This the first time I have seen a Panther with out its outer road wheels. I have seen some Tiger 1’s with the first outer road wheel off due to mud clogging.
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Most likely stripped for spares. The tank is burned out and the torsion bars have collapsed. Not much else to do but cannibalize for parts. Odd that the hull MG is still present, although it is probably thoroughly cooked too.
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If that pic was taken post-war, it’s even possible that the wheels were taken by civilian scrappers.
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Possibly by the Russians. It didn’t take much work to fit Panther concave road wheels to a T-34, and it became quite common later in the war.
Regards,
M
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Also farmers hauling them off to use as cart wheels. When things are in short supply you take what you can get.
Regards,Bob
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The road wheels were often stolen from knocked out Panthers and re-purposed on T34 tanks.
gary