Stripped & Scrapped - What Happened to WW2 German Armour

Ever wondered what happened to all those German tanks knocked out or abandoned on the battlefields of the Western Front, and why so few exist today, well here's the answer.
As mentioned in the film, these videos may also interest:
Vimoutiers Tiger: • The Tank That Time For...
British Panthers: • Cuckoo - The British P... or • "Deserter" - The Briti...
French Panthers: • French Army Panther Tanks
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Disclaimer: All opinions and comments expressed in the 'Comments' section do not reflect the opinions of Mark Felton Productions. All opinions and comments should contribute to the dialogue. Mark Felton Productions does not condone written attacks, insults, racism, sexism, extremism, violence or otherwise questionable comments or material in the 'Comments' section, and reserves the right to delete any comment violating this rule or to block any poster from the channel.

[@freddymarcel-marcum6831]

I live in the Czech Republic, I know where one is that's deep in the woods near the Polish border, Panzer 3. I don't think it's ever been messed with, but it's not going anywhere anytime soon.

[@PETERNESS]

you just dont get this type of information on television documentaries,Mark Felton Productions is by far the best on you tube and the narrators voice is something i could listen to for hours very informative 10/10

[@MarkFeltonProductions]

Too kind!

[@omerashraf9357]

@@MarkFeltonProductions Please do a video on the legendary clashes over Darwin between the famous European aircraft : Spitfire and the the most feared Japanese aircraft of pacific : Zero !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! It was a dream come true for ww2 aircraft enthusiasts !!!!!!!!

[@gregpartridge1142]

@@omerashraf9357 Many years ago I had the privilege of spending some time with an ex RAAF pilot who was based near Darwin during the airwar above and around the top end of northern Australia. I recall him telling me that whilst the Spitfire was considered an excellent "dogfighter", it had one major drawback in RAAF service, being limited operational range. By the time the RAAF squadrons got airborne and flew at full throttle to cover the long distances necessary to engage with the Japanese aircraft, they barely had enough fuel in their tanks to do little more than make a few passes at the enemy before they were forced to break-off and return to their makeshift landing grounds located next to the main highway. They had a preference for the American P40 Kittyhawk - when they became available because of their greater fuel capacity, although the RAAF were grateful for whatever aircraft they could get their hands on at this point in the PTO. Sorry for taking this thread off Mark's video subject

[@model-man7802]

People still watch TV?

[@alexdemoya2119]

PRIMARY OBJECTIVE: Protect Mark Felton at ALL costs.

[@Sailfire1]

Recovering the remains of the crew of a burned-out tank must have been really horrific. I knew an elderly gent who was a tank commander in WWII. His greatest fear was getting "brewed up", burned alive inside the tank.

[@miscsilliness]

It was likely very difficult at the time to see the future historical value of those armoured vehicles.

[@tedarcher9120]

Well, their value was created because so little remained. T-34/85 have almost zero value today and they fight

[@colingibson8018]

Miscellaneous Silliness . You are so right and the biggest problem is that it still goes on today. Just look around. If it wasn't for enthusiastic groups . it would all be gone.

[@frankberry6220]

I believe the steel is valuable since it was processed before the dropping of the atomic bombs. Manufacturers of X-Ray machines have found that modern steel is often 'compromised' by the fall out of those and other atomic blasts.

[@grepukun5557]

When a war ends the last thing the people will care about is historical preservation unfortunately.

[@RedDragon052]

We cry today hearing about the destruction of war materials, but the amount of stuff made for the war effort is unimaginable, and there was no value in any of it for 50 years after. Tanks and other vehicles were worth more as scrap, and small arms were so common that is was often more cost effective to destroy them then try to sell them into an already saturated market. Here in Canada you could still find Lee-Enfield rifles from the period being sold out of the crate for $20 or less well into the 1980's.

[@jamesbrashaw728]

I USED TO PLAY IN THESE AS A KID BACK IN THE 60S. THERE WAS A SCAP YARD FULL OF THEM NEAR ME

[@painmagnet1]

My god, just imagine the volume of steel landing in England after the war. It must have been a staggering amount.

