The monument was erected in the city of Novomoskovsk, Tula region on Komsomolskaya street near house 28.
There is free parking nearby.
Access is free, you can touch, climb. There is no security.
The condition of the monument is excellent.
Shooting date - May 02, 2016.
01.
All photos are clickable up to 3648x2736.
A unique specimen of the BM-13 "Katyusha" Guards rocket launcher based on the STZ-5-NATI caterpillar tractor.
Released in June 1941 at the Moscow plant "Compressor"
This combat vehicle died after falling through the ice of the Shatsky reservoir on December 14, 1941.
47 years later, in November 1988, an expedition of enthusiasts, under the auspices of the Komsomolskaya Pravda newspaper, discovered the Katyusha and was able to pull it ashore.
On May 9 of the following year, the restored car passed through the streets of Novomoskovsk in the ranks of the festive parade.
And then she took her place on the pedestal at the Novomoskovsk Historical and Art Museum.
A documentary film was made about these events - The expedition of the newspaper "Komsomolskaya Pravda" to raise from the bottom of the Shatskoye reservoir (Novomoskovsk, Tula region) a combat rocket launcher BM-13 "Katyusha". November 1988
02. Commemorative plaque on a pedestal. 
In 2015, the caterpillar "Katyusha" underwent restoration and again led the parade:
03. The vehicle was part of the 12th Separate Guards Mortar Battalion of Rocket Artillery. 
04. The division was formed in Alabino.
In the active army since November 9, 1941.
The division was armed with BM-13-16 vehicles on the chassis of the STZ-5-NATI tractor.
During the Tula offensive operation, the division provided fire support to the Soviet troops during the liberation of Stalinogorsk (now Novomoskovsk, Tula region).
Having covered the concentration of German troops at the Maklets station with two volleys from the area of the village of Urusovo, on December 12-13, the division began redeployment to the southern bank of the Shat in the Stalinogorsk region.
However, having come under intense fire, the column returned to Prudki and crossed the Shat on the ice.
A car, a tractor and several combat vehicles passed, but one of the Katyushas sank. 
05. "Katyusha" weapons are relatively simple, consisting of rail guides and their guidance device.
For aiming, swivel and lifting mechanisms and an artillery sight were provided.
At the rear of the car were two jacks, providing greater stability when firing.
The machine has 16 guides for missiles. 
06. The body of the rocket (rocket) was a welded cylinder, divided into three compartments - the warhead compartment, the engine compartment (combustion chamber with fuel) and the jet nozzle.
The M-13 rocket projectile for the BM-13 ground installation had a length of 1.41 meters, a diameter of 132 millimeters and weighed 42.3 kg.
Inside the cylinder with plumage was solid nitrocellulose.
The mass of the warhead of the M-13 projectile is 22 kg.
The explosive mass of the M-13 projectile is 4.9 kg - "like six anti-tank grenades."
Firing range - up to 8.4 km. 
07. The STZ-5-NATI tractor, a caterpillar tractor produced in the USSR, at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant in 1937-1942, based on the SKhTZ-NATI tractor, served as a platform for this copy of the guards mortar.
Other names of the tractor - STZ-NATI 2TV, STZ-5 "Stalinets".
A total of 9944 STZ-5-NATI tractors were produced, including 3438 units before the start of the war. 
08. Serial production of STZ-5 transport tractors was mastered in 1937 at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant (STZ).
The tractor was developed by a design bureau formed from employees of the STZ and the NATI Institute. General management was carried out by V.Ya. Slonimsky. 
09. The tractor is made according to the usual scheme for artillery tractors with a front engine and driver's cab.
In this case, the engine is located inside the cabin between the seats of the commander of the calculation of the artillery gun and the driver.
Behind the cab there is a fuel tank and a cargo platform with folding sides, benches for placing the calculation of the gun and with a removable canvas awning.
When the tractor was converted into a Katyusha, the loading platform was dismantled, and a launcher, guidance aids and support jacks were installed in its place.
The tractor was equipped with a four-cylinder 1MA carburetor engine.
It was multi-fuel, as it was started on gasoline by an electric starter or crank, and after warming up, it was transferred to kerosene or naphtha.
When driving on dirt roads, the average speed was up to 10 km / h. 
10. BM-13 is a low-precision area weapon with a large dispersion of projectiles over the terrain.
As a result, it was pointless to deliver accurate blows.
Therefore, Katyushas were used by divisions of several vehicles that fired at one target at the same time.
The explosive was detonated in the projectile from two sides (the length of the detonator was only slightly less than the length of the cavity for the explosive) and when two detonation waves met, the gas pressure of the explosion at the meeting point increased sharply, as a result of which the body fragments had a much greater acceleration, heated up to 600 - 800°C and had a good igniting effect.
In addition to the hull, a part of the rocket chamber was also torn apart, glowing from the gunpowder burning inside, this increased the fragmentation effect by 1.5 - 2 times compared to artillery shells of a similar caliber.
That is why the legend about the "thermite charge" in the Katyusha ammunition arose.
The "termite" charge was tested in Leningrad in the spring of 1942, but it turned out to be redundant - after the Katyusha volley, everything was on fire anyway.
