A2 right now if you need any assistance with your build.
I wonder if the publisher will eventually produce a hard cover book on Leopard 1? Tankograd has two great hard cover volumes of the Leopard 2. Their softcover booklets on the Canadian Leopard 2s and Finnish Leopards are included in the hard cover book of the international versions of Leopard 2.
Michael Shackleton put out the "Leopard Trilogy"...an amazing three volume hard cover book series on the Leopard 1. There isn't much to add on the Leopard 1 since the three books of the series were published.
As is hinted in this new Leopard C1 book...there will be another book coming out to tell the rest of the story of the Canadian Leopard C1 and C2 during operational deployments.
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