Giant/Monster Tank Query

[Weaver]

The thing is for now just slightly narrower than a T28 and slightly wider than an applique-armoured Challenger 2...... any suggestion on if and how I can cut into the hull size?  I realized that a Baneblade-like heavy tank is very likely to end up bigger than a Challenger 2, but I still want to try limiting that growth in size as much as possible......

You could make the demo gun fixed in azimuth, or with only very limited traverse for fine correction, and have the driver responsible for aiming it by pointing the whole tank in the manner of an S-tank. After all, you've only likely to be firing it from the halt, and against a pretty big, close target. Unfortunately, you can't use the suspension for elevation in the manner of an S-tank because the required range would probably be too great, however that wouldn't benenfit width.

Your tank will need plenty of power to move it too, but then again, if you're making it wider (and maybe slightly taller?), that will automatically give you a bigger engine bay without increasing the length again. If it's seriously wide, strategic mobility becomes an issue, so you might consider making the track units removeable, in order to be able to get the hull onto a railcar. Obviously, this would need some serious handling equipment to load, dismantle and re-build the tank, but then again, super-heavy tanks are never going to be a cheap and easy option......

IIRC, the maximum length to width ratio for a tracked vehicle to able to skid steer effectively is about 1.8:1. That's measured by the length of track on the ground (i.e. not counting raised sprockets & idlers) and widthways from the centre of the width of each track.

[G777]

With the extra added length and slightly wider hull i would guess that would be enough. In the pic below i have made this (non detailed) tank to the specs you wanted. "The hull of this preliminary drawing is about 9.32m in length without the demolition gun and 4.31m in width, Height is 1.91m to the top of the hull and 3.06m to the top of the turret cupola. (Havnt added cupola just test turret). The colour is standard for new tanks in my computer.

And this program is different from my other one. So the roads are the wrong size.

Okay have to go. Busy busy.

[G777]

Okay my first gun tests. Any of these look good. Dont worry about making the tank any bigger. That thing could fit 2* 8 inch guns.

Craters are to scale. But in the program you do not see the explosive blast.

A bit like this...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7AB3MaLqz0&feature=related

The 8 inch would be good for HESH rounds.

Gotta go.

[dy031101]

Okay my first gun tests.

Cool!  

Any of these look good. Dont worry about making the tank any bigger. That thing could fit 2* 8 inch guns.

When you said "short-barrel" for the 120mm mortar in the pic...... what's the barrel length again?

2000 yard maximum for adaptation of Japanese 8"/L12 gun...... that's around 1829m.  As for having low velocity, I've come under the impression that it likely wouldn't be much of a liability for an anti-personnel/fortification weapon.

[G777]

When you said "short-barrel" for the 120mm mortar...... what's the barrel length again?

2000 yard maximum for adaptation of Japanese 8"/L12 gun...... that's around 1829m.
[/quote]

Gun Length oa = 99.21 in (2.520 m)
Bore Length    = 96.0 in (2.438 m)
Rifling Length  = 78.1 in (1.984 m)

Thats the barrel length. I basically just stuck in the whole japanese 8 inch gun. To get better accuracy i could increase the barrel length.

I showed the tank to my little brother who is 12. He said it was cool and I let him drive it. And he started popping buildings.  Exterminate BANG

We did target practice on a skysrcaper with the 8 inch. At times the shell would land within yards of eachother but then if there is just a small gust of wind the shell lands like 200 yards from when it last hit.

2000 yards? is that what you want. If so say yes. And then i will set the gun to elevate with lower angles. At the moment its set to max elevation of 75 degrees. I could lower it to about 10 degrees maybe less.

Oh if you made an top view please show me. Incase i make the tank that doesnt match what you want. I will get back to the guns.

Here is how bloomin annoying the 8 inch gun is...

I was trying to hit the little red and white shed. But the shells kept landing away from each other. I fired for like 6 minutes and still didnt hit the damn thing.


I wonder how many ships they sank with that gun?

[dy031101]

2000 yards? is that what you want. If so say yes. And then i will set the gun to elevate with lower angles. At the moment its set to max elevation of 75 degrees. I could lower it to about 10 degrees maybe less.

