Canadian T72 tanks

[maple_leaf_eh]

http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/forum...ian-T72M1-Tank

For those guys registered on Canadian Gun Nutz (and everyone here should), there is a supremely interesting thread by a Canadian tanker whose job included running one of Canada's post 1989 East German T72 tanks.

Calling Clive - there is a booklet in this man's story ...

[Darrell Zinck]

Hi

I am not a member so can I extrapolate that it's the Gagetown Armour School's OpFor in the mid-90s?

If so, better hurry on the booklet because the T-72 (which was one of the OpFor vehs) in Gagetown may be going away....

regards
Darrell

[302Trooper]

Canada acquired some east German T-72's as mentioned earlier. Some were shot at and we were able to get one or two up as runners for Op For purposes. The 12e RBC has a crew of guys who maintained the 1 in Valcartier that was on loan. It was used in the French Canadian series Op Tango a story about our time in Bosnia - a 3 part series. We also used it for car crushes and as a static display at the regiment before it was returned to CFB Gagetown. We had a few guys who knew all the ins and outs of this machine. I was pretty cool on my Pre 6A (Sgts Course) to go up against it when practicing fire and movement.

Dave Chaloux
302 Trooper

[45jim]

We had one in Calgary that we got running and added to our Historical Vehicle Troop that we used for dog and pony's and the odd car crush. It originally came from Suffield where they had another pair for fuel/air explosive testing which we stripped for spares. It was a crude but robust vehicle that certainly could have been a significant threat in Europe to our Leopard C1's.

Here are some Korea vets taking her for a spin at our 1995 Regimental reunion. That's me smiling in the drivers seat, MLU'er Darryl Zinck is there in the grey coveralls. When the Regiment moved to Edmonton in '96 it became a static monument and I believe it was shipped back to Calgary to the Museum of the Regiments as an outdoor display piece.

[Darrell Zinck]

Hi Jim

Thanks for that. Good times. I see your Sherman in the background too. I also see Kevin Thody and his Dad Dick in that 1st pic. Dick was a Korea Tanker and had some great stories about shooting Commies off his Tp Ldrs tank with canister. Apparently the worst part was having to replace all the AMUs and episcopes!!

Dick has passed on but a great fellow to be sure. Kevin and I met in basic and served VIII CH, RCD and LdSH together before he released in 1995. Of course, you know that, Jim!!

Re the Gagetown T-72s, isn't Gord Pringle a member here? I believe him and "Dauber" we crews of that OpFor troop. Gord? anything to add?

regards
Darrell

[Bob Phillips]

Can anyone tell us whether the T72 ? at Camp Borden is one of this lot of vehicles - or if not where it came from and under what circumstances. It looks fairly complete but neglected surely it could be a runner with some help?? B.P.

[Malcolm Towrie]

Hi, we have two T-72’s at the Ontario Regiment Museum now, one a good runner, one a gate guard.
The runner is a Polish tank, from a private owner’s collection, and I believe it came from Poland via the UK.
The second is a Czech tank (I believe) and came across to a Canadian base for testing, before we got it.
Anyway, we have lots of manuals,Polish, Russian, and Bosnian (according to Google translate), and a couple of abbreviated ones in English, but Google struggles to do a comprehensible translation (or the manuals are very poorly written) so technical info is a problem.
My present question is more from curiosity than a need to repair:
- the tank is 24 volt as expected. However, the electric starter is 48 volt, supplied by temporarily connecting the four 12 volt batteries in series using a large relay activated by the start push button.
- slaving is done by another T-72 supplying 48 volts somehow.
- does anybody know how the slaving tank supplies 48 volts while it is running in 24 volt mode? We occasionally need to slave it.
The manuals we have shed no light on this.

Malcolm

[Richard Farrant]

Hi Malcolm,
On the Tank Museum's Youtube channel yesterday was a new video on the T72 and one of the museum's workshop volunteers is a chap who was a T72 commander in the East German army. He is very knowledgable on the workings of it, so maybe you could make contact with him through the museum?
Here is a link to the video;
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4XjFKVyXzls

[Grant Bowker]

Originally Posted by Malcolm Towrie

Anyway, we have lots of manuals,Polish, Russian, and Bosnian (according to Google translate), and a couple of abbreviated ones in English, but Google struggles to do a comprehensible translation (or the manuals are very poorly written) so technical info is a problem.

It' not just Google that has problems translating technical material. My parent's first VCR came with both English and French manuals. Trying to do the setup of the programming for channels and recording was virtually impossible using the English manual but rather easier using the French one even though everyone involved was very much "French is our second language". I'm convinced the English manual had been translated from Japanese, probably by by someone who was a very competent translator but had no expertise with using the machine in question. On the other hand, I believe the French manual had been done by someone who had been trained to program and operate the VCR and who had then followed the outline of the original manual (English? Japanese? doesn't matter) to write a French version.


To offer a tiny bit of help on your 12/24 volt question - trucks used to employ a device known as a series-parallel switch to configure batteries to be able to provide 12 volts for most of the truck but 24 volts for the starting system. Higher voltage permits the same power to flow with lower current resulting in less heating of cables and letting smaller cables do the job. The power transmission grid uses the same voltage/current relationship to economically move electricity around the country - huge voltage, lower current.

[James P]

Originally Posted by Malcolm Towrie

Hi, we have two T-72’s at the Ontario Regiment Museum now, one a good runner, one a gate guard.
The runner is a Polish tank, from a private owner’s collection, and I believe it came from Poland via the UK.
The second is a Czech tank (I believe) and came across to a Canadian base for testing, before we got it.
Anyway, we have lots of manuals,Polish, Russian, and Bosnian (according to Google translate), and a couple of abbreviated ones in English, but Google struggles to do a comprehensible translation (or the manuals are very poorly written) so technical info is a problem.
My present question is more from curiosity than a need to repair:
- the tank is 24 volt as expected. However, the electric starter is 48 volt, supplied by temporarily connecting the four 12 volt batteries in series using a large relay activated by the start push button.
- slaving is done by another T-72 supplying 48 volts somehow.
- does anybody know how the slaving tank supplies 48 volts while it is running in 24 volt mode? We occasionally need to slave it.
The manuals we have shed no light on this.

Malcolm

The practice was to do air starts, or a combination of air/electric. Have you do a tow start and do you double suction the transmission for ease of start , and that said don,t stand in front of the tank on start up.