The Third Reich repeatedly attempted to create a super-heavy tank (weighing more than 80 tons), but it was never possible to organize their mass production. The only working example of a super-heavy tank, created under the direction of designer Ferdinand Porsche, was named PzKpfw VIII Maus (that is, “mouse”). A total of two models were produced. But they never had the chance to participate in the battle.
After the Spanish Civil War, European countries were forced to admit that the mobility parameter had become extremely important for armored vehicles, and the era of heavy tanks of the First World War was irrevocably a thing of the past. However, generals who had fought in global conflict in their youth were well aware that large armored vehicles were effective in breaking through layered defenses and were even more effective in demoralizing the enemy. Therefore, despite the revision of the requirements for tanks, none of the great powers on the eve of World War II abandoned the creation of super-heavy armored vehicles.
Since 1941, several firms worked to create a 100-ton tank for the German army, whose weight grew to 170 tons as development progressed. Initially, the project was codenamed “Mammoth”, but for greater secrecy it was renamed “Mouse”.
A wooden model of the tank was shown to Hitler in May 1943, who was delighted with it and ordered the production of the tank to begin. In December of the same year, the first sea trials of the Maus began.
The tank had a length of 10.2 meters including the gun, which did not make it stand out much from the background of later German heavy armored vehicles (the length of the PzKpfw VI Ausf. B Tiger II with the gun was 10.2 meters). The height of the Mouse was also not much higher than the Tiger-2 - 3.6 versus 3.09 meters. And in terms of width, the “Mouse” was completely inferior to the second “Tiger” - 3.6 versus 3.75 meters. But the weight of the Mouse (188 tons) is still a record (“Tiger-2” weighed almost three times less - 70 tons). It was reached due to booking. It was thickest on the gun mantlet - 240 millimeters. The armor of the sides of the tank was 180 millimeters, and the front was 200 millimeters. For comparison, the maximum armor thickness on the second Tiger reached 150 millimeters. The Maus was armed with two twin guns: the 128 mm KwK-44 L/55 and the 75 mm KwK-40. The tank could accelerate to 40 kilometers per hour. But the gigantic weight (188 tons) did not allow the Mouse to cross any of the bridges that existed at that time, which made its mobility limited.
According to some reports, the tank was planned to be used to guard Hitler's residences. But the Fuhrer himself eventually vetoed the production of the Maus, since it was necessary to transfer resources to the production of more necessary equipment.
In 1945, both produced Maus models were located at the training ground near Kummersdorf, 30 kilometers south of Berlin. In connection with the threat of the rapid occupation of the site by units of the Red Army, the German command decided to blow up the samples. Both exploded samples were captured by the Red Army, after which Soviet engineers managed to assemble one tank, which was sent to the Kubinka training ground, where it is stored to this day. This exhibit is still on the move.
"Maus" was not the only super-heavy development of German designers, but it was the only one that was implemented into a working model. For example, the Krupp company tried to make a self-propelled gun based on a super-heavy one called the R.1000 Ratte, but even the drawings of this project have not reached the present day.
Maus is a tank, the history of which clearly shows us that the common expression: “The more, the better” is not always justified. What caused the failure of such a global undertaking and why is the legendary “Mouse” so famous?
Birth of "Mouse"
The Maus super-heavy tank is the most massive ever made in metal. It was conceived and implemented by the Third Reich in 1942-1945. under the leadership of Ferdinand Porsche.
The initiative for its appearance belongs to Adolf Hitler himself, who ordered the development of a powerful “breakthrough tank” with maximum armor and a high level of weapons. Despite the fact that some of the management initially expressed concerns about the futility of the idea, in June 1942, Porsche received an official order for the production of the tank.
It is believed that this “colossus” got its name from the light hand of one of the mechanics, who, before a test drive, drew a small mouse on the frontal armor and signed his creation - Maus. It looked quite witty and symbolic, since the mass of the “baby” was equal to the weight of the three most popular tanks of that time - the Tigers. Be that as it may, the tank officially changed its name several times. The original version sounded like Mammut - “Mammoth”. After making several changes to the design, the name also changed - now it was called the symbol “Object 205”, or the Mauschen tank - “Little Mouse”. And only when the design was inspected and approved personally by the Fuhrer, the tank “grew up” and received its final “adult” name - Maus - “Mouse”.
Description and characteristics of the Maus tank
The body of the hulk was made of heterogeneous armored plates, and inside it was divided into four transverse and three longitudinal compartments. Three power departments and a control post were organized “across.”
The left longitudinal compartment contained an 800-liter fuel tank, engine radiators (water and oil), a water radiator for the electric generator, an exhaust system: muffler, exhaust pipe and muffler radiator, as well as a blower fan with an air filter. An auxiliary electric generator and engine, batteries, tool boxes, as well as racks with ammunition for a 128-mm cannon were also located here. The right longitudinal compartment completely repeated the left one, in a mirror image.
The central (middle) compartment housed the main engine together with a twin generator, brake system and transmission. There were also places for the driver and radio operator.
The tank's full crew consisted of six people. On top, above the fighting compartment, there was a tower in which the gun commander, two loaders and the tank commander were supposed to be located.