[@dbaider9467]

A staggering amount left via bombers and ships in the previous few years. Got to keep the planet balanced...

[@rosselliot8971]

painmagnet1 And how it must have sustained a very stressed and impoverished economy.

[@EDOSANTX]

Probably turned into MGs, Taunus, Morris Minor, mini cooper

[@Daniel-kq4bx]

Imagine what a depressing job it must have been to drag out corpses out of broken down tanks

[@Roscoe_B]

Probably more pieces than corpses.

[@DerUnbbekante]

Especially if you think about the smell... Dead bodies cooked for days weeks moths in a gigant metal boxes.

[@williammiller8317]

I worked with a fellow who had that job in the Korean conflict. He told of how they would remove the flesh on fingers, place the skin over their own finger to obtain fingerprints. A very grim job to say the least.

[@tiberiuscanineus8705]

Das Doges Kaiserreich

[@Lerxstification]

Most needed to be hosed out, sadly

[@oceanhome2023]

Testing a Panzefaust on the frontal armour of a Panther @4:35 . Every one way too close and not even covering their ears . But when you are 20yo you are immortal

[@MarkFeltonProductions]

I too was shocked at that one!

[@monroetoolman]

While the Western front was "tidy`d up" mostly, I`m sure there`s quite a bit of kit still lying around in the vast empty stretches of Russia.

[@Schmidty1]

Syria had a shit ton of german tanks that were used against Israel in the war that Israel took the Golan heights. They got them from Czechoslovakia I believe.

[@tedarcher9120]

And probably france

[@drox3992]

Schmidty theres a video about that probaly

[@vasili1207]

Trump heights you mean 😃

[@yellowjackboots2624]

My man Mark Felton already made a video about this very subject 😉

[@josephvalvano829]

Yes, there were Pzkfw IV’s in the Syria Army obtained from Eastern Bloc nations. Those that were not sold were repurposed as pillboxes when they were simply too obsolete to feasibly use even with modern munitions.

[@Chickenassable]

I would literally take a bank loan out just to buy any ww2 German armour.. Btw your videos are amazing Mark. Keep up the great work

[@Gorilla_Jones]

So you're a millionaire?

[@ArenBerberian]

zach That’s what models are for.

[@Grandizer8989]

zach last pnzr IV sold went for $4m

[@sovietww2radiooperator141]

I've seen the marder iii, hetzer, and stug iii sold for $500,000

[@sovietww2radiooperator141]

@Force Ten Oh wow, very nice! They sell for 100k if I remember correctly

[@carloschavez5368]

I used to own a M-5 Stuart tank i found and bought from a junk yard in Miami Florida back in 1989 but it was stripped down . I salvaged the chassis and tracks only the rest was removed including the turret and most of the interior and mechanism, motor was seized up. I paid $850 and had it transported to West Palm Beach Florida . in the shop i removed the upper carriage and motor leaving chassis and tracks with transmission/ drive gear. I took and grafted the upper half of a dodge van body to the chassis and powered with a 700hp 440 cid motor and 727. Name d (SCAT TRAC) transmission it would run 55 mph and weighed 19k lbs painted lime green . I got recognize a year later after completion which a dodge dealership wanted me to show the tank/van. I did 9 exhibitions runs crushing cars , i owned for 6 years till the insurance companies ban all track vehicles for exhibition and sold to a recycling yard with out the motor. I had a lot of fun with the tank just seeing the expression on people's faces and crushing cars.

[@randomcoyote8807]

I've been told that there are number of old tank hulks left in the Western Desert along the Libyan/Egyptian border; stuff left over from British 8th Army and Afrika Korps clashes. Since the Libyan/Egyptian border was politically troublesome, and very inhospitable to casual walking about, many of the vehicles are left where they were. The area is also littered with mines, both old and recent, so chances are there's a lot of old armor out there, somewhat preserved in the arid conditions...

