After the German Panzer III restored by our team was transferred to the Museum of the History of the Great Patriotic War, the idea arose of building a Panzer III replica for use in historical reenactments at Stalin Line.
By that time, several similar replicas had already been built in the post-Soviet countries using Soviet BMPs as a basis. Stalin Line followed the same approach, selecting a PRP-3 mobile reconnaissance post, itself based on the BMP-1, for conversion.
Work began on 15 June 2014. The turret was removed from the Soviet vehicle and the upper section of its hull was cut away. The engine and gearbox proved unserviceable and had to be replaced with new ones. Twenty days later, the green vehicle had acquired a grey superstructure replicating the German hull, together with new mechanical components. A further three weeks were spent building a German-style turret and gun from scratch. The experience gained while restoring the previous, genuine Panzer III proved particularly valuable here. However, as the replica’s gun had to be capable of firing, it was based on the BMP-1’s 73 mm gun. As a result, the replica’s gun differs slightly in appearance from that of the original tank.
Another month was spent refining the replica’s appearance to make it as close as possible to that of a Panzer III, and on 27 August the vehicle joined Stalin Line’s collection of operational military vehicles. In total, it took around two and a half months to build. Today, as we look proudly at our replica, it is hard not to marvel at just how unconvincing the German tanks built for Soviet films once were.
The photo report below chronicles the construction of our replica and compares it with a genuine Panzer III and another replica used in the films “The Dnieper Line” and “Brest Fortress”. The gallery also includes photographs of some of the most memorable episodes featuring the replica in reenactments at Stalin Line.
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