More Chieftain's Hatchiness

[Gavin-Phillips]

I bet the troop compartment of a BMD-1 or BMD-2 isn't a comfy place to be either.

[Inhapi]

or the Wiesel

[Manic Moran]

or the Wiesel

 

I climbed into a Wiesel command vehicle two months ago.

I was quite comfortable.

 

​

[bojan]

Size of vehicle is often deceptive about crew comfort. Soviet light T-60/70 tanks are quite roomy inside despite being small.

[Inhapi]

 

or the Wiesel

 

I climbed into a Wiesel command vehicle two months ago.

I was quite comfortable.

 

​

 

 

It does seem so indeed, seems like a well laid out vehicle, my appreciation for it only increases the more i get to know about it.

[shep854]

I was wondering about tactical employment, if an AFV could be so low that visibility and range of fire would be compromised.

[shep854]

Chieftain can into Abrams!

[DKTanker]

Track tensioning on the M1 is fairly simply albeit messy. Start with a high pressure grease gun, something that can't be found at Autozone. In any case, you pump grease into the adjusting link which forces the piston to extend from the cylinder thus push the idler forward and increasing track tension. You continue to pump grease into the link until a pop off valve releases thus informing you the correct amount of tension has been applied whereupon you screw a locking ring back down the threaded rod of the adjusting link piston until it seats on the cylinder. To release track tension the locking ring is screwed back up the adjusting link a few inches and a screw driver is used to pry up the pop off valve thus releasing grease from the cylinder and reducing the track tension. And yes, it is every bit as messy as you can imagine.

 

Additionally:

 

The ring sight below the TC machine gun mount is for boresighting the weapon. Yes, it could be used as an auxiliary site should the periscope sight be out of commission, just wanted to clarify. BTW, some may not realize, but both an M2 and M240 can be mounted on the CWS. Obviously not at the same time.

 

The coaxial ready box on the M1A1 holds 4000 rounds, and believe me, not one more. A real PITA to load too.

 

There are actually two rear fuel tank filler caps on the M1 to allow filling from either side. As the rear fuel tanks are connected by a free flowing cross pipe using only one side is necessary however most crews would open the opposite side to allow air to escape while refueling. I'm not really sure that helped.

 

I don't know about the APU in the turret system, but an additional problem with the piece of crap hanging off the right rear is that the APU didn't draw fuel from the tank's on board supply, rather, every few hours a crew member had to fill up the APU fuel tank.

Edited October 14, 2018 by DKTanker

[shep854]

'Warm up the crosswind sensor...' Sounds like a rite

Edited October 14, 2018 by shep854

[Interlinked]

Great video! Wish it could have been longer though. No, 34 minutes isn't enough

[DKTanker]

Regarding getting around the height requirements, my wingman's gunner was a former Tight End for UTEP (University of Texas El Paso). He graced our presence at 6'5" 245 lbs and managed to knock out a couple of Iraqi tanks along the way.

[Wiedzmin]

it will be interesting to measure free space for each crew member with some sort of ruler/measure tape, from shoulder to shoulder etc, i think it would give a clearer understanding of the free space in the tank, regardless of the size of the person inside the tank, but considering that there is very little space in the tank, it may be very difficult to do...

 

p.s great video. thank you

Edited October 14, 2018 by Wiedzmin

[shep854]

Regarding getting around the height requirements, my wingman's gunner was a former Tight End for UTEP (University of Texas El Paso). He graced our presence at 6'5" 245 lbs and managed to knock out a couple of Iraqi tanks along the way.

Wow. I imagine that, if they had had to bail, that gunner would have ejected the TC out the hatch, if he didn't unass fast enough!

Edited October 14, 2018 by shep854

[DogDodger]

Great video. Especially enjoyed the smoke grenade launcher discussion.

[Adam_S]

If Nick happens to be passing by, I'd love to know his thoughts on what the best tank in the world is if it's not the M1.

[Coldsteel]

I imagine the response would boil down to just two words: Define "Best".

[Manic Moran]

That, also tempered with the fact that I have not as much as physically seen a good slew of the current generation, so how would I be in a position to judge?

[rmgill]

Nick, obviously you need to sample more tanks! Get cracking!

I imagine the response would boil down to just two words: Define "Best".

Plus the "does Nick fit into it" criteria.

[Jim Warford]

Hope this isn't a repost...

