The T-34/76

Hi all,

Today, we take a trip back in time to WWII in which I shall be featuring the infamous T-34/76 Soviet Tank. T-34 History.

World in Conflict Soviet Background with the T-34 

The T-34 is undoubtedly the iconic mainstay of the Soviet Armored Force in WWII. At that point of time, many of Soviet Military top brass were against the idea of putting investment into a new tank design and recommended pumping more money into producing more of the existing T-26 and BT Tanks. However, due to the poor performance of these tanks, the T-34 Tank, led by Mikhail Koshkin went into full production.

T-34/76 Mod 1941

The particular version I am featuring today is the Model 1941 from Dragon Armor. Weighing in at 29.2 tons, this Red Monster is armed with a mean 76.2mm F-34 gun. (Slightly Bigger than the AMX-13) Packed with a Model V-2-34 38.8 L V12 Diesel Engine, it can go to a speed of 53 km/h and has a road range of 400km. The T-34/76 also has secondary armaments that include 2 7.62 machine guns. And lastly, it has an armor that ranges from 20-52mm depending on which side of the tank. With the armor put together with its sloping design, the T-34 was one of the most heavily armored tanks in 1941.

The Red Star, Ever so imposing of an Insignia

 

 Top Side

 While the Soviets were not revolutionary in terms of their planes or ships, the T-34 is definitely a paragon of tank evolution. The sloping armor design was one of the first of its kind and with the massive production rate of the T-34, the Soviet Armored Strength shocked the Germans. While the T-34 did pack as big a punch as the German Panzers, its armor could also take a pounding and with its numbers, it dished out a painful bite against the enemy.

I gotta be frank. When I was a kid and I got familiar with WWII, I was very intrigue by the Panzer and Tiger Tanks of the Third Reich. They look massive, deadly and awesome. Hell, my first WWII Micro Machine was a Tiger Tank. However, over the years, as I got to familiarize myself with more of the other Tanks from the other armies, I began to fall more in love with the T-34. I always wanted to force myself to like the "Good Guy" tank which would be the iconic Allied Sherman Tank. However, its light armor and puny gun did not steer me away from the fact that German Panzers were way cooler. The T-34 changed all that. No only was it a high speed fighting machine, The T-34 represents the best of mobility, armor and firepower in World War Two. None could match it when you wanted the best of these three aspects. It is pity that because of ill support, lack of training and the inferiority of the Soviet Army as a whole, these T-34s were not put to better use. Many were lost in initial battle of Barbarossa.

Dragon Armor has really put in great effort to making this T-34/76 look as awesome as it can for a 1/72 scale die cast model.In fact, this would be my first 1/72 Die cast WWII model and looking at it does bring a smile to my face.

What are your opinions on this sturdy tank?

Do let me know and stay tune for more Toyconstruct Post!