The combined use of dozens of missiles at the same time also created the interference of explosive waves, which further enhanced the damaging effect. 
11. Mechanical drive guidance launcher vertically. 
12. Standard artillery sights with remote turret, liquid levels and panorama mount. 
13. The brightest detail of the monument is a fire extinguisher in its regular place. 
14. Support jacks. Raised and lowered by hand. 
15. The maximum traction force of the machine is 4850 kgf.
It was enough to tow all the artillery pieces that were in service with the rifle division of the Red Army during the Second World War.
The STZ-5 tractor was the most widespread means of mechanical traction in the artillery of the Red Army. 
16. In the undercarriage, four rubber-coated road wheels and two support rollers are installed on each side. 
17. The caterpillar chain is small-linked.
In the front "bumper" you can see the hole for the "crooked starter".
And welded under the frame are some very nifty front tow hooks. 
18. The tractor had good cross-country ability.
So, he was able to overcome ditches up to 1 m deep and force fords up to 0.8 m deep.
With an artillery gun on a trailer, he could move along the highway at speeds up to 14 km / h.
The STZ-5 tractor tows a 122-mm M-30 howitzer to a firing position. 1941
STZ-5 late releases at the delivery site of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant. Spring 1942.
Experienced tractor STZ-NATI in the version of a tanker.
STZ-5 with 85-mm anti-aircraft gun 52K model 1939 on the street of liberated Vitebsk. 1944
BM-13-16 based on Tractor STZ-5.
Specifications
Year of issue
1935
Total produced
9944
Weight
5840 kg
Crew
2 persons
Dimensions
Height
2.36 m
Width
1.85 m
Length
4.15 m
Driving performance
Engine
MA
Power
56 HP
A type
carburettor
Speed
on the road - 22 km / h;
off-road? km
Power reserve
on the road - 145 km;
off-road? km
Description
When, in July 1932, at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, which had just reached its design capacity, under the leadership of V. G. Stankevich, the development of an arable caterpillar tractor of medium power (about 50 hp) began, the idea immediately arose to make it universal - at the same time agricultural, transport and tractor capable of towing trailers off-road.
The development of the tractor under the general supervision of V. Ya. Slonimsky (NATI) was carried out for two years at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant by a joint design bureau, which included factory engineers and employees of the institute seconded to them.
At the beginning of 1935, the first series of STZ-5 prototypes was built. These machines, shown on July 16 together with the STZ-3 agricultural tractor to the top leadership of the country, received full approval. On December 10, 1935, two STZ-5s that took part in the Stalingrad-Moscow winter run were successfully demonstrated in the Kremlin. The shortcomings of the transport tractor discovered during the tests were eliminated by 1936.
In 1939, a diesel engine D-8T (transport) with a capacity of 58.5 liters was built at the Kharkov Tractor Plant specifically for STZ-5. With. at 1350 rpm, working volume 6.876 l, with a starter start (then - with a STZ starting engine). But due to its inherent shortcomings and technological difficulties, it did not go into production.
In 1937, the first 173 STZ-5 transport vehicles were produced, in 1938 - 136, in 1939 - 1256 and in 1940 - 1274. In artillery units, they towed artillery systems weighing up to 3400 kg, including 76-mm regimental and divisional guns, 122-mm and 152-mm howitzers, as well as 76-mm (later 85-mm) anti-aircraft guns. Soon, in the Red Army, the STZ-5 became the most common and affordable artillery tractor, which successfully operated in all climatic zones of the USSR. In the summer of 1939, the car passed army tests near the city of Medved, Novgorod Region. The parameters of its geometric passability were determined: a ditch - up to 1 m, a wall - up to 0.6 m, a ford - up to 0.8 m. This was also confirmed by the tests of the STZ-5 carried out in 1939-1940 at the NIBT Polygon of the GABTU KA.
The endurance of the tractor was beyond doubt - it twice (in November - December 1935 and in March - April 1939) made non-stop runs Stalingrad - Moscow and back without breakdowns and unacceptable wear.
As of January 1, 1941, 2839 STZ-5 tractors were operated in the artillery of the Red Army.
Despite heavy losses in the fall of 1941, other factories were forced to stop producing tractors, so the entire burden of supplying the Red Army with transport tracked vehicles fell on the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, which produced 3146 STZ-5 from June 22 to the end of the year; for 1942 - 3359. Even the approach of the enemy to Stalingrad did not stop the production that the army needed so much, despite the fact that due to the war-torn cooperation with other factories, STZ was forced to make all the components itself.
In total, the Stalingrad plant manufactured 9944 such machines.
In the 1920s, the picture that developed in agriculture was even worse than it is today. At first, World War I hit him hard. Then - the revolution and the civil war. Of course, first of all, human losses affected - the country was then agrarian, and most of the soldiers of these wars in peacetime were ordinary cultivators.
Well, in the second - the technique of that time. More precisely, its absence. Most often they plowed on horses, but it was also impossible to fight without them, and the horses left the fields for the front. In some regions (especially the southern ones), bulls and oxen were the main draft force for plows, mowers, reapers and other agricultural implements. It was not possible to fight on them (they were painfully slow), but in the hungry years they could be eaten.
