From MartinN: Cats big and small (25pts)

I'm burning a lot of midnight oil at the moment and actually get some stuff done for a change. Work is still extremely hectic and I've spent most of my weeks away in Munich (imagine disgusted gurgling sound here) and thus I've started to take some stuff to paint with me. It's always a little difficult to set it all up in an ergonomic way in a hotel room but definitely better than staring at the TV most of the time.

Of course I don't bring an airbrush with me but have done the base work at home and only did the detail work in the hotel. The Puma was started during last years challenge anyway as I intended it for the tutorial I did for Patt Smith's latest book "SETTING THE SCENE Vol. 2: The Mediterranean". In the end I decided against it, the Puma was never used in the mediterranean theater anyway, and did paint up a more appropriate Italian M13/40.

The Panzer V or "Panther" as it's universally known was developed as a response to the Russian T-34. Consequently it saw it's first use in combat during Operation Zitadelle, probably better known as the battle of Kursk, in 1943. The Operation was postponed several times as to make sure the brand spanking new Panther tanks would be available for the offensive.
These repeated postponements arguably led to the eventual German defeat at Kursk as the Soviets were well aware of the German attack plans and prepared their defense accordingly.

While the Panther was still unreliable, especially the transmission proofed problematic, it nonetheless showed great potential and saw service on all fronts till the end of the war. The Panther is seen by many as the pinnacle of German Panzer development in WW2 and was probably the best tank to see service during the war. Luckily for the Allies it was never available in sufficient quantities to really make a difference. Some historians even go as far as to suggest time and resources needed for the Panther would have been better spent producing more Panzer IV tanks. Personally I don't thinkit would have made much of a difference as more often than not the lack of fuel and/ or allied air superiority prohibited the use of any Panzers be them Tigers, Panthers or the venerable Panzer IV.

The SdKfz 234/2 "Puma" is probably the best known of all the German reconnaissance vehicle of WW2. It was deployed exclusively in Russia and the western front with no units being sent to the Balkans or Italy. The Puma only saw a very limited production run with just 101 vehicles built from late 1943 till late 1944.

Pumas were very successfully deployed during the fighting in Normandy but the fierce fighting also meant that they became a scarce commodity later on. At Arnhem 5 of the few remaining vehicles allegedly took part in the fighting but I couldn't find definitive (i.e. pictorial) proof of that allegation by both Anthony Beevor (Arnhem) and Robert Kershaw (It Never Snows In September).

Nonetheless, just the pure possibility of Pumas at Arnhem was enough of an incentive for me to paint up a second one. It got a SS license plate and the commander sports a field cap in pea-dot-pattern camouflage, so it should fit nicely with my plans for a SS force for the upcoming "Arnhem" supplement for Chain of Command by the TooFatLardies.

The Panther is a lovely model from Rubicon Models and was a breeze to assemble and paint. The Puma however is a Warlord Games/ Italeri collaboration and was a pain in the backside to assemble. Two of the wheels came off during painting due to the fragile (scale model like) under carriage. Also the wheels are hollow, something I absolutely hate even if not visible normally.
Tank commanders are Perry and despite their usual abysmal casting add a nice touch to these two vehicles.

As the Puma was already started before the challenge I claim just 25 points, 5 for two half figures and 20 for the Panther.

These are brilliant, the colours work fantastically. And much better than watching the hotel TV. 

Martin