Flakpanzer Restoration Project

06/02/2026

Here we are restoring our very early style Hetzer muffler. A member of the team who began a restoration on our Hetzer in the late 1990s took some parts home to fix. This gentleman reached to us to let us know he still had the muffler and some hinges for the Hetzer. I wish he had come forward earlier before I made hinges to replace the missing ones!!! So we have tackled the restoration of the Hetzer muffler!!!

05/11/2026

05/01/2026

Here I am using our Aquablast to sandblast the radio cover.

05/01/2026

The finished product!!!

05/01/2026

Here is a radio cover we purchased in Latvia for our Wirbelwind. Note it’s twisted and rusted condition when we received it.

03/01/2026

For those that have followed us for awhile you will remember the love graffiti of the German driver to his love Hanni. Well with plans to sandblast the hull we need to ensure this historic love note is preserved.

01/19/2026

Here we continue the restoration of the weather strip metal ledges at the rear of the upper hull where it meets the engine deck of our Wirbelwind. Unlike the first section where one of the metal bars needed replacing the 3 hole center section and the 7 hole left section of the weatherstrip ledge we’re able to be restored.

12/22/2025

At the rear of the upper hull where it meets the engine deck is a ledge in sections with weatherstrip. Needless to say corrosion has eaten into the various layers of metal. So we decided to remove these prior to sandblasting so we could get at all the rust. This post covers the removal and repair of the right side section.

12/09/2025

I should have kept my shoulder out of the video!!! But here we are welding the new spare barrel box mounts for the Wirbelwind.

12/09/2025

The first picture shows one of the remaining spare barrel box supports on our Wirbelwind. Out of four mounts only two remain and even one of those is bent backwards. So we needed to manufacture two more for the right side.