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BenjaminLiottel · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Jul 07, 2006 Posts: 47

All I know is these are plans for a presumably unbuilt Russian WWI "Big Wheel" machine. During this time many countries were experimenting with using the big-wheel vehicles, most noteably the Russians with their Tsar Tank.

All I know is the vehicle is called the "Snail Tank". The plans are scanned out of a fairly recent book, but they seem very faded. I would love to get a translation of all the text.

Thanks in advance to anyone willing to translate it!

---

JimWeb

Speaking of big ugly impractical russian monstrosities.

Has anyone got any images of the Tsar tank with the solid wheels - probably conceptual..

Cool

armyjunk2 · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Sep 22, 2006 Posts: 1416

PLANS FOR EARLY RUSSIAN TANKS...

panthertank · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Jan 27, 2006 Posts: 23

- JimWeb

Speaking of big ugly impractical russian monstrosities.

Has anyone got any images of the Tsar tank with the solid wheels - probably conceptual..

Found one in the book Russian tanks 1900-1970 by John Milson

BenjaminLiottel · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Jul 07, 2006 Posts: 47

That picture is of the Tsar tank with wire spoke wheels.

An argument can be made that the wires spoke wheels would be extremely easy targets for artillery fire.

I believe what Jim was saying, is that there was an idea to fit the Tsar Tank with solid wheels, rather than spoked wheels. Such a wheel might hold integrity better after being hit by artillery fire.

If there was such a plan, it could never have been implemented. The Tsar tank could barely move under its own power with the spoked wheels. Give it far heavier solid wheels, and the thing probably wouldn't be able to move at all.

---Vil.

palic · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Mar 03, 2006 Posts: 172

Translation of "description" is here:
A project of gigantic moving artillery battery named "Improved Tortoise", created by engineer-designer NAWROTSKOW in 1917.
Expected weight: 192 tons (holly sh..t)
Driven by front "ball shaped" wheel.
Armament: 203 mm Howitzer - 2pcs, 152 mm Gun - 2 pcs, 102 mm Gun - 4 pcs, 76,2 mm Gun - 8 pcs, Machine Gun - 10 pcs.
This was not the only concept of such huge/gigantic combat vehicle.

BenjaminLiottel · ***Power User*** Offline Joined: Jul 07, 2006 Posts: 47

Thank you very much Palic!

There were many ideas like this in WWI.

"Oh, lets make a vehicle as big as a football field, armed with weapons fit for a battleship!"

"How are you going to move the thing?"

"With an engine! Duh!"

Inevitably, all of these Super War Vehicles ended up being dead ends. Remember, a standard British WWI tank could only move as fast as a stumbling foot soldier. How any engineer of the times actually thought they could propel an "Improved Tortoise", Tsar Tank, or even the K-Wagen, is beyond me. The only "Super Tank" ever built that was partially succesful was the French FCM-2C tanks, far smaller, but still a monstrous vehicle.

This "Improved Tortoise" is just another in a long list of incredibly bizarre impossible vehicles that people dreampt up around the time of WWI.

Again, thank you very much Palic.

---Vil.

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