Customer Reviews

Jagdtiger: The Most Powerful Armoured Fighting Vehicle of World War II: TECHNICAL HISTORY (Schiffer Military History)

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This book will be welcomed by the armored vehicle enthusiasts who have tired of the hobby store pictorial books written for boys. There are quite a number of photographs and technical details which are not published in any other mass-marketed book.

It was however disappointing that after "20 years of exhaustive research" the author was still unable to improve upon his predecessors' description of the Tiger's steering mechanism as the following formidable paragraph illustrates.

"Steering was effected by imposing different speeds on the sun wheel of an epicyclic, whose annulus was positively driven by a bevel meshing with the main gearbox output bevel, and whose planet carrier carried the output flange to the final drive."

There is a schematic diagram of the steering unit which only adds to the confusion. Apparently the theory of operation is so difficult to comprehend much less explain, that every author has skirted it and hoped that the reader would not be the wiser.

Knowing all of this, I went ahead and ordered the book anyway. It does make excellent reading even though the scholarship could be improved.

I don't have the background to assess most of this book, but there's one item that falls into my area of knowledge and it's a problem.
This book, about the Jadgtiger, contains some material from manuals describing a different vehicle. Its source is not given.
The author has copied some wording and a full-page diagram from the British report on Tiger 1 tank. It describes an engine fan which was unique to Tiger I, therefore the material has nothing to do with Jagdtiger and does not belong in this book. The author really should understand that not all "tiger" series tanks had swappable components!
I'm particularly puzzled that he prints a photo of a small, small valve in the Jagdtiger and basically says "there's the fan I was talking about". They don't even look similar!