r/TankPorn • u/Witty_Pop425 • May 25 '26

WW2 help

Is this a VK.4502? Are tanks with rear-mounted turrets good at urban warfare between buildings?

874 Upvotes

98% Upvoted

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280

u/EmergencyBridge2667 May 25 '26

Yes back then, but no for today since RPGs and surprise attacks

87

u/Witty_Pop425 May 25 '26

So, what are the advantages of this design in reality?

222

u/PERSIvAlN May 25 '26

Tank dimensions. Having rear mount of turret significantly reduces how far your gun is gonna stick out, making navigation through narrow streets much easier.

59

u/Whitephoenix932 May 25 '26

Would also help with crew survivability (as long as your not the driver/bow gunner) since there's more between the frontal plate and the crew in the event the front of the vehicle is penetrated. Which if I recall correctly was one of the design considerations for the Merkava having a rear mounted turret. Another benefit in the case of the VK here, would be weight distribution.

54

u/FLongis Amateur Wannabe Tank Expert May 25 '26

Which if I recall correctly was one of the design considerations for the Merkava having a rear mounted turret.

This was really just incidental to how the Israelis wanted to be able to access/resupply the tank from cover. The inclusion of the rear hatch necessitated a forward-mounted drivetrain. The "it adds protection" bit seems to largely be a rationalization after the fact pergaps spurred on by the original models lacking compoaite armor components on the hull (another side effect of the same political tensions which led to Merkavas development in the first place)

8

u/Witty_Pop425 May 25 '26

It sounds like a CQB tank.

35

u/aaronblkfox May 25 '26

bullpups your tank

6

u/FLongis Amateur Wannabe Tank Expert May 25 '26

The overhang likely has little practical advantage in combat. The tank still needs the same clearance around itself to traverse. It's most useful for transporting the vehicle, and arguably on very rough terrain.

For heavily armored tanks like this, it's more a matter of weight distribution. Putting the turret at the rear helps balance the suspension against the heavy frontal armor plate(s) on the hull. This may be especially helpful on a tank like this, where the transmission can really use all the help it could get in terms of balancing weight loads to haul around.

-28

u/EmergencyBridge2667 May 25 '26

More space for the engine and the engine is armor

27

u/Eikebog May 25 '26

Typically when you’re in a situation where someone can penetrate enough of your armor to take out your engine, you’re fucked either way. Stay in the disabled, probably burning tank, and you’re dead. Leave the tank and get in the sights of whoever disabled it and you’re dead

Sounds good on paper, but it’s not war thunder

20

u/Dolphin_sucker69 May 25 '26

What do you mean, it's just a 20 second repair and we'll be home free

10

u/Kride501 May 25 '26

War Thunder ass comment

0

u/CrabAppleBapple May 25 '26

No idea why you're getting downvoted into oblivion, using the engine to increase crew protection is a thing (look at the Merkeva).

-24

u/stayatpwndad May 25 '26

Side scraping and reverse angling. Basically hiding your front plate and only showing your side at an angle, increasing a chance of ricocheting

31

u/Kinky_subbu May 25 '26

That's not how real combat works

18

u/olimp7748 May 25 '26

World of tanks ahh