Maus is a high-tech tank, even despite its gigantic size and weight. The use of a multi-roller chassis and wide tracks (1100 mm) provided it with a completely acceptable specific ground pressure, which was almost the same as that of other heavy tanks.
Suspension and chassis
The Maus heavy tank had a rather interesting track design. Each caterpillar of a combat vehicle consisted of 112 tracks - 56 solid and composite. The one-piece track was made as a shaped casting with a smooth inner part - a treadmill, on which there was a guide ridge. The composite was assembled from 3 parts, 2 of which (outer ones) were interchangeable. This track design ensured the least wear from surface friction and also helped reduce the weight of the track.
Without delving too deeply into the technical details, we can only note that when designing the Maus, the designers had to change their minds regarding the torsion bar suspension traditionally used on other German heavy combat vehicles. The fact is that the use of this type of suspension required the presence of a large number of technological holes in the tank body, and this presented certain difficulties. Therefore, after a series of consultations and tests, the decision was made to use buffer springs, even despite their certain disadvantages.
Tower
First of all, the Maus is a tank known for its enormous thickness of armor. Its turret, also welded from rolled sheets, had a layer of frontal armor 200 mm thick. The side plates and the rear part, inclined at an angle of 30° (angle of inclination - 15°), had armor of even greater thickness - 210 mm.
In its normal state, the rotation of the turret was carried out using 3 pairs of roller bearings, while an additional displacement mechanism was provided that allowed the turret to be lowered directly onto the hull. This function was used to ensure the tightness of the tower, and the hull became completely waterproof.
At the rear of the tank's turret there was a loading hatch for ammunition, and racks for shells were placed on a special rotating floor. The roof is equipped with two hatches and air filters Ø180 mm, equipped with electric drives. In addition, there were launchers for smoke grenades, a sight, a range finder and observation periscopes. Additionally, the hatch cover was equipped with a loophole for the use of small arms.
Hull and armor
The body of the “Mouse” was a structure made by welding from rolled armor plates of various thicknesses. Unlike other armored vehicles, the German Maus tank was equipped with “blind” front and rear parts that did not have any hatches or cracks. The front and rear armor sheets were located with the required angles of inclination, and vertically on the sides.
It is noteworthy that the thickness of the “Mouse” shell was not the same over the entire surface - in the upper part of the body it was 185 mm, and towards the bottom this thickness gradually leveled to 105 mm. However, this did not at all affect its “armorability”. The fact is that the outer plating acted as a bulwark, and the inner well had additional armor 80 mm thick.
In order to increase the ease of assembly, the roof of the tank was prefabricated and had unequal thickness of the skin sheets: 50 mm under the turret and up to 105 mm in the place where the control compartment was located. The bottom also had different thicknesses of armor protection - from 55 to 105 mm in different parts of the hull, with, however, a reinforced front part.
Engine and transmission
Since two prototypes were made at once, it was necessary to experiment on them “to the fullest.” In this regard, each of them had its own engine version installed:
- the first is equipped with a 12-cylinder tank diesel engine, water-cooled (developed by Daimler-Benz);
- the second Maus is a tank that received an aviation carburetor DB603 A2, converted for “tank” needs.
Significant relief in driving this hulk was achieved through the use of an electromechanical transmission, which makes it possible to extend the service life of the piston engine.
The Maus transmission circuit was designed in such a way that it made it possible to use the energy of the generators not only for its own needs, but also could meet the needs of another combat vehicle, for example, during an underwater crossing.
Armament
Since the Maus is a tank of simply enormous size, it needs an appropriate weapon. After much debate, the final option was the installation of two twin guns of 75 and 128 mm caliber. The first had 200 rounds of ammunition, and the second - 68 rounds. Additionally, the “Mouse” tank was equipped with two 7.92 mm machine guns with 1000 rounds of ammunition. In addition, space was provided for installing an anti-aircraft gun with a caliber of 15-20 mm.
Why didn't it work?
They say that initially Hitler was calm and even rather cool about the idea of creating a super-powerful machine. Everything changed in May 1943, when the Fuhrer was shown a full-size wooden model of the future tank. He made such an impression on him that Hitler ordered the immediate start of production of prototypes and the establishment of mass production as soon as possible.
However, these plans were not destined to come true. Maus is a tank that never managed to take part in battles. The point was primarily in its enormous size and weight - about 188 tons. Not a single road bridge of that time was capable of supporting such a weight, so the “breakthrough tank” was so limited in the geography of movement that it could only be transported by rail. True, despite this, it was “waterfowl” and capable of moving along the bottom of reservoirs, receiving power and control from another combat vehicle located on the shore.
There is information that work to launch mass production was stopped by Hitler himself, who simply lost interest in his “favorite toy.” And production of this kind required huge capacities from Germany, which the Germans simply did not have at that time.
"Mouse's" last shelter
It is quite obvious that the grandiose project of the Third Reich failed miserably, because “Mouse” never fired a single shot. In the spring of 1945, in order to save their brainchild from the approaching units of the Red Army, the German command made a desperate attempt to destroy both prototypes, which never passed combat tests. But this turned out to be not so easy - only one of them was seriously injured.
