what was the best tank of the second world war?

Question

I would say the Russian T34

Actually the tigers in Kellys heros were converted t34s made to look like tigers

Answer 1

At what point in the war, was some major improvements in armor back then

Answer 2

It depends on how you would view the word "best". It may have something to do with the technological aspect or practicality.

I consider the Russian T34 Tank as the best tank in World War2. This is the tank that won the Soviets the war against the Germans. The reason here is practicality. The T34 tank is actually simple in design (the German Tiger and Panther are more sophisticated in their designs). The T34 used only two chassis variants. The vehicle interior is cramped, with human comfort sacrificed in favor of more space for ammunitions. The air-ventilation is crude and no air-conditioning whatsoever. The turret mechanism and the engine are also very simple designs. However, this idea of simplicity had its own advantages, as what have been proven in actual combat. Because of design simplicity, they were simple to manufacture as well. They were produced in mass quantities, about 2,000 units in one month. Compare this with the Tigers or Panthers that trickled from German factories at the rate of 300 units in one month. In the field, the T34 is simpler to maintain. The T34 mechanic has to deal only with a few moving parts. When the needed part is not available, it can be easily taken from another disabled tank. This was not just possible with Tigers and Panthers, because they have many variants of the same design, and spare parts are frequently not interchangeable. The Panthers and Tigers also consists of complicated mechanisms, that in case of malfunctions, are not so easy to repair. The T34, was also used for whatever purpose the Russians can think of. It's not unusual to see T34's towing trucks and artillery pieces, carrying ammunition boxes chained to its flat-deck, bulldozing walls and barriers, carrying troops, purposes for which the Germans would have used more specialized equipments. The T34 also have a sloping armor, with the shells hitting it at an angle simply bouncing off. It also have wider tracks that enables it to go through thick snow and mud, without being stuck.

Answer 3

You are correct, the T-34/85.

It lacked the power of some of the later German Tanks, but it more than made up for that in its' simplicty of manufacture. In short, the Russians could make many more of them than the Germans could make Tigers or King Tigers. Yes, a King Tiger could take out a T-34/85 in a one to one duel, but because there were so many more T-34's that one-to-one duel would never take place, the King Tiger should always be facing two or three or more T-34's.

As Lennin once said "Quantity has a quality all its own."

The American Sherman tanks were built along a similar concept, but their design was so far behind the German tanks that their advantage in sheer numbers didn't count for as much. Shermans were so outclassed by the Tigers and Panthers (not to mention the T-34 and the JS-III) that it wasn't even close. It was air power, not tank power, that worked for the U.S. Army in Europe in WW2.

So you are right, T-34/85 hands down.

Answer 4

The King Tiger, in technical terms a great bit of engineering, but took a long time to build compared to the T34 or the Sherman.

Answer 5

German Panther, here is a link, which talks about it being superior to the T34, and the T34-85 which was the upgrade to counter the Panther. The T34 was only able to overpower the Panther by sheer force of numbers.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Panther_tank


To some of the above, I think he is asking the best individual tank model, not best based on groups of the same model cause they were mass produced in larger quantities.

Answer 6

The Soviet T-34 was an excellent tank that helped improve the USSR Red Army. But, I would have to say the Panzer "King" Tiger Tank. This colossal tank performed very well and in the Battle Of Eastern Berlin 50 King Panzer's took out 40 T-34s and damaged 20 other T-34s.

Answer 7

Russian T34

the German tiger while being technically superior was flawed:- overly complex, took a long time to build, too heavy, unreliable, difficult to repair in the field.

Answer 8

T34/85 command tanks (with radios). Better than any German tank for the simple reason that a working tank is better than one broken down on the side of the road, and all the German models were down for repairs at least as much of the time as they were available for use. If you could get a Mark V to work, it was great, but the "if" is the deciding factor.

Answer 9

In terms of survivability on the battle field, it was the Tiger I. That frontal armor would withstand a hit from any gun made outside of 200 yards, and the long barrel 88 could kill any enemy vehicle encountered at 10 times that distance. The Tiger II was a
failure because it used a power train designed for a vehicle 25 tons lighter, (The Panther II) a close second would probably be the German Mark IV H.

Answer 10

t34 as they reconised 2" steel on a 30 degree slant = 4 inch thick
lighter material = speed and mobility
the tiger althought thick (shell proof) it was slow

also due to the thickness of steel the t34 was mass produced

Answer 11

1 on 1 the Tiger II's had them beat. The T34's of course were used and improved far beyond the end of WWII. Tiger l's gave them a fit too.

T34's were medium tanks, and a pretty good one, beat the heck out of what the British and Americans were using, but no match for a Tiger. Sheer numbers and airpower did the Tiger's in.

-Dio