Tamiya Flakpanzer Gepard Project

Tamiya had started their line of 1/16th scale RC tanks in 1974 with the M4 Sherman.  The second model was the Leopard A4 in 1977 and then the Flakpanzer Gepard in 1978.  Given that the Gepard first went into service in 1976, it was quite a new vehicle at the time the model was made.  At first it made sense to me that Tamiya would make this model immediately following the Leopard A4.  I figured they would just take the same chassis and hull and put a new turret on it making it very easy to develop.  I was wrong about that.  The Gepard is actually slightly longer than the Leopard due to some additional space between the third and fourth road wheels as well having a longer rear engine deck to make room for 6 additional 24V batteries.  So although it shares features and a superficial resemblance to the Leopard model, a great many of the parts are new including the entire hull section.  Tamiya also made a lot of changes to the electrical system in the one year between the Leopard and the Gepard.  The Leopard used only 2 channels with no speed controller, so on/off were the only speeds.  The Gepard added a continuous mechanical speed controller while maintaining the same gearbox driven by a single 540 motor with steering controlled by dual clutches.  The Gepard also added a 3rd channel which simultaneously controlled turret traverse, gun elevation (through a cam system), and search radar rotation.  All of these tertiary functions were powered by a separate 3V battery pack.  With the 6V lead-acid pack for the motor and the 4.8V pack for the radio system, that makes 3 independent power systems used in the original model.

The Gepard continued to be manufactured by Tamiya for several years and some changes were made during that time.  My copy has a 1983 copyright mark on the instructions.  During that time, the 6V lead-acid battery was replaced with a standard 7.2V NiCd stick pack.  Additionally, the proportional MSC was replaced with a simpler discrete 3-speed MSC for some reason.  I made some additional changes to my build such as replacing the MSC with a modern ESC for full proportional control which also eliminated the need for a separate battery pack for the radio system.  I split the turret functions into 2 channels.  The 3V battery pack still powers the search radar through a mechanical switch.  I added an additional ESC for proportional control of the turret traverse and gun elevation.  I ended up with quite the mess of wires.

The single motor and clutch steering makes for less finesse in driving that the more modern DMD systems in later tanks, but it is still very capable and a joy to drive.  Because of the age and value, I am taking it pretty easy on this model though.

©2021 Eric Albrecht