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Magachon

On 1/13/2020 at 12:47 PM, David Moyes said:

Challenger 2 getting another batch of 3rd-gen hydrogas suspension:

https://ted.europa.eu/udl?uri=TED:NOTICE:15192-2020:TEXT:EN:HTML&src=0

Back in 2010,  they were already trialling a new, lighter, Hydrogas suspension.

On 1/13/2020 at 1:26 AM, David Moyes said:

Mk.4 had problems with the aluminium hull wearing out. 

I've also heard this rumor.

But I'm still very sceptical about this story, knowing that the FV4211 Aluminium Chieftain showed no sign of structural weakness after having covered almost 20 000 km over a period of six months.

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British testing found this out with MBT-80

This was quite different, the hull of the MBT-80 was constructed of steel and aluminium welded together  (IIRC, the the rear half of the hull was made of aluminium).

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Vickers then quickly partnered with KMW for the Mk.7 for the Egyptians. 

So, the Vickers Mk. 7 was meant for the Egyptian army, interesting.

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Challenger 1's layout is a result of being based on the Chieftain. Challenger 2 is similar because Vickers didn't have the time or money to develop a new hull that would have to compete with the Leopard 2 & M1.

Good deduction.

On 1/6/2020 at 1:56 AM, David Moyes said:

Vickers Mk.4 Valiant (1982):

The glacis layout of the Valiant seemed so much better than the one of the Challenger 1 & 2.

On 1/10/2020 at 5:41 PM, Laser Shark said:

That was their mistake. Had they prioritized differently, like the Canadians ended up doing eventually, they could probably have gotten 20-30 second hand Leo 2 for the sum they spent on the DF90s.

I was making reference to the tankers themselves.

Main battle tanks were seen by the Directorate General of Material Resources (DGMR) as heavy, fuel-hungry, Cold War relics which doesn't comply with a very tight budget.

It's good to still have main battle tanks, but if you cannot even deploy them abroad, there's not much point in having them.

1 hour ago, Laser Shark said:

More trouble in Belgium:

 

https://www.brusselstimes.com/all-news/belgium-all-news/88013/armoured-belgian-anti-tank-vehicles-unable-to-fire-anti-tank-ammunition-pirahna-df90-armour-piercing-ammo-defence/

Well, firstly, the DF90 was never intended to replace the Leopard 1A5BE,  the purpose of the DF90 is to support infantry combat operations and, if necessary, providing an anti-tank capability.

Secondly, no miracle is to be expected from a medium-pressure 90 mm gun against a modern Main Battle Tank.

Thirdly, taking into account the additional weight, the running gear of the Piranha IIIC is push to its very limits.

Indeed, there was this one rumor with the loosening screws and bolts moving between the hull bottom and the anti-mine double-floor of the Piranha IIIC but as usual, it's overly exaggerated by the press.

Finally, I would say that budget cuts and wheels go well with each other. The Land Component believed until the last minute that they will get second-hand Dutch Leopard 2A5/A6.

On 12/26/2019 at 12:26 AM, David Moyes said:

Don't know if this has been mentioned before but apparently Santa Bárbara Sistemas cut costs by replacing titanium armour with steel when making the Leopard 2E:

https://www.ejercitos.org/2019/12/24/vcr-8x8-requiem-por-un-sueno/

Titanium was one of the components of the D-Technologie composite armor package, right ?

On 12/24/2019 at 11:09 PM, LoooSeR said:

 

 

   Not sure what is happening here:

 

Apparently, it was built on a SU-100P hull.

On 12/20/2019 at 4:14 PM, SH_MM said:

A few years ago, Belgium ordered a modernization for the Pandur 1 AFV, so that they would provide sufficient protection for deployment as part of Belgiums contingent for peace-keeping missions in Africa scheduled in 2021 (although deliveries are currently expected by 2022). Main focus was increase mine protection and ballistic protection to sufficient levels. The value of the contract was €31 million.

