Bob,
Sounds like a plan. I hope Jeaton has something for you. [:D]
Gamera,
The complicated track system is why I stay away from armor! Good luck!
Gary
The FV4005 “Doombarn”
The development of the L4 started in 1950, and was aimed at increasing the firepower of the ‘Heavy Gun Tanks’. This was a uniquely British designation that was not governed by tank weight, but the size of the gun. A requirement was formulated for a tank armed with a gun capable of defeating a 60-degree sloped plate, 6 inches (152 mm) thick, at up to 2,000 yards (1,830 meters), a feat impossible even for the powerful 120 mm L1 gun of the FV214 Conqueror. By 1950, Major General Stuart B. Rawlins, Director General of Artillery (D.G. of A.) had concluded that there was no gun available with that level of ballistic performance and an investigation was launched. Initially, the British Military looked at the development of a 155 mm gun that would be standardized with the USA. However, even this lacked the required punch and, as such, 6.5 and 7.2 inch (165 and 183 mm respectively) High-Explosive Squash Head (HESH) shells were looked at.
It was not until December 1952 that the designation of the gun was officially updated to 183 mm. The design of the gun was accepted and was serialized as the ‘Ordnance, Quick-Firing, 183 mm, Tank, L4 Gun’. In reality, only the HESH shell underwent further development and the number of charges was dropped to one. The 183 mm L4 became one of the largest and most powerful tank guns in the world.
The design of the vehicle would be held in limbo, ready to go into production if necessary. This stopgap vehicle would be based on the Centurion of the FV4000 series, with the original turret removed. The vehicle would go through two ‘Stages’ or ‘Schemes’. ‘Stage 1’ was built to test the gun and its mount on the Centurion chassis. The ‘Stage 2’ was a finalized design and would be the production standard. The vehicle was given the designation of ‘Heavy Anti-Tank, SP, No. 1’ – ‘SP’ standing for ‘Self-Propelled’. Officially, the FV4005 was never given the traditional British ‘C’ name such as the FV4101 Charioteer and FV4004 Conway before it.
In total three prototypes were ordered – a single Stage 1, and two Stage 2s. The FV4005 would fill the role of a ‘Heavy Gun Tank’. As such, the vehicle would engage targets from long-range, firing over the heads of attacking lighter tanks.
The Centurion was chosen as the basis for this vehicle and three Mk.3 hulls were removed from service for the prototype development. Other than the removal of the turret and various small additions, the hull would remain mostly unaltered. Armor on the hull remained the same thickness, with about 3 inches (76 mm) at roughly 60 degrees on the front slope. A 650 hp Rolls-Royce Meteor petrol engine, located at the rear of the vehicle, propelled the tank. The Centurion used a Horstmann style suspension, with 3 bogies per side carrying 2 wheels each. The drive sprocket was at the rear with the idler at the front. The driver was located at the front right of the hull.
The Stage 2 was built closest to what a production version of the FV4005 would consist of. As such, a number of changes were made between the two Stages. The biggest change was the design and construction of a fully enclosed turret to the form of little more than a large box. The loading assist for the loader was also deleted, and the concentric recoil system was replaced by a hydropneumatic type.
The turret was welded and fabricated from ½ inch (14 mm) thick steel and was there to protect the crew from small arms fire and shell splinters. As this was intended to be a second line vehicle that would keep out of the range of enemy AFVs, the FV4005 did not need really thick armor. There were two hatches on the roof and one large door on the rear. The roof hatches were two-piece and, in front of them, were two single periscopes installed in the turret roof.
Like the Stage 1, the Stage 2 featured a recoil spade installed at the rear of the vehicle. However, on the Stage 2, a hand-cranked winch was installed on the rear of the vehicle to lower the spade.
Despite the general success of the project, the FV4005 suffered much the same fate as the FV215. The feared Soviet heavy tanks, like the IS-3, which these vehicles were designed to defeat, were not being made in the massive numbers expected, indicating a shift in policy to lighter, more maneuverable, and more lightly armored tanks. The need for ‘Heavy Gun Tanks’ like the Conqueror, FV215 and the FV4005 stand-in, from this perspective, was simply becoming absent. Other changes were also taking place as technology-wise, larger caliber guns with their huge ammunition were becoming obsolete by improved anti-armor performance of smaller guns and by the appearance of a new generation of accurate Anti-Tank Guided Missiles (ATGM).
Thanks Gary! Guess I should have posted that but I’m lazy… [|-)]
I love the British, they don’t do anything halfway! The whole thing is so batguano over-the-top you have to love it.
Gamera,
I’m going to post information on lots of X-craft, so it’s not necessary for people to post information about their builds. [:D]
To build a tank destroyer you think they might have built one like the Stug or SU-100. The turret with such a large gun reminds me of the Tiger in “Kelly’s Heroes” being unable to turn.
Gary
Yeah, the turret is like the one on the US Army’s M-18 Super Hellcat where they replaced the normal 76mm gun with a 90mm. The commander was given strict orders never to fire the gun with the turret turned more than 30 degrees from centreline since they were worried the recoil would flip the whole TD on it’s side or upside down.
There’s some minor filling and sanding left to do, but she’s about ready for paint. I’ll see if I can give her a coating of primer tomorrow.
Overall, this is an enjoyable build. The wheel covers fit snugly, so there was minor filll required. The only fill that’s really required is the part at the rear of the canopy. Don’t know why they didn’t make it part of the main fuselage or canopy instead of a separate piece. Oh, well!
Gary
Looks good Gary! Looking forward to seeing the cool orange on there!
I’m going to go ahead a get started. This a 1/72 combo kit from Takom Of the Krupp Raumer S and the Sd.kfz 617 Minenraumer.
