StuG III Thread (and also other German vehicles I guess)

[Walter_Sobchak]

I find it amusing that in order to pass anything through the the towing eyelet you have to unbolt the front fender on a Panther.

 

[Collimatrix]

Yeah, they didn't exactly think that one through.

 

I will be curious to see the gunner's periscope.  According to the British motion report, both the gunner and loader have periscopes that face not quite forward.  The loader's periscope faces the 2 o'clock position, and the gunner's periscope faces the 10 o'clock position.

 

This isn't terrible in the case of the loader's periscope; apparently it covers a blind spot that the commander can't see well.  Also, the loader's periscope could not face forward because there's a ventilation dome in the way.

 

What I'm terribly curious about is whether the gunner's periscope could be easily changed to face directly forward.  The fact that it did not in the panther (or any other big cat) was one of the reasons that the panther suffered such terrible target acquisition times.  Well, that and the glacially slow turret rotation on the early models.

 

Also, The_Chieftain's videos have been really good of late.  I feel like they've managed to cram about as much information as the decadent old four parters had into the two minute format.

 

The_Challenger's videos still suck though.  When are they going to fix that?

[Toxn]

Yeah, they didn't exactly think that one through.

Leitmotif of the entire panther project.

[LoooSeR]

Boxers for one of Baltics states, with Samson Mk2 turret.

 

 

 

[Bronezhilet]

Pictures of the rear and top of the Samson Mk.2, I think those are the first online.

[LoooSeR]

What is that?

[SuperComrade]

That is the SP-70 Tri-national howitzer prototype

http://www.military-today.com/artillery/sp70.htm

This photo says it is the Phase A prototype


 

[LoooSeR]

[LoooSeR]

After several millions years future humans will rediscover an ultimate armor.... 

[Walter_Sobchak]

[EnsignExpendable]

My uncle found a PzIV in a bog. Condition: used.

 

[Collimatrix]

Panther, part 2:

 

 

From the blooper reel:

 

"What the hell do those pulleys do?"

 

I suspect Chief is looking at the gun equilibrator system, which consisted, IIRC, of a series of four pulleys, steel cables, and a hydropneumatic cylinder.

 

In other tanks the same thing was achieved with a lead weight on the gun breech.

[SuperComrade]

The Panther's gun looks rather short in the thumbnail

[Collimatrix]

[LoooSeR]

[Walter_Sobchak]

This is a fun document.  It has more than just tanks of course.  I didn't really know what thread to post it in, so I put it here.  It has some nice info on Japanese weapons, as well as German stuff.  There is even a guide to interpreting Japanese markings.  

 

Catalog Of Enemy Ordnance Materiel

[Walter_Sobchak]

[LoooSeR]

Taken from otvaga.

 

Photos of Boxer RCT-30.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LoooSeR]

Again, otvaga is a source.

 

KF31 Lynx IFV photos, Part 1.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[LoooSeR]

KF31 Lynx IFV photos, Part 2.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

[Walter_Sobchak]

The Chieftain basically confirms that the Panther was not actually a practical tank.

 

[EnsignExpendable]

It was practically a tank! 

[Toxn]

The Chieftain basically confirms that the Panther was not actually a practical tank.

 

He seemed really taken aback by how cramped everything was, as well as how shit all the optics were.

 

I think the part that clinched it was contemplating just how insane normal maintenance on the front drives is. Nothing like pulling out the turret, entire interior and the hull roof just to service a component with a 150km lifespan.

[SH_MM]

Time to get some more Wiesels in here:

 

 

Wiesel eDK2 prototype with new running gear and suspension.

Source: flickr

 

 

Wiesel DIOK prototype with stretched hull, new shock dampeners and track spanners. Turret is mock-up. Might be fitted with the hydropneutic suspension units in the left of this picture (?).

Source: flickr

 

 

Wiesel with experimental hybrid drive (iirc. diesel-electrical) and fibre-composite roadwheels (weight reduction 45% to 55% compared to the oriuginal roadwheels).

Source: flickr

 

 

Wiesel 2 WITCH prototype. Can be remotely controlled as a UGV, but in general the German Army is still waiting for an official NATO standard for (UGV) software architecture.

[Jeeps_Guns_Tanks]

The Chieftain basically confirms that the Panther was not actually a practical tank.

So is there one covering the gunners and commanders spots?