Thus, there was no one to plow and nothing to plow. Even by 1917 the situation was difficult: the able-bodied male population in the countryside had decreased by 47.4% compared to 1914. What can we say about the situation after the end of the civil war. By 1923, the area under grain crops was only slightly more than half of the area under crops in 1913.
At the cost of gigantic efforts, by 1927 it was possible to achieve pre-war grain sown areas. However, it became clear that something needed to change. Collectivization began in 1928. Since not always and not everywhere the newly minted collective farmers were eager to plow a lot and with high quality, the efficiency of the collective farms of that time was low. By that time, all the decaying capitalists were plowing on tractors, and it looked more interesting than plowing on collective farmers (many of whom did not want to plow at all). True, by that time we already had our own (or almost our own) tractors.
Much earlier than collectivization, back in 1919, the Soviet government was preoccupied with finding a decent tractor. First of all, they turned to Henry Ford, who at that time was trying to shake off his “Fordzones” to someone. By the way, it’s more correct to say “Fordsan” - after all, Henry named the company Fordson (Henry Ford and Son) in honor of his beloved himself and his son Edsel.
Relations with the Fordsons were not going well. These were rather weak machines, and the price of the Fordson-Putilovets tractor, produced at the plant of the same name, was more than two times higher than the price of a tractor produced in their homeland. True, Ford valued this contract with the USSR very much: no one needed his tractors anymore, Fordson turned out to be unprofitable, so this cruel capitalist even changed his “money ahead” principles and sold his tractors to the USSR in installments.
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Over time, it became obvious that the Fordson was only slightly better than a horse, and it was very difficult to raise agriculture on it. And the state commission for tractor construction (there was one like that at that time) again fixed its suffering gaze on the West.3
As was usually the case in the USSR, the commission selected several of the most interesting tractors and began to compare them in detail. We chose between American International 15/30, Rumely Oil Pull, German Hanomag and Swedish Avance. Among the criteria by which the leader was chosen, there was one interesting one - the cost of a unit of hook power. It was calculated as the ratio of power on the hook to the cost of the tractor itself and was valued in dollars per horsepower.
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Here the leader was International (full name - International Harvester McCormick Deering 15-30), one horsepower of which cost only $52.90. But the most expensive in this indicator was the German Hanomag - $ 69. In addition, the layout, ease of operation and maintenance, the cost of production and repair of the tractor, the ability to work with the largest number of agricultural implements, and suitability for mass production were evaluated. As a result of a serious selection of applicants, International became the leader. It remains to solve one more question: where to build these tractors?
McCormick-Deering 15-30" 1930
It would be expensive to produce tractors in Leningrad at the Putilov plant and then transport them to the grain-growing regions of the country. It was decided to build a new plant, preferably somewhere closer to the existing railways, the necessary raw materials and, of course, the fields. They chose between Voronezh, Zaporozhye, Rostov-on-Don, Stalingrad, Kharkov and Chelyabinsk.
As a result, Stalingrad was chosen as the city closest to the centers of the future use of tractors. True, factories were also built in Kharkov and Chelyabinsk, but later. And in 1926 began the construction of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant named after. F. E. Dzerzhinsky. Its chief architect was Albert Kahn, owner of Albert Kahn Incorporated. Kahn is often referred to as the architect of Detroit, an interesting personality in his own right.
But for now, we are only interested in the fact that the plant, assembled in America, was dismantled and assembled in the USSR in six months, and on June 17, 1930, the first tractor under the STZ brand came off the assembly line. By the way, the model was not the initially chosen International 10/20, but a slightly more powerful International 15/30. But in our country he was always known under the brand name STZ, although more often he was simply called “Stalinist” (this is an unofficial name - officially “Stalinists” were called caterpillar tractors that had nothing to do with STZ - ed.).
Three tons of simplicity
To be honest, I have never seen anything more simple and ... iron. You might think that this tractor was simply cast from a piece of cast iron, wheels were screwed to it and sent to the field. Well, judge for yourself.
There is no frame familiar in our understanding (however, the concept of a frame, most likely, will soon sink into oblivion). It is made in one piece with the transmission housing. Moreover, the entire transmission at once - both the gearbox and the rear axle. So the basis of the tractor is just a crankcase. A cast front semi-frame is attached to it, on which the engine rests (it, of course, does not rest when it is running, but even jerks very much).
Motor - four-cylinder, overhead valve, with wet liners. The crankshaft is two-bearing, on ball bearings. Cast iron pistons have three compression and one oil scraper ring, connecting rods are forged. But the most interesting thing here is the power system.
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From the side it seems that the tractor has one gas tank. In fact, there are not even two, but three. The largest is with kerosene, which, in theory, should run the engine. The second is a little smaller, gasoline is poured into it, on which the engine should be started. And there is also a water tank. And this is not for the cooling system (which is really water here), but for ... preventing detonation. She (water, not detonation) was also fed to the cylinders through the Ensign RW carburetor. Naturally, there is no fuel pump here, everything flows perfectly by gravity.