Well as of now I'm using Wikipedia entry for the 165mm demolition gun (2400m; 2624.67 yard according to online conversion tool) for reference.  Heck the predecessor Petard Mortar was said to be like 100m in terms of range.

Oh if you made an top view please show me.

It'll take a while......  

I wonder how many ships they sank with that gun?

Well that gun was used by Japanese counterpart of auxilliary cruisers, and Japan never had nearly as much success in commerce-raiding as their German counterparts.

[G777]

I dropped a bomb on it!

Ill get back to you later. I will try the Petard Mortar gun, then i will extend the barrel to see what its performance is. And i will save the 8 inch incase incase you want that.

[dy031101]

And i will save the 8 inch incase incase you want that.

Set to 2400m and see if you would still be as much affected by wind gust as before?

As for the Petard Mortar, its shell is said to be unaerodynamic.  I wonder if that can be fixed (along with adoptation of breech-loading mechanism) or is it just how a Petard bomb is.

[G777]

All right i will do that.

Extending barrel.

I will get it. I have made guns in the real world and in simulations and i am not getting beaten by a 8 inch gun!

Meet 41 inch ICC. The Inter Continental Cannon!

[dy031101]

Extending barrel.

I meant checking for the original short gun's ability to maintain accuracy at range within 2400m.

[G777]

I DID IT. But we will have to work on it tomorrow. I need my sleep.

[G777]

Extending barrel.

I meant checking for the original short gun's ability to maintain accuracy at range within 2400m.

Okay i will do that tommorow. Later man.

[dy031101]

IIRC, the maximum length to width ratio for a tracked vehicle to able to skid steer effectively is about 1.8:1. That's measured by the length of track on the ground (i.e. not counting raised sprockets & idlers) and widthways from the centre of the width of each track.

That means the width can be as little as 3.87m (plus a tad more to accommodate trackguard and sideskirt) although, yeah, your point of increased width giving room to a bigger engine bay is also valid......  

(Also, being wider and probably longer also means more room for ammo, especially for G777's long-projectile siege adaptations for various guns.)

Would I be able to reduce length?  Preferably if I can end up having only seven pairs of roadwheels- I'll ditch the Hortsmann suspension in that case.



==================================================================



This whole intellectual exercise actually reminds me of a plan I used to harbour before Games Workshop released their own Baneblade Super Heavy Tank: basically something like this using heavy bolter sponsons and a standard battle cannon directly taken from Leman Russ tank but with the hull-mounted battle cannon replaced with an old Griffon mortar.  Supposed to represent my take on a so-called "Second Generation Baneblade".  That and Wikipedia's statement that a 120mm mortar shell can have as much explosive as a conventional 155mm artillery shell......

The idea in turn led me to think of another super heavy tank concept, based on enlarged Excelsior infantry tank...... maybe this time with Eastern-Bloc weapons- a 160mm mortar in the hull- and a torsion bar suspensions set based on some Soviet design..... I still need to figure out the turreted gun though since the only Eastern-Bloc gun I can think of as being more well-known as an AT gun than its HE potential is the 100mm.

And then I still haven't been done thinking-of/tweaking this Chieftain derivative super heavy......



==================================================================

Okay i will do that tommorow. Later man.

Looking forward to it.  



==============================================================



More examples of monster tanks and superheavy tanks:

• Unknown Monster Tank
• Overlord tank in C&C: Generals
• Macharius heavy tank in Warhammer 40000
• Mammoth tank in C&C

[G777]

Well. I have put on the original 8 inch gun. Do you want me to put the gun further into the hull? It will take practice to hit a small target. But when shooting large buildings they should be easier to hit. Typically 2 to 4 storeys high.

Now about your main gun got any ideas for that. Oh and that unknown tank is suppose to be the P.1000 Ratte. Everyone has different ideas of what it looks like. I made a tank from command and conquer. Can you guess what this is suppose to be...

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xyMi4GAQU9E

[dy031101]

Do you want me to put the gun further into the hull?

Just far enough so that only the barrel is sticking out (or as close to this way as possible)?

Now about your main gun got any ideas for that.

I'm torn between the US-made 105mm Gun T8 (this might better justify having a demolition gun and possibly a HE thrower in the hull) and the German 12.8cm Pak-44 (big gun for big tank...... sounds natural  ) for the turret armament......