Pionierlandungsboot 41

Today I can present one of my first Highlights for the young year 2016!
The German PLB 41, Pionierlandungsboot 41 of the German Wehrmacht.
The Germans used it on all theaters, Mediterranean Sea, East sea and North sea.

More information are here: PLB 41  or here: PLB 41 (both only in German)

Some technical details about the PLB 41:
Length: 19,30 m 
Beam: 5,93 m
Displacement: (empty) 35 tons; up to 75 tons loaded
Engine: 2 Deutz SA 6M with 120 PS
Speed: 19 km/h
Armament: one 2cm AA gun
Crew: ??
Capacity: one 40 ton tank, 150 troops; 20 up to 40 tons of cargo

As the ship was build in two half, it could be transported with special flat rail wagons.
I saw pictures of versions with and without the small house.

And for comparison below the technical data of the American LCM (3)
Displacement: 52 tons loaded;23 tons empty
Length: 15 m
Beam: 4.3 m
Speed: 8 knots (9.2 mph) loaded; 11 knots (13 mph)empty
Armament: two .50-cal M2 Browning machine guns
Crew: 4
Capacity: One 30-ton tank, 60 troops, 27 tons of cargo

fresh from the printer

PLB 41 with the AA gun

the ramp can be shown in different positions

two new Pionierlandungsboote for my 1/144 collection

first painting is done

actually this load would be too heavy!

both ships, one with camouflage

rear view of the Pionierlandungsboot 41

PLB 41 with ramp open

tank III leaving the PLB 41

At the moment I sell the camouflage version at Ebay, so if you are interested, check Ebay

Or if you want your own unpainted version, you can buy it here: Shapeways

My Highlights in 2015

I used the last days, to check what I have designed in the last year.
So here are some of my highlights:

German Schnellboot S-100
I like the model, it is a nice model but it was very hard to get it. I had to buy a lot of 1/1250 ships before they sent me my Schnellboot.

A nice idea for 2016 would be to build the older version as I have plans and tons of pictures of it.

Panzerfähre IV
My first complete tank design and it worked in the first attempt.
I designed the complete tank and later I separated one of the tanks, so that you could show the complete ferry or only the tanks.

order your Panzerfähre at Shapeways

complete Panzerfähre at Shapeways

Rübezahl my German Traktor

order your Rübezahl at Shapeways

Sherman mine roller

Schienenwolf

Panzerjägerwagen 51

okay the design is still under construction and I haven`t opened the drawing for several months. But I have it on the list to get it finished this year. And as with the Schienenwolf, I collected some experience with rail amour, I plan to build the Jägerwagen with the Panzer IV turret as well.

Siebel Ferry
Not only that I finished the first Siebelfähre, I built a complete diorama for it.
More Siebel ferries will come soon as I have two more under construction.

At the moment I paint two more of them, in the version as schwere Flakfähre in two different versions. Version one will be armed with 3 Flak 8.8 while the second version will have the 2 cm Vierlingsflak as AA-gun.
So this is the diorama with the evacuation of the last Tiger tank form Sicily, the next two will be so called "Kampffähren", fighting ferries.

the last Tiger in Sicily

Flakfähre with 3x 8.8 Flak