 

The Belgian Green Party has now cited an official report mentioning that the upgraded Pandur 1s (7 out of 44 already delivered) are considered not suited for operation, as only soldiers up to a height of 1.7 m (5'5'') actually fit into the vehicle. The main problem is the driver's seat, but also the entry in the vehicle is through the obstructed. Furthermore the mobility of the vehicle is degraded.

 

The Belgian army responded to the claims that they haven't yet paid much of the agreed contract, that some performance/ergonomic losses are expected with upgrades, that the problems would not be that relevant and that they want to make use of warranty if required.

The Pandur is an old design, difficult to upgrade and it was never meant to serve until the 2020s.

I've always liked his writing style : objective and well written.

17 hours ago, LoooSeR said:

   Panhard M8 from 1970s. 105 mm gun, hydropneumatic controllable suspension. 12.8 t (turret with equipment - 4t),

That's the TK 105 turret (same as the AMX-10RC).

Its 105 mm gun is fitted with an old muzzle break from the 1950s.

17 hours ago, LoooSeR said:

75 km/h forward, 8 backwards

8 km/h through the water

C1 Ariete wrecks in Lenta, northwest Italy :

MARS low-profile turret mounted on an AML chassis (1983) :

29 minutes ago, Chanou said:

Ok, what picture(s) ?

Gunner and commander stations, main gun, 12,7 mm coax and autoloader.

On 11/7/2019 at 1:36 PM, Chanou said:

so if you want I can re write on it since I'm the author of thoses pics, I got the original pictures.

I'm interested.

On 10/31/2019 at 10:28 AM, That_Baka said:

Longer APDSFS ,Bigger Propellant Charge.

Based on the drawings, the propellant charges do not appear to be larger.

Note that all of the D-91T (2A66) ammunition seemed to use the same propellant charge (the markings refer to the 4Zh77 charge) with the exception of the 9M125 GLATGM.

Now switching topics a bit,

Israeli 105 mm M111 (Hetz-6) and M413 penetrators (Hetz-7 ? @Mighty_Zuk ) :

Conversion of M152/3 (Israeli licensed copy of the M456 HEAT-T) to the M152/6 (FUZAMAN airburst fuze, can also be adapted to the 120 mm M325 HEAT-MP-T ) :

On 10/6/2019 at 7:25 PM, LoooSeR said:

http://otvaga2004.mybb.ru/viewtopic.php?id=1988&p=30#p1261485

List of 2A66 gun ammunition (D-91 gun)

What make them different from the regular 125 mm ammunition ?

Enhanced 105 mm gun with the longer XM24 gun tube (L/66) , this project was initiated in March 1983 and abandoned in the late 1980s.

Rare coulour pics of the aluminum-hulled Vickers main battle tank Mk. 4 (later renamed Valiant) with an early version of the Universal Turret :

I read somewhere that there will be a new book on the Challenger 2 MBT, can someone confirm this ?

2 hours ago, N-L-M said:

Upgrading the AVDS in the current year is a bit problematic. The owners of the old Continental Motors IP are currently L3 technologies, who do not seem to have a good handle on R&D for this property.

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As a point of fact, they offer no growth options that werent available before they bought out Continental.

Does it also concern the AVDS-1790 1500 HP ?

https://www2.l3t.com/cps/products/1500_hp.htm

https://archive.org/stream/AVDS17901500HP/AVDS 1790 1500 HP?ui=embed#mode/2up

21 hours ago, LoooSeR said:

  About a week ago Namer was put into position to warm its belly

This helps the digestion of its prey.

21 hours ago, Serge said:

So, the rear ramp door can open even when upside down. 

Fortunately.

Old documentary on the Merkava, including some factory footage (turret mold, suspension units, driver's compartment, ...) and of course, featuring Israel Tal :

Annual report (2017-2018) of the French-German Research Institute of Saint-Louis (ISL), it speaks of the MGCS and all the new technological challenges related to MBTs :

https://www.isl.eu/documents/annual-reports/isl-2017-2018-annual-report.pdf

The Zimbabwe performance during the tank biathlon was somewhat ...entertaining.