The Maus tank, the photo of which is posted above, was assembled by Soviet engineers from the remains of prototypes and in May 1946 was delivered to the armored training ground in Kubinka, where it found its final refuge.
Despite the special attention paid by the German command to the development of super-heavy tanks, only a few examples of this class of vehicles were produced during the Second World War. Of the projected supertanks, such as the E-100, Krupp-Maus (VK 7001 (K), Bar (Bear) and Maus, only the latter was fully built and tested. Work on the VK 7001 (K ) and "Baru", although they were carried out quite intensively, did not leave the design stage. (Read also the article: "Heavy tank T-VIB "Royal Tiger")
Construction of the E-100 super-heavy tank stopped at the end of 1944 at the chassis assembly stage. After the surrender of Germany, the territories where the Henschel factories were located came under the control of the Anglo-American administration. There, Allied troops discovered an unfinished prototype of the E-100 tank. Subsequently, it was taken to the UK for detailed study and research. Thus, work on super-heavy tank projects in Germany as a whole remained unfinished.
The Mouse tank turned out to be the only super-heavy tank brought to the prototype stage. And although this machine was not mass-produced and not took part in hostilities, the very idea of its creation and embodiment in metal is of certain interest and deserves attention.
In April 1942, Hitler at a meeting expressed his wish to complete by the summer of 1943 all work on heavy tanks weighing 100 tons, the development order for which was issued back in March 1942. He demanded that the Krupp company begin mass production of heavy tanks from mid-summer 1943 and ensure production of up to five vehicles per month. As for the issue of creating super-heavy tanks, part of the German leadership from the very beginning expressed the opinion that this idea was futile and in every possible way delayed the resolution of this issue. But, despite this, the project of a super-heavy tank, intended for joint operations with lightly armored vehicles, was approved and received the name "Mammut" (Mammoth).
In the summer of 1942, Porsche received an official order to carry out development work to create a breakthrough tank with the maximum permissible levels of armor protection and weapon power. The project envisaged the creation of a tank with armor: hull front - 200 mm, turret - 220 mm, hull sides - 180 mm, turret side and rear - 200 mm. The combat weight of the tank was supposed to be 160 tons, the maximum speed was 15 km/h, the main armament was a 150 mm gun installed in the front turret, and the auxiliary armament was a 128 mm gun in the rear turret. The development of the tank project was carried out at the Porsche design bureau, located in Stuttgart. After a number of clarifications and changes to the technical requirements for the heavy tank, the project received the designation Projekt Nr.205 or “object 205”, and the tank began to be called “Mauschen” (Mouse). In July 1942, Hitler was familiarized with the preliminary design of the tank, who authorized further work on the project and required an increase in the thickness of the hull bottom armor to 100 mm.
Porsche designers had to create a tank chassis and an air-cooled diesel engine. The first tests were planned to be carried out on May 5, 1943, and in order to save time, instead of a diesel engine, it was decided to use the DB 603A2 aviation carburetor engine with direct fuel injection as the power plant for testing the first model of the tank. In December 1942, in his report to Hitler, F. Porsche announced the completion of all preparatory work on organizing the production of “object 205” at the Krupp company, and his readiness to build the first model by the summer of 1943. A full-size wooden model of the Mauschen tank was shown to Hitler on January 4, 1943. This display served as the reason for convening a meeting in Berlin on January 21, where the projects of super-heavy tanks from Porsche and Krupp were discussed in detail. It was decided to complete the production of two prototypes of the Porsche tank by the end of 1943 and, in the event of successful testing of the tank, to begin its mass production.
On February 2, 1943, when work on the creation of the tank was in full swing, the Armament Directorate made changes to the project. A flamethrower with a fire mixture tank capacity of 1000 liters was proposed as an additional weapon. This caused a sharp protest from the project developers, as it entailed an increase in the production time of the machines. But the Department insisted on fulfilling this requirement. At first, in the suspension system of a tank weighing 179 tons, it was planned to use the previously tested suspension of the experimental tank VK 4501(P), but with the installation of a flamethrower weighing 4900 kg, the total combat weight of the tank increased by 5.5%. This required the installation of two additional suspension units and, consequently, an increase in the length of the vehicle body. Therefore, together with the Skoda company, it was decided to install a spring-spiral suspension.
On April 6, 1943, Minister of Armaments A. Speer arrived in Stuttgart on an inspection visit and inspected a wooden model of the tank with the changes made. On April 10, an order was issued to send this model to Berchtesgaden. The model was disassembled and packaged for shipment, but on April 16 a new order was received to assemble the model. On May 1, 1943, at the Main Headquarters in Rastenburg, a wooden model of a tank with a flamethrower was inspected by Hitler. From that moment on, the “Mouse” turned into an adult “Mouse” (the name of the tank was shortened to “Maus”).
By July 1943, the optimal weapons were selected for “object 205” (aka “Mouse”). Various options for paired installations were offered:
105 mm anti-aircraft and 75 mm tank guns;
127 mm naval and 75 mm tank guns;
128 mm and 75 mm tank guns;
150 mm special tank or naval and 75 mm tank guns.