Now pay attention to the pipe to the right of the driver. What's this? Isn't it a muffler? Of course not. The muffler can is located on the right side of the engine, and it is difficult to call this device a muffler: there are no nets or other rubbish there. There are only cast protrusions inside and that's it. This tall pipe is an air intake. The tractor travels in places where there can be a lot of dust. And the dust in the intake reduces the resource of even such a monstrous engine that is in the STZ. Therefore, the air intake is high and is equipped with a Pomona-type oil air cleaner.
If the rear axle is “stockings” bolted to the same monumental transmission housing, then the front axle is still a separate element. True, just as severely merciless as everything else. Its travel is limited by two springs, but we were not able to “hang out” this tractor in such a way to find out if the front axle has a limit.
The ignition system is from Scintilla magneto. There is no battery, let alone a starter, so there is only a “crooked starter” handle to start the engine. The onboard voltage is six volts.
The cooling system, as I said, is water with a fan driven by a wonderful flat belt.
All other miracles of mechanization of the thirties are best viewed from the tractor driver's seat.
Death to asphalt!
So, we climb into the driver's workplace. This is easy to do: you don’t need to open any doors, you can safely climb up the tow hitch in the back and sit on the seat. Flock, velor, leather - it's all for wimps. The tractor driver is supposed to have a metal seat - however, unexpectedly comfortable, with an excellent spring-shock absorber.
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What you don't expect from an 80-year-old tractor is so much space in the workplace. Here you can swing your arms and legs without fear of breaking something. And not only because of the lack of a cabin as such, but also because of the modest number of controls. Yes, and those that are, are made so strong that it is easier to break an arm or leg about them than the lever, pedal or steering wheel itself.
Let's say everything is clear with the steering wheel: here it is, standing right in front of me. But something is clearly missing in the legs.
Yes, there is no gas pedal. Instead, there is a sector of manual gas, combined with an ignition timing adjustment lever. Wielding these hands, you can set the desired speed. And go as you will. Let's try to just sit like that ...
So the engine is running. The sound is just a song! He's not exactly yelling, but somehow very musically rumbles with unexpected runs and syncopations. It seems that a jazz drummer is sitting in top hats and playing something from the classic Orleans jazz. True, the vibrations here are serious: the motor suspension is absent as a class, and since it is tightly bolted to the frame (read - to the crankcase of the box on which I am sitting), everything shakes very funny. Everything but the seat.
While the motor is tapping out the “Caravan” part, we are looking at how to turn on the gear. There are three of them: low, medium and high. You don't need to switch while driving. Firstly, even with all the desire to disperse this tractor, it will not work: the maximum speed in top gear is 7.4 km / h. On the lowest - 3.5 km / h. So the tractor driver can only pre-select the speed and speed, depending on what surface to move on, and which plow (or something else) will need to be pulled.
By the way, the tractor also has a power take-off pulley rotating at a speed of 625 rpm.
The non-permanently closed friction single-plate clutch itself does not involve changing gears while driving. It works on an “on-off” basis, so the advice not to drop the clutch pedal is not relevant here.
Engine
6.4 l., 30 hp
Well, we try to turn on the transfer and take a ride. With a height of 180 cm, I can hardly manage to move the gearshift lever to the forward positions, including the lowest and highest speeds. Reverse and middle gears, which turn on themselves, are much easier to stick. I wonder how people with smaller stature can ride it? But they went, and women too: the very famous tractor driver Pasha Angelina worked just at the STZ.
I think it makes no sense to waste the flowers of your spleen on details from the category of “large shift lever travel”, “long clutch pedal travel” and other modern whining. All this is monstrously ugly, but no one expected an easy life.
The steering is relatively light. True, it remained so only on asphalt. And here it is necessary to make a small lyrical digression.
It is clear that riding a tractor on asphalt is like dancing ballet in tarpaulin boots. But we had no other choice but to find a small area with obviously dead asphalt and a small amount of rubble, sand and some construction debris. The total weight of the tractor is three tons, it is a dubious pleasure to carry it to the field outside the city. But you can’t ride in the city either: STZ ruthlessly kills the asphalt on which it rides. The front wheels are equipped with the usual annular flanges, but the rear wheels can have such lugs as our tractor has, or lugs. And there could be nothing standing, and then the tractor became a road roller. Changing these nozzles is not very difficult: they are bolted to the iron wheel. And yet, with a weight of three tons, the tractor left a clear mark even on asphalt. And we decided that it was time to try how he climbs the slides.
It seems that the wiring at MTZ is simple, but it was not possible to quickly find a spark, so the tractor had to be sent back to the tow truck. Looks like the magneto needs to be taken apart.
With the end of the spark, the test drive also ended. Here I would like to say finally something good, but ...
That's all
STZ-1, tracked STZ-3, the well-known DT-75, T-26 tanks and even the legendary T-34. And also - many other tractors and samples of military equipment. Success? For the time being.
The plant survived terrible destruction during the Great Patriotic War, was practically destroyed - the battles went right on the territory of the plant - but after the war it was rebuilt.
