T-34 (Prototype)

This page is about the Soviet medium tank T-34 (Prototype). For other versions, see T-34 (Family).

T-34 (Prototype)

T-34 (Prototype)

USSR

II Rank

Battle rating:

AB	RB	SB
3.3	3.3	2.7

Class:

PREMIUM

Medium tank

Purchase:Bundle or Gift

Show in game

Description

The A-34 (otherwise known as T-34 (Prototype)) was the precursor of the famous T-34 medium tank that played a crucial role in the Soviet victory in the Second World War. The A-34 was developed from 1937 to 1939 by the design bureau of Kharkiv Factory No. 183, led by Mikhail Koshkin. It was based on the earlier BT-7M tank, but with a new welded hull and a sloped armour of 45 mm on the front and 40 mm on the sides. The A-34 was armed with a 76 mm L-11 gun and two 7.62 mm machine guns, one in the hull and one in the turret. The A-34 prototype underwent extensive testing in 1939 and 1940, proving its superior mobility, firepower and protection compared to other Soviet tanks at the time. On 19 December 1939, the Defence Committee of the Council of People's Commissars of the USSR decided to adopt the A-34 as the T-34, with some modifications such as improving visibility and installing additional machine guns. The T-34 entered mass production in 1940 and became one of the most influential tanks in history.

The A-34, or the T-34 prototype was available only for pre-order during the Closed Beta Test of Ground Forces before Update 1.41, then discontinued after the update's release. 500 units were also for sale during the 5th Anniversary event, which sold out within 12 hours. It has the same features as other T-34s, such as high speed, a decent 76 mm L-11 gun, and 45 mm sloped armour. These make it good for flanking and brawling. The front has weak spots that can be penetrated, but a fast and aggressive style can minimize the exposure. The T-34 prototype differs from the T-34 (1940) in some details, such as a canvas on the left hull, a light on the gun, and an antenna on the turret. Several noticeable weak points on the T-34 are the turret cheeks, the step and the machine gun port on the front hull, and the turret ring. These areas have less sloping or thinner armour than the rest of the tank, making them vulnerable to enemy fire.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armourfront / side / back

Hull45 / 45 / 40

Turret45 / 45 / 45

Crew4 people

Visibility83 %

Armour type:

• Rolled homogeneous armour
• Cast homogeneous armour (Gun mantlet, Driver's hatch, Machine gun port)

Armour	Front	Sides	Rear	Roof
Hull	45 mm (60°) Front glacis 45 mm (0-53°) Lower glacis 45 mm (22-60°) Driver's hatch 45 mm (0-77°) Machine gun port	40 mm (40°) Top 45 mm Bottom	40 mm (10-47°) Top 40 mm (21-45°) Bottom	20 mm
Turret	45 mm (8-80°) Turret front 45 + 20 mm (13-78°)	45 mm (29-31°) 45 mm (1-73°) Vision ports	45 mm (30-31°) 45 mm (25-32°) Turret ring	15 mm

Notes:

• Suspensions wheels and tracks are 20 mm thick.
• Hull roof has hatches on the rear engine deck that adds 10 mm.
• Belly armour is 13 mm thick.
• Hull underside over tracks is 13 mm thick.

Given that the T-34 prototype nowadays is a rare tank, it is an unlikely opponent to be found on the current War Thunder battlefield. In the case it is found, defeat it in the same manner as any other T-34 tanks. The T-34 prototype has a higher power rating compared to other T-34/76 tanks so the T-34 prototype may move faster than the usual, which would affect the correct lead in aiming at a moving target. Though getting to the side may seem like an easy manoeuvre, the sloped side hull gives the T-34 a good chance to bounce shots. To counter this, aim for the flat hull sides near the suspension wheel areas (careful not to hit the track or wheels), or just hit the turret sides to knock out the loader or gunner, both of which would deteriorate the T-34 prototype's combat performance.

The T-34 prototype can encounter Germany's longer 75 mm KwK40 L43 gun on the Panzer IV F2, the Japanese 75 mm Type 3 gun on the Chi-Nu, and the American 75 mm on the M4 Shermans to be able to reliably penetrate its front weak points. Tanks with weaker guns could also aim for the weak points on the turret cheeks, driver step near the hatch, machine gun port, turret ring, and the lower side hull for a penetration.

