Ten seems too generous, especially if you're limiting to close-topped tanks vs SPGs, etc.

1 - T-34/76. Won World War II.

2 - Panzer III (Ausf.E or similar Blitz-to-Barbarossa period). Started WWII.

3 - Tiger I

4 - King Tiger. Ultimate expression of German armor.

5 - IS-2

6 - M4A1 Sherman 75mm

7 - M4A3 Sherman 76mm (take it a step further with the E2 Jumbo or HVSS E8...)

8 - Sherman Firefly Mk.Ic or Vc

9 - Churchill

10 - Panzer IV Ausf. F2 through Ausf.J

1. Panther

2. King Tiger

3. Hunting Tiger

4. Tiger I

5. T-34 (not much into Russian stuff)

6. Jagdpanther

7. Any US Sherman variant

8. Brit. Valentine

9. Brit. Firefly

10. Panz. MKIII's

Also like the M18 Hellcat but its open top.

1. Mk IV

2. Mk III

3. Panther

4. Tiger

5. Sherman

6. Churchill

7. T-34

8. JS II

9. Pershing

10. Cromwell

USA: Stuart, Sherman, Pershing

USSR: KV-1, T-34, IS-2

Britain: Matilda, Crusader, Cromwell, Churchill

Germany: Pz III, Pz IV, Panther, Tiger I

Italy: M-13/40, Semovente

Japan: Chi-ha Type 97

Sorry, I can't count to 10.

Come on guys! Tigerman is the only one to name the Stuart?

And no love for the Lee/Grant?

1.  Sherman
2. Tiger
3. Panther
4. Panzer IV
5. T-34
6. Churchill
7. Valentine
8. IS-2
9. King Tiger
10. Pershing

Gamera

Come on guys! Tigerman is the only one to name the Stuart?

And no love for the Lee/Grant?

Only one to name the KV-1, which led to the IS-2 and future Soviet vehicles.

Guys- I am very disappointed with you especially Manny because he designed it...  no StuG?!?!  You got to be kidding me...

Here's my list:

1. Pz I

2. Pz II

3. Pz III

4. StuG III  

5.  Pz IV

6. StuG IV

7. Jadg IV

8. Tiger

9. King Tiger

10.  Sherman

Hell yeah, only one is American... others don't have a place in my heart. 

Ah what the heck:

1). M4 Sherman (varoius models)

2). M3/M5 Staurt

3). Lee/Grant

4). T34 (76 and 85)

5). JS/IS-II

6). Churchill

7). Panzer III

8). Panzer IV

9). Panther

10). Tiger I

Ok maybe trade out the Lee/Grant for British cruiser series including the Cromwell- I couldn't settle on one vehicle though.

Or maybe lose the Lee/Grant for the Japanese Type 97.

And maybe trade out the JS/IS-II for the KV series.

Ten choices are too small Manny!

Manstein's revenge

must be closed-top tanks... 

So, it is not really for 'serious WW2 armor collectors'. Instead it is for serious tank builders...

The inclusion of "serious" is definitely open for debate...as opposed to say a "basic" list that covers the war's familiars...so in that vein, I would say the following would be "must haves" for a "serious" collector that you wouldn't already find in a "casual" collector's list .

In no particular order and fulfilling Manny's requirements:

1. StuG III short barrel (Ausf A-E)

2.  KV-1

3. Churchill

4. Pz I-A

5. Pz II (A-B-C)

6. Pz III (E-G)

7. Pz IV (B-E)

8. Panther D

9. StuG IV

10. Jagdtiger

Rob Gronovius

1.  Sherman
2. Tiger
3. Panther
4. Panzer IV
5. T-34
6. Churchill
7. Valentine
8. IS-2
9. King Tiger
10. Pershing

1: Jeb Stuarts' M3 Haunted Tank

2: Oddballs' Sherman

3 : The Tiger guarding the Gold in Clairmon,  " you mean Clairmont, Booker!"