Preference was given to a twin artillery system, consisting of a 128 mm KwK44 L/55 cannon and a 75 mm KwK40 L/36.6 cannon. In the future, it was planned to switch to a system consisting of 150 mm and 75 mm guns. At the same time, the production of the electromechanical transmission was completed. From August 1 to December 23, 1943, the first prototype of the Maus tank (object 205/1) was assembled at the Alkett plant in Berlin without installing weapons. Several well-known companies took part in the manufacture of the tank. The hull and turret with weapons were manufactured at the Krupp factories in Essen. At the Skoda in Plzen - the chassis (road wheels, suspension, tracks) and the mechanical part of the transmission (final drives and gearboxes). Daimler-Benz in Stuttgart provided the power plant. At the Siemens-Schuckert factories in Berlin, an electric generating unit, traction electric motors and electrical switching equipment for controlling the electromechanical transmission were assembled for the tank. Other companies were also involved in the production of various components and parts of the tank.
Particular attention was paid to ensuring the trouble-free operation of all components and mechanisms of the tank. All of them were subjected to repeated, thorough tests, even before installation in the tank. Thus, after factory testing, the electric generating unit was transported to the laboratory of Professor Kamm at the Daimler-Benz plant in Stuttgart. There they conducted additional bench tests of the “e/g block” together with a carburetor engine. After completing all factory tests, the tank on a specially designed platform with a lifting capacity of 180 tons was sent for finishing work and debugging to the Porsche company, which was also located in Stuttgart. Due to the excessive dimensions and weight of the tank, its transportation itself was an experiment, but it was quite successful.
In total, two prototypes of the Maus tank were manufactured at the Alket plant and shipped to Stuttgart. One of them, "object 205/1", had a specially cast cubic loading tower, and the second, "object 205/2", was sent without a tower. The standard combat turret with weapons was delivered to Stuttgart and installed on the second tank later. At the Porsche factory site near Stuttgart, under the leadership of Chief Designer Professor F. Porsche, final factory tests of prototypes were carried out.
To conduct comprehensive tests of the tank, in order to determine the possibility of putting it into service, both prototypes were transported to the military department's tank training ground in Kummersdorf, located in the vicinity of Zossen. In June 1944, sea trials began on the first model of the Mouse tank with a loading turret. In September 1944, the second model, which was equipped with weapons in a standard turret, joined the running and, in addition, artillery tests.
The results of sea trials showed that doubts about the ability of the super-heavy tank to overcome various obstacles were in vain. According to the testimony of an employee of the Alket company, leading engineer Laube, during tests the tank showed good maneuverability, maneuverability and controllability.
Total information
Combat weight, t......................................... ....... ...............188
Crew, people...................................... ......... ...................6
Specific power, hp/t.................................... ....... ..........9.6
Average ground pressure, kgf/cm2................................. ......... ..1.6
Main dimensions, mm:
Length with gun
forward.................................. ............... ................. 10200
back................................... .............. ...... 12500
Height.................................. ............... .................3710
Width.................................. ............... ................3630
Length of the supporting surface................................................................... .5860
Clearance along the main bottom................................... ........... ..500
Armament
Gun, brand......KWK44 (Pa44)/KWK40
caliber, mm...................................... ......... ...............128/75
ammunition, rounds ................................... ............ ......61 /200
Machine guns, quantity, brand................................... .........1xMG .42
caliber, mm...................................... ......... ................7.92
Ammunition, cartridges................................................... .........?
Armor protection, mm/angle of inclination, degrees:
Body forehead ..................... ................... ..... 200/52, 200/35
Hull side ..................... ................... ....... 185/0, 105/0
Feed................................... ........................ ......... 160/38, 160/30
Roof........................ 105, 55, 50
Bottom............................... ........................ ................105, 55
Tower forehead......................................................... ................210
The side of the tower ..................................... ................ .............210/30
Tower roof................................... ............. ...............65
Mobility
Maximum speed, highway................................... ......... 20
Cruising range on the highway, km...................................................... .......186
Power point
Engine, brand, type...................DB603 A2, aviation, carburetor
Maximum power, hp.................................... ....... ....1750
Means of communication
Radio station, brand, type.....................................10 WSc/UKWE, VHF
Communication range (telephone/telegraph), km.................................2-3 / 3-4
Special equipment
PPO system, type................................... ......... .........manual
number of cylinders (fire extinguishers)......................... .................... ..2
Equipment for underwater driving................................OPVT kit
depth of water obstacle to be overcome, m....................................8
Duration of crew stay under water, min......up to 45
Due to the approach of Soviet troops and the impossibility of evacuating multi-ton vehicles from the territory of the Kummersdorf training ground, it was decided to destroy the tanks. But only one of the two Mouses suffered significant destruction. After the surrender of Germany, both supertanks were discovered by specialists from the Technical Commission of the USSR Ministry of Transport Engineering. One tank (object 205/1 with a loading turret) was located in the area of the western batteries of the Kummersdorf artillery range. The other (object 205/2) is at the Stammlager site near Zossen, 14 km from Kummersdorf. Both tanks were disabled, and the tank located in the Stammlager had its hull destroyed by the explosion. At the direction of the commander of the BT and MB Armed Forces, one “Maus” was assembled from two damaged samples, which was sent to the USSR for a detailed study and analysis of its design. On May 4, 1946, the tank arrived at the NIIBT training ground of the GBTU KA (Kubinka village), where to this day it can be seen on display at the Military Historical Museum of Armored Weapons and Equipment.
