Panther vs T-34: Ukraine 1943 (Duel) (Paperback)

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Editorial Reviews

Review

"...Robert Forczyk, a Ph.D. who served 18 years as an armor officer in the U.S. Army Reserve, concludes that the T-34's brilliantly simple, functional conception made it the better of the two... After providing technical details, [the] book discusses crew training and tactics, profiles one or two outstanding operators of each tank and then shows how they performed against one another in combat. Enhanced by photos and artwork, including views of the interiors and through the gun sights, the Duel series is sure to spark debate among Buffs." -Jon Guttman, Military History Magazine (January/February 2008)

"Robert Forczyk's Panther vs. T-34: Ukraine 1943 is a pick for any military library focusing on equipment and action. A blend of first-person perspectives and digital artwork chart the progress of the two greatest tanks of World War II." -The Bookwatch (December 2007)

"This work provides a welcome contrast to the usual praise surrounding the Panther, and it is one of the best Osprey Duel series titles to date." - Mark E. Stille, World War II Quarterly (Volume 4, Number 4, 2007)

"In all, a superb look at these two tanks and how well they operated in combat against each other. A book I can highly recommend for you." -Scott Van Aken, modelingmadness.com (November 2007)

"Overall, this is a good addition to Osprey's library... The text was compelling to read and caused me to reconsider my thoughts about both tanks." -tabletopgamingnews.com (October 2007)

Product Description

Robert A. Forczyk provides a riveting and intense description of the design and development of these two deadly opponents, the Panther and the T-34, analyzing their strengths and weaknesses and describing their tactics, weaponry and training. Moreover he gives an insight into the lives of the tank crews themselves, who were caught up in the largest land conflict of World War II, in some of the most important engagements in the history of warfare.

Innovative digital artwork and first-person perspectives place the reader in the midst of a duel between the titans of the Soviet and German armed forces in a ruthless and relentless death match that would determine the war on the Eastern Front and, indeed, the fate of Nazi Germany.

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Product Details

• Paperback: 80 pages
• Publisher: Osprey Publishing; illustrated edition edition (October 23, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 1846031494
• ISBN-13: 978-1846031496
• Product Dimensions: 9.6 x 7.2 x 0.3 inches
• Shipping Information: View shipping rates and policies
• Average Customer Review: 4.4 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (11 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #58,149 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

65 of 68 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Mini-Masterpiece and a Must-Read , October 31, 2007

By	Mr. Truthteller (Los Angeles, CA USA) - See all my reviews

This thin volume, containing a mere 73 pages of text, is a mini-encylopedia of information, insight, and analysis on these two feared weapons of World War II: the German Panther and Soviet T-34 tanks.

The book provides an excellent (if not unparalleled for a book of this size and cost) review of the design, development, strengths, and flaws of each of these fighting vehicles. It discloses the politics (as well as the favoritism and nepotism) that hindered the design and development of each vehicle, with the result that both were initially knowingly sent into battle with major weaknesses. (Indeed, the Panzers were sent to the front despite the refusal of Heinz Guderian, Inspector for Panzer Troops, to certify them as combat ready. Guderian was over-ridden by a Nazi bureaucrat working under Speer who was anxious to please Hitler and had promised Hitler that Panzers in sufficient numbers would be available for Operation Citadel (the attack on the Kursk salient) by May 1943. Despite this promise, the attack was repeatedly delayed while the Panzers (and Tigers) underwent further testing and refinement until Hitler finally ordered that Operation Citadel would begin on July 5th no matter what.)

The book also ably discusses in detail the specifications for each tank during the period covered (June-December 1943), with excellent line drawings of the main guns (75 mm for the Panther, 76mm for the T-34), and additional drawings of each vehicle from one side, the front, and the rear. (There are no drawings of the interiors of either vehicle, but there are some interesting ones of the views offered to the gunner of the Panther and the commander/gunner of the T-34 as he looked through the sights of his gun, as well as a two-page spread of a battle scene between these tanks from the German point of view.) An interesting chapter on the training of the crews for each tank is also included.

A third of the book contains a well-written discussion and analysis of five major engagements between these two vehicles in 1943, including Kursk and Kharkov, that includes first-hand perspectives of veterans of the conflicts.

All in all, an engaging and well-written look at these two fighting machines, one in its infancy and the other in its prime (at least until the advent of the Panther). The Panthers had a far greater kill ratio over the T-34s but the Panthers were far less reliable mechanically and far less mobile than the T-34s. (The Germans lost far more Panthers to mechanical breakdowns and hasty retreats than they did in actual combat as Hitler had a standing order to destroy any Panthers that might fall into enemy hands.) In the last six months of 1943 the Soviets could build 1,300 T-34s a month, while the Germans could only produce 200 Panthers a month in the same period. (I.e., for each Panzer the Germans built, the Soviets were able to build more than six T-34s in the same amount of time.)

20 of 21 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Small but excellent book on armored warfare., March 13, 2008

By	Kyle Richie (Kentucky) - See all my reviews

"Panther vs. T-34" gives readers the story of the epic showdown between two legendary tanks. The Russian T-34 met the German panther for the first time in the brutal battles in Southern Russia and the Ukraine. By the end of 1943, the flawed but powerful panthers had destroyed droves of Soviet tanks, but ultimately Soviet strenght prevailed. The book is thin, but contains quite a bit of information in a very readable form. The production of the vechicles is described as are the armored battles in which they faced each other. Additional features include brief descriptions of tank commanders and two interesting computer generated images of the tanks targeting one another. The book has numerous photos of the vechicles, including some I haven't noticed in other books. There is only one piece of artwork depicting an engagement, but it is very well done (much more detailed than the one featured in the "Duel" book featuring the firefly and tiger I). Overall, I recommend it to anyone interested in World War II armored vechiles or the epic tragedy called the Eastern Front.

27 of 30 people found the following review helpful:

4.0 out of 5 stars Good Book, Incorrect outcome, June 24, 2008

By	George L. Baixauli "Kampfgruppe Kircher" (Miami, Florida USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Very good book. However, the Panther's achilles heal was actually the thickness of her side armor(50mm). Her mechanical problems were remedied soon after the battle of Kursk. But whatever she may have given up in armor,her powerful KwK/42 (L/70) 7.5cm main gun more than made up for it. This gun actually had more penetrating power than the main gun on the Tiger I . The Panther could engage and destroy frontal plate armor on all T-34 versions at 2,000 meters while the Soviet counterpart had to get to 500 meters to do the same to the Panther. It was the combined tactics of the Soviets to outnumber the Panzers five and six to one and then "get in close" regardless of losses that ultimately doomed the Panther and all the great german tanks . This is an advantage in numerical superiority and not mechanical superiority. One on One, the Panther was the most deadly tank of WWII. I would respectfully disagree with the outcome of the Author.