The Panther Project: Vol.1
Author: L.Lloyd, B.Balkwill, A.Johnson
88 pages colour
Publisher: The Research Squad
Price: £15.99
ISBN: 978-0-9556422-0-3

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Introduction

The Wheatcroft Collection is one of the two largest collection of privately-owned military vehicles in the World. For many years, a small team of skilled engineers has been painstakingly restoring a German WWII Panther to pristine condition. This is the first volume in a series, documenting this restoration. It covers the complete restoration of the drivetrain and hull.

The Publication

It's evident as soon as you have this title in your hand, that it's a quality publication. From the glossy front cover to the inside pages, it simply reeks of quality. It's a full-colour title, containing 340+ colour images taken of various components of the drivetrain and hull during their restoration.

The book begins by introducing us to the team responsible for the Panther restoration at the Wheatcroft Collection, and an interview with Kevin Wheatcroft.
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It then takes us through 4 pages of extremely detailed photographs of the lefthand Radiator compartment, each of the photographs extensively captioned to explain what can be seen. Many of the parts, as in other sections of the book, cannot be seen once the vehicle has been fully restored, and the fact that they are colour photographs of a restored example, means that photographs such as these have never be seen before, and are therefore unique.

Next we move to the engine compartment, eight pages of colour photographs, showing in detail how this compartment is constructed, and detailed shots of what's where, excluding the engine itself. Logically we are given another four pages, this time of the righthand radiator housing, before moving to sixteen pages of fantastic photographs of the fighting compartment. These are simply stunning photographs, of the fighting compartment with all the torsion bars in place, and various other components in place such as parts of the hydraulic system, the gearbox, ammunition racks. This section is followed by eighteen pages detailing the 'Front End' for want of a better term, although since there is so much to show in this area I suppose it had to be differentiated from the fighting compartment section. We're given the transmission in stunning detail, and the steering brake housings, torsion bar assemblies, vision ports, and various stowage boxes.

There is a small section on the turret, although this is stripped right back and in the early stages of restoration, although the body of it has been restored and primed ready for further work.

The most interesting section of the book I found, was the 'Fixtures & Fittings' section. How else do we get to see an absolutely pristine crankshaft of a Maybach HL230 engine? Or the rocker cover? Or how about a set of brand new suspension dampers? There are fire extinguishers, headlights, water pumps, carburettors, and loads of other fittings that you just can't see in this sort of extreme close-up anywhere else. Again, each of the photographs is well-captioned to explain what we're looking at, since most of us aren't Panther experts, and some of these photographs would give even them a run for their money!

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Conclusion

This book is truly a visual feast of photographs that quite literally, you will not see anywhere else. Good sharp photographs, excellently captioned, interesting facts such as the engine valve replacements costing £40,000.............it's a must-have for every German Armour fan!

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