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http://pro-tank.ru/bronetehnika-germany/tyageli...
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Characteristic Features of the Maus Tank
Layout and General Structure of the Tank Mouse
1. The layout of the tank differs from that usually adopted on modern models, mainly in the location of the power plant.
2. The engine is located behind the control compartment in a common well with the generator block. This placement of the power plant limited access to its main components, complicated installation and dismantling work, and led to a displacement of the fighting compartment closer to the rear of the tank.
3. Other compartments of the tank are located according to the generally accepted layout for tanks with a rear transmission.
4. The volumes of the control, combat and transmission compartments provide convenience for the crew and the necessary access to the units located inside the hull.
Design of the Hull and Turret of the Mouse Tank
1. The tank hull is welded and consists of armor plates with a thickness of 40 to 200 mm. If we compare the thickness of the armor of the Maus tank with the thickness of the armor of other modern tanks weighing 50 - 70 tons, it becomes obvious that the armor protection of the Maus tank does not correspond to its weight. For a tank weighing 180 tons, the armor thickness is clearly insufficient.
2. In the distribution of armor thickness among parts of the hull, the Germans on this model deviated from previously accepted principles. Instead of the existing ratio between the thickness of the frontal and side parts of 0.5 - 0.6, the Maus tank implemented a ratio of 0.925. In general, in the armor protection of the Maus tank there is a noticeable tendency to create an equally strong structure in all parts of the hull.
3. The body configuration does not take full advantage of the large design angles. The hull has a lower frontal plate at an angle of only 35° and vertical side plates. If we compare the hull configuration of the Maus tank with the configuration of the T-V tank, then the first is a step back.
4. Characteristic is the absence of hatches, a frontal machine gun or cracks on the front plates, which were present on other German tanks and weakened them.
5. The armor plates have tenon joints. The spikes are rectangular. To strengthen the tenon joints, cylindrical dowels were used (meaning pins - Author's note) inserted into the joints.
6. The hull and turret armor is homogeneous, medium hard (Hb = 3.4…4.2) with a high carbon content (0.30 - 0.45), highly alloyed.
7. Tower support of original design. Instead of a conventional ball bearing, two systems of trolleys are used: 3 vertical trolleys provide support for the tower on a horizontal treadmill and 6 horizontal trolleys serve to center the tower in the horizontal plane.
8. A characteristic feature is the device for lowering the turret when the tank is underwater. For this purpose, vertical trolleys can be raised using a worm drive and the tower can be lowered onto the shoulder strap.
Maus Tank Armament
1. The presence of a twin installation of 128 mm and 75 mm guns, although it increased the firepower compared to other tanks, but for a tank weighing 180 tons, the firepower is insufficient.
2. The feasibility of installing two guns in one turret, served by the same crew members, with sharply different ballistic qualities, is controversial.
3. The use of a rangefinder makes it easier to determine distances and deserves attention.
Maus Tank Power Plant
1. The tank is equipped with a DB-603A2 aircraft engine, adapted for operation in the tank.
2. The design of the cooling system deserves attention. The use of high-pressure two-stage fans ensured a compact cooling system.
3. Characteristic is the use of liquid high-temperature cooling of exhaust manifolds.
4. Of interest is the system for high-quality mixture control, which also takes into account barometric pressure and temperature conditions.
For designers of domestic tank building, the design of the following units and parts is of interest:
1. Two-stage fan.
2. Steam separator.
3. Water pump impellers.
4. Fluid couplings for the supercharger drive.
5. Air separator for the fuel supply system.
6. Devices for adjusting pump sections to ensure uniformity of fuel supply.
Transmission Tank Mouse
The electromechanical transmission of the Maus tank differs both in design and in the design of individual components and assemblies from the known transmissions of the Ferdinand SU, T-23 and the domestic EKV tank.
Features of the electrical part of the transmission of the Maus tank include:
Independence of systems transmitting power to each of the tracks.
The ability of traction generators to maintain an almost constant amount of power and speed at different loads on the traction motors.
The presence of an auxiliary generator, which is also used as a starter and for recharging batteries in addition to the main task - powering the independent excitation windings of generators and electric motors.
Well-designed air cooling system for electric transmission machines.
The presence of an exciter generator, which ensured that the excitation of the main generators and electric motors was independent of the engine crankshaft rotation speed.
The use of a potentiometric circuit for switching on the controller, which led to a greater smoothness of the change in the excitation current, and consequently, the magnetic flux and voltage of the generator.
The adaptability of the system to power the electric motors of one tank from the generator of another.
Availability of equipment for automatic protection of electric motors from overloads.
The use of a control system made according to the Leonard scheme, which provides the following advantages:
Wide and smooth control of the rotation speed of electric motors, and therefore the speed of the tank, with small losses.
No losses in rheostats when starting up and reversing electric motors.
Easy control of starting, braking and reversing.
Unprotected motor-generator unit from overloads from the electric motor.
Comparative simplicity of switching equipment and control equipment for traction electric motors, obtained through the use of reversal by switching the ends of the independent excitation winding of the generator, and not by switching in the main circuits, as is done in other systems.