 

[Coldsteel]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98JbJuXE3JE

It's the Youtube comments that do it for me:

I heard that the U.S. Ordnance Department was aware of the Sherman being a 'Tommy Cooker', and attempted to implement various measures to address this issue. The design team was lead by Sheldon Rosenstein, a convicted child-beater, arsonist, and avid necrophiliac. Sheldon was reportedly pen-pals with Shiro Ishii, and Oskar Dirlewanger. When questioned about these letters outgoing to hostile countries, Sheldon replied that he was merely exchanging 'tips and tricks'. Sheldon's team designed a mechanism that would lock the crew hatches shut, thus trapping the crew, when smoke was detected inside the sherman after being penetrated and set alight. Not only that, but apparently there was also a following feature that was a re-take on the Brazen Bull. When the crew was burning to death, their screams would be amplified by speakers that projected outside the tank. The U.S. Ordnance Department justified these features by proclaiming that the Germans would be frightened by the hellish screams of the sherman crews being incinerated, and allied soldiers would be more motivated to fight hard, lest the same fate befall them. Sheldon also later devised a system that had a 1 in 59 chance of setting off an explosive charge in the ammunition storage every time the Sherman's engine was turned on. Supposedly, this was to 'test the crew's luck before battle'. This innovation was well-received by the U.S. Army, but was rejected for budgetary reasons. Upon receiving news of the Army's rejection, Sheldon bludgeoned his manservant to death with a fire iron in a fit of unstoppable rage. Years after the war, Sheldon tragically died in a fire, of which he had started in a New York orphanage.

 

Ah, the infamous Sherman. Often referred to as the 'Tommy Cooker' by the Germans. The nickname referred to when the Germans starving from lack of rations, would scavenge destroyed Sherman tanks for the precious cooked meat inside. In fact, the designers of the Sherman designed it to light every time, so that cooking of the crews was guaranteed. Of course, the Germans would often eat the allied tank crews whether they were cooked or not, regardless. My grandpappy told me this in great detail when I was a young boy. Truly the horrors of war. Why couldn't we just use the war winning T-34 like the Russians?

 

My sides hurt now

[Markus Becker]

 

or the Wiesel

 

I climbed into a Wiesel command vehicle two months ago.

I was quite comfortable.

 

We can probably blame that on the modern realisation that ergonomics is important. Hm, I wonder if there are AFV of the same-ish era that are too cramped for crew efficiency.

[sunday]

 

 

or the Wiesel

 

I climbed into a Wiesel command vehicle two months ago.

I was quite comfortable.

 

We can probably blame that on the modern realisation that ergonomics is important. Hm, I wonder if there are AFV of the same-ish era that are too cramped for crew efficiency.

 

 

We managed to see through the rear doors of a BMP at one of the Czech Bahna events, and the interior for the riflemen seemed very, very tight.

[Markus Becker]

I sat in both and that is indeed not as roomy as the rear of a Marder. Maybe we also need to differanciate between western and comblock vehicles.

[nitflegal]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=98JbJuXE3JE

 

It's the Youtube comments that do it for me:

I heard that the U.S. Ordnance Department was aware of the Sherman being a 'Tommy Cooker', and attempted to implement various measures to address this issue. The design team was lead by Sheldon Rosenstein, a convicted child-beater, arsonist, and avid necrophiliac. Sheldon was reportedly pen-pals with Shiro Ishii, and Oskar Dirlewanger. When questioned about these letters outgoing to hostile countries, Sheldon replied that he was merely exchanging 'tips and tricks'. Sheldon's team designed a mechanism that would lock the crew hatches shut, thus trapping the crew, when smoke was detected inside the sherman after being penetrated and set alight. Not only that, but apparently there was also a following feature that was a re-take on the Brazen Bull. When the crew was burning to death, their screams would be amplified by speakers that projected outside the tank. The U.S. Ordnance Department justified these features by proclaiming that the Germans would be frightened by the hellish screams of the sherman crews being incinerated, and allied soldiers would be more motivated to fight hard, lest the same fate befall them. Sheldon also later devised a system that had a 1 in 59 chance of setting off an explosive charge in the ammunition storage every time the Sherman's engine was turned on. Supposedly, this was to 'test the crew's luck before battle'. This innovation was well-received by the U.S. Army, but was rejected for budgetary reasons. Upon receiving news of the Army's rejection, Sheldon bludgeoned his manservant to death with a fire iron in a fit of unstoppable rage. Years after the war, Sheldon tragically died in a fire, of which he had started in a New York orphanage.

 

Ah, the infamous Sherman. Often referred to as the 'Tommy Cooker' by the Germans. The nickname referred to when the Germans starving from lack of rations, would scavenge destroyed Sherman tanks for the precious cooked meat inside. In fact, the designers of the Sherman designed it to light every time, so that cooking of the crews was guaranteed. Of course, the Germans would often eat the allied tank crews whether they were cooked or not, regardless. My grandpappy told me this in great detail when I was a young boy. Truly the horrors of war. Why couldn't we just use the war winning T-34 like the Russians?

 

My sides hurt now

After a few weeks as a docent at the American Heritage Museum I can say the most common questions are (in order) what's the log for on the T-34, what is the weird welding on the Panther (the zimmerit) and why do the Sherman tanks burst into flame when hit by a thrown rock and why didn't we fix that?

[Tim the Tank Nut]

I couldn't do that job...