I haven’t done a 1/72 kit in a while and am definitely a little taken aback by the parts size, but I’ve done smaller. The build starts with the Minenraumer. The main body is just two pieces with most of the build taken up with the vehicles three massive wheels.
And all of those pieces build up into these.
Now I’ll let everything dry nice and hard and then begin sanding all of those seams on the wheel pads. This little guy really is going togther quickly and should be ready for paint tomorrow.
Cary,
Looks like a lot of fiddly bits, but it’s coming along. That’s the problem with 1/72nd, they go together so quickly. [:D]
Good job!
Gary
Thanks Gary. This baby is going together quicker than I thought. Very few parts on the Raumer S. Here’s where I am on that. Painting next.
Yeah you’ve got some significant work done there Cary! [Y]
I’m in if it’s not too late. I have this coming next week [H]
Cary,
Good work on the Raumer! I look forward to seeing them finished. [:)]
Keavdog,
Glad to have you with us! I have this kit and look forward to seeing your build.
As for me, I’ve finally got some orange paint that should work. We’ll see.
Gary
The VsKfz 617 Minenräumer
Built in the Alkett factory near Berlin, the VsKfz 617 Minenräumer was heavily armored and designed to detonate mines by simply rolling over them. (VsKfz is short for Versuchs Kraftfahrzeug, meaning “test vehicle.”) The three-wheeled vehicle’s wide track was designed to clear a mine-free path for other vehicles to safely travel. The sole prototype carried the Alkett chassis number of 9537 and was registered as NK-101. Unfortunately, much solid information on this vehicle has been lost to history.
The Alkett VsKfz 617 had two large main power wheels at its front. A smaller, caster-style rear wheel was used for turning. Via power take offs and clutches, turning the steering wheel engaged worm shafts on both sides of the hull. The worm shafts operated in opposite directions—one side drew in a chain while the other slackened a separate chain. The chains extended through the VsKfz 617’s hull and were connected to each side of the rear wheel, rotating it as the driver turned the steering wheel. There is no indication that any differential steering was available.
Each wheel was made up of 10 links and 10 thick, heavy, solid shoes. The pin that connected two links also attached a shoe. Three of the shoes would come together on the ground for each wheel. The total of nine shoes gave the VsKfz 617 ample ground contact. The thick shoes were also resistant to damage from mine blasts. Damaged individual shoes and links could be easily replaced.
The VsKfz 617’s transmission was positioned in middle of the vehicle. A shaft led from each side of the transmission and engaged the gearing for the main wheels.
A Maybach HL-120 V-12 engine was situated transversely behind the transmission. This gasoline engine produced 300 hp (224 kW) from its 4.13 in (105 mm) bore and 4.53 (115 mm) stroke cylinders. Its total displacement was 729 cu in (11.9 L). Two radiators were positioned behind the engine. Cooling air was brought in from ducts on the upper middle of the VsKfz 617 and expelled through vents on its upper rear. A 190 gallon (720 L) fuel tank was positioned above the rear wheel.
The VsKfz 617’s hull had about 39 in (1 m) of ground clearance that helped protect the crew from mine detonations. Furthermore, the bottom of the vehicle’s hull consisted of 1.58 in (40 mm) thick armor plating, with an additional 0.79 in (20 mm) of armor sheeting inside—creating a double hull. The rest of the vehicle’s hull thickness varied from 0.39 to 1.58 in (10 to 40 mm).
For defensive armament, the VsKfz 617 prototype had a Panzer I turret with two 7.92 mm MG 34 machine guns. However, the production version would have a Panzer II turret with a single 20 mm KwK 30 L/55 cannon and one MG 34 machine gun. The driver occupied the left side of the vehicle and saw out via a small slit in the upper armor. A rear wheel position indicator was just in front of the driver’s view. The vehicle’s commander was on the right, operating the turret. The VsKfz 617 was 20.6 ft (6.28 m) long, 10.6 ft (3.22 m) wide, and 9.5 ft (2.90 m) tall. It weighed 55 tons (50 tonne).
Testing of the VsKfz 617 started as soon as it was completed in 1942. It was quickly found that the VsKfz 617’s method for steering was unsatisfactory and that the vehicle was slow and hard to handle. To make matters worse, its immense weight caused the vehicle to easily get bogged down. The VsKfz 617 and plans for its manufacture were abandoned after the tests.
Must have been an exciting rider for the driver!
I can imagine! Especially if the area was heavily mined!
I’ve managed to get a coat of primer on, which was Mr. Surfacer 1000. It revealed a few places that needs more sanding. I’ll do that and maybe it will be ready for paint.
Gary
Gary-the X-1 has come together nicely-gonna look great in orange.
Cary-very interesting subject-never knew such a vehicle existed. Your’s is coming along nicely-parts too tiny for me though.
John-great to see an X-15 in the mix. I kinda remember building one in my youth. Looking forward to watching your build.
It’s here!
John,
That’s great! Look forward to seeing what you do with it.
As for me, I’ve once again chosen the wrong color, which seems strange as I use Tamiya TS12, which to me appears to be the RIGHT color, but it appears too dark, almost “burnt orange”. In this photo, it looks lighter, but its definately darker than it looks.
I wonder if I had used a white primer instead of the grey it would have made a difference?
Well, nothing to do now but give it a light sanding and try again. I’ve have to find a different orange. I’m trying to match this, as it appeared when testing.
Gary
John: Ohhhhh that looks cool!
Gary: Hmmm, I’d think the colour would change depending on the lighting conditions. And it would probably fade badly in the hot SW desert sun.