4: the T 34 that rammed the Tiger I at Kursk

5: The M47 King Tigers from Battle of the Bulge movie

6: the PzIII with British markings one sees in every documentary about the North African battles.

7:  Telly Salvalis'  M24 Chaffee from Battle of the Bulge movie

8: Any of the Crusaders in North Africa documentaries

9: British Fireflys from Bridge Too Far

And number TEN :  The poor French Hotchkiss getting blown up in the various documentaries about WWII.  I mean I see this poor little thing on the History Channel adds for WWII in color getting sent to Valhalla almost every day.  It needs some recognition for crying out loud.

1. Staghound

2. Greyhound

3. SDKfz 222

4. Humber

I'll get back to you on 5 through 10...

OK....now armor is nice but remember artillery inflicted more causalities than any other weapon, soooooo

1. M7 105mm HMC Priest

2. M2A1 105mm Howitzer

3. German 88 (for you Bill & Manny)

4. M8 75mm HMC

5. M4 105mm HMC

6. M1A1 75mmPack howitzer

7. M59 155mm gun Long Tom

8. M12 155mm HMC

9. M4 Screaming Mimi

10. M5 3 inch gun

Rounds Complete!!

So....  we see Tigers (I and II), T-34, Pz I, II, III, IV, Shermans, couple Brit things, little nod toward those French...  hey, even a Stuart got in, as did at least a Type 97....  And a grand list of arty...  Yay!  So, is this (tanks) a list of the *important * in the history of tank warfare and tank development, or fondly in the emotions of us modelers?  I noticed that the ugliest tanks on the planet, the KV-1 and -2, didn't apparently make it, nor did any of that Italian stuff... OK, maybe not too seminal in tank development nor really in tank warfare, so...

IF we are invoking important...  I'd vote for the Renault FT-17 - first real turreted tank, the Pz. IA - feeble, tiny, nearly harmless as a combat vehicle, but probably more responsible for the development of tank doctrine than any other single machine I know of, the Czech / German Pz.. 38 - the "quintessential" basic "modern tank" and among the most versatile chassis ever built, the Christie Tank - introducing us to that wonderful suspension system later so well developed in the T-34, the T-34 - embodiment of rough, simple, efficient, and the first use of sloped armor design (oh, and the basis for a different theory of tank warfare based on mass charges by overwhelming numbers of machines), the Panther - the over-engineered but grandly effective emulation of the T-34 and the scion of modern MBT, and the Sherman - proof that we, too, are not afraid to flex our industrial might and seek victory thru numbers.  I know. It's not 10.  I can't get there!

Voting my emotions and interest:  It's Pz. IA, IB, 38(t), Mk.VI Brit, Renault R-35, Hotchkiss 38/39, some small Sov amphibious "tank", the Hetzer, maybe a couple of small Japanese things, the StuG III... that's around 10, I think!   Some may have noticed that all of these are pretty small as "tanks" go... I LIKE small - limited shelf-space and all that!  Oh, and hey! I LOVE those SdKfz 221/222/223 CARS - they are cool and they fit on shelves, too!

Bob

Manstein's revenge

 

Rob Gronovius:

 

1.  Sherman
2. Tiger
3. Panther
4. Panzer IV
5. T-34
6. Churchill
7. Valentine
8. IS-2
9. King Tiger
10. Pershing

 

Interesting:  Valentine...

 

It was Britain's most mass-produced tank during the second world war.

1. 1969 Dodge Charger

2. 1971 Plymouth Road Runner

3. 1970 AMX Javel....huh?.......

.WHAAA..?!?!

Oh.....wrong forum....

Man, I've gotta get back to some Armor once I finish this Mustang....

the doog

Man, I've gotta get back to some Armor once I finish this Mustang....

Doog

"P-51" or "1967"...

Panther (late) 1/16 Tamiya R/C??

Tiger I (early)

Tiger I (late)

German APC

US Half Track

Mk IV

German 88

Nebelwerfer

Sherman

T-34

My apologies, as a few are not "closed top".

