Ryton Schwere Panzer in Detail
A.J. Carrington
Authors: Bruce Culver and Uwe Feist
Publisher: Ryton Publications, 1998 ISBN 0-9633824-9-7
Dimensions: 9" x 13", 170 Pages
Schwere Panzer is the latest release from Ryton Publications covering the Tiger II,
Jagdtiger and Elephant
panzers. In the style of recent Ryton "In Detail" releases its emphasis is on
providing close-up photographs of each
vehicle.
Review
Schwere Panzer starts off with a brief introduction (10 pages) covering the development
and history of the Tiger
II. This is then followed by approximately 90 pages of photographs. The majority of the
photos are detail shots of
various existing museum vehicles, with a number of combat shots. Most combat shots can be
found elsewhere, in
other publications. The detail shots are excellent, covering virtually every inch of the
vehicle, inside and out. Finally
the section closes off with a COLOUR photo of Tiger II "332", originally
captured during the Battle of the Bulge,
in storage at Aberdeen. Of note also is the KV-I in the background of this shot - check
out the shade of green
(black).
Following the Tiger II section is 36 pages covering the Jagdtiger. While there are few
combat shots there are
some excellent detail shots including those of the chassis during manufacturing, a Porsche
wheel pack that broke
off during testing, the interior, the mantle and, again, virtually every inch of the
exterior. Finally, to close out, there
are 34 pages covering the Elephant. There are a small number of combat shots and a number
of detail shots of the
Elephant on display at Aberdeen.
Colour Plates and Drawings
There are 6 colour plates of the Tiger II, 3 line drawings and 6 line drawings with colour
added for contrast.
There is 1 colour plate of the Jagdtiger and 2 line drawings. There are 3 colour plates of
the Elephant and 2 line
drawings.
The colour plates are of reasonable quality, however their accuracy raises some questions
- i.e. one colour print
shows a Tiger II used by SS 501 during the Ardennes Offensive with zimmerit. In all cases
the line drawings are
fair. However, much cleaner and more detailed drawings can be found in other publications.
The line drawings
with colour added provide a good sense of the armour arrangement on the Tiger II, however,
the colouring seems
'sloppy', diminishing from their effect.
Summary
In conclusion, this book is somewhat of a 'mixed bag'. While it has some excellent detail
shots, and a reasonable
coverage of combat shots, nothing here is really new - except for the colour photo of the
Tiger II. The colour
prints are of good quality, however some are older, dating back to the late seventies and
not very accurate. The
line drawings are of fair quality.
Against it, the Fedorowicz "Tigers in Combat" series provides much greater
coverage of combat shots and the
colour prints can't compare. Conversely, the material available from Japanese publications
such as "Panzer at
Saumur #1" and the "Ground Power" series provide equal coverage in detail
shots, and better quality
reproductions. As well, the line drawings in these Japanese publications are far more
detailed and of better quality.
Finally, the title by Tom Jentz "V.K.45.02 to Tiger II" and its sister
publication "Tiger I & II: Combat Tactics"
provide far more detailed information on the development and deployment of the Tiger II.
In the book's favour, it provides a good mix of "everything" and would be a
smart choice for those looking for
information on Germany's heaviest panzers who are on a tight budget, or have only a mild
interest in these
vehicles. Of course those of us who are Tiger fanatics will probably want to pick this
title up simply to fill out our
collection.
Rating: 3.5 out of 5
Main | What's New | Articles | Reviews | Gallery | Think Tank | Contests |