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ZloyKrolik

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Everything posted by ZloyKrolik

  1. ZloyKrolik
    Why did the Soviets use 122mm for howitzers and guns? Why that particular diameter?
  2. ZloyKrolik
    There is a mount for a periscope in the loader's hatch of the M60A1/A3. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/M60_tank#/media/File:M60qatar.jpg
  3. ZloyKrolik
    Plenty of Shermans in this video.
  4. ZloyKrolik
    Those 2 dudes in front are in for a significant emotional event.
  5. ZloyKrolik
    There's no kill like overkill.
  6. ZloyKrolik
    Good timing on those photos. I'm surprised the top one is so clear, you'd think the muzzle blast would shake the camera.
  7. ZloyKrolik
    8th Cavalry.
  8. ZloyKrolik
    So it is a remote control Mechanical Mule?
  9. ZloyKrolik
    Were there any 76 mm DD M4A1s used during WW 2 for landings?
  10. ZloyKrolik
    It is good to see one of these in running condition, but how'd it end up in Poland? That must be a tale.
  11. ZloyKrolik
    Here is a video of the Sherman Hall.
  12. ZloyKrolik
    Time for another tank story: This time it is the early '90s, I'm a TC on an M1A1 in the Oregon National Guard, G Trp 82nd Cav. Annual training at Gowen Field, Orchards Training Center, outside of Boise ID. This didn't happen to me, but I witnessed the event. We were down range on the night portion of TT VIII. My buddy Duncan was the gunner on the Platoon Sergeant's tank. This happened during Duncan's run. It was what we called the "Widow Maker": on the move, NBC environment, two targets, a BMP & then a troop target. During this engagement, Duncan's TC gives the fire command "Gunner, HEAT, PC!", the rest of the crew & Duncan react appropriately and service the target. The TC calls cease fire on the PC & gives the fire command of "Gunner, Coax, Troops!", but the loader had already loaded a new round in the main gun and had placed the main gun safety to fire. Not normally a big deal if the gunner had switched from main gun to coax, but on the M1A1 there was a switch for each of the main gun and coax, so it was possible to fire both at the same time if both were set to fire and the loader's safety was set to fire. This time at Gowen Field, on the main tank range for TT VIII, the observation tower for that range, they had a TTS thermal sight from an M60A3 rigged up in the tower with a video camera to record it for the evaluation NCO to use during night gunnery, so there was a recording of what happened. Duncan lays on the troop target, gets a range and fires. "On the Way!', BOOOM rattatttattaat! goes the main gun and coax, "Shit!" goes Duncan. Later in the tower, I was there when the evaluator goes over that engagement with Duncan's crew., along with the video from the tower. You could clearly see the troop target as it rises on the range, hear the fire commands given by Duncan's TC and watch as a 120mm training heat round hits the left most troop target. The troop target just disappears, flies right off the target array, and then you can see the tracers from the coax strike around the troop target as it lowers back down. The evaluator commented that while that they hit the target & it was suppressed, they engaged with the wrong weapon system, - 30 points. They were impressed that he hit the target. Later someone went down range and retrieved that target, it had a 120mm hole in it at about the level of the heart, nice shot. They later hung it up in the tower briefing room.
  13. ZloyKrolik
    I wonder if they're selling tank tops as well.
  14. ZloyKrolik
    Either way, that would've been a huge pain to clear.
  15. ZloyKrolik
    Another time when I was driving an M60A3 in the LTA (Local Training Area), I was the 2nd tank in the column as we approached a rather large mud puddle. More like a mud pit. My buddy Ray was driving the lead tank, the platoon leader's. He comes up to the hole and drives right in, not slowing down much. SPLASH! SPLAT! The mud flew up and splattered the TC, the 2LT wasn't happy, but Ray was drenched in mud as he was driving with the hatch open. Just as they cleared the pit, I rolled up, fortunately I had slowed down as to not run into them and the mud only flowed up to, but not into, the driver's hatch. I didn't get a mud bath, but Ray did. He was covered in mud, dripping all over the place, I saw him reach into the driver's hatch and pull out his camera case, covered in mud. Luckily it was well sealed and the camera was fine. It took Ray a couple of days to clean out the interior of his tank when we got back to the motor pool. So always slow down before driving into a mud puddle if you have your hatch open.
  16. ZloyKrolik
    StugG III in the first picture.
  17. ZloyKrolik
    This one time in the Army (I'm required to start all my army stories this way by my wife).... Well I was a driver on an M60A3 when I was in C Co. 1/70 AR in Germany in 1983. We were driving down this tank trail, the lead tank of our platoon, when this crunchy (infantryman) pops out from behind a tree. He was about 50 meters or so down the tank trail when he holds up his rifle across his body in a "Halt!" fashion. I ask my TC if I should stop & he says to keep on driving. The crunchy motions for us to "Halt" a couple more times in an increasingly more aggressive and desperate fashion. When we get about 10 meters from him he suddenly realizes that we aren't stopping and an M16 isn't going to faze us one bit. He dove one way and his rifle went the other as we rolled on pass him. I said to my TC "I wonder what he wanted?" and my TC replied "Who the fuck knows." It isn't a wonder that there's no love lost between DATs and crunchies.
  18. ZloyKrolik
    I remember seeing this on our tanks in the ORNG, I forgot what they did.
  19. ZloyKrolik
    Why the end connector on the fender latch lever? To keep the lever from dropping too far?
  20. ZloyKrolik
    I'd say that worked out well. /s
  21. ZloyKrolik
    That is one big ass spring.
  22. ZloyKrolik
    Those always messed me up.
  23. ZloyKrolik
    Alas, no BOLOs or OGREs.
  24. ZloyKrolik
    Shag carpeted tank?
  25. ZloyKrolik
    We had a guy in our unit lose the tip of a finger doing pretty much the same thing. Transferring ammo from one side of the rack to the other, the TC's side is un-powered and it rolled back and the guy didn't get his hand out of the way quick enough. Nick's wistful reminition on being back in the tank, I've felt that as well. You spend as many hours in these things as you do, they grow on you. I guess that's how sailors feel when they go back aboard ships that they've served on.
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