The M25 tank transporter, nicknamed the "Dragon Car", is the largest standard vehicle of the United States Army in World War II, it is composed of two parts, the tow head part is the M26 tank tractor, and the trailer part is the M15 semi-trailer flatbed, with a rated load capacity of 40 tons. The M26 M26A1 tank tractor was designed by the Knukey Truck Company and manufactured by Pacific Car & Foundry, with a total of 1,372 units built between January 1943 and June 1945.
M25 tank transporter.
M26 tank tractor.
The design of the M26 tank tractor is very distinctive, it is not only a simple semi-trailer, it can also be used as a tank operation vehicle after being separated from the trailer. The vehicle itself is in the form of 6x6 drive, which has a certain off-road ability. The middle of the body is equipped with two heavy-duty tandem winches with a pulling force of 60,000 pounds, and an auxiliary winch with a pulling force of 35,000 pounds at the front of the locomotive. Generally speaking, each U.S. armored division will be equipped with 9 sets of M25 tank transporters, which will be assigned to the ** platoon of each company of the division's maintenance battalion, each platoon will be equipped with 3 sets, and each set will be equipped with 7 crew members.
M26 tank tractor undergoing tank ** operations.
In accordance with the requirements of the design, "capable of operating during engagements" at the time of design, the M26 tank tractor was equipped with an armored cab and an annular M2HB heavy machine gun mount. Later, it was discovered that the armored cab would increase the burden on the front axle and its role was limited, so in 1944 a lightweight M26A1 tank tractor was developed, and the cab was changed to a simple open-top cab, and the heavy machine gun mount was retained. The M26A1 tank tractor weighs less, reduces the load on the front axle, improves reliability, and production is carried out on the previous M26 mixed line.
The M26A1 tank tractor, which is sometimes referred to as the "Pacific", is distinguished from the model with an armored cab.
During World War II, almost all of the M25 tank transporters were in service with the U.S. military, and apart from the U.S. military, only the British army had a small amount of equipment in the Allied camp. After the war, some M25 tank transporters were exported to other countries, and some were later converted into civilian bulky transporters and traffic wreckers. From 1955, the M25 of the US army was gradually replaced by the new M123 tank transporter. However, in some shipyards, cargo yards and NASA space centers, the M25 has been active for quite some time.
This is an M26 preserved in France with registration number 548102. It is a 22-ton bulky piece in its own right, and after removing the flatbed, an M26 can tow more than 50 tons. Nuki's design was mature and sophisticated enough that Pacific Vehicles & Foundry took over and went into production with minimal changes. The so-called "Dragon Wagon" does not refer to this type of vehicle, but is the general term for the tank transporter of the US Army, and the M1070 is sometimes referred to as such.
There are 3 traction bases in the front bumper, and a folding rigid drawbar is fixed on the front of the car, which can only be used when it is deployed, and the crossbar is fixed to the back panel of the cab.
The light group on the left, the one with the transparent lampshade is the headlamp, the smaller one on the left is the anti-aircraft lamp, and the top one is a siren with a light, and the front of the light group is welded with a protective grille. In comparison, the right light cluster is much simpler, with only the headlights and grille.
The two "big nostrils" at the front of the car are the radiator vents of the water tank, which are equipped with an armored cover plate, which are usually supported by poles and can be operated and closed in the car when needed. The latter ** is the heat vent on the right side, and the object in front of the water tank is an air horn.
The engine of the M26 is arranged in the cab, and the comical "big dragon head" of the armored cab seems to be spacious, but the interior is occupied by the hood, leaving very limited space for the occupants. A map table is installed in front of the passenger seat, and there is still 12 in the cabSome equipment and tools such as 7mm machine gun ammunition boxes. Unlike the side windows, which are not glassed, the front windows are equipped with a windshield.
The words "winterized-44" are printed on the front armor plate above the vents, indicating that the car had been replaced with antifreeze in 1944 and could be used normally in winter environments. The edge of the heat vent is designed to prevent water seepage, the inner ring has a water barrier, and the two devices above are the windshield armor cover brackets.
Tool bar at the bottom left of the cab for a shovel, an axe, and a disassembled pickaxe. Note that the tool buckle for U.S. military vehicles is a canvas strap, which is very different from the metal hinged tool buckle of the German army. As can be seen from this **, the cutting process of the cab armor plate is very rough, and there are obvious cutting lines on the edges.
Two sledgehammers were also fixed to the left side of the cab. The M26's cab side windows do not have glazing, and the windows can be closed with an armoured cover that, when not in use, is locked on a fixed base welded to the exterior surface of the cab with a sliding stop pin.
The tool bar in the lower right corner of the cab carries the same type of tools as the group on the left, but in opposite directions.
