T-34-85 Medium Tank, Soviet 55th Guards Tank Brigade 1945, 1/32 Scale Model By Forces Of Valor

The T-34 is a Soviet medium tank that had a profound and lasting effect on the field of tank design. At its introduction in 1940, the T-34 possessed an unprecedented combination of firepower, mobility, protection and ruggedness. Its 76.2 mm (3 in) high-velocity tank gun provided a substantial increase in firepower over any of its contemporaries; its well-sloped armour was difficult to penetrate by most contemporary anti-tank weapons. When it was first encountered in 1941, German general Paul Ludwig Ewald von Kleist called it "the finest tank in the world" and Heinz Guderian affirmed the T-34's "vast superiority" over existing German armour of the period. Although its armour and armament were surpassed later in the war, it has often been credited as the most effective, efficient and influential tank design of the Second World War.

Soviet firing tests against a captured Tiger I heavy tank in April 1943 showed that the T-34's 76 mm gun could not penetrate the front of the Tiger I at all, and the side only at the very close range. A Soviet 85 mm anti-aircraft gun, the 52-K, was found capable of doing the job, and so derivatives of it were developed for tanks.  The resulting tank gun could penetrate the side armour of the Tiger I from a distance of 800 meters and the turret side from a distance of 600 meters. It was still not enough to match the Tiger, as a Tiger could destroy the T-34 from a distance of 1,500 to 2,000 meters, but it was a noticeable improvement. The Soviet command made the decision to retool the factories to produce an improved version of the T-34.

Production of the T-34-85 began in January 1944. The improved T-34-85 became the standard Soviet medium tank, with an uninterrupted production run until the end of the war. The T-34-85 gave the Red Army a tank with better armour and mobility than the German Panzer IV tank and StuG III assault gun. While it could not match the armour or weapons of the heavier Panther and Tiger tanks, its improved firepower made it much more effective than earlier models, and overall it was more cost-effective than the heaviest German tanks. In comparison with the T-34-85 program, the Germans instead chose an upgrade path based on the introduction of completely new, expensive, heavier, and more complex tanks, greatly slowing the growth of their tank production and aiding the Soviets in maintaining a substantial numerical superiority in tanks. By May 1944, T-34-85 production had reached 1,200 tanks per month.  In the entire war, production figures for all Panther types reached no more than 6,557, and for all Tiger types (including the Tiger I and Tiger II) 2,027. Production figures for the T-34-85 alone reached 22,559.

This Waltersons Forces Of Valor model represents a T-34/85 tank serving with the 55^th Guards Tank Brigade, 7^th Guards Tank Corps during the Battle of Berlin 1945. In the Berlin Offensive, which began in mid-April, the corps advanced over 400 kilometers. For "exemplary completion of command tasks" during the breakthrough of German lines on the Neisse the corps was awarded the Order of Lenin on 28 May, and for distinguishing itself in the capture of Berlin the corps was awarded the honorific "Berlin" on 4 June. The 7th Guards' last combat operation was the Prague Offensive, during which it advanced south into Czechoslovakia and participated in the liberation of Prague.

This T-34-85 is great addition to your historical tank collection.