Mobility

Speedforward / back

AB60 / 10 km/h

RB and SB54 / 9 km/h

Number of gears4 forward

1 back

Weight25.6 t

Engine power

AB954 hp

RB and SB500 hp

Power-to-weight ratio

AB37.3 hp/t

RB and SB19.5 hp/t

Game Mode	Max Speed (km/h)		Weight (tons)	Engine power (horsepower)		Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
	Forward	Reverse		Stock	Upgraded	Stock	Upgraded
Arcade	60	10	25.6	775	954	30.27	37.27
Realistic	54	9		442	500	17.27	19.53

Modifications and economy

Repair cost

AB780

RB419

SB593

Crew training3 400

Experts23 000

Aces160

Research Aces380 000

Reward for battleAB / RB / SB

2 × 40 / 50 / 60 %

2 × 118 / 118 / 118 %

Modifications

Mobility	Protection	Firepower
Tracks Suspension Brake System Filters Transmission Engine	Improved Parts Improved FPE Crew Replenishment	Horizontal Drive Adjustment of Fire 76mm_AP_1942_ammo_pack Elevation Mechanism Artillery Support

Armaments

Main armament

76 mm L-11 cannon

Ammunition77 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

9.3 → 7.1 s

Vertical guidance-5° / 25°

76 mm L-11					Turret rotation speed (°/s)					Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode	Capacity	Vertical	Horizontal	Stabilizer	Stock	Upgraded	Full	Expert	Aced	Stock	Full	Expert	Aced
Arcade	77	-5°/+25°	±180°	N/A	23.8	32.9	40.0	44.2	47.1	9.23	8.17	7.53	7.10
Realistic					14.9	17.5	21.2	23.5	25.0

Ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
BR-350A (MD-5 fuze)	APHEBC	78	76	70	62	56	50
BR-350SP	APBC	90	88	79	69	60	53
OF-350M	HE	10	10	10	10	10	10
Sh-354T	Shrapnel	35	34	30	26	22	19

Shell details
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Velocity (m/s)	Projectile mass (kg)	Fuse delay (m)	Fuse sensitivity (mm)	Explosive mass (TNT equivalent) (g)	Ricochet
							0%	50%	100%
BR-350A (MD-5 fuze)	APHEBC	615	6.3	1.2	14	150	48°	63°	71°
BR-350SP	APBC	615	6.5	-	-	-	48°	63°	71°
OF-350M	HE	615	6.2	0.05	0.1	621	79°	80°	81°
Sh-354T	Shrapnel	615	6.44	1.2	14	85	62°	69°	73°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the T-34 (1940) (identical to the T-34 (Prototype))

Full ammo	1st rack empty	2nd rack empty	3rd rack empty	4th rack empty	Visual discrepancy
77	75 (+2)	72 (+5)	69 (+8)	1 (+76)	No

Note:

• Turret empty: 69 (+8) shells.

Machine guns

7.62 mm DT machine gun (coaxial)

Ammunition1 890 rounds

Belt capacity63 rounds

Reloadbasic crew → aces

10.4 → 8.0 s

Fire rate600 shots/min

7.62 mm DT
Mount	Capacity (Belt)	Fire rate	Vertical	Horizontal
Coaxial	1,890 (63)	600	N/A	N/A

Usage in battles

The T-34 prototype, due to its weaker 76 mm L-11 gun, does better in closer encounters against thinner armour than long-range. This type of conflict encourages flanking manoeuvres and brawling tactics.

Flanking

The T-34 prototype's higher speed makes the vehicle more favourable for getting around the enemy's sides. This, combined with the BR-350A APHEBC round, can have the T-34 prototype land an exploding round right into the side hull of an enemy tank, hopefully destroying them instantly. This tactic works favourably in larger maps such as Carpathians and Eastern Europe to get around the enemy from a distance and close in on a term in favour of the T-34's. Though, the T-34 would risk running into enemies with more capable long-range fighting skills like the high-velocity 75 mm KwK40 L43 gun that can end the T-34's run easily.

In CQB settings like Advance to the Rhine or Berlin, the T-34 can exploit its speed to get around the city landscape and get to critical points before the enemy could. Though some light tanks could beat the T-34 prototype to these locations, those vehicles could be easily dealt with if engaged first. Be proactive in annihilating the enemy and playing the objective, both of which could be done by controlling a zone of access from the flank position to destroy all enemies crossing the gun sights.

