Light anti-tank self-propelled guns "Marder" II, “Marder” II Sd.Kfz.131, Sd.Kfz.132 The self-propelled unit was created at the end of 1941 in order to strengthen the anti-tank defense of the German troops. The chassis of an outdated German T-II tank with medium-diameter road wheels and leaf spring suspension was used as a base. An armored conning tower is installed in the middle part of the tank, open at the top and rear. The cabin was equipped with 75 mm or 50 mm anti-tank guns or modified captured Soviet 76,2 mm guns. At the same time, the layout of the tank remained unchanged: the power plant was located at the rear, the power transmission and drive wheels were at the front. Self-propelled anti-tank guns "Marder" II since 1942 were used in anti-tank battalions of infantry divisions. For their time, they were a powerful anti-tank weapon, but their armor was insufficient, and their height was too high. The German "Waffenamt" issued a task to develop self-propelled anti-tank guns of the "Marder" series at the end of 1941. It was urgently necessary to improve the mobility of anti-tank guns by installing them on any suitable chassis due to the widespread use of the Red Army tanks T-34 and KV. This option was considered as an intermediate solution, in the future it was planned to adopt more effective destroyer tanks. 7,62 см Рак (R) ON PZ. KPFW. II Ausf.D “MARDER” II – 76,2 mm anti-tank self-propelled gun Pak36(r) on the chassis of the Pz.Kpfw.II Ausf.D/E “Marder”II tank; tank destroyer on the chassis of the Pz.Kpfw. II Ausf. D / E, armed with a captured Soviet 76,2 mm F-22 cannon. On December 20, 1941, Alkett was instructed to install a captured Soviet 76,2-mm F-22 cannon, model 1936, designed by V.G. Grabina on the chassis of the tank Pz. Kpfw. II Ausf.D. The fact is that Soviet designers, headed by V.G. Grabin, back in the mid-30s, considered it necessary to abandon ammunition for the 1902/30 model gun, and switch to a different ballistics, with a more powerful charge. But the artillery commanders of the Red Army looked at the rejection of the “three-inch” ballistics as sacrilege. Therefore, the F-22 was designed for a shot of the 1902/30 model. But the barrel and breech were designed so that, if necessary, you could simply bore out the charging chamber and quickly switch to shots with a larger sleeve and a larger charge, thereby increasing the muzzle velocity of the projectile and the power of the gun. It was also possible to install a muzzle brake to absorb part of the recoil energy. Sd.Kfz.132 “Marder” II Ausf.D/E (Sf) “Panzer Selbstfahrlafette” 1 for 7,62 cm Рак 36(r) on “Panzerkampfwagen” II Ausf.D1 and D2 The Germans duly appreciated the possibilities inherent in the design. The charging chamber of the gun was bored out for a larger sleeve, a muzzle brake was installed on the barrel. As a result, the initial velocity of the armor-piercing projectile increased and reached almost 750 m / s. The gun could fight not only with the T-34, but also with heavy KVs. The Alkett company successfully coped with the installation of the Soviet cannon in the fighting compartment of the Pz.Kpfw.II Ausf.D. The hull, power plant, transmission and chassis of the base tank remained unchanged. Inside a fixed conning tower with low sides, mounted on the roof of the tank hull, a 76,2-mm gun is installed closer to the stern, covered with a U-shaped shield. The Germans captured a huge number of F-22 cannons in good condition in the summer of 1941. A 75-mm German cannon projectile pierced 90-mm thick armor at a meeting angle of 116 degrees from a distance of 1000 m. use of ammunition for the PaK40 cannon. Projectiles fired from the upgraded F-22 guns pierced 1000-mm thick armor from a distance of 108 m at an encounter angle of 90 degrees. Self-propelled anti-tank installations were equipped with ZF3x8 telescopic sights. Tank destroyers "Marder" II with the F-22 cannon began to enter service with the anti-tank battalions of tank and motorized divisions in the early summer of 1942. The first "Marder" was received by the motorized division "Grossdeutschland". They were used on the fronts until the end of 1943, when they were replaced by more successful tank destroyers on the Pz.Kpfw.38(t) tank chassis. The order for the re-equipment of 150 vehicles was completed by May 12, 1942. An additional 51 tank destroyers were re-equipped from Pz.Kpfw.II “Flamm” tanks returned for repair. In total, at the enterprises of the concerns "Alkett" and "Wegmann" from tanks Pz.Kpfw. II Ausf.D and Pz.Kpfw.II "Ramm" 201 tank destroyers "Marder" II were converted. 