Initially, the T-34 had a one-piece upper and lower front plate. The entire front of the tank was rolled in one go, and then bent into shape. This was a very complicated part to produce, and the solution was the introduction of a 100 mm thick cast connector to bridge a separate upper front plate and lower front plate.
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Eventually, to further increase output, the connector was welded instead of riveted. The next logical step would be to remove the connector piece entirely and join the upper front plate directly to the lower front plate, which was done in 1945.
