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Plain and Simple
"To MolotovLondonEncipheredI have received your enciphered message. There are no big changes on the front lines. There are battles around Barvenkovo and Izyum. The Germans have six tank divisions here....
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The Tankette's Late Successor
Tank building worldwide made a radical jump forward in the second half of the 1930s and kept up the pace until the start of WWII. The stagnation of the early 30s led to many nations starting the...
View ArticleNight Driving
"To the Deputy Chair of the Committee of Defense, comrade MolotovIn accordance with State Committee of Defense decree #2181ss issued on August 18th, 1942, the Special Design Bureau of the NKEP produced...
View ArticleCasting in Omsk
"Requirements for T-34 castings cast in the 2nd quarter of 1942 at factory #200 for factory #174Item# per setWeight per unit (kg)Weight per set (kg)Items in 2nd qtrTotal weight in tonsIn AprilIn MayIn...
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HEAT Issues
"TO: Commanders of Artillery of Rifle Corps, Rifle Divisions, and Artillery Regiments29th Rifle Corps onlyOn the causes of premature detonation of 122 mm HEAT roundsSeveral cases of premature...
View ArticleWhat's In A Name?
When the T-44 was created, the 85 mm gun was already insufficiently powerful. One solution was to install a 100 mm gun, but a widened turret ring was required. The result was the T-44B tank, which...
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Designing the T-34
My first book, Designing the T-34: Genesis of the Revolutionary Soviet Tank is available for purchase! It is currently available at the publisher's website or Amazon. Some regional Amazon sites still...
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Workhorse of the Italian Army
Stereotypically, Italian tank forces were filled with antiquated designs that broke down constantly. Reality is somewhat more complicated. It's true that Italy fell behind in the arms race, but this...
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Never Penetrated in Combat
Fans of German armoured vehicles often claim that the Tiger II was the ultimate in armoured vehicles of WWII. Particularly, one claim is often made: its upper front plate was never penetrated in combat...
View ArticleNight Rider
"To the Deputy Chair of the State Committee of Defense of the USSR, comrade MolotovAugust 2nd, 1942#408027sAccording to GOKO decree #175ss issued on May 15th, 1942, the Special Design Bureau of the...
View ArticleComrade Sherman
"Award OrderName: Sherman, Yevgeniy GrigoryevichRank: Jr. LieutenantPosition and unit: T-70 tank commander, 2nd tank battalion, 120th Orsha Independent Tank Brigade.Is nominated for the Order of the...
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"Tiger" or "Elephant"?
The Tiger tank first saw battle in the USSR in the fall of 1942, but its debut was unnoticed. The Red Army first inspected one of these tanks in early 1943, but verifiable information was rare. For the...
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Heavy Tank, Italian Style
In the mid-20th century heavy tanks were a sign of membership in an elite club of tank building nations. Many nations attempted to make these tanks, but failed. Even if a heavy tanks was made, it did...
View ArticleQuality Control
"American Embassy in Moscow, Military Mission January 13th, 1944To the Tank DirectorateM4A2 Medium TankFor your information, we attach the aforementioned list of difficulties encountered by our...
View ArticleLessons Learned
"SecretTo Comrade BeriaJanuary 27, 1944Based on the recommendations given by the commander of the 3rd Ukrainian Front, Army General comrade Malinovskiy, we report that:Item 1 in comrade Malinovsky's...
View ArticleFinnish Zimmerit
"Copy from a copyFor service use onlyTranslated from FinnishMethods of combat against anti-tank magnetic chargesThe British, Americans, and also the Russians use magnetic charges, especially against...
View ArticleSmall Arms Feeback
"HQ of the 27th Rifle DivisionDept 1November 14th, 1945#1/0793To the commander of the 132nd Rifle CorpsI present my notes and conclusions on infantry weapons, ammunition, and preparation of infantry...
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First Try at a Medium Tank
To a casual observer, German tank industry was like a jack in a box. 15 years after the end of WWI it suddenly sprang to life and began to crank out world class designs. However, there is no such thing...
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7.5 cm KwK 42 Penetration Table
I've posted a number of these diagrams before, for instance here is one for the Pak 40. The set of images for the more powerful KwK 42 is unfortunately incomplete and only available in low resolution,...
View ArticleOn to Tallinn
"Award orderName: Gorban, Vasiliy MoiseyevichRank: MajorPosition and unit: commander of the 2nd tank battalion, 152nd Leningrad Independent Tank Brigade.Year of birth: 1916Nationality: UkrainianParty...
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