BT-SV
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| BT-SV / BT-SW-2 | |
|---|---|
BT-SV | |
| Type | Light cavalry tank |
| Place of origin | |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Tsyganov Group |
| Designed | 1937–1938 |
| Specifications (BT-SV) | |
| Mass | 13.1 tons (25 tons for the production) |
| Length | 562 cm |
| Width | 280 cm |
| Height | 217.5 cm |
| Crew | 4 |
| Armour | 10-12 mm (16–25 mm for the production) |
Main armament | 45 mm 20KL tank gun |
Secondary armament | 7.62 mm DT MG |
| Engine | Model M-17T 400 hp |
| Power/weight | 20 hp/tonne |
| Suspension | Christie suspension |
Operational range | 120 km |
| Maximum speed | 52 km/h (32.3 mph) |
The BT-SV ( Bystrohodny Tank-Stalin Voroshilov) was an experimental Soviet light tank. In 1936, Soviet engineer Nikolay Tsyganov proposed a new high-speed light tank based on the BT-5. The design was to incorporate sloped armor similar to the T-34, which was also being developed at the time, and a transmission identical to that of the BT-5. The armor was angled at around 15°–58°. It could protect the tank from 45mm rounds. Only two prototypes were built, both of which saw field testing. The vehicle never saw mass production, due to the led engineer N. F. Tsyganov, been arrested as well as most of the engineer of the project. The tank also shows concern on the reliability of the suspension and transmission, as the extra weight added a lot of stress on the mechanic.