WW II German Sturmgeschütz III Wooden Toy.

[rogge16]

I've had this for probably thirty years. My grandfather gave it to my dad and my father gave it to me. My grandfather brought this back from Germany at the end of WWII. I never knew anything about it but just recently found out a few things. I showed some pictures to forum member Dwight (drmessimer) and he checked into it and come up with some information. I would like to thank him for his help and I really appreciate the time he put into tracking down this info.
This was sold as a toy in 1943-1944. It was made by a Bavarian company called Habermaaß & CO. They are now known as HABA and have factories in the U.K., USA, and France. I believe they make products for children.
It's almost entirely made of wood. I have the other armored panel but it's in bad shape and there are some missing/broken pieces but all in all it's in nice shape.
I would like to know if any forum members have one of these or have ever seen one like it?
Thanks for looking and if I forgot something I hope Dwight will add it on.

Luke

[rogge16]

[rogge16]

[douglas2496]

Really nice! I'm surprised to learn that this is a toy, I would of thought it was an army instructional model, similar to the ones that appear in 'The Panzer Soldier' by Wade Krawczyk.

[rogge16]

Yes, I always kind of thought that too. I'm not familiar with 'The Panzer Soldier'.
Thanks!

Luke

[rbminis]

Very nice Luke!
It also appears that you are missing the track flaps on the front and rear. I was also under the impression that these were instructional models. I would truly love to have a panther model like this.
Ralph.

[Larry C]

The detail is really good for being wooden. This is a nice find..."again"..after being stored away for so long. I know now it has much more meaning than it did 30 yrs ago. Thanks for sharing this Luke!!..and still waiting for some other future shared edged goodies Best Regards Larry

[rogge16]

Thank you, Ralph! I believe the flaps were gone before I got it. I don't remember ever seeing them. A Panther would be cool! Dwight tried to find out if they made a series of armored vehicles but the company never responded.

Larry: Thank you and I will get those posted one of these days.

Luke

[rbminis]

Thank you, Ralph! I believe the flaps were gone before I got it. I don't remember ever seeing them. A Panther would be cool! Dwight tried to find out if they made a series of armored vehicles but the company never responded.

Larry: Thank you and I will get those posted one of these days.

Luke

Hi Luke,
Maybe Dwight would be kind enough to try to locate photos of a complete one for you.
Ralph.

[harryamb2]

that's neat.