Review of COBI Set 2573 - Sd.Kfz. 173 JAGDPANTHER

When I saw the announcement for this set in a fan group, I immediately knew it would end up in my hands. It reached me recently, so I decided to share a build report and my final rating :) First, a bit of history, and then I will show the next stages of building the set.

History

Sd.Kfz. 173 JAGDPANTHER was a German tank destroyer from World War II. It was based on the PANTHER tank chassis and armed with a powerful 8.8 cm Pak 43/3 L/71 gun. It served from 1944 to 1945, and 413 units were produced. It was considered one of the best tank destroyers of World War II. Interestingly, after the war an additional dozen of these machines were built under British supervision, and those examples were sent to Great Britain for testing.

Stage one

Inside the box there are bags of bricks divided into 3 larger bags. There is also an instruction booklet and a certificate with the COBI CEO’s signature. That last thing appears only in the limited edition.

At the beginning of the build, not much interesting happens, but one thing surprised me. At one point the body of the tank starts forming and it looks like there will be a lot of space inside. A moment later, however, it turns out that it gets built over! So there is a lot of empty space that maybe could have been used better.

Next up is the engine. It is very pleasant to assemble and looks decent, although it is far from the original 🙂 Below is a photo of COBI’s version and the original Maybach HL 230 from the TechnikMuseum in Germany.

Photo author: Bilderling

Soon after putting it in place, the first build phase is finished.

Stage two

Here things start getting much more interesting. We build the side walls of “Jadzia” and the whole thing starts taking shape. Besides that, we build the tracks. You might think it would be a tedious stage, but they are larger than in 1:35 scale models, so the work goes much faster and more pleasantly.

However, there was one drawback. Personally, I am used to LEGO bricks, where it is rare to have parts so similar to each other and yet as different as the ones in the photo below.

Having the wall above and the brick on the left, I realized I had made a mistake by not looking closely enough at the instructions 😒 Because of that I lost some time searching for the correct part, which is on the right, and at that moment it was already built somewhere else. Aside from that confusing note, the sides are pleasant to build, although also a bit demanding. This is how the model looks after finishing the second stage:

Stage three

At the start of this build phase, we throw ammunition inside so the tank crew has something to shoot with, and then move on to the rear hatch. It is a very nice element, although unstable in places. Big plus for the designer for making it possible to remove it completely and see the whole engine.

The rear cabin wall, however, is a little disappointing. The small door cannot be opened, although I think it could have been designed sensibly. I also cannot avoid mentioning the stupid shovel. I have not seen such a strange element in the brick world before. The spoon literally holds on by a word and a prayer and looks bad. COBI should throw this element out or change it.

Then we move on to the gun. Nothing particularly surprising happens during the build, but the final effect is impressive. The instruction booklet is arranged so that the order in which you build it gives quite a lot of pleasure; the cannon literally grows before your eyes 😃

Approaching the end, we get the cabin roof to assemble. Here, people with thick fingers may get annoyed while building the chain. Each part of it has to be connected by hand, and they are tiny! I think it could be a problem even for children. Unfortunately there is no good solution here. LEGO has ready-made chains, but a mold for casting such a special part costs a lot and is complicated. There is also a small problem with the hatches. There is a small gap between them and the roof, so they do not sit perfectly, which may bother perfectionists. Besides that, for the second time we get very similar parts, and once again I let myself get fooled 😩

In the end, the Jagdpanther looks like this: For comparison, I am also including the original tank from Panzermuseum Munster in Germany. Photo author: Darkone (talk · contribs)

Figures

Unfortunately we get only 3 minifigures, while historically the crew of this destroyer had 5 crew members. I think it would be a great move from COBI to include the correct number of figures, but not this time! 😭

Commander

This figure looks serious and decent. The “Schirmmütze” (field cap) has plenty of detail and resembles the real thing.

Radio operator

On the box he is presented as “tank crew”, but the headphones suggest his role in the destroyer. He holds “Schokolada” in his hand and has blushes on his face. Could he be embarrassed by a gift from a colleague? 😄 Originally this chocolate was called “Scho-Ka-Kola” and contained caffeine. The rights to use the name were probably not obtained. As a bit of trivia, during World War II Scho-Ka-Kola was known as “aviator chocolate” (German: Fliegerschokolade), because it was commonly supplied with food rations for Luftwaffe soldiers. It was meant to trigger or extend alertness, especially during night bombing raids. This chocolate was also issued to German tank crews and the Kriegsmarine. It is still produced today and you can buy it yourself 😉

Panzergrenadier

The last figure stands out from the others, and I think it is the best figure in the set. Historically, these soldiers were members of motorized or mechanized infantry who cooperated with tanks during World War II. Their task was to secure the area before and after tank attacks, as well as fight enemy infantry. Panzergrenadiers were well armed and equipped, often moving in half-track armored vehicles.

Summary

The set consists of 1076 elements and cost 349 PLN, which gives us a ratio of 0.32 PLN per brick, so quite decent. The Jagdpanther in 1:28 scale looks great on a shelf, but you will not drive it around much because the tracks jam. The interior itself is impressive, especially the engine, but the space in the main cabin is too small. The figures fit only lying down, and that is probably not how tank crews worked?
The extra camouflage and shields add charm and fit the machine’s function, but unfortunately they are available only in the limited edition of the set. The minifigures have detailed printing and the Panzergrenadier looks phenomenal. I also like touches such as the radio operator’s blushes and “Schokolada”.
The engine can be easily removed and placed on a stand, which is elegant and looks very good next to the destroyer. The barrel moves nicely from side to side and is easy to assemble. There is also a little toolbox, which is a nice addition, but it would be much better if we got a mechanic figure with it.

My rating for this set is:

4/5

Thanks for reading my first review!
If you have your own opinion about the set or the post, feel free to comment. You can do it anonymously without any registration or giving data. Unless you want to roast me for the material used as the photography background; then no 🙃 At the very end you will find a gallery with additional photos. There are also a few outdoor shots, although I admit they are not the best quality. I am a beginner photographer and the sharp shadows cast by the sun surprised me.

Regards and see you in the next post 😉 In the meantime, I invite you to my Instagram.

Gallery

Toolbox included in the set.

Jadzia’s engine visible after removing the hatch, along with the famous shovel that holds on by a word and a prayer.

The vehicle interior after removing the cabin roof. In the upper-left corner there is a printed brick showing a radio.

Author of the second photo: Jan Wellen
Schokolada from COBI and Scho-Ka-Kola from 1941.