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Apr 19, 2013

Porsche Unleashed

Author: Yuri Pasholok
Source: http://world-of-kwg.livejournal.com/187002.html

Two weeks after making the first variant of the VK100.01(P), Professor Ferdinand Porsche prepared a buffed version, designated Typ 205. This comes from a drawing no.K3382, dated 17.6.1942




Since the Führer already requested the tank to be slow, the engineers really unleashed it this time. The armor was increased overall. Combat weight increased from 120 tons to 140 tons, but the engine (a V16, most likely Porsche Typ 191) remained the same. However, it didn't end with the armor increase. The Führer decided that in order to fight the Soviet infantry, a short-barreled gun is needed. The designers fulfilled the will of Hitler with the directness of German Ordnung. Instead of installing a commander's copula, they did put one more small turret on top and fitted it with the 75mm KwK L/24. The idea, that was already in the head of Soviet engineers designing the KV-4 proved to be infectious.

However, in July 1942 it was decided to start from scratch. Since Krupp started to desire by that time to produce a turret of their own, even Porsche realized that it makes no sense to make this on the current chassis. And so they began to work on a radically re-designed project, which started to be called in July "Panzerkampfwagen Mäuschen".

SS: whenever I read about Porsche, I just always remember this:

23 comments:

  1. This is why you do not have an automobile engineer design tanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. To be fair Porsche did make other, saner designs.
      What he never really got was the need for low maintenance operationally, something that marred all his developments.

      Delete
    2. What an idiot....

      Delete
    3. -Zarax

      With the noticeable exception of his most famous design ever, the Volkswagen, and in extension the Kubelwagen. Now that was a light, simplistic and rugged design that soldiers on both sides gladly used when they got their hands on them.

      Delete
    4. Well, my comment was exclusively on tank design.
      I've got the utmost respect on Porsche cars, it's just that his tanks were never considered reliable.

      Delete
    5. Can't argue much with that.:)
      The concept with electric drive in itself is sound enough, we see it all around in diesel locomotives forexample, but he just didn't have the time and resources to make it work.

      Delete
    6. It'd been in use in locomotives for decades by that point - hence why it got put in the Saint-Chamond in '17 (the manufacturer's background apparently involved rolling stock). Worked well enough -the Chamond was actually one of the fastest tanks of the Great War- but a real pain to maintain apparently which might sound familiar.
      Anyways, electric engines need copper which AFAIK was a scarce strategic resource in wartime Germany so Porsche's insistence on sticking a petrol-electric powertrain in about all of his tanks was basically economic lunacy.

      As a minor aside nothing much ever came of the VW civilian model before the end of the war, hardly an uncommon occurrence with the Reich's assorted Volkswhatever projects - the Volksempfänger radio receiver was AFAIK about the only one that actually worked out as intented (and it had some very useful spin-off consequences too).

      Delete
  2. Yo dawg!
    I heard you liked big ugly turrets so we put a big ugly turret on a big ugly turret.

    Maybe we'll see this as the 1st of April joke after the multiturret feature have been released?

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  3. Wow....that gun elevation O.o Thats something else right there...gotta give the germans credit, they do have some interesting designs.

    -SgtShidner

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Lol...*Enemy sitting up on a cliff with you in this below him*..."Come on...pop over the edge...i DARE you..."

      Delete
  4. The phrase I think you want is "back to the drawing board"

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. "Back to the roots" would be a proper translation ... from "Zurück zu den Wurzeln"... from there the tree starts to grow...

      Delete
    2. to start from scratch

      http://idioms.thefreedictionary.com/start+from+scratch

      ;)

      Delete
    3. I know about that one. It's not what I had in mind, but for the sake of comprehension it will do.

      Delete
  5. you brought back sweet memories with that piece of soundtrack... :)

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  6. Most of design and technology and indeed the concept of a cheap, simple peoples car was the work of Josef Ganz who designed and engineered a number of prototypes as well as promoting the concept in numerous articles in the automotive press. But in the Germany of the time Ganz, being Jewish, had the whole thing appropriated and was lucky to escape to Switzerland.

    Hitler was taken with the idea and assigned Ferdinand Porsche to develop Ganz's work into a mass production car.

    In one respect it was good that Ganz did not get the chance to show what he could do with tanks.

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. I'm sorry, but this is bullshit.
      The idea of a peoples car was all around the world at that time. And the concept of the beetle was developed by a hungarian called Béla Barényi.

      Delete
  7. They should totally do a remake of this game.

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  8. By the by, is it just me or does this design look suspiciously like it'd have had problems with the center of gravity being too high up...?

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  9. Yo Dawg! I heard you like turrets!

    ReplyDelete

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