But it turned out that hard times would come later, not even in the 1990s. The plant (no longer Stalingrad, but Volgograd) went bankrupt only in 2005. And now only a monument to Dzerzhinsky, a monument to T-34 and a checkpoint built by Albert Kahn remained from him. The history of VGTZ ended there.
We would like to thank Retrotruck for providing us with a test drive vehicle.
With the modernization of most artillery pieces of old brands and the creation of new models already equipped with springs, and in some cases with pneumatic tires, the question arose of an accelerated transition from horse traction to mechanical. It is no coincidence that the resolution of the Politburo of the Central Committee of the All-Union Communist Party of Bolsheviks dated July 15, 1929 “On the state of the country's defense” spoke not only about the modernization of artillery, but also about its transfer to mechanical traction. Purposeful work on the creation of new types of domestic artillery tractors became possible after the adoption on March 22, 1934 of the decision of the Council of Labor and Defense of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR "On the system of artillery weapons of the Red Army for the second five-year plan." During the implementation of this decision, all the machines were built, which will be discussed below.
Appendix to the magazine "MODEL CONSTRUCTION"
When, in July 1932, at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, which had just reached its design capacity, under the leadership of V.G. Stankevich, the development of an arable caterpillar tractor of medium power (about 50 hp) began, the idea immediately arose to make it universal, modeled on the tested we have an English tractor "Vickers-Carden-Lloyd" - at the same time an agricultural, transport and tractor capable of towing trailers off-road. The last appointment took into account, first of all, the interests of the army.
In May 1933, the Komsomolets universal caterpillar tractor (not to be confused with the T-20 tractor) with an experimental diesel engine was built, but it turned out to be not entirely successful, and not so much in its design (increased weight, inconvenient layout, underdeveloped engine, low reliability of units ), how much according to the general plan. It turned out that it was impossible to combine conflicting requirements for fundamentally different operating conditions in one machine. The idea of a universal machine had to be abandoned, but to design two tractors - agricultural and transport, as unified as possible in their main units, capable of being produced in parallel on one conveyor, seemed then realistic.
This initiative was taken by the designers of NATI in the summer of 1933. They proposed a reverse unit-by-unit unification, when the agricultural version of the tractor received transmission and chassis elements that are more typical for a high-speed tracked vehicle: a four-speed gearbox with the possibility of increasing the number of steps, two-roller blocked spring-balanced suspension carriages, light and openwork cast tracks, end selection power, closed cabin [* After several decades, when higher operating speeds of agricultural tractors were required, these well-chosen structural elements turned out to be very appropriate for them.]. These progressive solutions incorporated in the design of the transport tractor, with its limited coupling capabilities and engine power, did not meet all the requirements for a full-fledged medium-sized artillery tractor for the army, but made it possible to some extent contribute to the solution of transport problems.
Experienced tractor STZ-NA TI in the version of a tanker
STZ-5 tractors with 76-mm F-22USV guns on parade. Moscow, / May 1940
The development of two types of tractors under the general supervision of V.Ya. A great contribution to the creation of the STZ-NATI 2TV transport tractor (the factory name STZ-5 was more often used) was made by designers I.I. Drong, V.A. Kargopolov, G.F. Matyukov and G.V. Sokolov - from STZ; A.V.Vasiliev, V.E.Malakhovsky, D.A.Chudakov and V.N.Tyulyaev - from NATI.
At the beginning of 1935, the third series of STZ-5 prototypes was built. These machines, shown on July 16 together with the STZ-Z agricultural tractor to the top leadership of the country, headed by I.V. Stalin, received full approval, and in the body of the STZ-5, members of the Politburo even drove around the NATI experimental field. On December 10, 1935, two STZ-5s, which participated in the winter run Stalingrad - Moscow, were successfully demonstrated in the Kremlin. The shortcomings of the transport tractor discovered during the tests were eliminated by 1936. But it took two years to prepare it for production, following the STZ-Z, at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant.
The layout of the STZ-5 tractor (photocopy from the service manual):
I - engine: 2 - radiator; 3 - tension wheel; 4 - trolley; 5 - frame; b - cardan shaft; 7 - gearbox; 8 - final drive; 9 - drive wheel; 10 - coupling device; 11 - capstan (winch); 12 - cargo platform; 13 - water tank of the power supply system; 14 - starting tank (gasoline); 15 - cabin; 16 - cap of the main jet; 17 - idle screw; 18 - water needle; 19 - heating damper cover; 20 - oil cooler; 21 - oil filters; 22 - kerosene condensate drain cock; 23 - gearbox control lever; 24 - control lever
Tractor STZ-5 tows a firing position 122-mm howitzer model 1938. Battle for Moscow, 1941
The machine had a layout that has already become traditional for transport tractors with a front-mounted double (driver and gun commander) closed wood-metal cab mounted above the engine. Behind the cockpit and fuel tanks was a two-meter wooden cargo platform with folding sides and a removable canvas top with celluloid windows. Here, on four folding semi-soft seats, the gun crew was placed, and on the floor - ammunition and artillery equipment. The light and rational frame of the tractor consisted of two longitudinal channels connected by four different crossbars. The 1MA engine is a typical tractor, four-cylinder, carbureted (diesel had to be abandoned), with magneto ignition, low-speed and relatively heavy, but hardy and reliable (produced until 1953). It started up and could run on gasoline (tank - 14 l), then switching (after warming up to 90 °) to kerosene or naphtha (tank - 148 l), that is, it was actually multi-fuel. To prevent knocking and to increase power, especially when running on kerosene with a heavy load in the hot season, water was injected into the cylinders through a special carburetor system until an anti-knock combustion chamber was introduced in 1941. The engine had full-fledged lubrication, cooling, power, and electrical systems. Starting - with an electric starter (it was not on the STZ-Z) or a safe (with a reverse impact) crank; control - foot pedal "in a car." In the gearbox docked with the rear axle, the gear ratios were changed in order to increase the power range (up to 9.81 versus 2.1 for the STZ-Z) and speeds, another (lower) gear was introduced. When driving on it at a speed of 1.9 km / h, the STZ-5 developed a thrust of 4850 kgf, that is, at the limit of adhesion of the tracks to the ground.
