since iron/steet get rusted due high huminity( rain,snow...),but do tanks/afv also get rust even in arid region,said like desert

They can, as the temperature drops from day to night can cause whatever moisture is present to condense, but definitely at a much slower rate than a more humid climate.

For example, people like to salvage vintage cars from Texas yards more than from Florida as Texas is hot and dry to Florida's hot and humid. They don't suffer nearly the same rot.

Steel tracks tend to be quite clean, as the sand polishes them (though they are also covered with dust, so they aren't too bright). Thrown sand will tend to scour the paint off the belly plates, though this isn't really evident unless you crawl underneath.

Heat will cause oxidation even without moisture, so exhaust pipes and mufflers will still deteriorate.

Hi Richard,

Pls., do consider that modern tanks are made of all sorts of alloys, which can't rust. So here you have to study the tank's technical background.
To WW2, understand that almost all tanks coming to Northern Africa were new. Next to the fact that tanks are sensetive pieces of equipment which are maintained continiously by their crews, so rust is rare. (No commander would accept it. Not to discuss the fact that for their crews their tank was the life insurance!)
Also, tracks are made using compositions of metal, so rust is not common there as well.

Hope to have given you some points to look after, curious to see your build.

Enjoy the day.

P

Yes, tanks rust in the desert. How much depends upon what you wish to portray, and where. Close to the coastlines you can expect salty air just like you can on a small island. And deserts do get rain. Dry desert air might slow the growth of rust, but it won't stop it.

An operational tank maintained by it's crew won't have rust on it's body, but may have some on the tracks if the tank has been immobile for a few days. In a month of sitting in the tank park, parts of the track that were polished clean in the field will be turning into a nice red-brown.

A tank that has been abandoned for years will have heavy rusting on both the body and tracks, especially if it has been brewed up.

Anything made of iron will rust. That is why tank crewmen, artillerymen, and even plain riflemen are always cleaning and polishing their weapons. The joy of military life!

Best Wishes,

Gary

I guess so



H.P.

Depends hugely on the tank. For example, the M1 Abrams, when it goes in for refurbishment, gets the hull bead-blasted after being stripped down; it comes out like this. Then it sits outside until a specialized train car is ready, at which point it looks like this. Doesn't take long to get a patina of rust.

Doesn't take long at all when you have exposed metal. During refurbishment of the M1 Abrams, the tracks are removed, cleaned, bearings checked, track pads replaced, and reassembled, and they're already rusting when they're ready to be put back on the tank.

Been there, got the t-shirt. We don't carry paint kits in the vehicle, so bare metal stays that way. It gets very cold at night and just before dawn, the vehicle is covered in dew. Exposed metal rusts a bright orange over 1 or 2 nights and continues to get darker over time. Nobody gets busted for it, it's just incidental.

Check out photos of Russian supplied tanks in Iraq or Afghanistan. Some of the photos and videos of the "tank dumps" in those countries. Of course they would not be under painting maintence schedule.
There is an American dump like that in Iraq too. You Tube has videos.
I live in a large desert and yes there is oxidation!

And if they have burned , they rust a lot faster .