Tag: Wehrmacht

The German Soldier in World War II Book Review

The German Soldier in World War II

Stackpole Military Photo Series

By Michael Olive and Robert Edwards

Softcover, 208 pages, appendix, bibliography

Published by Stackpole, September 2014

Language: English

ISBN-10: 0-8117-1461-6

ISBN-13: 978-0-8117-1461-7

Dimensions:  8.5 x 11.0 x 0.5 inches

Stackpole Military Photo Series is a useful resource for modelers and contains several titles, this volume is typical for the series.  The book is comprised almost entirely of photographs of soldiers and their equipment.  These are generally presented in either half- or full-page formats on glossy stock paper.  Most appear to have been taken by the soldiers themselves, and depict typical scenes of camp life or portraits of vehicles or artillery.  Many of these subjects are informative or inspirational for the diorama maker.

There is a brief eight-page color section which shows examples of uniform items, weapons, and equipment.  An odd inclusion are single pages on the Red, British, and French Armies which show their gear.  These are offered without explanation, and while they do make for interesting comparisons to the German Army gear they are out of place given the contents of the rest of the book.

These books are valuable for the modeler, especially so given that they can currently be had at second-hand or overstock book retailers at bargain prices.  These volumes are fun to browse and are possibly the source of inspiration for your next diorama project.  Recommended.

Invasion of Bulgaria Color Photographs, Hugo Jaeger Collection Part VI

These are color photographs taken by German photographer Hugo Jaeger.  They are currently held in the Life Magazine archives.  These were likely taken in April and May of 1941.

A Messerschmitt Bf 109E-4 of JG 27 undergoes an engine change at Svrety-Vrak airfield, near Kresna Pass, Bulgaria.
A Junkers Ju 87 Stuka at Svrety-Vrak airfield. Note the canvas covers over the propeller blades, canopy, and covering the wing insignia.
More Bf 109s at Svrety-Vrak airfield.
Tents and transport at Svrety-Vrak, with aircraft parked in the background.
Kresna Pass, showing the rough terrain.
Kresna Pass again, there is little room for oncoming vehicles to pass.
German motorcycle troops pause for a photograph with Bulgarian women.
German supply wagons pass through a Bulgarian city.
A motorcycle rider pauses for a drink.
Bulgarian artillery unit.

Hugo Jaeger color photographs part VII here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2023/04/12/italian-fleet-review-color-photographs-hugo-jaeger-collection-part-vii/

Invasion of Holland and Belgium Color Photographs, Hugo Jaeger Collection Part V

These are color photographs taken by German photographer Hugo Jaeger.  They are currently held in the Life Magazine archives.  These were likely taken in May 1940.

German troops on the march through Belgium.
Another formation, these troops are in step and have slung their helmets.
Belgian troops after the surrender.
More Belgian troops, the vehicle in the previous photo is in the background of this shot.
A surrendered Belgian formation outside a small village.
An Sd.Kfz. 9 FAMO halftrack prime mover of a heavy artillery unit.
A German horse-drawn unit paused next to a column of surrendered Belgian troops.
A pontoon bridge outside Nieuport, Belgium.

Hugo Jaeger color photographs part VI here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2023/02/22/invasion-of-bulgaria-color-photographs-hugo-jaeger-collection-part-vi/

Invasion of Holland and Belgium Color Photographs, Hugo Jaeger Collection Part IV

These are color photographs taken by German photographer Hugo Jaeger.  They are currently held in the Life Magazine archives.  These were likely taken in May 1940.

A Sd.Kfz. 10/4 halftrack with 20 mm Flak gun on the Dutch coast. There are several interesting details for modelers here, including the camouflaged ammo crate, small multi-colored oil barrel on the carriage, and license plate indicating a Herr unit.
One of the channels at the Port of Ijmuiden after capture by the Germans. The ships were sunk in the channel by the Dutch to deny access.
A detail of the blockships sunk in the channel. The Dutch naval minesweeper M4 is nearest and the merchant SS Naaldwijk lies against the far bank.
An iconic photograph, a Panzer column pauses in front of a windmill.
While the popular conception of the German Army is of a highly mechanized force, the majority of the Army’s transport was horse-drawn well into the war.
An artillery column moves along a country road.
Orange recognition panels mark German vehicles for the Luftwaffe. This photograph shows the Gray and Brown camouflage on the vehicles, but this is subtle even in color pictures.
A captured Belgian Vickers Armstrong light artillery tractor. In German service these were designated Artillerie Schlepper VA 601(b).