A column of STZ-5 tractors with infantry is moving towards the front. Suburb of Moscow, 1941
STZ-5 late releases at the delivery site of the Stalingrad Tractor Plant. Spring 1942
The rear axle with side clutches and brakes (complemented by a common foot drive), along with the final drives, was completely borrowed from the STZ-Z, which turned out to be very important in their joint mass production. The undercarriage was more adapted to driving at high speeds: rubber-coated track and support rollers and a small-link caterpillar with half the pitch were introduced. The drive sprocket remained the same, and therefore wore out quickly. On the crankcase of the rear axle under the platform, a vertical capstan was installed with a cable 40 m long for pulling trailers (when separately overcoming heavy sections), self-pulling the tractor and towing other machines. The traction force of the capstan was 4,000 kgf, although the engine power made it possible to develop up to 12,000 kgf, but this was not safe for the strength of the tractor. Such a fairly simple and effective device completely replaced the winch, which was already considered mandatory for every artillery tractor, except for a light one. The cab had opening front and side windows, as well as adjustable shutters in the front and rear - to organize its flow ventilation; otherwise, in summer, the temperature here from heating by a massive engine reached 50 °.
In 1939, a diesel engine D-8T (transport) with a power of 58.5 hp was built specifically for STZ-5 at the Kharkov Tractor Plant. at 1350 rpm, working volume 6.876 l, with starter start (then - with STZ starting engine). But due to its inherent shortcomings and technological difficulties, it did not go into production.
In 1937, the first 173 transport STZ-5s were produced, in 1938 - 136, in 1939 - already 1256 and in 1940 - 1274. In artillery units, they towed artillery systems weighing up to 3400 kg, including 76-mm regimental and divisional guns, 122-mm and 152-mm howitzers, as well as 76-mm (later 85-mm) anti-aircraft guns.
Soon, in the Red Army, the STZ-5 became the most common and affordable artillery tractor, which successfully worked in all climatic zones. In the summer of 1939, the car passed army tests near the city of Medved, Novgorod Region. The parameters of its geometric passability were determined: a ditch - up to 1 m, a wall - up to 0.6 m, a ford - up to 0.8 m.
The average technical speed of a tractor with a trailer on a highway as part of a battery reached 14 km / h; as part of the regiment - 11 km / h; on the ground - 10 km / h. During operation, its agricultural origin strongly affected: of all domestic machines for this purpose, it had the worst cross-country ability, low specific power, narrow gauge (chosen for working with a four-furrow plow), low ground clearance, insufficient traction capabilities of tracks with small lugs only 35 mm high, significant specific pressure on the ground due to the small width of the tracks, strong longitudinal buildup when driving at high speeds - there was even a question of adding a fifth track roller to increase the base (shock absorbers were not yet used). On winter icy roads, the grip of the tracks with the ground was not enough for stable movement.
Location of controls in the cab:
1 - the position of the control levers of the onboard clutches when the tractor is fully braked; 2 - steering clutch control levers; 3 - gear lever; 4 - manual accelerator; 5 - air damper lever; 6 - clutch pedal; 7 - pedal and foot brake latch; 8-ignition advance lever
STZ-5 with 85-mm anti-aircraft gun 52K model 1939 on the street of liberated Vitebsk. 1944
However, the endurance of the tractor was not in doubt - it twice (in November - December 1935 and in March - April 1939) made non-stop runs Stalingrad - Moscow and back without breakdowns and unacceptable wear. Additional tests of the STZ-5, carried out at NATI in the summer and autumn of 1943, showed low traction properties of the machine. When driving in the highest, fifth gear, the maximum traction force on the hook did not exceed 240 - 270 kgf, which allowed the tractor to work confidently without a trailer or pull it only on good roads with slopes up to 1.5 - 2 °. At the same time, the reserve of traction forces turned out to be extremely insignificant (2 - 6%), and when overloaded, the speed dropped sharply. Therefore, I had to work mainly in the fourth (load on the hook - 585 kgf) and in the third (load - up to 1230 kgf) gears. Movement in off-road conditions or when towing heavy trailers was possible only in second gear (traction force - 2720 kgf). There was also a very low coefficient of adhesion of the tracks to the ground (f = 0.599).
