Light Tank Destroyer
 "Approved by Deputy People's Commissar of Defense, Colonel General of Artillery, VoronovOctober 17th, 1942Tactical-technical requirements for a 45 mm anti-tank SPG1. Purpose of the SPGThe 45 mm...
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Assault Gun with Field Improvements
The situation with German military vehicles in museums, especially Russian ones, is difficult. The treatment of German armour in many countries during the Second World War and immediately afterwards is...
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A Medium Tank with a Heavy Burden
The heaviest American tank at the start of the Second World War was the Medium Tank M2. It looked like an anachronism compared to other tanks in the same class, and so it was quickly replaced by the...
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More Tank Archives to Love
Some of you might already know that I've been experimenting with more social media platforms. If Facebook, Twitter, and Youtube aren't your cup of tea, I'm starting out on Instagram and Threads (since...
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A Big Insect from Alkett and BMM
The German army felt a dire need for self propelled guns early in the Second World War. The highest priority items were a motorized anti-tank gun more powerful than the 3.7 cm Pak and a more mobile 149...
View ArticleSpecial Design Bureau
 "State Committee of Defenseto comrade L.P. BeriaSeveral major German small arms designers remain in the German territory occupied by Soviet troops.Stange, creator of the MG-34 and MG-42 machine guns...
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Between the Pz.Kpfw.III and the Panther
 German medium tanks that could not replace the Pz.Kpfw.III or IVOne might think that tank building developed very sluggishly in the interwar years. This is a mistake. Development continued even in the...
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Soviet Armour for the British Valentine
History knows many tanks that were created from a grassroots initiative and treated with scepticism by the army, but evolved to become some of the most popular tanks. There are at least two such tanks...
View ArticleCrewing the T-34-85 at Capel 2023
A month ago I joined the Capel Military Show as a T-34-85 tank crewman. With a full crew, hatches shut, and cannons firing outside, it was a great chance to experience what I've only read about. Watch...
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Shermans in "August Storm"
In Soviet historiography, the Soviet-Japanese War of 1945 is overshadowed by grandiose operations against Berlin and Vienna earlier that year. However, Western historians pay close attention to this...
View ArticleVideo: Almost an Hour of the T-34-85 at Capel
Didn't get enough of the T-34-85 tank shown at Capel? Enjoy almost an hour of glorious 4K footage from the event:
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Failed Modernization of the KV-1S
Evolutionary development is a common sight in tank development. The fact that engineers do not seek to make work for themselves should not be mistaken for laziness. This is often a necessary...
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Alternative Heavy Tank
Factory #183 in Kharkov was the center of Soviet heavy tank development in the interwar period. The T-35 powerful (heavy) tank developed in Leningrad by N.V. Barykov was produced here. Production was...
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Italian Cruiser Tank
Italian tank building developed along a fairly usual trajectory. Once a direction was identified, the Italian military tried to stay on course. Under their close guidance, Ansaldo developed a series of...
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Copper Horns
The need for communications equipment in armoured vehicles became clear soon after their creation. Semaphores and signal flags were just a half measure. It was necessary to equip tanks with radios, but...
View ArticleSmokescreens in the 31st Tank Corps
"Report on the use of smokescreen by the 31st Tank Corps in January of 1945A. Preparation of tank and SPG crews to use neutral smokescreens in battleStrong attention to the use of smokescreens was paid...
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Two Tanks In One
A story of what a Main Battle Tank is and how it came to be.Tanks evolved considerably over the course of over 100 years of service. The first tanks were built to break through enemy fortifications,...
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Americans in Africa
The trials of the American Medium Tank M3 in Great Britain gave mixed results. On one hand, the tank had no shortage of design defects. On the other hand, there was nothing else to choose from. The...
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Roof for the SU-76M
A number of questionable publications on the SU-76 created the idea that the SU-12 (SU-76) initially had a roof over the fighting compartment, but it was later removed, never to return. This is far...
View ArticleVideo: Can an IS-2 hit a target at long range?
The IS-2's can penetrate the Panther's armour at effectively any range, but can it hit? In my latest video, I take a look at the theoretical and practical precision of the IS-2's 122 mm D-25T gun to...
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