Side Arms/Personal Weapons for Panzer Crew?

Didn't they have shoulderholster?

Yes, they had these as well!

[Dubar1]

Here, in the Tiger, is the standard bracket for the MP40.

Thanks David! I need to look at my Marder III Ausf H and MKIV Ausf G books and try to find a similar bracket.

[tracman]

Panzer crew small arms

Generally, all crewmen were issued or carried a pistol. Most tanks had a bracket for the MP38/MP40 machine pistol as well: some, such as the Stug-III, had two brackets for machine pistols. Publications by Signal/Squadron show these brackets well, and they tended to be on the rear turret/fighting compartment surfaces.

Tanks did not have room for rifles, and they were not issued to tank crews. The hull MG on most tanks could be removed and used in an emergency, but this was not the easiest thing to do and would require time. The MG used for the AA mount was an easier one to take out and use, but again, these were long and bulky weapons, so they could only realistically be taken out and used by the crew if the latter had time to do so. These MGs were MG34s, and there were several specific variations for use in armored vehicles.

Panzer crewmen were issued standard pistols, and these were usually carried in standard holsters, attached to standard leather belts. For reasons already noted, most were not carried that way inside the tank: they could easily snag on fittings during a (precipitated) exit, and the last thing any crewman wanted to have happen was to be hung up exiting a hatch while under fire (or with the tank on fire). One reason one sees few pictures of panzer crewmen carrying any firearms is that most pictures of dismounted crewmen were taken behind the lines, or in periods of relative calm, or in training. One reason one tends to see the commander wearing his more often is that he was posted directly below his hatch,and since he was often standing in an open hatch when behind the lines, he might be the first crewman able to defend the tank from an enemy attacker. Moreover, in combat, most commanders carried out quick foot recce's to check out their positions, avenues of approach or lines of fire, again tending to favorize carrying a sidearm at all times. Otherwise, the main issue was likely egress: the commander was usually the best positioned to escape: other crewmen would have to avoid levers, buttons, and other fittings to escape... and there are plenty of interviews indicating that one impediment to rapid egress were the intercom systems. Consequetly, most crewmen likely kept their belt, with attached pistol, stored separately inside the tank.

Most issued pistols appear to have been P38s or P08s, but there are plenty of anecdotes indicating that crewmen could and did sometimes look to unofficially swap for other sidearms, and German officers appear to have been fond of smaller caliber pistols anyway. When Michael Wittmann's remains, along with those of his crew, were found in 1983, the rusted remains of a small 6.35mm pistol was found with them, but other officers used standard pistols (Hans Seidel, commanding the 8th company of SS PzRgt 12, claimed to have used a P08 to fight off two British soldiers who were about to put a grenade in his tank during the night of 25-26 June 1944), and the Bayeux Memorial museum, back when it housed Jean-Pierre Benamou's amazing collection, used to have a full SS panzer uniform on display, with a Radom Vis P35p and holster attached to an officer's belt. Private purchase shoulder holsters were appreciated by some, but the German military didn't issue shoulder holsters (as the US did) to its land forces, as far as I know.