As of January 1, 1941, 2839 STZ-5 tractors (13.2% of the fleet) were operated in the artillery of the Red Army, although the states were supposed to have 5478 vehicles. Even in the rifle division, according to the states approved in April 1941, there should have been 5 vehicles. At the beginning of the war, due to the lack of more powerful tractors in the army, these tractors closed all the gaps in the system of mechanical traction and transport support for artillery, as well as tank units, which forced using STZ-5 to tow guns and trailers much heavier than it was allowed to TTX. The same lack of other, more suitable off-road vehicles made it necessary to mount BM-13 rocket launchers on the STZ-5, first used in the fall of 1941 near Moscow, and then widely on other fronts. During the defense of Odessa, where there were many STZ-5 tractors, they were used as a chassis for the construction of surrogate "NI" tanks with thin armor and machine-gun armament, usually taken from obsolete or wrecked armored vehicles. On the basis of the STZ-5, they even tried to make light tanks with a 45-mm cannon.
Despite heavy losses in the fall of 1941, other factories were forced to stop producing tractors, so the entire burden of supplying the Red Army with transport tracked vehicles fell on the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, which produced 3146 STZ-5 from June 22 to the end of the year; for 1942 - 3359.
Even the approach of the enemy to Stalingrad did not stop the production that the army needed so much, despite the fact that due to the war-torn cooperation with other factories, STZ had to make all the components itself. From August 23, the day the Germans broke through to the plant, until September 13, 1942, when production was stopped, 31 STZ-5 tractors were removed from the assembly line.
Guards mortars based on STZ-5 fire at enemy positions. Stalingrad area, 1943
The performance characteristics of the transport tractor STZ-5 (STZ-NATI 2TV)
Curb weight
with a crew without cargo, kg 5840
Platform load capacity, kg 1500
Weight of towed trailer, kg 4500
with overload 7250
Cabin seats 2
Places in the body for sitting 8 - 10
Dimensions, mm:
width 1855
cabin height (no load) 2360
Base of track rollers, mm 1795
Track (in the middle of the tracks), mm 1435
Track width, mm 310
Step of track tracks, mm 86
Ground clearance, mm 288
Average specific ground pressure with a load on the platform, kgf/cm? 0.64
Maximum engine power, at 1250 rpm, hp 52 - 56 Maximum speed on the highway, km / h 21.5 (up to 22)
Range on the highway with a trailer, km up to 145 (9 hours)
Limit climbable on solid ground without a trailer, degrees 40
The maximum overcome rise on a dry dirt road with a load and a total trailer weight of 7000 kg, degrees 17
Hourly fuel consumption when driving on the highway, kg:
without trailer 10
with trailer 12
Minimum fuel consumption per 1 km (in 5th gear) on the highway, kg 0.8
In total, the plant manufactured 9944 of these machines, of which 6505 - after the start of the war. However, as of September 1, 1942, there were only 4678 of these machines in the army - large summer losses affected. STZ-5 honestly served in the army until the end of hostilities, and until the 1950s they were used in various sectors of the national economy, where the performance of veteran tractors was maintained at the expense of spare parts, to the “big brother” that was still being produced and widespread in the national economy - tractor STZ-Z (ASHTZ-NATI). This suggests that the difficult task set in the 1930s of creating an inexpensive and mass-produced transport tractor, unified with an arable tractor, was successfully completed.
Historical series "TM"
STZ - transport
In the spring of 1932, at the Stalingrad Tractor Plant, under the leadership of the chief designer V.G. Stankevich, they began to develop an arable tractor of medium power. It was immediately decided to make it universal - agricultural, transport and tractor, like the English "Vickers-Carden-Lloyd", which in 1931 was tested by our military. And the future tractor was supposed to be used in the army, as an artillery tractor and transport vehicle, in order to speed up the motorization and mechanization of the Red Army.
By May 1933, this universal tractor (with an experimental diesel engine) - "Komsomolets" - was ready. However, he came out overweight, not very reliable, the layout left much to be desired. It turned out, and most importantly - the inability to combine the contradictory properties of the three machines operated in such different conditions. So the idea of a universal tractor had to be abandoned.
In the summer of 1933, NATI engineers proposed to make two tractors, agricultural and transport, unifying their components and assemblies as much as possible in order to use one conveyor for the production of both machines. In particular, in the agricultural version it was supposed to use a 4-speed gearbox with the possibility of increasing the number of steps, 2-roller interlocked spring-balanced suspension carriages, light and openwork cast tracks, a closed cabin - something that is more inherent in high-speed tracked vehicles. (This idea came in handy in the 1960s when agriculture needed tractors with higher working speeds.)
For the simultaneous creation of two tractors at the Stalingrad plant, a design bureau was formed, made up of 30 factory and institute workers under the general supervision of V.Ya. Slonimsky (NATI), in order to speed up the work. A particularly large contribution to the manufacture of the transport STZ-NATI-2TV (better known under the factory designation STZ-5) was made by designers I.I. Drong and V.A. Kargopolov (STZ), A.V. Vasiliev and I.I. Trepenenkov (NATI).
