PANZERWRECKS [ MORE REVIEWS ] [ WEBSITE ] [ NEW STORIES ]

Book Review
Panzerwrecks 5
Panzerwrecks 5
  • Panzerwrecks5_copy_1

by: Matt McLean [ MMCLEAN ]

Introduction
The Panzerwrecks series of books are brought to us by William Auerbach and Lee Archer. They feature many rare and unpublished photos of wrecks or captured German WWII panzers. All of the volumes of Panzerwrecks follow the same soft cover, A4 landscape format, with black and white photos. Volume 5 of Panzerwrecks contains 153 rare and unpublished photos from various sources worldwide. This volume differs from previous ones in that it re-visits Panzerwrecks Vol. 1. The book is broken down into four main sections titled: “Panzerwrecks 1 Re-visited”, “Tiger II Joyride”, “Wrecks in Russian Newsreels”, and “Three Maus at Meppen”.

The Book
The first section that re-visits Panzerwrecks vol. 1 contains all new photos that relate to quite a few vehicles that were featured in the previous volume. 27 full pages are devoted to these new photos that include many inset shots, showing details that were not shown before. This re-visit to Panzerwrecks 1 allows Auerbach and Archer to clarify many of the missing details or specifications that weren’t available when volume 1 was published. Between sections one and two are 7 pages of wrecked Tiger 1’s, a Panther G, and a Pz.Kpfw. IV Ausf. H and G. These photos are of exceptional clarity and the captions provided offer a good description of the scenes.

Section two entitled “Tiger II Joyride,” is dedicated to a captured Tiger II belonging to s.H.Pz.Abt.506 by Co. B of the 129th Ordnance Battalion in December, 1944. This tank was covered briefly in Steve Zaloga's "Panzers in the Gunsights", but not in the detail that it is here in Panzerwrecks 5. The series of photos covers the preparations and starting of the Tiger II and consists of 6 full pages. Many unpublished photos are presented here and reveal key details that are of excellent value to historians and modelers alike.

Section three, entitled “Wrecks in Russian Newsreels,” brings us 9 pages of photos from the Eastern Front. The quality of these photos is not great, being dark and grainy at best, with little detail noticeable on many of the photos. They show an assortment of destroyed vehicles, but I question the usefulness of including these sub-par photos given the excellent quality of the others. Between sections three and four are 25 pages of various wrecks from the western European Theater. Everything from Tiger Is to various marks of Panzer tanks, even a captured T48 Gun Motor Carriage in use by the Germans is included. These are very interesting photos, and their inclusion is a definite plus.

The last section entitled “Three Maus at Meppen” has 5 pages of photos dedicated to unfinished Maus tanks. The photo quality is good, but they are a little dark. The book closes with some photos of Bulgarian soldiers inspecting abandoned German equipment presumably on the Eastern Front. They show excellent photos of the before and after effects of an explosion inside of a 7.5cm Pak 40 tank destroyer.

Conclusion
As with all the Panzerwrecks books, this one is a must have. It brings many rare and unpublished photos together at a great price. The variety of the photos is a credit to the research efforts of Mr. Auerbach and Mr. Archer. A few grammatical corrections to the captions accompanying each picture is really all that is needed to make this book better, but they don’t effect the overall usefulness of this book. Highly Recommended.
SUMMARY
Highs: Variety of photos included is great. The price for this book is very reasonable.
Lows: Quality of some photos is poor. A few grammatical and description errors are included, but don't affect the overall usefulness.
Verdict: Panzerwrecks 5 is highly recommended.
Percentage Rating
93%
  Scale: Other
  Mfg. ID: ISBN 978-0955594014
  Suggested Retail: $29.95
  PUBLISHED: Mar 08, 2008
  NATIONALITY: Germany
NETWORK-WIDE AVERAGE RATINGS
  THIS REVIEWER: 91.86%
  MAKER/PUBLISHER: 94.33%

Our Thanks to Panzerwrecks!
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.

View This Item  |  View Vendor Homepage  |  More Reviews  

About Matt McLean (MMcLean)
FROM: NEW HAMPSHIRE, UNITED STATES

Copyright ©2021 text by Matt McLean [ MMCLEAN ]. All rights reserved.



Comments

Matt, thanks for the review. Looks like I need to put another book on my want list. I had not seen extra armor on engine deck of a panther before, had heard about it. Joe
MAR 07, 2008 - 04:36 PM
Hi Joe, The extra armour was a surprise to me too, but now its not too hard to build a kit with it, because of the Dragon release of there Italian Panther with roof armour. I recommend if your going to pick up Panzerwrecks 5 and are interested in the "uparmoured" panther, Panzerwrecks 1 would be a worthwhile investment too as it has some more photos of the same Panther. Regards Matt
MAR 08, 2008 - 12:27 AM
got all five..............................can,t wait for number six.........got number six.... waiting on seven oh !!! mail man here let me go check with him..
MAR 08, 2008 - 03:55 PM
NOV 21, 2008 - 06:24 PM
Have 1&2 in the series and they are great, cant wat to get them all, great stuff, cheers Bob.
NOV 21, 2008 - 07:57 PM
   
ADVERTISEMENT


Photos
Click image to enlarge
  • Panzerwrecks5_copy_1
  • PW5_30-08-074
  • PW5_30-08-073
  • PW5_30-08-072
  • PW5_30-08-07
ADVERTISEMENT