Brawling

The T-34's large sloped armour on the turret and hull, barring the weak points, make quick reacting situations in close-quarters brawling favourable for the T-34. In a surprise engagement with an unsuspecting enemy, a careless shot from them will most likely bounce off the large surface area of the front hull or the top and bottom side of the turret cheeks. If the enemy fired before the T-34 did, it now has all the time to line a perfect shot for the 76 mm. However, the 76 mm gun in close range also a good ~70 mm penetration, quite capable to most enemies at its BR except against heavy tanks like the KV-1.

The downside with this tactic is the relatively longer reload time on the T-34 of ~8 seconds. When encountering enemies with rapid-firing guns, even the 50 mm guns on the Panzer III can penetrate the weak points and deal a mortal blow to the T-34. Thus, it is important to make sure the T-34 is always fully reloaded and that the first penetrating hit cripples the enemy tanks. It is also important to try and deal with individual enemies instead of multiples as the T-34 prototype is poor in dealing with multiple enemies trying to flank and hit weak points.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Great sloping front hull armour
• Turret gun mantlet bounces shots frequently
• Sloped side armour top also bounces shots
• 76 mm APHEBC round inflicts large post-penetration damage
• Strong engine and high top speed for excellent mobility
• Versatile fighting style due to great all-around capabilities
• Handling is superb, especially so with a trained driver
• Reverse speed quite quick for a withdrawal

Cons:

• Only subpar penetration for the calibre, can lead to the inability to destroy enemy heavy tanks
• Relatively long reload for the usual >75 mm calibre
• Lots of frontal weak points able to be penetrated by even 37 mm calibre, most noticeable are the turret cheeks
• 13 mm belly armour vulnerable to most high-calibre HE shells
• Poor gun depression of -5°
• Loss of crew members hamper tank's combat efficiency drastically
• Large centre ammo rack always filled, right between two fuel tanks
• Cramped crew next to fuel and ammo, detonating APHE shells would often destroy the entire vehicle

History

Development

By 1939, the most numerous tank models in the Red Army were the T-26 and the BT-series light tanks. Though adequate on the days they were introduced, they are now outdated by this time due to the changing technology in anti-tank warfare. Back in 1937, a new tank project was already taking place under engineer Mikhail Koshkin, who was assigned to lead a design team at the Kharkiv Locomotive Factory (KhPZ) for a replacement for the BT light tanks as a new "cavalry tank" to engage in manoeuvre warfare. The first prototype was designated the A-20 with 20 mm of armour, a 45 mm gun, and a diesel engine in a V-12 configuration. The Christie suspension is taken from the BT, even the conversion to drive track-less on roads. But gradually, the new track designs available made this conversion redundant and was excluded in further models. The A-20 also showed the effective research done into sloping armour on previous prototype designs, utilizing an all-around sloping armour on the design.

It was during this design process that the Russo-Japanese border wars took place and showed the deficiency of the T-26 and BT models. Koshkin then appealed for the initiation of a much better tank concept, the "universal tank" to completely replace the T-26 and BT tanks. The second prototype was the A-32 and has an increased 32 mm of frontal armour with a 76.2 mm L-10 gun. The heavier prototype was still just as mobile as the A-20, and further development into the design increased the frontal armour thickness to 45 mm thick and a newer 76.2 mm L-11 gun attached instead. This prototype model presented, called the A-34, was approved for production and designated the T-34 after the year 1934, when Koshkin believed was when he formulated the idea for the T-34. Koshkin, however, never saw his tanks in action as he succumbed to pneumonia in September 1940 after trials with the T-34 in the cold winter. Thus, the drivetrain developer Alexander Morozov was appointed as the next Chief Designer. The T-34 tank would go on to become the most produced World War II tank, with 84,000 tanks produced in the production span between 1940 to 1958.

Design

The T-34 took all of the Soviet's experiences with tanks and incorporated into the design. The tank had great sloping armour, a powerful engine, wide tracks, and a large gun. At its introduction, the armour of the T-34 was one of the best in the world, by sloping the 45 mm thick armour plate by 60 degrees, the effective thickness was now 90 mm thick. The armour was welded into place instead of riveted as rivets tend to "spall" and cause damage inside the tank even if the armour was not penetrated. The 76.2 mm gun was a major advantage compared to those on its adversaries, as it could be used as a multi-purpose weapon against infantry and tanks, unlike the Germans who had tanks split for two different roles such as the Panzer III for anti-tank and the Panzer IV for infantry support. The engine, a Model V-2-34 V12 diesel engine, was adequately powerful for the Christie suspension tank design and allowed the T-34 to reach a maximum of 53 km/h (33 mph). The powerful engine, added with the wide tracks that gave it lower ground pressure, allowed the T-34 to travel across cross-country terrain with relative freedom without risk of bogging down.

