Trucks and Tanks Hors série publications
Trucks & Tanks is a French historical magazine on military vehicles and tanks of the XX Century. They cover numerous monographies on various vehicles like, amongst other things, the Tiger but also more “exotic” ones like the AS24 (a Belgian tricycle used by parachutists!) The texts are precise, illustrated with photos and drawings.
The “Hors série” publications cover more precise types of material; actually 8 are printed but two of them are already “out of print”: the n°1 “Les Panzer, du Grosstraktor au Tiger II” and n°3 “Les chars de combat soviétiques” (The Soviet tanks).
I will present you here the 6 other existing publications:
TNT Hors série n°2: Jagdpanzer & Panzerjäger (132 pages, covers included)
The introduction explains how and why were developed some Panzerjäger and Jagdpanzer. The Panzerjäger was a kind of “temporary solution”, adapting on older chassis (or chassis of captured material) some anti tank guns. Each vehicle is then described in detail, with an historical background, photos and drawings. The list of the material showed in the book is impressive:
Sd.Kfz. 101 Panzerjäger I – Panzerjäger I aus B (two models)
10.5cm K18 auf Panzer Selbestfahrlafette Iva / DICKER MAX
4.7cm Pak(t) auf Pz. 35R(t) ohne Turn
12.8cm Selbestfahrlafette auf VK 30.01 (H) / STURER EMIL
Sd. Kfz 135 / 7.5cm Pak 40(St) auf Geschutzwagen 39H (f) / MARDER I
Sd. Kfz 135 / 7.5cm Pak 40/1 auf Geschutzenwagen Lorraine Schlepper (f) / MARDER I
Sd.Kfz. 131 & 132 / MARDER II
Sd.Kfz. 138 & 139 / MARDER III
Sd. KfZ. 184 / FERDINAND-ELEFANT
Sd. KFZ. 164 / HORNISSE-NASHORN
Sd. Kzf. 162 JAGDPANZER IV
Sd.Kfz. 138/2 / HETZER
Sd. Kfz. 173 / JAGDPANTHER
Sd. Kfz. 186 JAGDTIGER
And finally “Les moutons à 5 pattes” (“the sheeps with 5 legs”) that gives a description of many intriguing adaptations made in the hurry of the war, like adaptations made on some chassis of Soviet, American, British, French vehicles…
TNT Hors série n°4: Canons d’assaut de l’Axe (Axis assault guns) (116 pages, covers included)
Again, good historical presentation of each material described, with photos and drawings.
In fact the assault guns can be considered as the descendance of the WWI tanks: their goal is to close support infantry, that is not the rule of modern and WWII tanks… Material described is of course German one but also Italian, Hungarian, Japanese, Finnish and Croatian:
Germany
Sturmgeschütz III: models A, B, C, D, E, F L/43, F L/48, F/!, G, G(Saukopf)
Sd.Kfz 253
Sd.Kfz. 252
Sd.Kfz. 250/6 ausf A
Sturmhaubitze III (early, mid and late production)
Sturmgeschütz IV (early, heavy armoured, late production)
Sturinfanteriegeschütz 33B auf Panzer III/SIG 33B
Sd.Kfz. 166 / Sturmpanzer IV / BRUMMBÄR
38cm RW61 auf Sturmmörser Tiger / STURMTIGER
Italy
Semovente DA 47/32
Semovente DA 75/18
SEMOVENTE DA 75 :34
SEMOVENTE DA 105/25
Hungary
43M Zrinyi II ROHAMTARACK
44M Zrinyi I ROHAMAGYU
Japan
Type 3 Ho-Ni III
Finland
STU-40 STURMI
Croatia
Skoda S-I-D / T-32
TNT Hors série n°5: Les engins de combat de l’armée française en 1940 (The combat vehicles of the French army in 1940 (116 pages, covers included)
This publication is for me one of the best references for what concerns the French material in 1940! There are more than 40 vehicles described with, as always, photos and drawings. To be noted of course that some of the French material will be used after the capitulation by the Germans, and you will find in the Hors série n°2 what happened with those vehicles…
Automitrailleuses de cavalerie (Cavalry armoured cars)
AMC White TBC
AMC Schneider-Kégresse P16
AMC Renault modèle 1934
AMC Renault Modèle 1935 type ACG-1
Somua S35 (also named Char 1935 S)
Automitrailleuses de découverte (Discovery armoured cars)
Laffly 50 AM
AMD 35 Panhard 178
AMD 38 Panhard 178
AMD 40 Panhard 178
Chevrolet AMD 37 SA 18
Automitrailleuses de reconnaissance (Reconnaisance armoured cars)
AMR Renault modèle 1933
AMR Renault modèle 1935 ZT 1 (7,5mm)
AMR Renault modèle 1935 ZT 1 (13,2mm)
AMR Renault Modèle 1935 ZT 2
AMR Renault modèle 1935 ZT 3
Chars français (French tanks)
Renault FT (mitrailleuse/machinegun)
Renault FT (canon/gun)
FCM 2C
Renault D1 (tourelle/turret ST 2)
Renault D2 (tourelle/turret APK 1)
Renaul D2 (tourelle/turret APK 4)
Hotchkiss H35
Hotchkiss H35 (réarmé/new weapons)
Hotchkiss H39
Hotchkiss H38
Renault R35
Renault R39
Renault R40
B1 Bis
FCM 36
Engins coloniaux (vehicles of the colonies)
AMC White
Laffli 50 AM (North Africa)
Berliet type VUDB
Laffly 80 AM (“Laffly-Vincennes”)
AMD Panhard 165/175 TOE
Laffly S15 TOE
Renault VE 2 FM 24/29
AMD 35 Panhard 178 type “Cochinchine” (APX 5 turret)
TNT Hors série n°6: Les chars moyens et lourds anglo-américains de la seconde guerre mondiale (The Anglo-american medium and heavy tanks of second world war) (132 pages, covers included)
The Anglo-american tanks were not the best material available, at the beginning of the war; but at the end there were become good challengers for the Axis.
