A question regarding ww2 bunker busting!

[Mick_in_Switzerland]

Rich

Thank-you very much for the Information.
I do remember your project to make the master of the Tortoise. Your skills are very impressive.

Mick

[secharles]

I just did a quick look at the top tortoise link. the weight was 78 long tons. each being 2,240 pounds =
174,720 pounds? how in the world could this thing move, never mind maneuver?

[Rich H]

Trucks until near the front then very slowly...

[carlos marighela]

Very slowly.... until they reached a bridge or a waterway in need of a bridge.

'Wot's class 60 mean Alf?'

[Rich H]

Yep, I think they would have been used as strategic weapons used for planned attacks only against specific targets.   
I don't think they'd get far without a lot of logistical support!

[fred]

They had at least given some thought to ground pressure, as it seems to have double width tracks.

But bearing in mind this is still around 1/3rd the weight of a Maus, just think how monstrous it would have been if fielded.

In both cases it feels that the effort to get the monster tank to the point of attack, would probably have been better spent in getting more artillery and ammunition there, instead.

[Rich H]

The T-28 has double tracks, the outer tracks come off! 

For some reason they decided to go with heavy assault tanks. No idea if they were being seriously contemplated but the USSR were also working on massive tanks too. The pinnacle being the IS-7. 

Something triggered these massive beasts but whether they were just some sort of international willy waving exercise or a genuine military need will probably never be known for sure.   

I suspect the latter really but fuelled by the likes of the Tiger II and Jagdtiger and the IS-2 and IS-3 which must have scared the crap out of the western allies with when it appeared! 

No doubt they would have had little real impact with so few of them and so few real targets and the massive effort needed to move them into position. 

But the writing was on the wall - the main battle tanks were on the way: the Centurion which is still soldiering on!

[fred]

Something triggered these massive beasts but whether they were just some sort of international willy waving exercise or a genuine military need will probably never be known for sure.   

I suspect it was the drive to get ever bigger guns, and thicker armour on a mobile hull. The problem was engines and drive trains couldn't keep up, so performance was awful.

Modern tanks are around the weight of the Tortoise, and have all the benefits of modern materials to reduce weight of components, and have much better engines. So there may be some point where the weight just gets to much for tracks to support at a practical level.

[Rich H]

Horses arses limit the size of tanks.

A tank needs to fit in the railway loading gauge or be forever limited as to where it can get.
Railway tunnels were based on the width of a standard roadway which was based on a roman cart.
A roman cart was the width of two horses arses.

(Same is true of the space shuttle solid boosters)

the only reason I can think of why they went for heavy assault guns is direct fire, otherwise the easy answer is artillery as suggested above!