COBI 1:12 Scale Tiger 131 (2801)

All new for Fall 2023, the COBI 1:12 Scale Tiger 131 is COBI’s largest set ever and will feature approximately 7800 parts and be big enough to put your dolls in 🙂

The COBI 1:12th Scale Tiger 131 Tank will feature a detailed interior, engine bay and working suspension! Unfortunately COBI did not include rubber road wheels.

COBI Brick’s largest set to date was just announced in the UK on April 22nd during Spring Tiger Day. You an check out our friend Cabbage Bricks for detailed video/images here.

The Part number for the COBI 1:12 Scale Tiger Tank will be COBI 2801.

When will the COBI 1:12 Scale Tiger 131 be available in the USA?

We expect the COBI 1:12 Scale Tiger 131 to be available for sale during the 2023 fall sale season (basically a Christmas special).  We have been told that we will be able to sell this set but that may change. Join the waitlist and pre-order from warbricks.com right here on this product page. There will be a minimum advertised price so pricing will be consistent across the few resellers in the USA, assuming COBI allows us to sell it.

How big is the COBI 1:12 Scale Tiger 131? The new COBI Tiger 131 will be huge!

Length: 27.6″ long

Width: 11.8” wide

Height: 9.4″ high

TIGER 131 History:

The fascinating story of Tiger 131 – one of the most renowned tanks in WWII history! This German tank has an incredible history, having seen action during World War II and surviving to this day at the The Tank Museum in Bovington in Dorset, England. Its unique design made it a powerful fighting machine that was feared by Allied forces, and its subsequent capture in April 1943, by the british 48th Royal tank Regiment in Tunisia made it one of the most famous tanks in history. We’ll explore the history of Tiger 131 and its place in World War II.

The Tiger 131 was built at Henschel und Sohn plant in Kassel, Germany in early 1942. It was part of the Tiger I series, which featured heavy armor and a powerful 88mm main gun. The tank also had an impressive range of 360km, allowing it to cover more ground than most other German tanks during the war. It was first deployed to Tunisia in February 1943, where it saw action against Allied forces. During these battles, Tiger 131 proved to be a formidable enemy and earned itself a fearsome reputation among Allied troops.

Until 2019, the Tank Museum believed that Tiger Tank 131 was captured at Djebel Djaffa in Tunisia on 21 April, 1943. The largely-intact vehicle had been immobilized after the Afrika Korps launched a spoiling attack on the night of 20/21 April 1943 while the Allies were preparing a major push toward Tunis. The Germans attacked four points simultaneously, including a pass on the north side of a hill called Djebel Djaffa. Two Tigers and several other tanks advanced through this pass before dawn, and were gradually driven back during the day. One Tiger was hit by three shots from 6-pounders from British Churchill tanks of A Squadron, 4 Troop of the 48th Royal Tank Regiment(RTR). A solid shot hit a Tiger’s gun barrel and ricocheted into its turret ring, jamming its traverse, wounding the driver and front gunner and destroying the radio. A second shot hit the turret lifting lug, disabling the gun’s elevation device. A third shot hit the loader’s hatch, deflecting fragments into the turret. The German crew bailed out, taking their wounded with them and leaving the knocked-out but still drivable and largely intact tank behind. The tank was secured by the British as they captured Djebel Djaffa hill.

The official story changed in April 2019 when Dale Oscroft visited the Tank Museum. He was struck by the similarity between Tiger 131 and a story his father, John Oscroft, told him when he was part of 2nd Battalion Sherwood Foresters who captured a position called “Point 174” (Gueriat el Atach) without promised tank support. After its capture the Germans immediately counter-attacked with tanks including Tigers. John Oscroft was told to hit one Tiger with his PIAT. After crawling forward to get as close as possible, he fired his projectile but it bounced off the Tiger so he did not fire again. By this time, supporting Churchill tanks had arrived and a shot from a Churchill from either the 142nd or 48th regiment from the Royal Armoured Corps jammed the turret, forcing the Tiger crew to abandon their tank. Photographic and documentary evidence corroborated Oscroft’s story, proving that the Tiger disabled at Point 174 on 24 April 1943 was 131 and not the Tiger taken at Djebel Djaffa on 21 April.

The Tiger 131 is currently the only operational Tiger I in the world.

For more information, please visit the official wikipedia page for the Tiger 131 here.