This has got to be the best craigslist post ever, sadly it’s already been flagged for removal, but it’s just so awesome we had to feature it. There was only one picture in the ad, but what more do you need to know about it? It’s been sitting in his yard for a long time (twenty five years). It’s too big and heavy for the owner to move, he has not been able to get inside it, and he wants it gone. “Bring a flatbed” is an understatement. We wouldn’t be surprised if it’s still available, if the ad was legitimate in the first place. Perhaps one of you recognize it and know the owner? So if you are a military buff and anywhere near Oregon City, Oregon, this tank could be for you!
Maybe buy it, haul it out and give it to a museum to restore? Any Barn Finds readers know enough about tanks to say what this is? It has to be a light duty tank. Owner thinks it is from WWII, but it does not look to me like a Sherman. That’s the extent of my tank knowledge. And what is going to happen to the rest of that interesting pile of junk behind it and the Mercedes in front of it?
Everything in the photograph is of German manufacture. Most likely this photograph was taken in Germany, Austria, or nearby.
If I could afford it I would rebuild it and park it in my front yard as an honor to all Veterans.
Its a German tiger tank
no this is a panther tank it is very rare over 1mil fully restored
A quick Google image search (fun to try sometimes) shows it to be the “Littlefield” Panther tank: http://www.stugiii.com/littlefieldpanther.html
This Panther was recovered in Poland in 1991 from a small river called Czarna Nida. After recovery it was sold to private German collector. The German collector resold Panther to original Polish owners, who sold it to Littlefield collection.
The image shown would have been at the interim owner, between ownerships by the Polish owners.
Sure. Ruin all the fun. My first thought was with all the other stuff stacked up there is no way this wasn’t a collector of some sort.
It is a German Panzer Panther, which is a WWII tank.. Just searching the image in images.google.com, the image pops up and several links pop up as well.. The picture was taken in the 1960s, http://worldwartwo.filminspector.com/2014/08/panther-tanks-best-tanks-of-its-time.html and scroll down to where the image is.
Uh, the car shown in the image is an ’81 or thereabouts, so that photo is much newer than the 1960s :)
@ MacVaugh
Check your sources: the Mercedes is as new as 1976, but because of the front door vent window more likely a 1973 or older car.
Calculate from there if you want……….
I wish this was real. Oregon City isn’t far away. I want a tank!!!!
Right? Just down 205 South a bit.
Another “tank find”……..what is this?? Come on, get real! WHY are you guys featuring TANKS (second one so far)??…….I thought you guys were about automobiles and motorcycles!?!
JamestownMike, sorry that you don’t like seeing tanks here, but we love all kinds of vehicles. It doesn’t have to be a car or a motorcycle to be interesting. And just wait another hour and there will be a new car posted for you to enjoy! That’s why we’ve started featuring more finds everyday, so if you don’t like one, there will surely be something coming up that you will enjoy!
Also, because come on, it’s a tank.
Who don’t want a tank? I mean, besides that guy. :P
What’s great is even though it’s fake, the fake ad lists its location of the town I just moved out of after more than a decade of living there. It would honestly not surprise me if there WAS a tank hiding out there for so long.
The local wrecking yard owner once drug two Stutz Package Car’s out of a barn for free. They were the last ditch effort by stutz to stay in business by building little delivery trucks. VERY rare. They got resold and last I’d seen someone had done a bit of work but gave up and listed them on craigslist. Crazy stuff is out there for sure!
Tanks for trying to clear that up.
Yet another victim whom receives something for free must complain about it. The new American way. You are always welcome to start your own non tank barn find page, nothing stopping you.
Thanks for posting this, I’m not a tank fan but it was interesting for sure.
Anything interesting with a motor is good with me.
Gotta love it. My dream for dealing with heavy traffic in CA.
I love the tank finds. A brief departure from reality is always welcome. Keep up the good work!
When I lived out on the farm I always wanted a tank for a yard ornament and now with the terror threat I wish I still lived there and I would definitely be looking for one that is fully operational just to prove to them certain Americans will not give in or up easily.
