KV-4
Encyclopedia
The KV-4 was a proposed Soviet heavy break-through tank
, developed during World War II
. Part of the Kliment Voroshilov tank
design series, it never progressed past a series of feasibility studies.
. It was supposed to be able to defeat any German heavy tank. The project was intended to remain an unbuilt design, until it was needed. Several tank designers were told to create basic concept drawings. Sources differ as to the designers involved. Among those listed are: Kreslavsky; Kuzmin, Tarapatin and Tarotko (who together worked on the same design); Pereverzev; Mikhailov; Kruchenykh; Tseits, K. Buganov; S. Fedorenko; G. Kruchenykh; F. Marishkin; G. Moskvin; N. Strukov; A. Yermolaev; L. Sychev; L. Pereverzev; Bykov; N. Dukhov; M. Kreslavskiy; V. Pavlov; D. Grigorev.
Basic armour was to be 125 to 130 mm and up to 150 mm over vulnerable areas. A new gun was required. There were about 20 different designs generated by the project. The lightest design was 82.5 tonnes and the heaviest was 107.7 tonnes. All had a 107mm ZiS-6 main gun and all but one had a second tank gun. The second gun was a 45 mm 20-K, or a 76 mm gun. Solutions to the positioning of the guns – turrets or hull mountings – varied. Crew requirements were from 5 to 9 men.
The tank was never needed and by the end of the war, there were superior heavy tanks the IS-3
heavy tank already in production.
was created in Plant #92, in a design bureau under the supervision of V. Grabin. The F-42 was based on the F-39 95 mm tank gun and it was finished in the fall of 1940. By the beginning of 1941, the new gun had been factory tested in a field casemate. In March 1941 it was tested in the turret of a KV-2 tank
. The ZiS-6 gun passed factory testing by June 1941, after which it was sent to the Artillery Scientific Test Range at Leningrad
.
According to V. Grabin ("Oruzhie Pobedy" - "Weapons of Victory") about 600 ZiS-6 guns had been finished by the fall of 1941. Those guns were all destroyed because the tanks were never going to be made. The plants chief designer wrote that "five serially-produced ZiS-6 cannons were manufactured in July-August 1941, after which their production was halted because the heavy tanks were not ready". Those documents had been signed by V. Grabin.
Super-heavy tank
Super-heavy tanks are armored vehicles of very large size, generally over 75 tonnes. Programs have been initiated on several occasions with the aim of creating an invincible vehicle for penetrating enemy formations without fear of being destroyed in combat; however, only a few examples have ever...
, developed during World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. Part of the Kliment Voroshilov tank
Kliment Voroshilov tank
The Kliment Voroshilov tanks were a series of Soviet heavy tanks, named after the Soviet defense commissar and politician Kliment Voroshilov. The KV series were known for their extremely heavy armour protection during the early war, especially during the first year of the invasion of the Soviet...
design series, it never progressed past a series of feasibility studies.
Design history
In April 1941, it was decided to create a project for a new Super-heavy tankSuper-heavy tank
Super-heavy tanks are armored vehicles of very large size, generally over 75 tonnes. Programs have been initiated on several occasions with the aim of creating an invincible vehicle for penetrating enemy formations without fear of being destroyed in combat; however, only a few examples have ever...
. It was supposed to be able to defeat any German heavy tank. The project was intended to remain an unbuilt design, until it was needed. Several tank designers were told to create basic concept drawings. Sources differ as to the designers involved. Among those listed are: Kreslavsky; Kuzmin, Tarapatin and Tarotko (who together worked on the same design); Pereverzev; Mikhailov; Kruchenykh; Tseits, K. Buganov; S. Fedorenko; G. Kruchenykh; F. Marishkin; G. Moskvin; N. Strukov; A. Yermolaev; L. Sychev; L. Pereverzev; Bykov; N. Dukhov; M. Kreslavskiy; V. Pavlov; D. Grigorev.
Basic armour was to be 125 to 130 mm and up to 150 mm over vulnerable areas. A new gun was required. There were about 20 different designs generated by the project. The lightest design was 82.5 tonnes and the heaviest was 107.7 tonnes. All had a 107mm ZiS-6 main gun and all but one had a second tank gun. The second gun was a 45 mm 20-K, or a 76 mm gun. Solutions to the positioning of the guns – turrets or hull mountings – varied. Crew requirements were from 5 to 9 men.
The tank was never needed and by the end of the war, there were superior heavy tanks the IS-3
Iosif Stalin tank
The Iosif Stalin tank , was a heavy tank developed by the Soviet Union during World War II and first used in the Kursk area in September 1943...
heavy tank already in production.
The 107 mm ZiS-6 guns
The F-42 107 mm tank gunTank gun
A tank gun is the main armament of a tank. Modern tank guns are large-caliber high-velocity guns, capable of firing kinetic energy penetrators, high explosive anti-tank rounds, and in some cases guided missiles. Anti-aircraft guns can also be mounted to tanks.-Overview:Tank guns are a specific...
was created in Plant #92, in a design bureau under the supervision of V. Grabin. The F-42 was based on the F-39 95 mm tank gun and it was finished in the fall of 1940. By the beginning of 1941, the new gun had been factory tested in a field casemate. In March 1941 it was tested in the turret of a KV-2 tank
Kliment Voroshilov tank
The Kliment Voroshilov tanks were a series of Soviet heavy tanks, named after the Soviet defense commissar and politician Kliment Voroshilov. The KV series were known for their extremely heavy armour protection during the early war, especially during the first year of the invasion of the Soviet...
. The ZiS-6 gun passed factory testing by June 1941, after which it was sent to the Artillery Scientific Test Range at Leningrad
Leningrad
Leningrad is the former name of Saint Petersburg, Russia.Leningrad may also refer to:- Places :* Leningrad Oblast, a federal subject of Russia, around Saint Petersburg* Leningrad, Tajikistan, capital of Muminobod district in Khatlon Province...
.
According to V. Grabin ("Oruzhie Pobedy" - "Weapons of Victory") about 600 ZiS-6 guns had been finished by the fall of 1941. Those guns were all destroyed because the tanks were never going to be made. The plants chief designer wrote that "five serially-produced ZiS-6 cannons were manufactured in July-August 1941, after which their production was halted because the heavy tanks were not ready". Those documents had been signed by V. Grabin.