Hugo Jaeger color photographs part V here: https://inchhighguy.wordpress.com/2023/02/15/invasion-of-holland-and-belgium-color-photographs-hugo-jaeger-collection-part-v/

Blood Red Snow Audiobook Review

Blood Red Snow: The Memoirs of a German Soldier on the Eastern Front

By Günter Koschorrek

Read by Nigel Patterson

Unabridged Audiobook

Published by Tantor Audio, July 2018

Length:  9 hours 41 minutes

Language: English

Günter Koschorrek was a 19-year-old German Army machine gunner who was sent to Stalingrad in 1942.  Assigned to a dismounted Kavallerie brigade, his unit was able to escape encirclement.  Their escape was a close-run thing, their positions were over run by Soviet armor and they were saved only by crossing the frozen Don River on foot under fire.  Koschorrek was wounded and evacuated back to Germany.

After recuperating, he was briefly assigned to Italy on anti-partisan duties, then back to the Eastern Front.  This time he was part of a well-equipped and supported “fire brigade” unit tasked with countering Soviet penetrations in the front lines.  After each action, they were withdrawn to quarters in a local village.  This inevitably came to an end as the Soviet offensives gained momentum, eventually resulting in a general retreat back to Germany.

This is a very gritty tale of combat on the Eastern Front from the perspective of a common infantryman where the hardships were many.   Koschorrek was one of the very few from his original group to survive the war, and he himself was wounded six times.  He avoided being sent to the Soviet Gulags after the war by aggravating one of his wounds and being hospitalized.

The audiobook is read by Nigel Patterson, who has an English accent.  I found this a little odd at first for a German memoir but grew used to it as the book went on.  Patterson did quite well with the occasional German rank or phrase.  The translation is also very English, with German soldiers being referred to as “blokes” and that sort of thing.  An odd error is the Soviets are often described as being armed with “Kalashnikovs” instead of the expected PPSH-41s or Mosen-Nagants, perhaps another problem with the translation.

I listened to this book while travelling to the Cincinnati IPMS show, a good way to get some benefit from the dead time while driving.  The book was “loaned” from the local library to my cell phone, a very welcome option when needed.  This was an interesting book which I can recommend to anyone interested in the Second World War on the Eastern Front.

Italeri sK 18 10,5 Field Gun Build in 1/72 Scale

This is the 2020 release of the WWII German 15 cm Field Howitzer sFH 18 / 10,5 cm Field Gun sK 18 kit number 7082. I have previously built this kit as a15cm howitzer in the towed configuration, so I will build this one as a 10,5 Field Gun in the firing position.
The carriage was common to both guns so the differences are accounted for on the two small sprues on the bottom right. A nice touch is the inclusion of five (of seven) crew figures. On my kit both parts B14 were missing even though the sprues were bagged. These are small parts which are trapped within the base plate mounted to the axel, and their absence is not obvious on the finished model.
Assembly was a bit fiddly, but the kit builds up well and looks the part when done. I did manage to lose the elevation locking pin thingy on right leg and replaced it with wire.
The model was primed and base coated with black to help accentuate shadows and recesses.
Panzer Gray was the basic color of German vehicles for the first years of the war, and many vehicles which survived were not repainted. I decided the Panzer Gray would give the gun a range of display potential.
The finished gun after weathering. The red and white range stakes add a little color to an otherwise drab finish.

Dragon Krupp Protze Kfz.70 Build in 1/72 Scale

This is the Dragon Krupp Protze Kfz.70, kit #7377 first issued in 2011. It is a nice kit. I often manage to run into these on vendor tables for a good price at the shows and have build a few of them.
Dragon has opted to provide a detailed suspension, and there are several very delicate parts on the sprues. Careful parts removal and clean-up is rewarded. The main sprue is slightly longer than the box and is crammed in there, but this has never resulted in distorted parts on any which I have built.
For all the small parts the kit assembles well. This boxing also includes a 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun. This is a little odd as the gun was more usually associated with the Kfz.69 version of this chassis which incorporated ammunition storage (also kitted by Dragon), while the Kfz.70 is a version configured for passenger / cargo.
Here is the model after priming with Mr. Surfacer 1000 and a black base coat of Alclad primer.
The model was given a camouflage of Panzer Gray with Brown for the Polish Campaign. I managed to break off the indicators on the front fenders while painting so sharp-eyed viewers will have noticed they are replaced with insect pins in this photo.
I washed the recesses with black and then dirtied everything up. The canvas cover is made from masking tape. The softskin trucks are ubiquitous and can be displayed in a variety of scenes.