If you really like tanks there is a good tank museum in Danville va. You can sign up as a volunteer and work at the museum as well as work on the tanks
At least once a year they have demonstration runs where they run over cars and things like that. Volunteers can frequently get ride along during these demos.
Also if I were really hunting a tank these people could point you in the right direction
Kevin Harper
BIF motors
Be great for car shows. Line it up on the end, facing the sides of the cars and fire it up. Everyone would think you were going to squash the competition. A sign hanging from the side saying you have 5 minutes to leave would be the cherry on the top.
Sorry guys, I was taken in by this great pic and could not resist posting it to Barn Finds. So now my question is, what motivates someone in Oregon City to post this picture and ad in the first place? What does he/she get out of it? Maybe good for April Fools but why now?
David
That looks like a Russian T-34 tank of the type used in WW2. It may have been purchased from a Soviet block country after the fall of the Soviet Union. How it got to Oregon must be an interesting story.
Dan unfortunately not its definately a Panther tank as the others above have mentioned.
Although they look nothing alike believe it or not you wont believe how close you were from the point that the Germans looked at the Russian T-34 and how good an allrounder it was and created the Panther as a direct competitor..without being an actual copy. By coincidence the T-34 was part of the developement line of the last tank featured the T-55
The T-34 did most things well..The panther too was to emulate this..fast, good gun, decent armour, streamlined design ie low silouette for such a large Tank.
Infact would say the next most known German Tank after the Tiger. i believe a better Tank because it was a good allrounder.
It doesn’t look a T-34. Different profiles for track and turrent. T-34 turrent sits further towards the front of track.
Anyone remember when that nutty dude stole the tank here in San Diego?, and was running over cars then down the freeway?
That……….was the most amazing thing I’ve ever seen.
It wasn’t to good for him……..The cops popped a couple in his noggin’
Tank finds……..holy grail
Yep Rancho I do remember seeing that on the evening news. These people are out there and some even vote.
There has been a number of tanks, half tracks, halftrack looking motorcycles, “Kettenrads” come up for sale in the past couple months. Vehicles from the movie “Fury” were listed for sale too.
I love it, reminds of my days at Ft. Knox and all the Armor,… had my fun with the M-48 Tanks, Sheridans and APC M-113 & M-114 back in the day. This fun all carried over to a year of Tanks and my driving a 14 ton APC thru the Jungles of South VN. Gotta love the Armored Cav!
Now this was a great find, and who in today’s BF world would not want a 40+ ton tank sitting on their front lawn!!
Gary– any chance you were with 11th Armored Cavalry Regiment aka Blackhorse? Colonel Patton and his Rolling Thunder parade.. stevee, 37th Med 11th ACR
Stevee, Not with 11th ACR, served with 3/5 Cav 9th Inf. Div. “Blackknights” referred to as the Bastard Cav. 69-70 Welcome Home Bro!
Gary, I must know you? I also was at FT Knox and was with 3/5 in Nam 69-70 Drove the APC all in I corp A Trp 2nd Plt. 26delta my handle. If you ain’t Cav you Ain’t S—
I would be a player for this Tank if I could legally get it here to CA, I would prefer a M113 but open as I have 5 acres of prime rolling land to drive it on. Gotta love a tank or APC,
Welcome home, brother!
Gary I loved it too but didn’t get toVN. Was on 48A5 all 60 series to include A2 and A3 and the XM1
Al I’ve been on the same. 48A5 at Hunter liggett, 60A2 in Europe, rest of the 60 series all over. XM1 while at Knox working on the Driver simulator for the M1. Same thing with VN orders canceled and got sent to Key Largo instead.
I started on M48A5, went to M60A3, M1, M1(IP), M1A1, and then M551A1. We retired the Sheridan as a combat vehicle at Fort Bragg in 1997.
I live near OC, and there is an active group of people who collect military vehicles including tanks in the metro area including a club. I know of 2 tanks nearby. Wife wants one to park in the front yard but even a scrap metal tank is prohibitively expensive.
Now, this is just speculation, But likely what happened is someone MIGHT be spoofing a local guy who recently died in a tank accident. He owned a tow truck company and enjoyed displaying and collecting militaria. While firing the cannon on one of his tanks while operating at a range up in Idaho there was a mishap and he and another person died. If in fact that ad was in reference to that person, it was in very bad taste and likely why it was flagged. The guy who died owns property in Oregon city.
