- Yes
- No
“Lago III”
Introduction
The Strv m/42 TH was the second production model of the Strv m/42. This version was ordered in 1942, with delivery taken of the tanks in 1944. A total of 125 tanks were ordered, and production was split between Landsverk and Volvo. This is one of three production models of the Strv m/42 that we do not currently have in-game. The TH model features the same engine as the first production model (Strv m/42 TM), which used a pair of the Scania-Vabis typ L603/1 engines. The difference in the drivetrain is the transmission. While the TM model used an electromagnetic transmission, the TH features a hydraulic transmission to counter the shortcomings of the electromagnetic transmission. In 1948, 30 of the 100 Strv m/42 TMs would be rebuilt to the TH version. Because of this, a total of 155 Strv m/42 TH have existed.
History
When WW2 kicked off, Sweden was in dire need of a heavier tank that could defend the country if a invation would happen. Landsverk had earlier sold the Landsverk L-60 to the Hungarians, which they adopted as the Toldi in a few different variants. Landsverk would try to sell the Hungarians the Lago I, which was by all means just a larger L-60 in 1939, when they were also in need of a larger tank. But no deal was made. When the Swedish army started to look into the acquisition, there were few options. Either produce a tank domestically or import a foreign model. It became quite clear rather quickly that the latter option would not work, so domestic it was. Landsverk was the obvious choice, and they were keen on producing the Lago I.
The issue was the armament; it had been offered with the same cannon as the L-60S (37mm) and to the Hungarians with a 47mm. Landsverk would end up offering the Lago with a long 57mm, but with that armament, it would extend beyond the chassis, which the army was not happy about. Instead, a new three-manned turret was developed, and a Bofors 75mm L/31 was to be mounted instead. The chassis was also lengthened and widened slightly compared to the Lago I. This model would become the Lago II, and it featured a pair of Scania-Vabis typ L603/1 engines mated with a German Zahnradfabrik Friedrichshafen ZF typ 6 EV 75 electromagnetic transmission, and in the Swedish army, this tank would be called Stridsvagn m/42 TM.
Strv m/42 TH No. 632 and No. 622
There is no visual exterior difference between the different Strv m/42 models. The only way to know what model they are from the outside is by their registration number and the year of the photo.
But issues with the selected transmission became apparent quickly as the transmission had been designed to be used in railbuses, and now it was being used in a tank weighing in at 22,5 tons. Something needed to be done, and a new transmission was to be used in the second batch of the Strv m/42. It ended with three transmissions being mated together, and these were the Atlas-Diesel typ DF - 1,0 and Atlas-Diesel typ TER 1/1,81, both were produced by Lysholm-Smith. The DF transmissions were hydromechanical, while the TER was a planetary off-road gearbox. Each of the two Scania-Vabis typ L603/1 engines got its own Atlas-Diesel typ DF, which was then connected to one Atlas-Diesel typ TER. This proved to be way more reliable than the electromagnetic transmission used in the TM model, which had many tidying problems, but the TH also suffered from the bad turning since the tank was longer than wide. Trackpins were weak, and turning hard would cause them to wear out quickly and break, causing the tank to lose the track. Turning hard also made the torsion bars take a lot of stress and would eventually cause them to break, which meant a lengthy repair time. These issues were ironed out during the tank’s service life.
Other than the issues that came with the turning, if not done correctly using what the crews called a special “lever technique,” the tanks were easy to drive. The tank was quite capable when it first came into production, but just a year or two later, it was outmatched by basically everything new that both Allied and Axis nations fielded. In 1948, 30 of the 100 Strv m/42 TM tanks were rebuilt into the TH model. Because of this, a total of 155 Strv m/42 TH has been in use with the Swedish army. These would serve up until 1957, when they were taken out of service to be rebuilt into the Strv 74 H, which were delivered to the army in 1958.
Specifications
Armor
Chassis
- Front: 55 mm
- Sides: 30 mm
- Rear: 20- 25 mm
Turret
- Front: 55 mm
- Sides: 30 mm
- Rear: 25 mm
Crew
- Commander
- Gunner
- NIFE Tm - 42
- Zoom / Field of View: 17×, 28°
- NIFE Tm - 42
- Driver
- Machine gunner
Armaments
Main armament
- 7,5 cm stridsvagnskanon m/41 L/31
- Velocity: 500 - 590 m/s
- Horizontal guidance: ±180°
- Verical guidance: +25° / -15°
- Amount of rounds: 59
- slpprj m/40 (AP)
- slpprj m/40B (APBC)
- rökgr m/22 (Smoke)
- sgr m/40 (HE)
- slpgr m/39 (APHE)
Secondary armaments
- 4 × 8 mm ksp m/36
- 2 × coaxially mounted
- 1 × in the rear of the turret
- 1 × bow mounted
- Amount of rounds: 4000
Mobility
Engine
- 2 x Scania-Vabis typ L603/1
- 160 hp × 2 = 320 hp - 30 hp = 290hp
- The cooling system uses 30 hp of the total output from the two engines.
- 160 hp × 2 = 320 hp - 30 hp = 290hp
Transmission
- 2 × Lysholm-Smith Atlas-Diesel typ DF - 1,0
- Hydromechanical transmission
- 1 × Lysholm-Smith Atlas-Diesel typ TER - 1/1,81
- Planetary off-road gearbox
- Gears forward: 2
- Gears backward: 1
- Planetary off-road gearbox
Speed
- Forward: 42 km/h
- Backward: 6 km/h
Weight
- 22,5 tons
Power-to-Weight
- 290 ÷ 22,5 ≈ 12,88 hp/ton
Sources
Rickard O. Lindström, Carl-Gustaf Svantesson. Svenskt Pansar 90 år av svensk stridsfordonsutveckling.
Didrik von Porat. Svenska arméns PANSAR.
Stridsvagn m/42 – Wikipedia
Stridsvagn m/42 - Wikipedia
Strv m/42
Stridsvagn m/42
stridsvagn m/42 – Swedish tank archives
Nife kikare/sikte till stridsvagn m/42 med myck.. | Köp på Tradera (754139547)
Militaria - Hans Högman
Strv m/42 EH | War Thunder Wiki
