Rare WW2 Marder III Ausf. M - Sd.Kfz. 138 - Footage.

The Marder III would be based onto the obsolete Panzer 38(t), the chassis was still an excellent and plentiful platform for adaptation into a tank destroyer, and production of the Marder III would start in 1942. It would have either the Soviet 76.2 mm field gun or the 7.5 cm PaK 40.
Three versions would be build the Sd.Kfz. 139, and the Sd.Kfz. 138 Ausf.H. and M.
The Ausf. H would fielded the standard 7.5 cm PaK 40 German anti-tank gun on a slightly modified Panzer 38(t) Ausf. H chassis, with the engine in the back.
The Ausf.M. was based upon the Geschützwagen 38(t) Ausf. M, again armed with the 75 mm PaK 40 anti-tank gun.
The the engine was moved from the rear to the middle between driver and the rest of the crew. Because there was no engine in the rear, the gun and the crew did not have to sit on top of the engine deck as in previous models, this allowed the crew to stay low.
It was a significant improvement over previous models, with its lower silhouette, sloped armor, and much more functional fighting compartment.

The various Marder III’s fought on all European fronts and in North Africa, with the Sd. Kfz. 139 being used mainly at the Eastern Front, though some also fought in Tunisia.
The Marder III’s were mechanically reliable, as with all vehicles based on the Czechoslovak LT-38 chassis. Their firepower was sufficient to destroy the majority of Soviet tanks on the battlefield at combat range.
But just like the Marder II the combination of a high silhouette and open-top armor protection made them vulnerable to indirect artillery fire. The armor was also quite thin, making them highly vulnerable to enemy tanks, and to close-range machine gun fire.

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■ Information obtained from several sites.
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■ the.shadock.free.fr/Tanks_in_France

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