Mendelejev 1911 heavy tank, 1/72 cale

[ct ertz]

Heres one more before I go back to the shipyards of the South. This one was well designed but never wen into production. All of the wheels were on pneumatic cylinders, for a smooth leavel drive over trenches and this also allowed the crew to lower the tank down over the running gear, effectively making it an armored pill box. Also, the turret can be lowered down inside the shell proof box during an artillery bombardment. The gun was to be a 120mm! And, to make it extra special, the thing would have been built with Rail road fittings so it could move (under it's own power) along rail. It held 53 shells and a crew of eight.

My model is quite simple, as Mr. Mendelejev obviously was designing a tank that would be extremely paper model friendly. The scale will be 1/72. Look for it soon.
CT

[cjwalas]

Great! I actually really like this tank for its simple shape. Looking forward to seeing your model.
Chris

[CharlieC]

Thank you for delaying your return to floating things of the Civil War.

It's hard to see how the Mendeleyev tank would have been used - it doesn't make sense as an SPG perhaps it was intended as a mobile fortress to reinforce an advance.

For those who stayed awake during Chemistry class you might have noticed that this tank's designer was Mendeleyev - same family name as the periodic table guy. The tank was designed by Vassily Mendeleyev, a naval architect and son of Dimitri Mendelyev - the periodic table guy.

Regards,

Charlie

[ct ertz]

If these were used in force, say a few dozen every mile or so, and transported to the lines by rail, they could of had an effect. A creeping advance on the enemy, and the guns would be in a different location every hour. However, I see trenches and soft ground being a major issue.
CT

[charleswlkr54]

Well, it looks to me like it would have had the same problem crossing trenches that the Saint Cahmond and the Scnider had-too much over hang in front and back of the tracks. Plus it doesn't look like that canno had any travese or elevatio unless there is something that dosen' show up in the photos.

[CharlieC]

Originally Posted by charleswlkr54

Well, it looks to me like it would have had the same problem crossing trenches that the Saint Cahmond and the Scnider had-too much over hang in front and back of the tracks. Plus it doesn't look like that canno had any travese or elevatio unless there is something that dosen' show up in the photos.

There are Russian drawings of the Mendeleyev tank on Landships II (Landships II) which suggest the gun had 15 deg. traverse. I'd guess it could be elevated to 15 - 20 deg or so since it seems to have based on a Naval gun.

The overhang is only part of the mobility problem - with the front idler in line with the roadwheels the step height the vehicle could climb over would been very limited. All the tanks based on the Holt track system (Schneider CA1, St Chamond, A7V) had this problem.

Regards,

Charlie

[Paperwarrior]

This looks like another great model. Thanks for the postponement back to the shipyards.

As a SPG this could have been used to good effect, however, as Charlie has pointed out, the cross country mobility would have been quite an issue.

With a 120mm gun (large for a time when most infantry support guns were in the 70-90mm range) this could have made for a good set of mobile fortresses.

Naval gun? What do we think, Navy guys on it (Like the US rail gun) or good old Army Artillerymen?

Again, thanks Corey. You're models always do bring up great discussions in history. Always remember to look at history through the glasses of that era in order to truely understand the "why" and sometimes how.

Jeff

[CharlieC]

Originally Posted by Paperwarrior

With a 120mm gun (large for a time when most infantry support guns were in the 70-90mm range) this could have made for a good set of mobile fortresses.

Naval gun? What do we think, Navy guys on it (Like the US rail gun) or good old Army Artillerymen?



Jeff

WW1 had some seriously heavy guns often converted from old Naval guns. The British 60 pounder (15cm) and 8" howitzer were guns converted from the secondary armament of obsolete and (often) scrapped ships. The Russians had a 120mm Naval gun M1892 designed by Canet which they used extensively in coastal defence and army support roles. There were even heavier guns used (12" and 15") but these most often used in railway artillery.

The British built the Gun Carrier Mark 1 which had a 4.5" howitzer - it didn't get used much in its intended role mostly because the local commanders couldn't figure out how to use it.

Regards,

Charlie

[ct ertz]

It's up in the downloads. Enjoy.

[ct ertz]

Here are some attempts at camo for the tank. Winter and general.
CT