[@Ronin4614]

I had two years in the US Army and another in the USAF all commissioned. I was never a tanker, but I had a rare chance to personally operate a tank while stationed in Germany. We were supporting a US Armored division in the field during the early 80s. There is nothing in the world like driving a tank and taking part in it’s operations. The mass of metal and power is stunning. I felt pretty confident that I could co anywhere I pleased with my beast. I can appreciate the task of moving a disabled tank a little better than most. I loved my day as a tanker in the German country side. Thanks, Mark.

[@itchy108]

My great uncle that only died this year was in Italy during the war as a tank transporter, he never told us much of his experience so I imagine he had the task of cleaning out damaged tanks. My grandad on the other hand told me everything he could recall from his time in North Africa and as a escaped pow in Italy.

[@brydenholley1904]

From an economic perspective, imagine the cost in $$$ of building all these tanks... only for them to be turned into scrap metal and their dead crew removed for burial. What an enormous waste of resources (and lives). Great video, Mark, as always.

[@jonnajohnsen9030]

For a ww2 German tank entusiast, seeing German tanks getting scraped, is like a horror movie.

[@zxbzxbzxb1]

'What's that noise Sarge?' 'Private, that's the sound of history melting' 😢😢😢

[@giannisg3387]

What movie is that from?

[@zxbzxbzxb1]

@@giannisg3387 None that I know of, I made it up.

[@oatis053]

When I lived in Las Vegas, a guy had an old M3 lee tank parked in front of his house named Lu Lu Bell. I always wondered if it was the same tank from the movie with Humphre Bogart. Sahara!!!

[@wibo3218]

Always wondering what happened to them. Thx for this upload

[@surearrow]

>> Corpses? You mean rotting hamburger meat, flies and stench. When a hot round goes inside a tank, it ricochets many times, pulverizing all soft tissue in its path leaving mush and body pieces in its wake. What an ending, if you didn't die immediately and only severely injured. I am sure this happened all the time. Trapped for days, unable to move, in pain, the sun turning it into an oven while you grasp for help alone on a deserted battlefield. Then finally, death releases you. Dear lord, war is so horrible. Thank you for your videos Mark, they are amazing, and you have the perfect voice for giving information and facts, thank you!

[@kfcwarrior]

Mark, absolutely love your professionalism and the exceptional quality you bring to your commentaries. Keep up the good work, it does not go unappreciated.

[@buzzkillington8078]

No dislikes, as it should be. This content is too good to dislike in my eyes. (Nevermind, it's 14 at this time. At least it's low rather than high.)

[@guardiadecivil6777]

if you want to try keep it with no dislikes, then simply shut up about it since there are assholes who dislike the video because they noticed it didn't have any

[@TheBigExclusive]

I'm grateful that you make videos about topics that aren't often covered by others. This is a very interesting topic that I enjoyed watching.

[@tabletopgeneralsde310]

Thanks buddy for doing these amazing videos and sharing them with us. Thumbs up.

[@tomthebomb09]

Omg your voice is so classic! Prefect for ww2 documentaries! Also prefect amount of details and info for us history buffs! Thank you sir

[@slick4401]

To imagine one rents a Vauxhall Corsa at Heathrow and it turns out to have a few pounds of a Panzer IV in it. "Damn, Honey, this GPS thingy insists on showing the way to Warsaw!!"

[@SS-wd5wi]

Awesome stuff Mark! Nice and succinct info. Good job finding these!

[@chickendrawsdogs3343]

It must be quite the experience to see old picture of a tank than find out it's still around, painted new in a museum.

[@Willysmb44]

I know the King Tiger at LaGleize Belgium was towed out of the nearby fields into town, where it's a tourist attraction. But otherwise, it was a time EVERYONE wanted to forget, so most went to the smelters.