Medium tanks
Vickers medium tank mark II
General Grant MK I
General Sherman MK II
M4A4 (17-pdr) Sherman Firefly MK Vc
M4 (17-pdr) Sherman Firefly MK Ic
Infantry tanks
A11 Infantry tank MK I “Matilda I”
A12 Infantry tank MK II “Matilda II”
A12 Infantry tank MK IIa “Matilda II”
Vickers Infantry tank MK II “Valentine”
Vickers Infantry tank MK III “Valentine”
Vickers Infantry tank MK VIIIa “Valentine”
Vickers Infantry tank MK VIII “Valentine”
Vickers Infantry tank MK IX “Valentine”
Vickers Infantry tank MK X “Valentine”
Vickers Infantry tank MK XI “Valentine”
A22 Infantry tank MK IV “Churchill” MK I
A22 Infantry tank MK IV “Churchill” MK II
A22 Infantry tank MK IV “Churchill” MK III
A22 Infantry tank MK IV “Churchill” MK IV
A22 Infantry tank MK IV “Churchill” MK IV NA75
A22 Infantry tank MK IV “Churchill” MK VI
A22 Infantry tank MK IV “Churchill” MK VII
Cruiser tanks
A9 MK I Cruiser tank MK I
A13 MKIIa Cruiser tank MK IV
A14 MK I Cruiser tank MK III “Governanter”
A15 Cruiser tank MK VI “Crusader I”
A15 Cruiser tank MK VI “Crusader II”
A15 Cruiser tank MK VI “Crusader III” (6-pdr) MK III
A27M Cruiser tank “Cromwell” MK I
A27M Cruiser tank “Cromwell” MK IV
A30 Cruiser tank “Challenger”
A34 Cruiser tank “Comet”
A41 Cruiser tank “Centurion” MK I
Commonwealth material
RAM I
RAM II
Grizzly
AC1 Cruiser tank “Sentinel”
American medium tanks
M3, M3A1, M3A3, M3A5, M4, M4A1, M4A1(76) medium, M4A1(76) HVSS medium, M4A3E2 “Jumbo”, M4A3E8, M4A4, M4A6
American heavy tanks
M26 “Pershing”
T26E4 “Super Pershing”
TNT Hors série n°7: Véhicules de reconnaissance de l’Axe (Axis reconnaissance vehicles) (124 pages, covers included)
The German reconnaissance vehicles are generally well known, but it’s not the case of the vehicles of the other axis nations… That publication gives excellent informations on that subject !
German reconnaissance vehicles
Kfz.13 & 14
Sd.Kfz 221
SD.Kfz 222
SD.Kfz 223
SD.KFZ 260 & 261
SD.KFZ 231 (6-rad)
SD.Kfz 232 (6-rad)
ADGZ
ADKZ
Sd.KfZ 231 & 232 (8-rad)
Sd.Kfz 233
Sd.Kfz 263
Sd.Kfz 234/1
Sd.Kfz 234/2 “Puma”
Sd.KFZ 234/3
Sd.Kfz 234/4
Panhard 178 (f)
Panzerkampfwagen I ausf C
Panzerkampfwagen II ausf D & E
Panzerkampfwagen II ausf G
Panzerkampfwagen IIausf J
Panzerkampfwagen II ausf L
Sd.Kfz 140/1
Italian reconnaissance vehicles
Lancia 1ZM
Fiat Terni
Autoblinda Fiat 611
Autoblinda 40
Autoblinda 41, 42 & 43
Autoblinda « Lince »
Camionetta Spa-Viberti AS42
Autoblinda SPA AS 43
Carro Veloce 29
Carro Veloce 33 & 35
Carro Armato L6/40
Japanese reconnaissance vehicle
Type 87
Type 92 Osaka
Type 93 Sumida
Type 92 Jyu-Sokosha
Type 94 Te-Ke
Type 95 Ha-Go
Type 97 Te-Ke
Rumania
TNSPE-37
Hungary
29M Crossley
39M Csaba
Csaba PK 4O M
Finland
Landsverk L182A
Thaïland
Vickers Morris M1931
Slovakia
Skoda PA-II OA.VZ.23
Skoda PA-III OA.VZ.27
Tatra T72 OA vz.30 « Koprivnice »
CKD Tancik P1 wz.33
TNT Hors série n° 8: STUG III & STUH (124 pages, covers included)
This publication is more concentrated on one type of vehicle, that is the STUG III/STUH. It describes the birth, evolution and history of the vehicle and also all the operations he participated from de West campaign to the fall of the Third Reich.
As always, history but also photos and drawings are great.
In conclusion, those “hors série” are thematic publications of first interest not only for the modeler but also for anyone interested in the history of the 2nd World War. There are a must that I recommend warmly. If you don’t speak French, illustrations and photo will be useful anyway.
Daniel Clamot
Sincere thanks to Caractere for samples of this amazing publications