Features of the mechanical part of the transmission:
Compact units, especially the final drive (with a gear ratio of 25.446).
Widespread use of gear self-alignment through the use of spherical roller bearings.
The use of circulating lubrication with a dry sump and oil filtration in a guitar.
A sharp correction of gear teeth in order to increase their wear resistance and equalize the wear resistance of gears of a mating pair.
Covering the stationary brake pressure discs with a special metallized sintering mass.
Intensification of cooling of disc brakes due to the introduction of radial channels in the rotating brake disc, thereby increasing the cooling surface and ensuring air circulation.
The use of reserve (lengthwise) satellites in the final drive, which ensured a more uniform distribution of forces along the length of the tooth.
Rigid carrier design.
Chassis of the Maus Tank
The use of rectangular buffer springs as an elastic suspension element was borrowed from American tanks and was dictated by the desire to increase the number of bogies in order to unload the rollers. Obviously, this solution to the issue of springing was forced, because all other tanks of that period had a torsion bar suspension and this type of suspension could not provide any advantages.
The use of rubber cushions as an additional elastic element that comes into operation at large amplitudes of body vibration and as a limiter for the stroke of the balancers has reduced the reliability of the suspension. As an inspection of the tank's chassis showed, most of the rubber cushions were either destroyed or lost.
Noteworthy is the use of track rollers with internal shock absorption, which ensures their reliable operation under heavy loads on the track rollers. The condition of the skating rink when disassembled was good.
Conclusion on the Maus Tank
The German Maus tank is the first really existing and operationally tested example of a super-heavy tank.
The very fact of creating a tank weighing 180 tons, with a maximum speed of 25 km/h and a specific ground pressure of 1.2 kgcm2 is of interest.
The tank's armor protection (maximum armor thickness 210 mm) and firepower (128 mm and 75 mm guns) do not correspond to its weight. Modern tanks and control systems weighing 60 - 70 tons have armor protection and weapons not inferior to those of the Maus tank.
The excessive weight of the Maus tank is explained by the desire to create armor protection of equal strength in all parts of the hull and turret, the installation of heavy 100-mm screens to protect the chassis, and an unsuccessful layout that led to excessive dimensions.
The design of the following components and assemblies deserves attention in the domestic tank industry:
Electric transmissions.
Mechanical part of the transmission.
Caterpillar propulsion.
Engine cooling and power systems.
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25-02-2017, 00:13
Hello to all World of Tanks fans and fans of heavy equipment! Now we will talk about one of the most legendary tanks of our game and the times of the Great Patriotic War, a German giant of the tenth level, a formidable creation of the Reichstag - here is the Maus guide.
If in real life this armored giant terrified its enemies, then in World of Tanks Maus the tank is not so scary, but let's look at its characteristics and capabilities in more detail.
TTX Maus
It's no secret that the Maus tank is quite specific and this whole big nuance is entirely dependent on its performance characteristics. The fact is that we have simply incredible booking indicators, due to this the car weighs a lot. True, in the current realities, such seemingly serious armor saves us quite rarely, because we are the favorite target of every artilleryman, and even when loading gold shells, it is not so difficult to penetrate a heavy German Maus WoT tank.
But this was until the release of update 0.9.17.1, in which the mouse was upgraded to a reservation. Now, in the forehead of the enemy tower, the enemy is met not by 240, but by 260 millimeters of pure steel. In addition, when diamond-shaped you can tank well, because now the bevels of the hull, which were quite easy to break through in a diamond shape when setting up the Maus WoT, have become thicker, their armor has changed from 200 to 250 millimeters.
Of course, the German heavy tank Maus is capable of masterfully tanking with its sides, especially since now their thickness has also increased somewhat. By exposing the hull as a diamond, hiding the front part with the Vulnerable NLD behind any obstacle, the sides are capable of ricocheting anything and this must certainly be used to hold back the enemy.
The enormous weight leads to the next nuance in its characteristics – mobility. To say that a tank is slow is to say nothing. The maximum speed is 20 kilometers, and this is provided that we are driving in a straight line. It is also extremely difficult to turn such a carcass, which means that in addition to speed and lack of dynamics, we also have poor maneuverability.
Otherwise, the World of Tanks Maus tank is endowed with a huge reserve of durability (one of the best in the game), which after patch 0.9.17 turned into 3200 units, as well as good visibility, which is quite enough in almost any situation, of course, taking into account properly upgraded perks .
gun
Now let's look at the Maus gun and the first thing that catches your eye is its caliber. With such dimensions, it is quite expected that the gun has good one-time damage, not the highest, but very impressive. At the same time, it takes us quite a long time to reload, but thanks to the improved rate of fire in update 0.9.17.1, the Maus heavy tank has the ability to deal almost 2500 pure level units per minute, which is very good.
Regarding the rest, Maus WoT's penetration is also quite good, it is quite enough to penetrate most tanks. However, in order to butt heads with enemy heavy weapons (you will do this often and a lot), it is still worth carrying with you at least 30% of the gold ammunition.
Another positive thing is that with the release of patch 0.9.17.1 Maus World of Tanks improved stabilization performance, improved spread and aiming speed. That is, now our gun can boast of really nice accuracy indicators, which will allow us to deal damage with much greater comfort.
