If someone, by chance, has seen the Walker Bulldog immortalized in plastic they are usually unimpressed by pictures on the internet. Again, the tank was forgotten by the military rather quickly. Hell, the tank never saw combat with the US Army, so why the would anyone care about buying it in 1:18? The tank is even small to boot. Put to shame by its more powerful, massive, and battle tested cousin, the M48 Patton Main Battle Tank.

Well kids, I’m here to tell you’ve missed the boat entirely. If you don’t own this piece, I do pity you. You have missed out on a true 1:18 scale treasure. Forget its history, forget that in real life it was troublesome, this tank is the reason why we are all collecting 1:18 scale toys.

I discovered this tank when I was searching for some alternative pieces of armor for my Cobra army (Yes, that is GI Joe). Without getting into too much detail, I scoured the existing 1:18 scale pieces for anything that might make sense in a modern combat arena. I wanted to give Cobra some real firepower. I found the M48 Patton and The M41 Walker Bulldog. After educating myself on the history of the tank and discovering the Bulldog was still in service today, used to great effect in the Republic of China Army, I knew I had to get a few of these.

I expected the tank to be nice and unique, but I didn’t expect to fall in love.

(Excerpt from Wikipedia)

The M41 Walker Bulldog was an American light tank developed to replace the M24 Chaffee. It was named for General Walton H. Walker who died in a jeep accident in Korea. On 07 November 1950, the US Ordnance Committee Minutes (OCM) issued item #33476, redesignating the heavy, medium, and light tank classifications to classifications according to armament; the 120mm (heavy) Gun Tanks, 90mm (medium) Gun Tanks, and the 76mm (light) Gun tanks.

The M41 was a very agile tank that was designed to be air-transportable and provide air dropped infantry with a support vehicle. When the design was finalized the goal of being air transportable by current 1950′s aircraft was impossible.

Along with not having met its original design goal, the Bulldog was plagued with problems since it’s entrance into the United States Army such as excessive engine noise and it’s uncanny ability to consume gasoline. These problems, along with a cramped interior made it unpopular in the Army and a replacement was quickly sought (The M551 Sheridan Light Tank eventually replaced the Walker Bulldog). Due to the problems, the M41 Walker Bulldog Light Tank never saw real combat with the US Army.

Several tanks were given to the Republic of Vietnam, but due to its light gun the tank was relegated to internal defense duties. When it did see combat however, the incredibly accurate and reliable 76mm gun and the tanks overall agility proved to be quite effective against the communist T-55 tank. The tank earned a great reputation amongst the ARVN and 200 units were in service at the end of 1973.

Although the Walker Bulldog is a footnote in American military history, the tank was exported heavily to foreign countries where it still serves today in part to numerous engine and technology upgrades that have made this vehicle a force to be reckoned with.

The Republic of China Army (Taiwan) in particular has found the tank to be quite capable in an anti-amphibious role against the looming threat of invasion from The People’s Republic of China. The updated M41D Walker Bulldog has been updated with a new 76mm locally produced gun, a new 500 HP Detroit diesel engine, thermal targeting, digital ballistics computers, laser rangefinder, and reactive armor.

The Tiger tank is one of the, if not the, most recognizable German tanks from World War II. The Tiger may also be one of the most coveted pieces of armor by 1:18 World War II collectors aside from the extremely hard to find Panzer IV. But unlike the Panzer IV, 21st Century didn’t hold anything back on the Tiger. This is one of the best pieces of armor created by any company, from any era, to date.

(Excerpt from Wikipedia)

The Tiger I was a German heavy tank used in World War II, produced from late 1942 as an answer to the challenge of facing the unexpectedly formidable Soviet armor encountered in the initial months of Operation Barbarossa. The Tiger I design gave the Wehrmacht its first main battle tank that was capable of using its most formidable piece of ordnance, the 88 mm gun, which had previously showed its convincing effectiveness against both aircraft and other tanks.

The tank was given its nickname Tiger by designer Ferdinand Porsche, and the Roman numeral was added after the later Tiger II entered production. The initial official German designation was Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausführung H (‘Panzer VI version H’, abbreviated PzKpfw VI Ausf. H), but the tank was redesignated as PzKpfw VI Ausf. E in March 1943. The tank also had the ordnance inventory designation SdKfz 181.

The Eastern Front – Red 326

This particular version of the 21st Century Toys Tiger I Tank is from the sPzAbt. 502, as indicated by the mammoth marking on the tank’s forward hull. The sPzAbt. 502 saw all of its action on the Eastern Front between May 1942 and May 1945. The battalion did not see much success at any point during the war and struggled for most of its existence. The 502nd were the first panzer company to receive the Tiger Tank as it was designed to counter the heavy Russian armor. A hasty deployment, mechanical problems, and poor terrain conditions contributed to the overall failure of the Tiger Tank in this theater of operations.