1. T-34 - the tank that won the war in the East, and set the pattern for all future tank designs

2. M4- the other tank that won the war and used by all Allied armies after it came into production-often maligned, it was more successful than many realize or admit against its foes.

3. Panzer IV- workhorse tank of the Wehrmacht ground forces all through the war.

4. Churchill- the longest serving and arguable most successful/versatile of the English designed/built tanks

5. Panther- the first MBT, combining the aspects of medium and heavy tanks in response to the T-34

6. M3 Lee/Grant- the first Western Allied tank that could stand up to the Panzers on anything approaching equal terms.

7. KV1- the first successful practical Heavy tank.

8. Tiger I- The stuff legends are made of: a place in AFV history all out of proportion to its numbers.

9. Panzer III- Early war champion: although often outgunned or armored by its opposition, its well thought out design and well trained crews were hard to beat until mid war.

10. Matilda- Although lacking in offensive punch, this was arguably the most successful British tank before the Churchill

1.)  IS-2

2.)  ISU-152

3.)  SU-100

4.)  SU-85

5.) T-34

6.) KV-1

7.) JagdTiger

8.) Sherman Firefly

9.) Sherman M4A1

10.) JagdPanther

Dasveed Anja, Comrades!!!!!!!!

1.  T34/85  Meaner looking than the 76.

2.  Valentine  Can be made in the markings of three different armies.  UK, German, Soviet.

3.  Firefly, Mk Ic Hybrid.

4.  Any US Sherman  Heck, you could do a top 10 list of just Shermans!

5.  Early Pz III  Mainstay of the Blitzkrieg.

6.. Early Pz IV  Heavy hitter of the Blitzkrieg.

7.  Late Pz III  Like the Bf 109, the Germans attempt to keep an obsolete design relevant.

8.  Late Pz IV   Backbone of the PanzerWaffe.

9.  Tiger 1  Iconoclast AFV.

10  King Tiger/Pershing/IS III  The ultimate expression of WWII armor development, it's a Pick 'em.

Ooooh - I like posts like this:

• Panzer I Ausf A
• Panzer III (your favourite variants)
• Panzer IV (your favourite variants)
• Tiger I (Initial, Mid and late)
• Sherman IC/VC Hybrid Firefly
• Panther Ausf G
• KV-1 as it provided the base for all things Russian to come!
• Stug III (Ausf A through G)
• British Comet
• Marder III Ausf M

These are what I've built or will be building this year! My all time faves!

After the Tiger I (initial) is complete I'll have the Bronco Comet and Dragon Sherman Hybrid IC Firefly! Brit builds here we come

Perhaps we could list our must have top ten kits of ALL TIME in another thread now?

All the best,

Ben

redleg12

OK....now armor is nice but remember artillery inflicted more causalities than any other weapon, soooooo

10. M5 3 inch gun

Rounds Complete!!

Hey, McNair's Folly, never thought I'd see that mentioned as a must have.

In no particular order

1. Tiger

2. Panther

3. Pz IV variants

4. Pz III variants

5. KV variants

6. T34's

7. SU 100

8. sherman

9. Churchill

10. Crusader

One of thise must haves is the T34.  If you were to just get one, what would you select?  I'm leaning towards the DML 6424

ps1scw

One of thise must haves is the T34.  If you were to just get one, what would you select?  I'm leaning towards the DML 6424

I'm building the Dragon T-34/85 Mod. '44. Not sure the exact kit #, but it's this one:

I also have a Dragon T-34/76 Mod. '41 Cast Turret in the stash.

The /85 is overall a solid kit, but if I were intent on getting a definitive T-34 and only one, I'd very, very strongly consider the AFV Club T-34 series. Full interiors, articulating suspensions with actual springs, etc. I have my issues with AFV Club based on their Achilles kit, but that T-34 of theirs looks nice indeed.

ps1scw

One of thise must haves is the T34.  If you were to just get one, what would you select?  I'm leaning towards the DML 6424

As a friend of mine likes to say "Go Big Or Go Home."

Trumpeter 1/16 T-34/76 or T34/85

Scott