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NEW RELEASES FOR SEPTEMBER 2025
THE SECOND WORLD WAR
GERMAN ARMOUR
The Deutsches Afrikakorps in North Africa (1941–1943)
The dusty wind-swept battlefields of North Africa in 1941 marked the rise of one of Germany’s most storied armoured units: the 15. Panzer-Division (15. Pz.Div.) of the Deutsches Afrikakorps, formed in late 1940 by augmenting the experienced 33. Infanterie-Division (Motorized) with the panzers from the veteran Panzer Regiment 8 (Pz.Rgt. 8) of the 10. Panzer-Division. Alongside its sister formation, the veteran 5. leichte Division (soon to be redesignated the 21. Panzer-Division), the 15. Panzer-Division became one of the two armoured fists of the Afrikakorps during Rommel's desert campaigns.
GA-31
THE SECOND WORLD WAR,
Panzer III Ausf. H #211
15. Panzer-Division, Deutsches Afrikakorps,
North Africa, May 1941
Shipped to Tripoli in a series of convoys in the late spring of 1941, 15. Pz.Div. was a welcome addition of combat power to Generalleutnant Erwin Rommel's Afrikakorps. The division brought with it a full complement of armour which had received specialized "Tropen" modifications designed to increase panzer operational effectiveness in desert climates.
These improvements, such as holes cut in the engine deck with armoured covers on top for increased engine airflow, proved so effective that they were later incorporated into future panzer models as standard features. Additionally, the panzers arrived already painted in the first German Tropical camouflage pattern consisting of RAL8000 Gelbbraun and RAL7008 Graugrün, a low-contrast paint scheme that blended beautifully with the desert environment.
15. Pz.Div.'s complement of Panzer III tanks, Germany’s main battle tank and the backbone of Panzer divisions at this time, consisted primarily of Panzer III Ausf. H models. The Ausf. H was the first Panzer III initially designed from the start with a turret to mount the larger and more powerful 5 cm KwK 38/L42 cannon, which provided significantly increased firepower over the 3.7 cm cannon found on earlier Panzer III models.
The Ausf. H also featured improved running gear and slightly wider tracks to provide increased cross-country mobility in difficult terrain. While these improvements were much appreciated by the desert Panzertruppen, probably the most significant upgrade to the Panzer III Ausf H. was its Zusatzpanzerung (additional armour).
To provide more crew protection, 30mm thick face-hardened armour plates were added to the front and rear hulls and secured with bolts, with a third 30mm thick armour plate bolted into place in front of the driver and radio operator's positions. This last panel extended above the front armour of the panzer and was further secured by tangs on its upper hull held in place by screws.
While the British captured one of the handful of Panzer III Ausf H tanks fielded by 5. leichte Division in mid-April 1941, disassembled, and thoroughly inspected it, they failed to grasp the significance of this new Panzer model and dismissed its increased protection as "some odd bits of armour bolted or welded on." Thus, British Intelligence initially did not realize that the 30mm thick face-hardened Zusatzpanzerung meant these up-armoured sections of the Ausf. H could not be penetrated, AT ANY RANGE, by the 2-Pounder cannon then used by ALL the British tanks in North Africa. This intelligence failure led to many nasty surprises for Allied tank crews, when cannon rounds that previously damaged or destroyed the enemy tanks now simply shattered and failed to penetrate the new up-armoured Panzer IIIs of 15.Pz.Div.
JJD presents Panzer III Ausf. H #211, a faithful recreation of one of the tanks that formed the armour core of 15. Pz.Div. as it arrived in North Africa in mid-1941.
In addition to the standard Panzer III Ausf. H details and factory tropical camouflage scheme, #211's markings include the 15. Pz.Div.'s symbol (a red triangle with line through it), the red Wolfsangel rune adopted as the unit insignia of Pz.Rgt. 8.
Lastly, the top portion of the commander's cupola and the three return rollers are painted in white. These interesting details remained from a military parade the 15. Pz.Div. conducted while in Italy prior to being shipped to North Africa. To spruce up their tanks for the parade, Pz.Rgt. 8 painted whitewalls on all their tanks wheels and white rings around the cupola of many of their tanks. These embellishments remained even weeks after 15. Pz.Div. began fighting in North Africa, and are seen in many historical photographs.
In addition to its historically accurate paint job and markings, the John Jenkins Designs Panzer III Ausf. H #211 also includes the following features:
- All hatches open and close
- Detailed turret and hull interior
- Detailed engine bay
JJD hopes its Panzer III Ausf. H #211 will serve as a wonderful addition to any 1/30 tank display for the German war in the desert. From the latter stages of Rommel's audacious initial counteroffensive against British forces in Cyrenaica that led to the Seige of Tobruk, to the 15.Pz.Div.'s fierce defensive fighting during Operation Crusader and subsequent westward withdrawal, or the Second Battle of El-Agheila where a surprise offensive by the Desert Fox re-captured most of Cyrenaica.
Additionally, many of 15. Pz.Div.'s initial Panzer III Ausf. H tanks still survived into mid-1942, where they saw action at the Battle of Gazala...one of the largest tank battles of the campaign, the Fall of Tobruk...where 15. Pz.Div. played a key role in breaking Allied defences, and even Rommel's pursuit of the British into Egypt where the Afrikakorps eventually halted at El Alemain.
JJ Designs will be releasing additional desert Panzer I and Panzer II tanks over the next six months
Many Thanks to Steve “Hunter Rose”.