Detail of the side window armor cover and stop on the right side.
The window armor cover had a simple viewing opening, to which a retainer was welded. Nuki's original design was more complicated, and there was a sliding baffle on the inside that could completely close the viewing port, but it was eliminated during mass production.
The right door of the cab has a two-stage boarding pedal under the door, and the triangular device behind the front fender is the door stopper (small details such as this are often omitted in Tamiya's 1 35 book models).
A vise is installed on the base under the left door of the cab, the upper part of the vise can be rotated when unlocked, and the entire vise can be removed from the car along with the base.
At the rear of the cab, handles are welded to the side of the door, and two sets of flare containers can be installed on the empty shelves on the back panel.
The hand-cranked crane with a lifting capacity of 1000 kg behind the spare tire was not designed for maintenance operations, but for changing wheels - because the wheels of M26 are too large and too heavy, it is too difficult to carry by manpower alone, so such a small crane that can slide forward and backward along the boom is designed to help the crew replace the rear wheels, and it is also specially equipped with a clamp for lifting tires. When not in use, this hand-cranked crane can be disassembled and stored in a fixed position on a flatbed truck. However, when the M26 bicycle is operating, there is no place for the hand-cranked crane at all, and it has to deal with possible tire punctures. So in order to save trouble, the crew generally installed it and plugged it into the pedestal in case of emergency.
The spare tire hub, the fixed base of the spare tire and the winch base are integrated.
The exhaust pipe is equipped with a guard plate outside, the base of the hand-cranked crane on the left, and the lateral cable-stayed rod of the rear traction frame on the right.
The heavy-duty tandem winch is arranged behind the cab, and the upper and lower winches are equipped with clutches and brakes, which are independent of each other and arranged in opposite directions. The winch is mechanically actuated and powered by the engine via a power take-off integrated into the transfer case.
The winch console has a guard plate behind the table to prevent the dirt from the wheels from splashing into the control mechanism, or the winch cable from breaking suddenly and hitting the operator. The joysticks of the two winches are distinguished by different colors, yellow for the upper winch and red for the lower winch. For example, the joystick of the above winch controls the clutch, brake and gear from left to right.
Further in front of the winch console are three pressure cylinders, namely oxygen cylinders and acetylene cylinders, for simple metal cutting and welding operations. The crossbar of the drawbar is fixed on the back plate in front of the cylinder, and the lever on the drum support of the winch is used to control the opening and closing of the power take-off. There are also two small windows at the back of the cab that can be opened, and two searchlights that can be tilted and rotated independently are used to provide illumination and light signals during night operations.
There is a spare rear wheel drive chain in the toolbox in front of the left rear wheel, as well as maintenance tools such as jacks, compressed air ducts for tyres, etc.
The front axle of the M26 is powered by a drive rod and the suspension is a leaf spring.
Shock absorbers for the front suspension, as well as connecting rods to various operating devices for the transfer case.
Semi-trailer saddle, after connecting the semi-trailer, the saddle will be pressed to a horizontal position due to the force. The saddle size of the M26 is large, which can only be adapted to the special M15 flatbed, and cannot directly tow commercial semi-trailers. The rear towing frame of this M26 is already in place, and the towing frame can be fixed at 5 different angles to match the winch, which will be lifted by the vehicle during operation. When not in use, the towing frame can be disassembled and the components are stored in different locations on the vehicle.
The rear wheels were supposed to be double-rowed, but the rear wheels on the outside of the car were removed.
The rear axle assembly of the M26 can be described as unique - the two rear axles themselves have no power, and a power shaft is arranged between them, and the transfer case transmits power to the power shaft through the transmission rod, and then the double-layer ratchet at both ends of the power shaft drives the transmission chain to drive the large gears on the inside of the rear wheels of each group to rotate. Chain drives were mostly seen in automobiles during the First World War, and they were basically absent after the 20s of the 20th century. It makes sense to use chain drive on heavy-duty vehicles such as the M26, as it simplifies the rear axle structure and shortens development time. second, it can ensure the torque output; Third, it can reduce the workload of maintenance and reduce the probability of failure.
The shock absorber on the rear axle of the M26 is a large longitudinal spring on each side, and the four groups of rear wheels have independent pneumatic drum brakes. The drive chain of the front pair of rear wheels is designed with a curved baffle to prevent debris from being rolled into the drive chain. Continuous lubrication is required in the work of the transmission chain, so an oil cylinder is set on both sides above the rear axle, and lubricating oil is continuously dripped on the chain through two droppers, which means that no matter how good this "dragon" goes, it will leave a string of oil traces, and the driver also needs to pay attention to adding lubricating oil to the cylinder at all times.
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