Yeah I think the downsides to four separate track units are probably quite prohibitive but it may offer some form of stability or manoeuvre that makes it worth building a test vehicle for.
Heya, Karl,
Thanks for cluing me in on the tank’s counterparts… Pretty sure I have seen that Prism tank as a pricey resin kit — agreed, hopefully Border will put out their version of one in more affordable styrene…
Looking forward to that build log!
Have continued to somehow resisted the temptation to open the box and get started on mine…we’ll see how long that holds.
Thanks again, Karl!
With Regards and Aloha,
Johnny B.
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No worries, one these Cold War bad boy’s designed by Yoh Engineering/Corporation will save the day from that Chicom menance…
Wink 
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The development of tank guns kept pushing the requirements for thicker armour.
Thicker armour = heavier vehicle. A heavy vehicle needs more track surface to
avoid sinking into the ground. More surface requires longer and/or wider tracks.
There can be restrictions on vehicle width given by roads, bridges and most
importantly by railroads. (the Tiger II had transport tracks, some modern tanks
can remove or fold up the side skirt armour to stay within the width limits).
The “only available” option is to make a longer vehicle.
A long tracked vehicle will have difficulties turning, the length of the track
increases the resistance against being forced sideways. The limited width
limits the leverage that can be applied to turning. We are stuck between
requirements and limitations. One possible solution is the semi-trailer tank,
we get the larger footprint while keeping the maneuverability. The price is
incresed complexity and maintenance. Four tracks to keep the right tension
on instead of two, could be solved with automated track tensioning devices
which comes at the cost of complexity.
Another solution, which was not available at that time, is new armour designs.
Modern tanks can have armour “thicknesses” measured in feet instead of inches.
Armour “thickness” is compared as thickness of rolled homogenous armour (RHA)
The King Tiger had 100 to 185 mm of RHA, " Steven Zaloga estimates the frontal armor at 350 mm vs armor-piercing fin-stabilized discarding sabot (APFSDS) and 700 mm vs high-explosive anti-tank (HEAT) warhead in the book, M1 Abrams Main Battle Tank 1982–1992 (1993).[84] In M1 Abrams vs T-72 Ural (2009), he uses Soviet estimates of 470 mm vs APFSDS and 650 mm vs HEAT for the base model Abrams. He also gives the Soviet estimates for the M1A1, 600 mm vs APFSDS, and 700 mm vs HEAT.[85]" I do not think that he real numbers are officially available.
Nobody believes the actual armour is that thick on a modern tank.
Modern armour has replaced thick and heavy steel with something lighter which provides the same,
or better, protection. The latest Abrams weigh a little more than a King Tiger but with vastly improved armour.
If we hadn’t solved the armour-weight-maneuverability equation with improved armour the tank would either be history or weighing in at around 100 tons or more (more armour → more weight → more engine power and fuel → more volume to protect → even more armour → even more weight → …)
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@Frenchy- thank you for those photos- they are very interesting designs. I’ve always been intrigued by quad track systems, probably as a result of playing this game as a kid!
@Uncle-Heavy- I get what your saying there- the strange thing is, that Bundeswehr prototype does not look particularly big- why would a vehicle quite that small need what looks like such a complex track system? Obviously on a bigger vehicle it would make sense as you mentioned but what is the benefit if the vehicle is relatively small? I guess we will have to wait and see how it progresses in trials.
The issue is the ratio of length vs width.
I suspect that the width is restricted by the load width of the CH-53.
The CH-53G can carry two Wiesels so it should be able to carry one of these
It looks as if the front tracks are steerable to get sufficient maneuverability.
“All requirements should be proven under the boundary conditions of a weapon carrier that can be air-loaded in the CH-53 medium transport helicopter,”
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CC thats where my logo icon comes from.
Yeah I recognised Jenny McCarthy as‘Tanya’, from Red Alert 3! Best cast ever in a game I think- future Oscar winner JK Simmons, Tim Curry and George Takei to name just a few.
Also thought I would mention that I’ve just started my build log for the kit here.
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Hell March- Soundtrack, dont forget the soundtrack. Many like to steal Hell march to promote there videos.
I love building kits off video games. Did the Warpig abrams from Call of Duty, And will do the Tiger one also one day. there is a nice one on the net another builder did. They did a great job.
Watched Old Guard today and might do the huey out of it.
This is one of those. China you might wanna look away. Hmm, Russia had some experience over the last 50 years, China, yeah, thats not gonna go to well either.
Really good footage of U.S. flexing.
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