A discussion area for the AKF 2cm, a limited-production reconnaissance variant of the Pz38(t) family, available in the German Beginner’s Pack. No surviving examples of the vehicle exist, and only very limited primary source information is available.
Fig.1 An AKF 2cm in operational condition, note the additional track armour on the complete upper superstructure.
The Aufklärungspanzer 38(t) mit 2cm KwK 38 (Sd.Kfz.140/1) or AKF 2cm was a conversion of the Panzerkampfwagen 38(t) to the reconnaissance role, primarily by adding a superstructure capable of housing the Hangalafette 38 (HL38) open-topped 20 mm turret.
Here’s another picture of a formerly operational AKF 2cm, also displaying additional armour on the upper right superstructure. This appears to be a field modification as the mounting differs from the original spare track mountings on the upper left superstructure and lower glacis.
Yeah I hope the automotive element gets looked at, in F4 it will accelerate and top out fine at 31 km/h but if you shift up to F5 you will actually lose speed unless you’re on a perfect flat or a downhill slope.
If you check the datamine then you can see that both F3 and F5 ratios do not match the Pz38t Ausf.F (which are correct according to the 1942 user handbook), and I haven’t heard of any drivetrain changes beyond uprating the engine. While these datamine figures have been included in the report, they have not been used as the basis so I hope it won’t break the rules.
On the subject of the upper right superstructure track armour, this area can clearly be identified as a vulnerability due to the incomplete coverage of the production spare track across the superstructure’s 15 mm RHA protection. The gunner is directly behind this area and it’s likely that the crews were well aware of the lack of protection for this crewmember, leading to the field modifications shown above. Protection analysis vs 29 mm penetration (20 mm API-T @ 300 m).