Contact your Dealer to Pre-Order today!
THE SECOND WORLD WAR
GERMAN ARMOUR
The Deutsches Afrikakorps in North Africa (1941–1943)
The dusty wind-swept battlefields of North Africa in 1941 marked the rise of one of Germany’s most storied armoured units: the 15. Panzer-Division (15. Pz.Div.) of the Deutsches Afrikakorps, formed in late 1940 by augmenting the experienced 33. Infanterie-Division (Motorized) with the panzers from the veteran Panzer Regiment 8 (Pz.Rgt. 8) of the 10. Panzer-Division. Alongside its sister formation, the veteran 5. leichte Division (soon to be redesignated the 21. Panzer-Division), the 15. Panzer-Division became one of the two armoured fists of the Afrikakorps during Rommel's desert campaigns.
GA-31
THE SECOND WORLD WAR,
Panzer III Ausf. H #211
15. Panzer-Division, Deutsches Afrikakorps,
North Africa, May 1941
Shipped to Tripoli in a series of convoys in the late spring of 1941, 15. Pz.Div. was a welcome addition of combat power to Generalleutnant Erwin Rommel's Afrikakorps. The division brought with it a full complement of armour which had received specialized "Tropen" modifications designed to increase panzer operational effectiveness in desert climates.
These improvements, such as holes cut in the engine deck with armoured covers on top for increased engine airflow, proved so effective that they were later incorporated into future panzer models as standard features. Additionally, the panzers arrived already painted in the first German Tropical camouflage pattern consisting of RAL8000 Gelbbraun and RAL7008 Graugrün, a low-contrast paint scheme that blended beautifully with the desert environment.
15. Pz.Div.'s complement of Panzer III tanks, Germany’s main battle tank and the backbone of Panzer divisions at this time, consisted primarily of Panzer III Ausf. H models. The Ausf. H was the first Panzer III initially designed from the start with a turret to mount the larger and more powerful 5 cm KwK 38/L42 cannon, which provided significantly increased firepower over the 3.7 cm cannon found on earlier Panzer III models.
The Ausf. H also featured improved running gear and slightly wider tracks to provide increased cross-country mobility in difficult terrain. While these improvements were much appreciated by the desert Panzertruppen, probably the most significant upgrade to the Panzer III Ausf H. was its Zusatzpanzerung (additional armour).
To provide more crew protection, 30mm thick face-hardened armour plates were added to the front and rear hulls and secured with bolts, with a third 30mm thick armour plate bolted into place in front of the driver and radio operator's positions. This last panel extended above the front armour of the panzer and was further secured by tangs on its upper hull held in place by screws.
While the British captured one of the handful of Panzer III Ausf H tanks fielded by 5. leichte Division in mid-April 1941, disassembled, and thoroughly inspected it, they failed to grasp the significance of this new Panzer model and dismissed its increased protection as "some odd bits of armour bolted or welded on." Thus, British Intelligence initially did not realize that the 30mm thick face-hardened Zusatzpanzerung meant these up-armoured sections of the Ausf. H could not be penetrated, AT ANY RANGE, by the 2-Pounder cannon then used by ALL the British tanks in North Africa. This intelligence failure led to many nasty surprises for Allied tank crews, when cannon rounds that previously damaged or destroyed the enemy tanks now simply shattered and failed to penetrate the new up-armoured Panzer IIIs of 15.Pz.Div.
JJD presents Panzer III Ausf. H #211, a faithful recreation of one of the tanks that formed the armour core of 15. Pz.Div. as it arrived in North Africa in mid-1941.
In addition to the standard Panzer III Ausf. H details and factory tropical camouflage scheme, #211's markings include the 15. Pz.Div.'s symbol (a red triangle with line through it), the red Wolfsangel rune adopted as the unit insignia of Pz.Rgt. 8.
Lastly, the top portion of the commander's cupola and the three return rollers are painted in white. These interesting details remained from a military parade the 15. Pz.Div. conducted while in Italy prior to being shipped to North Africa. To spruce up their tanks for the parade, Pz.Rgt. 8 painted whitewalls on all their tanks wheels and white rings around the cupola of many of their tanks. These embellishments remained even weeks after 15. Pz.Div. began fighting in North Africa, and are seen in many historical photographs.
In addition to its historically accurate paint job and markings, the John Jenkins Designs Panzer III Ausf. H #211 also includes the following features:
- All hatches open and close
- Detailed turret and hull interior
- Detailed engine bay
JJD hopes its Panzer III Ausf. H #211 will serve as a wonderful addition to any 1/30 tank display for the German war in the desert. From the latter stages of Rommel's audacious initial counteroffensive against British forces in Cyrenaica that led to the Seige of Tobruk, to the 15.Pz.Div.'s fierce defensive fighting during Operation Crusader and subsequent westward withdrawal, or the Second Battle of El-Agheila where a surprise offensive by the Desert Fox re-captured most of Cyrenaica.
Additionally, many of 15. Pz.Div.'s initial Panzer III Ausf. H tanks still survived into mid-1942, where they saw action at the Battle of Gazala...one of the largest tank battles of the campaign, the Fall of Tobruk...where 15. Pz.Div. played a key role in breaking Allied defences, and even Rommel's pursuit of the British into Egypt where the Afrikakorps eventually halted at El Alemain.
JJ Designs will be releasing additional desert Panzer I and Panzer II tanks over the next six months
Many Thanks to Steve “Hunter Rose”.
Contact your Dealer to Pre-Order today!