[@GenghisVern]

Talked to a friend about picking up an old tank for a lawn ornament back in the 90s, he had access to old eastern bloc vehicles. I said I'd prefer an old panzer of any type. He said, "oh... most of those got blown up". lol

[@jimdevilbiss9125]

My father ran a salvage yard here in Frederick Maryland. We have pictures of World War II equipment that was brought over to the US as ballst for ships and then sent to Frederick to be reused. Very interesting just to see that the same concept was done for England I’ve never thought of it.

[@Lerxstification]

Seeing those scrap and strip out yards somehow made me very sad.

[@williammiller8317]

So glad I found your channel Mark, always interesting and informative.

[@fergusmoffat8926]

Im not suprised your channel is one of the most popular history channels on youtube , it is like nothing else

[@Marshal_Dunnik]

Some them in fact were recovered and sent to the Zombie Nazi Moon Base, where they lie in wait today...

[@steventrotter1967]

Thats the hidden message in Floyd's Dark Side of the Moon

[@arthurjarrett1604]

My dad was involved in this. He spent his national service (late 1946 - 1948) driving the low-loaders that delivered to the yards. Never thought I'd ever mention that one on the internet!

[@jacobs.9797]

This video was very cool and informative! I had sometimes wondered about this topic but never really thought in depth about it.

[@markdavis2475]

I think the Panther at 04:00 was discussed in an old copy of "After the Battle", it was in a French scrapyard, the owner had started cutting it up then given up. It was recovered but I can't remember where too!

[@MagnusElpron]

Amazing quality content ! I wish there were so many more non political, real PhDs on KZbin ! Thank you Sir for the quality of both the audio content and the video footage carefully selected to match it. Amazing channel !

[@timmorodgers4271]

I was told a story a while ago of a British tank recovery unit in North Africa being detailed to collect an abandoned tank, they got lost and collected a different tank by mistake. When they got it back to base a couple of guys opened it up to have a look inside, it exploded and killed them, the Germans had left it booby trapped.

[@smiffy5075]

Such an under-rated channel, I feel like I'm watching a VHS back in primary school, actually learning something!

[@MrTuftynut]

Another great video Mark - I really enjoy your productions. What a shame it was not realised at the time, or in subsequent decades until quite recently, just how desirable and valuable the German WW2 tanks would become. I am just thankful for the Tank Museum in Dorset, UK and other sites, like Saumur in France, who take such great care to preserve these awe-inspiring monsters.

[@420alphaomega]

I love how he says “scrapped” such emotion! :)

[@ctg6734]

This is why I come to watch this channel and not tv anymore.

[@Neil-Aspinall]

What an interesting historical service you offer Mark. 10/10

[@kungfuasgaeilge]

God damn, I subscribed recently and I'm constantly amazed at the quality of these videos. Such specific topics, but wonderful period footage showing exactly what's being described that I never would have found otherwise. Many thanks. I want to PM some bigger channels I'm subscribed to to let them know of your great work. Chances are they won't even cast an eye on my message, but it's worth the bit of effort!

[@ericmcquiston9473]

I always wondered what they did with all the disabled tanks, thanks to you Mark now I know. Great job !

[@thewaraboo2824]

As an Artilleryman, seeing that line of perfectly-good Hummels at 3:11 in the background just waiting to be scrapped deeply saddens me. Have you thought about doing a video on the scrapping of Japanese tanks after the war? Would make a good companion to this one, especially since so little Japanese heavy weaponry survives, even compared to the German stuff.

[@damianousley8833]

There was a shortage of steel in post ww2 Britain . When they started building the first Land Rrovers, the exterior panels were of aluminium instead of the preferred steel as used in the automotive industry. The use of aluminium had the side effect of making the Land Rovers lighter and more agile, adding to their near legend early 4x4 off-road qualities. Many years (a decade or more) before Toyota Land Cruisers, Nissan's and Mitsubishi appeared as competitors in the area of off road. ALSO the rebuilding of Europe required much material steel, cement, sand, gravel etc.

[@chrisinnz1988]

Never disappointed when I watch your content. Keep up the good work Mark!

[@m10bob22]

One of the best video's you have posted for we historians, Mark...Thank you very much!