By the way, our gun goes down as much as 8 degrees, which is very useful, given the huge dimensions and height of this German.
Advantages and disadvantages
Of course, like any other vehicle, the German Maus tank World of Tanks has its advantages and disadvantages, so it’s worth focusing on its strengths and weaknesses.
Pros:
Large alphastrike;
Good vertical aiming angles;
Decent review rate;
A huge amount of HP;
Serious booking.
Minuses:
Slowness in everything (movement speed, dynamics, maneuverability, etc.);
Huge dimensions;
The presence of noticeable weak points in the armor;
We are very vulnerable to artillery.
Considering all of the above, we can conclude that this is a truly strong and unique vehicle, which has a lot of advantages and has finally received improved armor. However, given all the shortcomings, playing with a mouse is still not easy, however, we will talk about tactics later.
Equipment for Maus
As you understand, the equipment on the Maus tank needs to be installed wisely, some options are completely useless, while others are vital, for this reason the choice will be as follows:
– due to the low DPM, we really need this part.
– not the best stabilization and slowness, but this module will allow you to hit the target straight away more often.
– everything is simple here, strengthening all characteristics, this is very important for us.
If you wish, you can replace the last option with , this choice is very justified, because artillery fires at us very often, and this way your WoT Mouse tank will be able to live a little longer or hide in cover.
Crew training
Here we come to another extremely important point, because upgrading perks on the Maus should also be done wisely, without deviating too much from the goals that were pursued when installing the equipment. This German heavyweight has 6 crew members and unusual gameplay, which means the choice will be very difficult.
Commander - , , , .
Gunner – , , , .
Driver mechanic - , , , .
Radio operator - , , , .
Loader – , , , .
Loader – , , , .
Equipment for the Maus tank
As with most other vehicles in World of Tanks Maus, the standard set of equipment in the form of , , . However, we are created in order to tank a large amount of damage, as we do this we can be damaged by modules and shell-shocked crew members, so the best choice would be , and . Of course, the most desperate ones can even bet, but this is not recommended.
Maus game tactics
Considering all our characteristics, you should immediately understand that the Maus tank WoT is a one-track vehicle. While the report is going on, you must clearly think through your actions, understand where you will go and push this line until you reach the enemy base, or until you go to the hangar.
You also always need to remember that we are the most tasty morsel for enemy art. For this reason, try to choose the direction wisely; it is advisable that where you are going, there is somewhere to hide our huge body and take a good position to contain the enemy.
Regarding how we should behave, everything is quite simple. Do not expose your side to the enemy at a right angle; try to always turn your hull towards your opponent or tank with a reverse diamond shape. Also, Maus armor in the frontal projection has a very vulnerable spot - these are the cheeks of the turret. Here the thickness of the armor plate does not exceed 240 millimeters, so after the shot you need to turn the turret too, and you can slightly twist it from side to side or dance to make aiming more difficult.
Otherwise, it’s better to never be left alone, the enemy’s mobile ST will easily spin us around or the enemies can overwhelm us in numbers, so always analyze the situation and look at the mini-map.
To the question: “Is Maus worth taking?”, the answer cannot be unambiguous. On the one hand, this is a really strong machine, but on the other hand, in the current realities, the fate of a mouse is completely unenviable, they make us gold without any problems and the art is based only on us, and since the number of open cards now significantly exceeds the city ones, draw your own conclusions.
The German super-heavy tank Maus was supposed to destroy any fortifications, be almost invulnerable to enemy shells and have enormous firepower. To do this, he received thick armor, a large-caliber gun and an original design. Later, Mouse became another miracle weapon designed to save Germany from impending defeat.
It is known from history that all these plans ended with a single exhibit standing in the museum today. Why this happened and whether it could have been different if Germany had more resources, you will learn from the article.
Creation
Adolf Hitler loved weapons that stood out in size and power, so it is not surprising that by the end of 1941 he had the idea of creating a super-heavy tank that would surpass all existing ones in protection and firepower.
On July 8, 1942, after a meeting on the development of tank forces, Ferdinand Porsche began designing a new vehicle. It was planned to be used to break through well-fortified places, so the armor was supposed to reach 200 mm in the forehead and 180 mm on the sides. The main gun was supposed to be of large caliber - 128 or 150 mm.
On January 3, 1943, Hitler was shown a wooden model, which he accepted with enthusiasm, and on April 6 of the same year, a full-size wooden model was assembled, which was demonstrated to Hitler on May 14.
On August 1, the assembly of the first prototype of the Mouse began, and on December 24, it went for testing under its own power for the first time, however, since the tower did not have time to assemble, a load was installed instead.
From January to April 1944, sea trials took place in Böblingen, which demonstrated the excellent controllability and maneuverability of the Maus tank, the ability to overcome water obstacles and slopes steeper than 40°.
At the end of 1944, due to the increasingly deteriorating situation at the front and an increasing lack of resources, Hitler gave the order to close all work related to super-heavy tanks, and in the spring of 1945, all 3 prototypes were blown up to prevent capture.
In August 1945, two Mouses were sent disassembled to a tank training ground in Kubinka, where they were assembled into one unit, consisting of the body of the first model and the turret of the second. It is he who is now in the museum.
