Here are a few pictures that allow a quick and halfway accurate recognition:

- Jagdpanzer IV (early)

- Jagdpanzer IV (late) [Befehls-Ausführung]

Modifications of the L/48 gun during serial production:

- PzIV/70(V) [August 1944]

- PzIV/70(V) [September-November 1944]

- PzIV/70(V) [November 1944-March 1945]

For reasons of completeness a few pictures for identifying the PzIV/70(A):

- PzIV/70(A) prototype

- top, front and rear view

A little variation during production:

- 2 steel wheels

- 4 steel wheels

Jagdpanzer IV/70 (A) (Sd.Kfz.162/1) was the other PaK 42 L/70 armed Jagdpanzer IV. In order to send Pak 42 L/70 to the front as soon as possible, in July 1944, Hitler ordered an interim solution: a StuG III manufacturer, Alkett, was to immediately produce Jagdpanzer IV by its own design. This differed in that its superstructure was mounted directly on the original Panzer IV chassis and as such lacked the sharp edged nose of the Vomag variant. It was also taller. Only 278 were built from August 1944 to March 1945. The (A) stands for the builder, Alkett.

In November of 1944, Krupp also proposed to modify Jagdpanzer IV/70(A) (Sd.Kfz.162/1), so that 88mm Pak 43/3 L/71 gun can be mounted, but it proved to be impossible and it remained only a project - Panzerjager IV mit 8.8cm ...

The Jagdpanzer IV was, as its name implies, based on the chassis of the PzKpfw IV, but was also commonly known as 'Guderian's Duck'. Its layout followed that of the conventional assault gun, with the fighting compartment forward.

The superstructure consisted of well-angled 24 armour plate, extended to the vehicle's rear, overall height being only 6ft 1in. The first gun to be fitted was the 75mm L48 Pak 39 with muzzle brake, later replaced by the more powerful 75mm L70 KwK 42, both weapons entering the vehicle via a 'Pig's Head' mantlet, to the right of which a conical hatch concealed a machine-gun. An interim model with a higher superstructure also mounted the 75mm L70, which had a muzzle velocity of 3,400ft/sec.

Like the assault gun, the Jagdpanzer IV had a crew of four, and its front armour was 80mm thick. It weighed 24 tons ...

History: The Panzer IV/70(V) was an improved version of the Jagdpanzer IV with the PaK42 L/70 mounted in place of the shorter PaK39 L/48. It went into production along-with the Jagdpanzer IV which it replaced completely in December 1944.

Specific features: As for the Jagdpanzer IV. The 7.5cm PaK was held at + 13° elevation by a travel lock when moving in non-combat areas. Late models were to have the Vorsatz P mount (additional machine-pistol mount) in the roof over the gunner. This was a mount for the 7.92mm MP44 with a curved barrel attachment. The long gun and 80mm superstructure front made the Pz IV/70 (V) nose heavy with resultant failures of the rubber-tyred wheels. Later models, therefore, were fitted with steel-rimmed wheels at the first two wheel stations. Late models also had only three return rollers.

Combat service: In August 1944, the ...

Combat experience gained during the 1942 campaigns indicated to German staff planners that the existing Sturmgeschütz close support artillery vehicles would have to be up-gunned if they were to continue to be used as tank destroyers, and the future standard weapon was selected as the long version of the 7.5-cm (2.95-in) tank gun fitted to the Panther tank. This gun was 70 calibres long (as opposed to the 49-calibre length of the tank and antitank versions of the Pak 40 family) and to house this gun in vehicles such as the Sturmgeschütz III would require considerable modifications. These modifications would take time so it was decided to adapt the larger PzKpfw IV tank chassis to act as a 'fail safe' model. Design work was soon under way on this new model, which emerged in 1943 as the Jagdpanzer IV Ausf F für 7.5-cm Pak 39 or Panzerjäger ...