Feldgrau.net

I've recently got back into modelling and am interested if anyone could help with stug IV divisions, insignias or both. Would like my models to be accurate. Including the numbers and colours, zimmerit etc..

According to Osprey New Vanguard # 37, Siker1, StuG IVs were normally issued as single companies of 14 (later 10) vehicles each to infantry, Jaeger, mountain and Volksgrenadier divisions. But there were exceptions; Panzer Abteilung 190 of the 90th Panzergrenadier Division in Italy was fully equipped with StuG IVs, as was Panzer Abt. 8 of the 20th Panzergrenadier Division, and the divisional tank battalions of the 4th and 17th SS Panzergrenadier Divisions.

It was also issued to the 5th SS Panzer Division Wiking, but the above mentioned book isn't clear about whether these StuGs were issued to the tank regiment, or to the divisional tank-destroyer battalion. Perhaps someone else can answer that.

Hope this has been useful to you.

Yours,
Paul

Thanx Paul. Anything at all is helpful I have recently acquired that book and am trying to obtain some signal books to see what information they have on the subject. I was going to paint my stug IV dark yellow with "panzer lehr" L's on the mud guards just wanted to make sure that they actually existed in panzer lehr div!

Thanx

Well, it looks as though you can't put your StuG IV in Panzer Lehr, Siker1, but if you still want a vehicle in Normandy, the 17th SS Panzergrenadier Division is your best choice.

Always glad to help.

Yours,
Paul

Paul,
I've actually found a photo (US Army) in a Wydawnictwo Militaria book no. 94 Sturmgeschutz IV page 13 claiming to be an abandoned stugIV probably from "Panzer Lehr Division" France Aug 44. The only difference is no schurzen on in particular photo.

Thanx Luke

Beware of photo caption in most books...

What C. Gillono said was certainly true, Siker. A number of books about Kursk, for example, have photos of SS-crewed Panthers which are claimed to belong to an "SS-Panther Brigade", when in fact no such unit existed. The only Panther units at Kursk were the 51st and 52nd Panzer Abteilungen, of the Heer's 10th Panzer Brigade. The first SS Panther-equipped battalion was I/SS-Panzer Rgt. 2, which didn't arrive until mid-August 1943--a month after the Kursk operation was called off by Hitler.

Yours,
Paul

No photos, just the plain facts

Link: http://www.lexikon-der-wehrmacht.de/Gli ... eilung.htm

Well done!


Michael

Thanks for the link, Michael; I sure wish my German was better than a smattering of military terms, but it was a good one, nonetheless.

Yours,
Paul

For a StuG IV units overview based on actual research check the good old 'StuG IV photofile' here:

http://missinglinks2.tripod.com/index.htm

Could need a little update here and there by now but for a start it's still a pretty complete overview - if I'm allowed to say so

Martin Block

Sorry, Martin; I've tried to open that page three times and each time, it not only refused to open, it made my machine crash--apparently, PDF files don't work well with Netscape Navigator (my browser; Internet Explorer no longer works for me). What's in that PDF file, if I may ask?

Yours,
Paul

Sorry to hear that Paul! In that file you can find a complete list of StuG IV unit allocations I myself have compiled some years ago using original documents found in BA-MA and NARA archives. There's also a listing of units fielding StuG IV on 15.1.1945 and another one as of mid April 1945.
In addition to that you can find a list of photo captions for the 100+ StuG IV thumbnails on 'Sturmgeschutz IV Contact Sheet 1 - 3'.

Martin Block


P.S.: Have you ever heard about this browser? http://www.firefox.com/
Works well for me!

I tried Firefox, Martin, but that caused my machine to crash, too. Thanks, anyway. Maybe if I get the opportunity, I'll go back there and look at the pics.

Yours,
Paul

Thanx for the help guys! I've been shown the tripod site before. A very good site. As for the other one I'm a nivice so might take me a while to work it all out! Thanx for the helpful information.

...