Design and layout
Since Maus had specific requirements, its layout was somewhat unusual. The turret was quite strongly shifted back, the hull was divided by partitions into 4 compartments, and the armor was poorly differentiated, that is, it had approximately the same thickness regardless of location, which made it equally strong.
The weight reached 188 tons, and the crew was 6 people. There was also a rather original electric transmission, beloved by Ferdinand Porsche.
Frame
Frontal armor reached 200 mm at an angle of 55°, side armor 180 mm, but without slope, which sharply reduced protection. To protect the chassis there were screens on the sides of the body with a thickness of 100 mm. The rear armor plate had 160 mm at an angle of 35°. An interesting feature was the thickness of the bottom, which was 105 mm in the front part in order to resist mines, and 55 mm in the rest of it.
The body itself was welded, and its sheets were connected by rectangular tenons with cylindrical pins for greater strength.
Inside, the building was divided by partitions into 4 compartments.
The control compartment was located at the front, with seats for the driver and radio operator, tank controls, radio equipment and fire extinguishers. There was a hatch on top, covered with an armored cover and a periscope, a spare hatch at the bottom, and fuel tanks with a capacity of 1560 liters on the sides.
Behind it was the engine compartment with the engine, radiators, cooling system and oil tank. This arrangement created inconvenience, since access to the mechanisms was more difficult than in tanks, where the engine compartment was located near the stern.
The fighting compartment was in the middle of the hull and served to accommodate 36 shells, a mechanism for charging batteries and powering the turret drive. Under its floor there was a gearbox and a generator block.
In the stern there was a transmission compartment, which included traction motors and gearboxes.
Tower
The tank's turret also had almost equal-strength armor and a welded structure. Its forehead was 220 mm thick and rounded, the gun mantlet was 240 mm, the sides were 210 mm at an angle of 30° and the rear was 210 mm at an angle of 15°.
The turret was welded to a turret ring, which rested on three trolleys with rollers. Six more trolleys were used for horizontal fixation. The rotation drive was electromechanical with the possibility of manual duplication and had 2 speeds.
Inside there were racks for ammunition, a compressor for purging the main gun barrel and 4 crew members. There was a periscopic sight on the left side, and it was also planned to install a stereoscopic rangefinder on the roof.
On the roof there were 2 hatches and a fan, a periscope sight with armored protection and an embrasure for close combat. A hatch was made on the rear wall for loading shells.
To overcome water obstacles, the tower could be completely lowered onto the shoulder strap, thus ensuring tightness.
Armament
The Maus was equipped with an anti-tank 128 mm Pak 44 L/55, renamed KwK 44 L/55 and having enormous penetration along with good ballistics. In fact, its characteristics were redundant, since only in 1949, after the war, a tank appeared that could withstand its hits - the IS-7.
The role of auxiliary weapons was assigned to a 7.5 cm KwK L/36 cannon paired with the main gun with an ammunition load of 200 shells, 125 of which were stored in the turret, and the rest in the hull. There was also a 7.92 mm machine gun, a mortar and the ability to install an anti-aircraft machine gun.
The design made it possible to conduct targeted fire from any of the guns, but due to their different ballistics, a targeted salvo from both at the same time was impossible.
Engine and transmission
The Maus tank was equipped with a combined power plant similar to that installed on the Ferdinand. An internal combustion engine mechanically coupled to an electric generator that produces current for traction motors.
The gasoline Daimler-Benz DB-603A2 developed a power of 1080 hp. and had a working volume of 44.5 liters. The starter doubled as an additional generator for the equipment and, after starting the engine, performed its immediate duties.
Electric motors had a power of 544 hp. each, reversing and could smoothly change power along with revolutions. This made the Mouse much easier to control and provided various modes of turning and braking.
Chassis
Even at the design stage, it was decided to abandon the torsion bar suspension, which turned out to be not entirely successful, and the huge weight of the tank forced the designers to come up with various tricks.
Therefore, the undercarriage of the Mouse consisted of 24 identical bogies, standing in two rows and attached in pairs to one bracket, which, in turn, was secured between the side and the bulwark of the hull. Buffer springs were used as shock-absorbing elements.
Two road wheels with internal shock absorption were attached to each of the bogies. This design was distinguished by good maintainability, but heavy weight.
Later, on the second prototype, attempts were made to use lightweight rollers, but this idea was abandoned.
The drive wheel was located at the rear, and the guide wheel was at the front and had a caterpillar tension mechanism.
Epilogue
The super-heavy Maus tank failed to become a miracle weapon that, at least theoretically, could lead Germany to victory. Its seemingly impressive armor was weak for the overall mass of the Mouse, and the irrational angles of inclination weakened it even further. The powerful armament was redundant, the tank's enormous size and low mobility made it an excellent target for enemy forces, and its excessive weight made transportation difficult and impossible to cross bridges.
All these shortcomings were complemented by the high cost and complexity of production, and the need for scarce materials.
No matter how powerful and majestic Mouse may seem, on the battlefield it would be ineffective and not worth the cost. It turned out to be much more rational to produce many simpler and cheaper tanks, as history has proven to us.