[@ZerokillerOppel1]

Wow..these topics of yours!!!! How DO you come up with this amazing content every time!!!! Thanks again Mark!!!!

[@Johankenzeler]

As again, great little documentary about a subject not generally spoken of in our history books. This channel is worth millions.

[@tyroneperkins1463]

Good work

[@catcheagle5114]

German tanks looked beautiful, especially the panthers, Tigers and King Tigers. If only I could have gotten my hands on one of them and just hold it as my priced treasure.

[@Steven0040]

Excellent video ! Great subject matter ! Loved it ! Thank you so much. Looking for more of your stuff !

[@dapinelli]

this series is unbelievable! I don't how or where he gets all of his film and every video he has out is first rate!

[@CiniMini69]

That Panther at the scrap yard, next to the blue Mercedes.. Damn.

[@minuteman4199]

Interesting to note that the guy at :40 seconds is armed with Springfield 1903 rifle.

[@josephbingham1255]

Good ID

[@Boric78]

Thanks for answering something I have thought about before. That Panzer 3 park and the one which had Germanized French tanks was amazing.

[@williamfelton905]

Happy Anniversary! Your soothing voice cured my bad headache. See you tomorrow! xx

[@brianj8451]

Hey Mark. I wanted to say thank you so much for creating this channel and your videos. I fondly remember watching your videos on the History Channel and the Military Channel, when I was younger with my dad. My mom used to hear us watching them and say "oh boy, the hitler channel is on again" 😂since WWII programs were on all the time. Some of my favorite childhood memories. I don't believe the Military Channel exists where I live anymore, and the History Channel does not actually play any historical content anymore. Your specials got me into loving history and I'm so happy I get to watch them again! Thank you.

[@eamonnprunty]

When i see a mark felton video, I click. When i see a mark felton video over 2 and a half minutes, my fingers never click fast enough

[@henrymorgan3982]

Never knew this before today. Thank you for sharing!

[@super5oldier139]

Man i dont know how we arnt past a million yet! Imo you deserve to at least have 600k subs for this work. Ya Keep it as family friendly as possible and very professional yet still have those wow thats crazy moments. I think what gives it the most value is you dont bother with complaining like most youtubers or anything like in video ads so your content is very pure and enjoyable even to just listen on a long drive. Keep it up man and i can see you being one of the bigger channels in a few years once yt figures itself out!

[@davidraybon1615]

I knew an American soldier who was in Germany at the end of the war. He said he didn't know where it was going, but they were loading scrap into ships as fast as they could.

[@ronjaathome]

Es war die Gier der Alliierten Kriegsanstifter und Siegermächte beider Weltkriege die es möglich machte ... Die Deutschen haben sie wohl vor Ihr Tribunal gestellt um sie als die bösen der Welt zu präsentieren Aber für alle wird der Tag der Abrechnung kommen wenn sie vor dem Richterstuhl des Ewigen stehen Dort werden dann vor allem die Amerikaner und Engländer sich für Ihren Holocaust am deutschen Volk und all das Leid und die Lügen was sie in ihrer Gier über die ganze Welt gebracht haben verantworten müssen...

[@yashsingh3126]

Just speechless! You deserve more recognition

[@jackwilbur9419]

Thbanks once again for an interesting video. Luv your style

[@hoagiesherlin7732]

Mark your chanel is epic i found it on D day and have been hooked ever since thank you for the time you put into your work

[@Reloadneck]

I was at Fort Benning, GA two years ago for basic training and I saw a wreck of a Tiger, I believe, once along the road. It certainly wasn't being restored by the armor museum there, but it was down range in the training area. It was pretty battered like it was a target tank. It might be interesting to look into this sometime or does anyone have any information on this tank?

[@basswarnow]

5:00 Finland and Switzerland continued to use the Jagdpanzer 38 (t) and StuG III until the late 60s.

[@jordanturpyn24]

Two videos in one day , hell yes ........ Many thanks

[@Timotheus157]

Mark, your videos are truly superb! Thank you!

