[Would you like to see this in-game?]
- Yes
- No
0
voters
TL;DR: A T-34 (1943) experimentally fitted with an S-53 85mm cannon.
History:
By 1942, it was becoming increasingly obvious how inferior the 76mm F-34 cannon, installed in the T-34 tanks of the time, was compared to the 7.5cm KwK 40 and 8.8cm KwK 36. To remedy this, it was decided that a new tank gun should be developed. The design bureaus of Vasiliy Grabin and Fyodor Petrov were directed to develop the 85mm M1939 (52-K) anti-aircraft cannon into an anti-tank cannon. Petrov’s bureau developed the D-5 85mm cannon, however, this cannon was found to be much too large for the current T-34 turret, leading to it instead being fitted into the SU-122, which was accepted into service as the SU-85. Grabin’s bureau developed the S-53, which could fit into the current T-34 turret. This was tested at Kubinka in December 1943. With the 85mm cannon installed, the turret became incredibly cramped and uncomfortable. Despite these conditions, it was entirely possible for the turret crew to perform their jobs and the working conditions were described as “satisfactory”, although they were noticablely worse. That being said, the S-53 cannon itself was found to have many issues and failed trials. These issues were ironed out and the cannon eventually went into production as the ZiS-S-53. This cannon went on to replace the D-5T, which had been accepted into production on the new T-34-85 (D-5T).
Place In War Thunder:
Both the T-34 (1942) and T-34-85 with the ZiS-S-53 cannon are incredibly effective vehicles at their BRs. Combining the two ideas might not be such a bad idea for gameplay. With The T-34 (1943) (S-53), you get a smaller turret, which would be harder to hit at distances, however, at the same time, the smaller turret would severely hinder your reload speed. I can’t imagine a reload lower than 10 seconds for this vehicle. Playstyle would ultimately be that of a worse T-34-85. You can still use your mobility to get into certain positions quickly, however, you’d still want to avoid getting hit at all costs. Your slow reload would force you to think twice about shot placement when engaged in close-quarters-combat. Considering the experimental nature of this vehicle, it’s only natural that its addition should be as some sort of premium. I would, personally, like to see it as a battlepass vehicle.
Specifications:
Armament: 85mm S-53 cannon and 1x 7.62mm MG
Dimensions: 6.68m, 3.00m, 2.45m (L,W,H)
Weight: 26490~kg
Armor: Same as T-34 (1942) in-game
Crew: 4
Ammunition: Same as T-34-85s in-game
Speed: 49kph
Horsepower: 500hp
Pictures:
Front View:Page From Tank Power Vol. XLVIII - T-34/85:
Sources:
Tank Archives: Big Gun, Small Turret
Tank Archives: An Opponent for the Tiger
https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/soviet/soviet_t34-85
https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/soviet/soviet_t34-76.php
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/T-34
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/85_mm_air_defense_gun_M1939_(52-K)#Tank_guns
Tank Power Vol. XLVIII - T-34/85 by Ilja Moszczanski