The T-34M was an early short-lived T-34 prototype featuring torsion bar suspension (over that of the original's Christie). New road wheels, improved ranges and ammunition totals as well as a three-man turret of hexagonal design was introduced. Unfortunately, the design was abandoned after the German invasion of the Soviet Union.
Command and Control tanks were the T-34K and T-34G models. The T-34K was fitted with the RSB radio set which decreased the 76mm projectile count to 39 rounds. The T-34G included radio sets that increased transmittal ranges to 120 kilometers.
The German Response
German commanders relayed their operational findings of the T-34 back to Germany to which a pair of completed examples were finally captured for formal review by engineers. The Germans were impressed by the key qualities of the Soviet design - wide tracks surrounding large road wheels, sloped thick armor and a large caliber gun. The large road wheels were of particular mention here for they countered the build-up of mud and snow - something the Germans never learned in their habit of using overlapping road wheels. The wide tracks also allowed the Soviet design to carry heavier armor loads and armament across soft terrains.
While the T-34 outperformed her early German counterparts, German engineers were hard at work as developing a counter to the Soviet menace. While this would eventually take the form of the excellent Panzer V "Panther" medium tank, the "Tiger I" heavy tank would serve for the interim. This massive tank was armed with the fabled 88mm main gun based on the proven anti-tank gun system, itself based on an earlier anti-aircraft design. The gun could help the Tiger outrange the T-34's 76.2mm main armament and was itself very well protected tank thanks to thick frontal armor. Both the Tiger I and Panther tanks came online beginning in late 1942 and the Germans also found their PaK 40 75mm anti-tank field guns capable of penetrating Soviet armor. The German 75mm would also serve as primary armament in upgunned Panzer IV tanks as well as the StuG III/StuG IV/Jagdpanzer IV tank destroyers. The German 75mm tank gun outpaced the Soviet 76.2mm despite the caliber difference. As the war went on, a greater number of T-34s were lost to the German 75mm and 88mm guns. Some 40% of losses in the Orel Operation of 1943 alone were to 75mm guns and a further 26% to the 88's.
The T-34/85
Like the Germans, Soviet engineers went to work to develop a new combat tank under the designation of "T-43" (mainly due to the increased use of the long-barreled 75mm gun by the Germans). However, this advanced designed failed to exceed the performance capabilities of the T-34 it was meant to replace and its new armor configuration was in no way a guarantee against the mighty German "88" nor even the 75mm. It was, therefore, agreed upon to simply manufacture a modified T-34 variant with a more powerful, long-barreled 85mm main gun fitted to a turret based on the KV-85 heavy tank family. The turret now allowed a dedicated loader for the main gun, thusly relieving the commander of that duty and to concentrate on directing his crew. A new five-speed transmission system rounded out the changes of what was, essentially, an "upgunned" T-34-76. The new tank emerged under the designation of "T-34-85" that clearly indicated its new armament fitting and this version entered service in 1944 with 12,000 in circulation by the end of the war. The T-34-85 ultimately existed in several notable production forms during the war and in the post-war years (see variants listing).
Despite the changes, the T-34-85 was not the final answer to the Panther tank threat but the type did serve to level the playing field to an extent. The Panther was clearly the superior vehicle both armor- and armament-wise with the T-34 clearly having seen her best days behind her. However, availability in numbers certainly played well for the Soviets as T-34s could swarm enemy positions seemingly at will. T-34 production vastly outnumbered Panther production with hundreds of T-34s available per month. Of course Soviet losses were comparatively high but this was deemed negligible by Soviet warplanners. In practice a collection of several T-34-85 tanks would be used to attack a single Panther tank from all angles other than the lethal front with generally good results when targeting the weaker side and rear panels. The Soviet Army also began to add the IS "Josef Stalin" heavy tank to the mix beginning in 1943 for a truly potent "one-two" punch. IS tanks were fitted with the massive 122mm main gun and were covered over in thick all-around armor, its variants seeing service well into the Cold War years.
