Tanks (yep…I'm bored)

There is a very good photo-journal of the restoration of Tiger 131 and in the lower photograph on page 36 there is an unexplained ‘repair’ to the deck armour below the damage to the gun-mantle:

http://www.tiger-tank.com/secure/journal36.htm

While not exactly conclusive it would seem to be an extraordinary coincidence that this tank had suffered two pieces of unrelated battle-damage at almost exactly the same point on its armour (and one of which caused the crew to abandon the tank). According to the photo-journal the main-gun counter-balance was also damaged (my thinking is that it was by the same shot that hit the gun-mantle). I don’t think that many crews would have stuck around after that point.

I think the King Tiger engine threw a rod through the side of its block by-the-way! 😉

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The Tiger I preserved (in running condition) at the Bovington Tank Museum was knocked-out by the 6-pounder (57mm) gun of a Churchill tank. Technically the 6-pounder couldn’t penetrate the frontal armour of a Tiger at anything but extremely short range but the Churchill crew were lucky in that their first shot was deflected off the gun-mantle down through the thin deck armour of the Tiger.

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IIRC the Tiger was abandoned by it’s crew once the round struck & again IIRC, it DIDN’T penetrate, but merely jammed the turret
(wedged at joint twixt hull & turret-ring).

The crew were relatively inexperienced (the Tiger being “new” in Tunisia) & lost their nerve ~ combined with the jammed-turret, is WHY “we” captured it AFTER the German-Tiger’s crew made-off !

( it was consequently sent home for testing, being the 1st captured of it’s type by the British-Army )

SOMEWHERE (famous last words) I’ve got the full-report on it’s capture & subsequent testing, with an extremely-detailed breakdown of it’s various points for the Top-Brass…..(now I’ll have to try & dig it out :D;))

Again, relating by memory = THE ONLY REASON that Tiger.I is running at all, is coz they (Bovington) “blagged” the Maybach out of their extremely rare Porsche-Turreted King Tiger…..(damn sacriledge if you ask me !) altho’ that K.T. was NEVER likely to be a “runner” (hence the decision).

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The M60 is a bit tall for tank-to-tank combat (in common with many US tanks) but if I were a tank commander surrounded by thousands of potential rioters I think I’d feel a lot safer (psychologically) that high up! 😀

Presumably you can get (crawl) from the driver’s compartment to the fighting compartment in an M1?

On the M-1 you can get to the drivers compartment from the turret only when the gun is over the back deck.

There’s a very nice Jagdpanther at the Imperial War Museum at Lambeth.

Last time I was there I was happily showing-off my level of geekdom to a group of friends who had no knowledge whatsoever about military technology…..yes, these people really do exist! :rolleyes:

Looking around the Jagdpanther I identified the purpose of each feature that they pointed out and then one of the group pointed to the three holes punched through the side armour of the fighting compartment; “what are these holes for?” she asked…

There are some good photographs of it if you google-images ‘Jagdpanther IWM’.

Favourite tank was actually a tank destroyer the Jagdpanther, and I always have a soft spot for the Stug III.

As for a turretted vehicle it has to be the Leopard 2

Regards

Nic

The M60 is a bit tall for tank-to-tank combat (in common with many US tanks) but if I were a tank commander surrounded by thousands of potential rioters I think I’d feel a lot safer (psychologically) that high up! 😀

Presumably you can get (crawl) from the driver’s compartment to the fighting compartment in an M1?

lots of room in the 60. M-1 is cramped, except the driver……he was most comfortable.

I didn’t realise that Egypt had any M1 Abrams tanks until I saw them on the news the other day. There also seemed to be plenty of M60 tanks and some T-62 tanks also in amongst the protesters. I’ll say one thing for the M-60, it is nice and tall; pretty comforting if you are parked in the middle of a riot (and about the only time a tall tank is at an advantage)! 😀

I watched ‘Kelly’s Heroes’ last night, too. 😉

have a little faith, they’re beautiful people

Great movie, “upgraded” tank, I know it’s real life flaws, but I just love the speaker, “Gramophone”, paint shells and drain pipe ideas!

My favourite tank…hmmmm

PzKpfw VI Ausf. E, by any chance? 🙂

[QUOTE=PanzerJohn;1697646]My favourite tank…hmmmm[/QUOT

A wild guess, the electric immersion tank in the airing cupboard?

Lincoln. 7

:diablo:

My favourite tank…hmmmm

I always found it interesting that quite a considerable number of tanks were abandoned by their crews after being hit the first time, even though no damage was taken, just because of the sound of being under fire and being hit. Still reports of that from the 1973 war. Don’t know about Iraq.

Current generation fav: Challenger 2 because of its rifled gun and the ability to fire HE grenades.

Very interesting and probably trend-setting I think: Japan’s Type 10. Suspension, electronics, light weight, fast. Only the wrong gun (smoothbore).

I think I too would be out of my tank should it sustain a hit, damaged or not, the enemy has your range, and his 2nd shot could kill all the crew, best to fight and run away, and all that .
Lincoln. 7

:diablo:

I always found it interesting that quite a considerable number of tanks were abandoned by their crews after being hit the first time, even though no damage was taken, just because of the sound of being under fire and being hit. Still reports of that from the 1973 war. Don’t know about Iraq.

Current generation fav: Challenger 2 because of its rifled gun and the ability to fire HE grenades.

Very interesting and probably trend-setting I think: Japan’s Type 10. Suspension, electronics, light weight, fast. Only the wrong gun (smoothbore).

It’s well worth a visit. 🙂

Thanks CD, I keep meaning to go to Bovington museum, I have passed it once or twice, but failed to remember until too late.
Lincoln.7
:rolleyes:

Was it the King Panzer2 that had the flack 88 as it’s weapon?.If so I beleive it was only vulnerable to our Churchil tanks AP ammo, but the Churchil had to be behind the Panzer, as there was a “Sweet spot” that the Churchils inferior AP could penitrate.

The Tiger I preserved (in running condition) at the Bovington Tank Museum was knocked-out by the 6-pounder (57mm) gun of a Churchill tank. Technically the 6-pounder couldn’t penetrate the frontal armour of a Tiger at anything but extremely short range but the Churchill crew were lucky in that their first shot was deflected off the gun-mantle down through the thin deck armour of the Tiger.

Thats exactly how he summed it all up, too!

theres something “powerful” about riding in one of those great snorting beasts…….especialy when on gunnery……….but the feeling never lasts…….cause sooner or later, you throw track. And at the end of the day, you have to clean that metal monster!