After testing the first two experimental series STZ-5 at the beginning of 1935, a third, improved one was built, and on July 16, these tractors, together with agricultural STZ-Z (see "TM", Nq 7 for 1975), were demonstrated at the NATI training ground to the top leadership of the country headed by I.V. Stalin; all members of the Politburo rode in the back of the STZ-5. The new machine was approved, the identified shortcomings were eliminated by the next year, and both tractors began to be prepared for mass production at
Stalingrad plant.
STZ-5 had a layout that has become traditional for transport tractors - in front of a double metal cab with an engine inside, between the seats. Behind it, with fuel tanks, there was a 2-meter wooden cargo platform with folding sides, benches and a removable canvas top - to accommodate the calculation, ammunition and artillery equipment. The light frame consisted of two longitudinal channels connected by four crossbars.
The diesel had to be abandoned - it could not be worked out. The 1MA engine was a typical tractor - 4-cylinder, carbureted, magneto-ignited, low-speed / and relatively heavy. But it turned out to be hardy and reliable, which is why it was produced until 1953. It was started on gasoline with an electric starter (which was not on the STZ-Z) or a crank, and after warming up to 90 degrees, it was transferred to kerosene or naphtha, that is, it was multi-fuel, which is important in army conditions. To prevent detonation and increase power, especially when working in the summer with increased loads, on kerosene, water was injected into the cylinders through a special carburetor system, and from 1941 an anti-knock combustion chamber was introduced.
In the gearbox connected to the rear axle, the gear ratios were changed, increasing the power range to 9.8 (against 2.1 for the STZ-Z) and introducing another downshift. When driving on it at a speed of 1.9 km / h, the tractor developed a thrust of 4850 kgf - at the limit of adhesion of the tracks to the ground.
The rear axle with side clutches and brakes was borrowed from the STZ-3, in the undercarriage rubber track and support rollers and a small-link caterpillar with a halved pitch, which were better suited for high speeds, were used. Under the loading platform, on the crankcase of the rear axle, a vertical capstan was mounted, which served for self-pulling, pulling trailers, as well as towing other vehicles. This simple device replaced the winch, which was considered an indispensable accessory for artillery tractors.
Adjustable shutters were installed in the front and rear parts of the cabin, which created flow ventilation, which was especially important in summer - from a running engine, the temperature in the metal cabin often rose to 50 degrees.
In 1938, the first 309 serial STZ-5s were produced, sending them to artillery units of tank and mechanized divisions. They towed 76-mm regimental and divisional guns, 122- and 152-mm howitzers of the 1938 model, 76-mm anti-aircraft guns (and then 85-mm). Soon STZ-5 became the most widespread
in the Red Army.
In the summer of 1939, army tests were carried out near the city of Medved, Novgorod Region. On them, the tractor overcame ditches up to 1 m deep, crossed fords up to 0.8 m, walls 0.6 m high. As part of the STZ-5 battery with a trailer, it moved along the highway at an average speed of 14 km/h and 10 km/h country road. They didn’t demand more from him, given his “peasant origin” - a small specific power, a narrow track, chosen taking into account the work of an agricultural fellow with a 4-furrow plow, low ground clearance, insufficiently developed track lugs, significant specific pressure. Due to the revealed longitudinal buildup at high speeds, the military asked to install a fifth road wheel. However, the endurance of the tractor did not cause complaints - he twice successfully completed the runs Stalingrad - Moscow - Stalingrad.
At the beginning of the war, there was a shortage of more powerful artillery tractors and the massive STZ-5 sometimes had to “plug holes”, towing guns and trailers that were heavier than they were supposed to. Tractors worked with overload, but withstood, rescuing gunners from the most difficult situations.
The lack of suitable cross-country transporters forced the installation of M-13 multiple rocket launchers on the STZ-5. They were first used in battles in the fall of 1941 near Moscow. At the same time, the defenders of Odessa used the STZ-5 as the chassis of makeshift NI tanks, covered with light armor - boiler iron and armed with machine guns.
Despite the heavy losses of military equipment, by the fall of 1941, all factories stopped the production of artillery tractors in order to increase the production of tanks. Since then, the entire burden of supplying the army with transport tracked vehicles has fallen on the Stalingrad Tractor. Despite the fact that he also made tanks, from June 22 to the end of the year, 3146 STZ-5 were manufactured there (we had to master the production and components ourselves), and in 1942 the production reached 23-25 vehicles per day. Stalingraders produced them until August 13, when the Germans reached the vicinity of the plant.
In total, he gave the army 9944 STZ-5, including 6506 from the beginning of World War II. However, on September 1 of that year, there were only 4678 transport tractors in it - combat losses affected, in addition, many vehicles remained behind the front line. By the way, the STZ-5 was also used in the German Wehrmacht, where they were given the designation STZ-601 (g).
And in the Red Army they served until the victory, then, until the 50s, they worked in the national economy together with the still produced STZ-Z (ASHTZ-NATI).