7,5 см Рак40 ON PZ.KPFW.II AF, “MARDER” II (sd.kfz.131) – 75-mm anti-tank self-propelled guns "Marder" II on the chassis of the tank Pz.Kpfw.II Ausf.F; tank destroyer on the chassis of the PzII Ausf. AF, armed with a 75mm Rak40 anti-tank gun. On May 13, 1942, at a meeting in the Wehrmacht's Armaments Directorate, the issue of the feasibility of further production of PzII Ausf.F tanks at a rate of about 50 vehicles per month or the transition to the production of 75-mm anti-tank self-propelled guns on the chassis of these tanks was considered. It was decided to reduce the production of the PzII Ausf.F and launch a tank destroyer on its chassis, equipped with a 75-mm Rak40 anti-tank gun, which had high performance and successfully fought against Soviet T-34 medium tanks and even heavy KVs. Sd.Kfz.131 “Marder” II Ausf.A/B/C/F(Sf) 7,5cm Рак 40/2 on “Chassis Panzerkampfwagen” II (Sf) Ausf.A/B/C/F The engine, transmission and chassis remain unchanged from the base machine. A simple rectangular wheelhouse, open at the top and back, was located in the middle of the hull. The cannon is shifted forward. "Marder" II with a 75-mm Pak40 gun began to enter the tank and motorized divisions of the Wehrmacht and the SS from July 1942. Self-propelled units of the Marder series were based on the chassis of obsolete tanks, well mastered in production and operation, or on the chassis of captured French tanks. As mentioned above, self-propelled guns were armed with either German Rheinmetall-Borzing 75 mm PaK40 guns, or captured Soviet 76,2 mm F-22 divisional guns of the 1936 model. Sd.Kfz.131 "Marder" II The ideology of developing a self-propelled anti-tank installation was based on the maximum possible use of existing components and assemblies. From April 1942 to May 1944, the industry produced 2812 self-propelled guns. The first version of the Marder series self-propelled guns received the designation "Marder" II Sd.Kfz.132. Machines of the Marder series can hardly be attributed to design successes. All self-propelled guns had a very high profile, which made it easier to detect them on the battlefield, the crew was not adequately protected by armor even from shelling with rifle-caliber bullets. The fighting compartment, open from above, created great inconvenience for the crew of the self-propelled gun in bad weather. Nevertheless, despite the obvious shortcomings, self-propelled guns successfully coped with the tasks assigned to them. Self-propelled anti-tank guns of the “Marder” series were in service with tank, panzergrenadier and infantry divisions, most often in service with divisional tank destroyer battalions, “Panzerjager Abteilung”. In total, in 1942-1943, the plants of the FAMO, MAN and Daimler-Benz concerns manufactured 576 Marder II tank destroyers and another 75 converted from previously produced Pz.Kpfw.II tanks. By the end of March 1945, the Wehrmacht had 301 Marder II installations with a 75-mm Pak40 gun. Tactical and technical characteristics of self-propelled guns of the “Marder” family   PzJg I Model PzJg I Military index Sd.Kfz. Xnumx Manufacturer "Alket"t Chassis PzKpfw I  Execute В Combat weight, kg 6 400 Crew, people 3 Speed, km / h   - by highway 40 - along the country road 18 Power reserve, km   - on the highway 120 - on the ground 80 Fuel tank capacity, l 148 Length, mm 4 420 Width 1 850 Height, mm 2 250 Clearance, mm 295 Track width, mm 280 Engine “Maybach” NL38 TKRM Power, hp 100 Frequency, rpm 3 000 Weapon, type Pact) Caliber, mm 47 Barrel length, cal, 43,4 Early projectile speed, m / s   - armor-piercing 775 - sub-caliber 1070 Ammunition, rds. 68-86 Machine guns, number x type - Caliber, mm - Ammunition, cartridges -   Marder ii Model “Marten” II Military index Sd.Kfz.131 Sd.Kfz.132 Manufacturer Created Created Chassis PzKpfw II  Execute F. PzKpfw II  Ausf.E Combat weight, kg 10 800 11 500 Crew, people 4 4 Speed, km / h     - by highway 40 50 - along the country road 21 30 Power reserve, km     - on the highway 150   - on the ground 100   Fuel tank capacity, l 170 200 Length, mm 6 100 5 600 Width 2 280 2 300 Height, mm 2 350 2 600 Clearance, mm 340 290 Track width, mm 300 300 Engine “Maybach” HL62TRM “Maybach” HL62TRM Power, hp 140 140 Frequency, rpm 3 000 3 000 Weapon, type PaK40 / 2 PaK36 (r) Caliber, mm 75 76,2 Barrel length, cal, 46* 54,8 Early projectile speed, m / s     - armor-piercing 750 740 - sub-caliber 920 960 Ammunition, rds.     Machine guns, number x type 1xMG-34 1xMG-34 Caliber, mm 7,92 7,92 Ammunition, cartridges 9 600 * - The length of the barrel is given, taking into account the muzzle brake. Really barrel length 43 caliber   Marder III Model “Marten” III Military index Sd.Kfz.138(H) Sd.Kfz.138 (M) Sd.Kfz.139 Manufacturer "BMM" "BMM", "Skoda" "BMM", "Skoda" Chassis PzKpfw 38 (t) GW 38 (t) PzKpfw 38 (t) Combat weight, kg 10 600 10 500 11 300 Crew, people 4 4 4 Speed, km / h       - by highway 47 45 42 - along the country road   28 25 Power reserve, km       - on the highway 200 210 210 - on the ground 120 140 140 Fuel tank capacity, l 218 218 218 Length, mm 5 680 4 850 6 250 Width 2 150 2 150 2 150 Height, mm 2 350 2 430 2 530 Clearance, mm 380 380 380 Track width, mm 293 293 293 Engine “Prague” AC/2800 “Prague” AC/2800 “Prague” AC/2800 Power, hp 160 160 160 Frequency, rpm 2 800 2 800 2 800 Weapon, type PaK40 / 3 PaK40 / 3 PaK36 (r) Caliber, mm 75 75 76,2 Barrel length, cal, 46* 46* 54,8 Early projectile speed, m / s       - armor-piercing 750 750 740 - sub-caliber 933 933 960 Ammunition, rds.       Machine guns, number x type 1xMG-34 1xMG-34 1xMG-34 Caliber, mm 7,92 7,92 7,92 Ammunition, cartridges 600   600 * - The length of the barrel is given, taking into account the muzzle brake. Really barrel length 43 caliber  Sources: Marder II German Tank Destroyer [Tornado Army Series 65]; Marder II [Militaria Publishing House 65]; Panzerjager Marder II SDKFZ 131 [Armor Photogallery 09]; Marder II [Militaria Publishing House 209]; Bryan Perrett; Mike Badrocke (1999). Sturmartillerie & Panzerjager 1939-45; Janusz Ledwoch, 1997, German combat vehicles 1933-1945.