World War Toons Tiger (P) VK 45.01 Meng WWT015

Plastic model kit: World War Toons Tiger (P) VK 45.01 Meng WWT015

We present the plastic model kit Tiger (P) VK 45.01, also known as the Porsche Tiger, from the World War Toons series by Meng. This model is a great opportunity for history and modeling enthusiasts to build a replica of one of the most fascinating tank prototypes from World War II.

Model characteristics:

• Manufacturer: Meng
• Series: World War Toons
• Product code: WWT015
• Material: Plastic
• Scale: Undefined (the World War Toons series features stylized proportions)

History and technical background:

Tiger (P) VK 45.01, also known as the Porsche Tiger, was a prototype heavy tank designed by Ferdinand Porsche in Germany. This project was part of a competition for a new heavy tank for the Wehrmacht, which was to be armed with a powerful 8.8 cm KwK 36 L/56 gun, derived from the German 88 mm Flak 37 anti-aircraft gun.

The Porsche Tiger featured an innovative gasoline-electric drive, which was a groundbreaking solution at the time. This drive consisted of two air-cooled V-10 Porsche Type 101 engines that powered electric generators, supplying electric motors that drove the tracks. Although this solution was technologically advanced, it proved too complicated and prone to failures, which, combined with difficulties in obtaining the copper needed for production, contributed to the defeat of the Porsche project in favor of a more conventional Henschel design, which became known as the Tiger I.

Although VK 45.01 (P) did not enter mass production, its chassis was used to build the tank destroyers Elefant (initially known as Ferdinand), which were armed with a longer 88 mm Pak 43/2 gun. Only one Tiger (P) was used as a command tank in the Panzerjager Abteilung 653 unit, where it served until July 1944.

Construction features:

The VK 45.01 (P) chassis featured a unique suspension layout with six pairs of road wheels on each side, divided into three two-wheeled bogies. The tank had wide tracks measuring 640 mm in width, which provided low ground pressure.

The turret of the tank, designed by Krupp, was mounted at the front of the hull, distinguishing it from the Henschel design, where the turret was centrally located. The armament included an 8.8 cm KwK 36 gun and a co-axial MG 34 machine gun in 7.92 mm caliber.

Assembly and painting kit. Does not include paints or glue. For assembly, separately sold modeling tools are needed (including cutters, files, tweezers), paints, brushes, and plastic model glue (e.g. Tamiya Extra Thin Cement). The photo shows a professionally assembled and painted model.