COBI Leopard 1 A2 A1 Set 2634

COBI's Leopard 1 A2 A1 is a 1:35 model of the tank on display at the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster, built from 1,000 blocks in cooperation with the museum. It carries the 105 mm gun, side skirts, smoke dischargers and the searchlight above the gun, in the plain yellow-olive of the 1970s Bundeswehr, with printed markings and a museum nameplate.

A tank that was meant to be French as well

The Leopard began as a joint European project. In the late 1950s West Germany and France agreed to develop a common standard tank, and Italy later joined. Several German teams built prototypes for the German side of the competition, and the design from Porsche's team was chosen.

The partnership did not survive the development. The two countries' requirements drifted apart, France went its own way with what became the AMX-30, and Germany put the Porsche design into production at Krauss-Maffei from 1965 as the Leopard. The tank that was supposed to equip two armies became West Germany's own — and then, through exports, one of the most widely used tanks in NATO.

In the COBI range

The Leopard 2A4 (2618) and Leopard 2A5 TVM (2620) are its successors, also made with the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster. Set 3105 is the Leopard 1 in the small 1:72 scale.

Specifications

Pieces: 1,000 · Scale: 1:35 · Made with the Deutsches Panzermuseum Munster