NOTE: See the dedicated T-34-85 entry on this website for full history and production mark notes.
Fallout and Summary
Production of the T-34 went uninterrupted until the end of the European campaign in 1945 to which 57,000 T-34s were in circulation by that time - in fact the T-34 replaced production of all other Soviet combat tank types during peak usage with 42 factories participating - this made the T-34 the most numerous of all Soviet armored vehicles used in the war. Factories included No. 183(Kharkov), No. 183(Nizhny Tagil), the STZ plant, No.112 (Kr.Sormovo), ChKZ, Uralmash and plant No. 174 - each presenting slightly varying end-products due to differences in manufacture. In 1940, only 97 T-34s were produced with 3,000 following in 1941. In 1942, 12,500 were delivered but this was out shown by the 15,700 built during 1943. Production eventually lessened in the final years as "only" 4,000 were added in 1944. The T-34 managed use primarily of the L-11, F-34 and ZiS-4 series guns throughout her career and this existed in 746 L-11 examples, 38,580 F-34 examples and 212 ZiS-4 examples. In terms of powerplants, some 96,182 Model V-2 diesel engines were produced during the war in factories that included women workers.
The tank went on to become the symbol of the Soviet struggle against Germany in the post war years. Though far from the perfect combat tank, it was nonetheless seen as a centerpiece of many monuments to the war. While the T-34-76 largely fell out of favor after the war, the T-34 continued service in its T-34-85 guise as many were delivered to Soviet allies and satellite states. Overall production spanned from 1940 to 1958 to which a total of 84,000 examples were delivered. The chassis also formed the basis for a bridgelayer, self-propelled gun platform and armored recovery vehicle among other types. It was even used as an ad hoc "fast personnel carrier" to the horror of German troops now being swarmed by T-34s laden with Soviet infantry. Other notable variants included a flame tank, mine clearance vehicle and 100mm- and 122mm-armed tank destroyers (see variants listing for full descriptions of marks). As many as 20,000 T-34s were claimed by the Germans in combat - either captured or destroyed.
T-34 Global Operators
Operators of the T-34 eventually proved numerous and her use went well beyond Russian borders. The crop of users ultimately included Afghanistan, Albania, Algeria, Angola, Austria, Bulgaria, China, Congo, Cyprus, Czechoslovakia, Cuba, Finland, East Germany, Egypt, Equatorial Guinea, Ethiopia, Guinea, Guinea-Bissau, Hungary, Indonesia, Iraq, Laos, Libya, Mali, Mongolia, Mozambique, Namibia, North Korea, Palestine, Poland, Romania, Somalia, South Yemen, Sudan, Syria, Togo, Vietnam, Yugoslavia and Zimbabwe. Production of T-34s was also undertaken in Czechoslovakia, Poland and China while some lesser militaries still operate T-34-85 tanks as of 2012.
T-34/85s in the Korean War
The North Korean Army managed approximately 120 T-34-85 tanks during its invasion of South Korea to begin the Korean War (1950-1953). The tanks proved highly effective in early-round action but less so in the NATO counter-offensive which saw them either destroyed or in retreat. Nearly 100 of these tanks were lost in subsequent fighting against upgraded American M4 Sherman, M46 Patton and M26 Pershing tanks. The T-34-85 particularly failed to best the M26 which had arrived in the Europe Theator during the closing weeks of World War 2.
The T-34 Legacy
For the Soviets, the T-34 laid down the ground work for other successful tanks of the cold war. The famous T-54/T-55 series became direct descendants of the T-34 and went on to become the most-produced tank line in history numbering over 85,000 (perhaps as many as 100,000). With that said, the T-34 remains the second most-produced combat tank in history. A related T-34 development, the short-lived "T-44", was intended as a direct T-34 successor and also fitted with the 85mm ZiS-S-53 series gun though only a few hundred were completed and these arrived too late to see war in Europe - and consistently dogged by mechanical issues until the line was wholly retired from service.
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