[@samjmarsay]

Thank you so much! I've wondered about this for years! I've always wanted to know more about battlefield clean up operations.

[@thomasmaloney843]

Dad was in army ordnance. They stripped down wrecked vehicles completely and rebuilt them on sort of an assembly line. Some of the German vehicles were used to evaluate American ammo effectiveness on their armor. Dad was present when they tested the M36 tank destroyer against a Tiger tank hulk. The German armor just crumbled.

[@NandiCollector]

Thank you for this amazing and very informative video. I always wondered what happened to the thousand armor vehicles when the war was over. You answered my question.

[@ipanzerschrecku4732]

I have a different view, I think it's amazing that there's so many German tanks still in existence if you factor in their relative few numbers compared to allied tanks like the T-34 or M-4 outnumbering them 100 - 1... I think a lot realized instantly that they were worth saving or else they would pretty much all have been gone by now if you compare to how many of those hundred thousand allied tanks produced during the was that's still remaining.

[@steyrproof]

Tanks for another interesting video !

[@SMDoktorPepper]

Sad to see so much history thrown out, but some of those restored pieces are amazing.

[@greggblack8205]

Great job! Fascinating stuff! That's much like for years I was looking for a good video on a timeline of the restoration of major cities that bombed heavily and how long it took, much like Berlin.

[@lewiscliffe434]

I learn something new every day thanks to you keep it up mark!

[@madjackblack5892]

Reminds me of the piles of BTR and other armored vehicle hulks I saw in the former GDR soon after the wall went down and the Sovs went bust.

[@paulvanappeven3340]

👍🏻👍🏻 thanks for another great video.

[@garywheeler7039]

Another great history footnote, thanks so much.

[@mikegallegos7]

Always interesting, Mark. Thank you.

[@Arjunvandemataram]

All those beautiful magnificent German tanks being scrapped :(:(:(:( What a shame :(

[@stalkinghorse883]

3:47 Looks like the owner of this tank gave it a new paint job, complete with backwards swastika.

[@basichistory]

How come there are no adds with these videos? Has KZbin de-moneytised them?

[@Schmidty1]

Maybe he just relies on patreon money. Also this guy has been in everything. Written so many books and narrated on tv all the time. He makes $590 a month on patreon. Doesn't want to burden viewers with ads I guess.

[@scottmcintosh4397]

They need to be saved & restored whenever found. Some have been recovered from swamps that, amazingly, have started right up & were driveable as soon as they cleared the water & had some debris cleaned away from vital parts & vents. After all these decades submerged in a bog.

[@ichabodon]

At 4.30 a soldier fires a panzerfaust at a panzer and it was only a few yards away. Talk. About dangerous for the spectators!

[@aamirqadri1302]

This is the first ever comprehensive video I ever watched

[@2drx4]

Another excellent video!

[@robertoorsi5771]

In Italy ESERCITO ITALIANO (EI) is scrapping now hundreds of tanks: M 60, M 113, M 109, Leopard 1A2, Leopard 1A5. I tink their value is the metal they are made.

[@nicholaswilson7734]

My grandfather’s nursing home friend once spoke of finding a German tank recovery vehicle behind the lines and learning how to drive it back to their headquarters to the commanding officer’s unamusement

[@crunchies69]

Great stuff Mark. Timeline 4.26min shows Gi'S doing target practice on a Tiger 2. This lane way is in La Glieze and is between the school and the main road that passes through the town. We found it in 2015 on a Then and Now photo trip.😀 Well done on the research.

[@pedrolistacarey4880]

It was funny to see the French 2 years after the war having whole battalions of Panther tanks wearing the French roundel on them...! and they did the same in their Navy, sailing several of the most advanced German Type 21 subs....! No fools those Frenchies !

[@barryhopesgthope686]

I saw a few when I was stationed at SHAPE, Belgium. In August, Mons has a fest called Tanks in Town.

[@wizar6712]

You,Tik, and Indy have got to be the most underrated world war 2 you tubers