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T-34/85 Soviet tank. Driver’s hatch is open. Bow gun ball mount is missing to the left of the driver’s hatch.

The first production tank came off the line in 1940. The T-34 designation this time around did not denote that the tank was accepted by the Soviets in 1934, rather, 1934 was the year where the massive expansion Soviet armor occurred as well as when the first ideas for the tank began. The T-34 came in many different styles over the years, first starting out with a 76mm cannon then being upgraded with a 85mm cannon based on an anti aircraft cannon. The tank had one of the widest tank treads in WW2, which allowed it to distribute its weight more (about 10 lb/sq in; about the same as a person), allowing excellent mobility and speed and leaving behind few ground marks. It also used the Christie suspension system (used all the way to the T-62 tank) where each wheel was independently mounted on sprockets where the spring mechanism was located inside the hull. More common at the time were tread systems that had a lot of their mechanicals out in the open, easy to disable with grenades and such. The tank is rear gear drive (differing from the more common front wheel drive tanks of the time) and uses no return wheels for the track, instead, keeping the tank tread in place with “teeth” that fit between the suspension wheels.

Close up of wheel showing, center of spoke, the original Soviet green that the tank was painted in. Note the lack of guides on the track more common on other WW2 tanks.

Close up of track, note the “tooth” in the track that moves between the split wheels, offering simplicity for track movement.

The original engine was the 12 cylinder diesel used for the Soviet artillery tractor. It could

 obtain a road speed of about 34 MPH and cross country speed of 15 MPH depending on the terrain. It got excellent gas mileage, being able to go upwards of nearly 200 miles on the road, compared to the Tiger Tank which got about 120 miles road distance. Bowman had to replace the engine in his tank, using instead a Cummins 250 6 cylinder diesel out of a surplus 5-ton truck. The tank weighed in at about 32 tons.

The first T-34/76 had a crew of four. Bowman’s T-34/85 has a crew of five, those being, driver, bow gunner, gunner, loader and commander. The bow gunner operated a Degtaryev DT machine gun (7.62mm) in the forward hull mounted in a “ball” type mount. An additional DT was mounted coaxial to the main gun and was operated by the loader. The driver has no hydraulics to help him in controlling the tank. He sits nearly with his knees to his chest, in a cramped non padded seat (on that note, there is NO padding what so ever in the tank). Steering is done by the typical two stick method where to turn, the driver stops the track on the side he wants to turn to. The gunner gets the harried job of having to move the turret, adjust for elevation, sight and fire the main gun. The loader does just that, loads and expels spent shells. There is no ventilation in the tank, so all exhaust gases from firing fill the tank every time the breech is opened. (Bowman’s tank was been converted to firing “Hollywood” artillery propane/air mixtures.) It is the commander’s job to identify targets and direct the gunner to engage them. The working environment was bad, but then, the typical life expectancy for a crew was about 3 months. On that note, radios where not installed in this tank until 1945.

Tank commander with my Swedish “cone head” WW2 tanker helmet, holding on to PPSH41 sub machine gun.

Before mounting our armored steed, we all had to sign a waiver on how dangerous the ride could be. Then we donned our Nomex tanker suits, Swedish “cone head” WW2 leather tanker helmets, goggles and hearing protection. Riding on Bowman’s T-34 is like a slow motion roller coaster ride (a very LOUD one at that). I was “lucky” enough to draw the position of commander, so I was standing up, mostly outside of the turret for our roughly 30 minute ride. It was my job to direct the “gunner” below me to targets as we drove around the track. The inside of the tank is no place for anyone over 4 ft tall really. All of us (there were 4 including Bob as the driver) were cramped for space. And it was LOUD (in MAJOR capital letters!!!). Even with the loader standing right next to me, I could hear not a word, and it was not because of our required hearing protection either. There is NO sound proofing on this machine. In order for me to “communicate” to the gunner below me, I, well, kicked him. (actually I was friendly and just nudged him with my feet). I would “kick” him on the right side to have him move the turret to the right, etc. When he was near the target (where he should be able to pick it up in his gun sight) I would smack him on the head to make him stop moving the turret (which, by the way, is a hand cranked affair. Elevation on Bowman’s tank was modified to use hydraulics, so the gunner was spared on that note). Once he got the target in sight, the gunner pulled the trigger. The propane/air “cannon” gave a reasonable flash from the muzzle, but, because of the sound, we could hear hardly a thing from it. It did kick up the dust like a real cannon would. Bob drove us around, taking the corners by moving back and forth until he got turned in the direction he wanted to go. There were some tight corners and required some good maneuvering on his part. Because the driver has about a 1’ by 1.5’ hatch opening to look through (when it is open) he does not have much peripheral version. He told us stories about how he took out the trap houses located on the gun range….since then they have put boulders blocking anything they want to keep, and we were told to park out cars WAY out of the way, behind even more boulders! It was quite a ride to say the least. Being inside the tank is not for someone who is claustrophobic that is for sure (hmmm…I said that once before…) Fortunately, it was not a hot day at all and with the hatches open, we got good air flow through the whole tank. I do not want to even think what it would be like to ride around buttoned up completely, looking out of small slits and periscopes trying to identify threats and targets as you are moving along. There was no such thing as a stabilized gun system on these tanks, so to get an accurate shot, you HAD to stop.

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