However, the T-34 is not without its fault and its quality is very questionable in some cases. Two T-34 (1941) models were sent to the United States in late 1942 for evaluations. The evaluations found the armour quality to be rather insufficient, with improper welding in places that can allow leaks and improper alloys that made armour weaker in some places than others, the T-34 cast turret was even found to use softer armour than the hull that render it vulnerable to even 37 mm shells. The gun sights for the 76.2 mm cannon was also quite poor in comparison to the Axis and other Allies. The tank reliability was also troubled by various mechanical issues, especially in the earlier models. Low-quality air filters and insufficient airflow could impede the engine capabilities and the turret drive had poor reliability that could easily jam up. The vision devices were also poor, the crew are unable to see outside the tank with enough situational awareness, even the tank commander couldn't see well out of the tank. Also, the lack of radios on the first few years of T-34s forced the tank commanders to communicate via flags, with only company commanders tanks fitted with the radios. Ergonomics inside the tanks was unsatisfactory and was very cramped inside, with no turret basket the loader has to struggle when the turret rotates and accessing ammunition on the floor boxes makes it a hard and dangerous job for the loader. The commander's hatch on the turret was also one-piece, making even a "heads-up" view for the commander impossible on these large one-piece hatches. Finally, the two-person turret suffered from not only a very cramped compartment but an overworked commander who has to act as a gunner as well.

T-34 Prototype

The prototype of the T-34 was designated the A-34 and was the pre-production model. One notable feature on this tank was a complex single-piece front hull, without the swinging hatch available for the driver to use.

Archive of the in-game description

The A-34 was based on the experimental A-32 medium tank and was put into service in December 1939. This vehicle's design represented a massive leap in Soviet and world tank development. It was the first vehicle to harmoniously combine cannon-proof armour, high-powered weapons and a reliable undercarriage. Its cannon-proof qualities were provided by very thick rolled armour plates set at a slope. The tank was armed with a 76.2 mm L-11 cannon and two DT machine guns. A powerful 500 hp B-2-34 diesel tank engine and wide 550 mm tracks provided the vehicle with high mobility. The first T-34s produced in 1940 were notable for the very high quality manufacturing of their armour. The T-34 had a classic layout. The tank's crew consisted of four men - the driver and gunner/radio officer in the driver's compartment, and the loader and commander (also fulfilling the role of gunner) in the two-man turret. The hull and turret were welded from homogeneous rolled armour plates set at a slope. Factory No. 183 in Kharkov produced these tanks. In the spring of 1940, around 100 A-34 tanks were produced. Tests of the vehicle in its first tactical deployment exposed a range of flaws, such as crowding in the fighting compartment, the limited field of view from the tank, the lack of a radio connection, the low rate of fire and low technical reliability of the new diesel engines.

Media

Skins

• Skins and camouflages for the T-34 (Prototype) from live.warthunder.com.

See also

Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:

• reference to the series of the vehicles;
• links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.

External links

• [Tanks-Encyclopedia] T-34 Prototypes: A-20 & A-32

Kharkov Design Bureau for Mechanical Engineering named after A. A. Morozov
Light Tanks
BT-5	BT-5 · RBT-5
BT-7	BT-7 · BT-7M · BT-7A (F-32)
Medium Tanks
T-34-76	T-34 (Prototype) · T-34 (1940) · T-34 (1941) · T-34 (1st Gv.T.Br.) · T-34 (1942) · T-34E STZ · T-34E
T-34-57	T-34-57 · T-34-57 (1943)
T-34-85	T-34-85 (D-5T) · T-34-85 · T-34-85E
T-34-100	T-34-100
T-44	T-44 · T-44-100 · T-44-122
Main Battle Tanks
T-54	T-54 (1947) · T-54 (1949) · T-54 (1951)
T-64	T-64A (1971) · T-64B
Export/Captured
T-34	▀T 34 747 (r) · ▄T-34 · ▄T-34-85 · ␗T-34 (1943) · ␗Т-34-85 (S-53)
T-54	▄T-54
See Also	Uralmashzavod · Uralvagonzavod