T-44 scratchbuild 1:25

[Daimyo]

Hello all. I'd like to present my new project - soviet medium tank T-44. I'm working on it for some time. It's designed in 3ds max. There will be no interior as haven't found enough suitable photos.



Here's the history of the tank. The T-44 was a medium tank first produced towards the end of the Second World War by the Soviet Union. The design became the basis for the T-54/55 series of main battle tanks, the most-produced tank of all time.

In 1943 work began on a new medium tank that would make be an improved design compared to the T-34. It had to retain mobility of T-34, but feature heavier armour. This new tank received T-44 designation. The first prototype was completed by January 1944 and two more were completed in February. The first two prototypes were armed with 85 mm D-5T guns and received the designation T-44-85, while the third prototype was armed with the 122 mm D-25-44T tank gun and received the designation T-44-122. What allowed to mount such a powerful gun in a medium tank was the perpendicular placement of the engine in relation to the axis of the tank. The hull was designed without sponsons. It was also much wider which made the crew compartment bigger and allowed the turret to be placed over the center part of the vehicle. The thickness of the armour was 75 mm on the front of the hull and 90 mm on the front of the turret. The side armour was 45 mm thick and could be reinforced by 30 mm thick additional armour plate. All three prototypes were powered by the V-2IS diesel engine which developed 500 hp (373 kW). The turret was similar to T-34/85's but was a bit longer and didn't have a pronounced neck and the bottom. There was no hull radio operator/machine gunner position. A new torsion bar suspension was used, though some elements (idler, driving wheel, roadwheels and tracks) were adopted from T-34/85.

The first trials of T-44-122 prototype showed it's shortcomings (limited ammo stowage and slow rate of fire) and this variant was cancelled. Some faults were also found in T-44-85 design and by May 1944 two second-generation prototypes were being built. One of these prototypes passed trials in June and July 1944. This prototype weighed 31.3 tonnes and was armed with an 85 mm ZiS-S-53 gun.

The third generation prototype received the designation T-44A. The hull upper front armour thickness was increased to 90 mm and the turret front armour thickness was increased to 120 mm. Even though it was more heavily armoured, the weight went down to 30.7 tonnes. This vehicle had a new V-44 12-cylinder 4-stroke diesel engine of 520 hp (388 kW) at 1,800 rpm, which allowed the tank to travel at a speed of 60.5 km/h. Drivers hatch was moved entirely to the roof of the hull and the vision flap was replaced by a vision slot. After trials and after it received several upgrades (which increased the weight of the vehicle to 32 tonnes), the T-44A officially entered service with the Red Army on the 23 November 1944. 1823 T-44s were produced during 1944–1947 and it remained in service with the Soviet Army until the end of the 1970s.

Another prototype based on T-44A was armed with a 100 mm gun and uparmored among other upgrades. It evolved into T-54. In 1961 some T-44As were modified to T-44M by using components of T-54.

The model in 3ds max


The hull




The idler wheel


The driving wheel


Roadwheels


Here's how the model looks now with added mudguards, tool boxes and fuel tanks






I'm currently building the tracks. Some work there - each piece consists of 14 or 20 parts.

[dkaniel]

WOW!!! I love it! That is some excellent work there. Any chance this might be made available for those of us who are not as talented in the design and building as you are?

[doctormax]

I say that looks great the wheels you built there just look super.

[Don Boose]

Beautiful work!

Don

[Chris Knowlton]

WOW! Beautiful work and I really like the mud spatter. Looks absolutely full size.

Chris

[vanhasen]

Impressive, I especially like the rounded shapes on the lower part of hull.

[Daimyo]

Thank you for your comments a lot, guys!

dkaniel, I hope to find a publisher interested in this model.

vanhansen, I think that has something to do with better protection against mines, but I might be wrong.

Some more photos. Left side tracks are finished too.

[Tim Crowe]

Be great if this were released as a commercial kit!

The quality is great.

Tim

[jimkrauzlis]

Outstanding! I love the way you constructed the treads, very realistic looking.

Can't wait to see more of you work on this design. Thank you for sharing photos of your work with us!

Cheers!
Jim

[cjwalas]

Sterling craftsmanship! Wonderful to see and thanks for letting us watch this come together.
Chris