Now, in other news, IF you enjoy legally and safely firing guns, and military equipment, the Albany Oregon gun club each year has a machine gun festival and often times military equipment including a tank show up. All the weapons can be fired and all you have to do is make a donation and pay for ammo which can add up, but its heck of a lot of entertainment. If this interests you theres some really good videos on Youtube, and the best ones are done by Slamfire productions
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JP35pUCKUJc
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tx91zL3Qywc
“You hear that?? Thats the sound of a LOT of people having a LOT of fun!” Theres a tank, and 50 cal machine guns.
Peace thru superior firepower.
+1
Definitely a WWII german panzer tank, probably a Panzer V “Panther” tank. I found this picture on wikipedia, and the profile is very close, right down to the small dip in the armor over the treads about 3/4 of the way back in both pictures.
https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-244-2321-34,_Ostfront-S%C3%BCd,_Panzer_V_(Panther).jpg#/media/File:Bundesarchiv_Bild_101I-244-2321-34,_Ostfront-S%C3%BCd,_Panzer_V_(Panther).jpg
Heres the pic
Having lived in the vicinity of Oregon City for nearly 30 years it might very well be that location. Perhaps someone with more time than me could do a ‘Google Earth’ scan and see if it shows up – my son is visible when one ‘Google Earths’ his neighborhood and my Cobra can be seen in a street view in Las Cruces New Mexico (hint – it’s the blue RHD little roadster).
Its definately a Panzer V, or Panther. Looks like a version G (Ausf G) with the redesigned commanders cupola and cutaway front track guard. If you were going to move it you would need a low-loader capable of almost 50 tonnes! Best tank of the war!!
It’s funny, but if you watch the show strange inheratance on the Fox News Chanel. They had a episode about a collector of tanks who restored that tank with that picture. It was found in a lake bed and retrieved and sat in the yard before restored. Very rare and valuable tank.
Not sure which Panther this is, but it certainly does not look like Jaques Littlefield’s Panther. That one was missing a significant portion of its turret which Mr. Littlefield had fabricated. The turret here is substantially intact.
Recent (last few months) news item on a Northern German man who had one of these in his basement. There was some question as to whether it had been properly de-militarized and it was confiscated by the German government.
There are tanks out there to be had IF you have lots and lots of $$$. Here’s one that I just finished. It will soon be licensed for the road. As they say….what the heck are you going to do with a tank? And the answer is ( all at once ) anything I want!!!
Sorry, not sure the picture came through the first time.
Beautiful and if I was British I’d say a Honey of a tank.
But Stuarts were the first of the lend lease delivered here to Australia.
This one’s a real ripper and cute as a button. Hee hee.
Hi Lee love your M5 Stuart…looks great. As i mentioned in my other posting on your other photo we got Stuarts as lend lease to Australia but not these later M5 Stuarts..we received the M3 but they did not handle jungle warfare so well though they did prove themselves. In fact one of our Stuarts from one of our battles is in Texas on display I have read [only 3 incomplete tanks I believe exist from this battle..]. They have a soft spot in Aussie enthusiasts hearts
Just imagine how many armored vehicles fell through the ice in Eastern Europe during WW2. Modern technology is helping locate these vehicles, many fully intact and armed. Most of the finds are coming out of Russian swamps, where it seems the mud has preserved these machines very well.
Forget the flatbed. I’d drive it back to Chicago. I90 is beautiful this time of year.
Sure looks like a German Panzer . This would be a rare find . I would love to know why the owner can’t get in it and how it got here in the states . This is a piece of WW2 history that needs to be restored
Who doesn’t want a Tiger 2 for a recreational vehicle ?! Park it next to your 356 & you got continuity !
Great thread of thoughts on this and any tank in our neighborhood.
This could be the best series of comments ever on this site…..
Me thinks,
Many TTanks!!
Peter
Every time I see one of these I think of Donald Sutherland in Kelly’s Heroes. Oddball trading his share of the gold for the German Tiger.
It’s a WW2 era German Panther tank.
It’d be nice to have the owners contact information.