WW2 German Wehrmacht – DRIVER VISION PORT MOUNT – Pz.Kpfw. V PANTHER – RARE!

You are bidding on a SUPERB relic example of a WW2 German Wehrmacht Steel Driver Vision Port Mount, as ONLY used on the later model Panzerkampfwagen V (Sd.Kfz. 171) Ausf. G 'Panther' Tank! Recovered from wreckFahrgestell 124301, it belonged to a Panther that took part in the Battle of Kurland.The Panther tank, officially Panzerkampfwagen V Panther (abbreviated Pz.Kpfw. V) was a German medium tank of World War II. It was used in most European theatres of World War II from mid-1943 to the end of the war in May 1945.The Panther was intended to counter the Soviet T-34 medium tank and to replace the Panzer III and Panzer IV. Nevertheless, it served alongside the Panzer IV and the heavier Tiger I until the end of the war. While having essentially the same Maybach V12 petrol (690 hp) engine as the Tiger I, the Panther had better gun penetration, was lighter and faster, and could traverse rough terrain better than the Tiger I. The trade-off was weaker side armour, which made it vulnerable to flanking fire, and a weaker high explosive shell. The Panther proved to be effective in open country and long-range engagements. The Panther had excellent firepower, protection and mobility, though early variants suffered from reliability issues. The Panther was far cheaper to produce than the Tiger I. Key elements of the Panther design, such as its armour, transmission, and final drive, were simplifications made to improve production rates and address raw material shortages.The Panther was rushed into combat at the Battle of Kursk in the summer of 1943 despite numerous unresolved technical problems, leading to high losses due to mechanical failures. Most design flaws were rectified by late 1943 and early 1944, though the Allied bombing of production plants in Germany, increasing shortages of high-quality alloys for critical components, shortage of fuel and training space, and the declining quality of crews all impacted the tank's effectiveness. Though officially classified as a medium tank, at 44.8 metric tons the Panther was closer in weight to contemporary foreign heavy tanks. The Panther's weight caused logistical problems, such as an inability to cross certain bridges; otherwise, the tank had a very high power-to-weight ratio which made it highly mobile.The naming of Panther production variants did not follow alphabetical order, unlike most German tanks – the initial variant, Panther 'D' (Ausf. D), was followed by 'A' and 'G' variants.Made of solid manganese-nickel steel,this Panther Tank Driver Vision Port Mount is in AMAZING relic condition! Though it does have some slight pitting, it retains traces of the original RAL 3009 Red Oxide Primer and Camouflage Paint! VERY solid (probably usable), with no major damage or breaks, and the manufacture stamps are also clearly cast, indicating:amp 124740'amp' indicates the manufacture of the part, in this case,Dortmund-Horder…alongside the Fahrgestell number, '12470', indicating, having been built as anAusf. GbyDaimler-BenzinSeptember of 1944. Approx. 14″ in diameter and weighing approx. 30 lbs., I have shown the exact location in the last images. Would make a PERFECT item for any collection or display!