Sorry....couldn't resist. Anyway, how many of you out there have suffered through a thrown track experience. I was thinking about a diorama depicting breaking track and then got to thinking about really bad thrown track. I was lucky had a highly experienced crew and though we had the centerguides popping once, had a driver good enough to prevent it. One of my tanks did throw one but we got lucky as we got it to level ground and by loosening the idler, 6 of us with two tanker bars got it back on fairly quickly. Only saw a totally thrown one once(in aother platoon)and of course it was on a muddy hill and they were at an angle. That one took an 88 to get it to level ground. Someone could make a prize winning diorama showing a crew working with breaking track

I happen to have a photo of one of my "broke track" experience....Both thrown to the inside....Hoenfehls Germany circa 1976...

PS-That's me with my [auto-censored] in the muck!

How did you manage to throw both to the inside? At least you ar on level ground there. But I definitely agree with and here is mine as well

Interesting tank, what is it?

Nice mud effect btw. :-)

Hoenfehls? I'm sure I've been there, can't think when or why.

Also, must admit, "both to the inside" Not an easy thing to do... Takes great care and practice. :-)

:-) :-) :-) great name for a dio blaster very funny
on a seriuos note i think you may of hit on a good idea for a campaign build of broken down/stuck armour or as you say all must have broken tracks in various states of repair
dont know if this has already been done but just a thought

I had my worst "broke-track" experience back in -88 during a winter excersise. Commanding a NM-142 (Tow on a M-113) the left track split in the midle of a snow covered mash area. It took 11 hours to fix it... Imagine all the fun we had in the mud and snow while the temperature dropped, adding ice to the allready broken track

Erik

At least three times in my life. First time during my first visit to Hohenfels, got to meet Mike Wallace from CBS' 60 Minutes. He saw my tank that had been dragged out to the middle of the bowing alley (small valley). He was doing a piece on women in combat arms. Some of the soldiers's spouses said they saw me on TV sometime later.

Second time was at the end of a long bridge during a Reforger. Pretty hairy and we almost put the gun tube through a Gasthaus.

Last time was really bad on a narrow spider trail. We slide and had the right track thrown to the outside and the left side track thrown to the inside. We had to cut a couple of small trees to give ourselves some room to break track.

That looks like an M60A2 with the gun tube to fire tank ammo or the Shillelagh Missile if I remember my AFV recognition lessons.

John

Try a 180 spin out off the hill to the right (out of pic). Even in the old slow A2 it was a wild ride!

Crockett,what unit were you with? I was in Germany in 75-78.I was on an A2, Co. C 1/37th,C-23 "Chaos"
We threw a track to the inside rear during reforger 76
Mt Sgt said rev it up and drive forward to break the links.
Tore off the sprocket instead!

Carl, that pig with the wiggly nose is really obnoxious.

I feel blessed, some of you guys really caught it good. The worst thing I've ever seen. We went tactical at night and the AVLB pulled off. The ground was real soft. It rained throughout the night. That puppy was big time stuck, almost hull deep. The driver fought with it and managed to throw a track and had her full full deep by this time. Of course there were several large trees in the area so removing the bridge was impossible. They ended up having to cut a dozen major trees down (you know the forestmeister loved that and uncle sugar must of payed a fortune) It took 2 88's to get it out even after they got the bridge off it. It was a three day operation. Sure glad I wasn't the support platoon leader.

lost a track on a m578, riding shotgun, was coming out of a trench and angled up and slid left, right track threw outside, and that was a long day..........


reb

In '86, we were out in the field at Ft. Stewart, it was our 1st field problem after getting Bradleys. We took our brand new track down a trail and caught some concertina wire in our tracks. No problem we thought, our brand new Brad has wire cutters built into the drive sprockets. Not 100 feet later off comes the left track. The cutters worked, but only partially, the wire broke but it wrapped around the 1st road whell and built up a big enough roll that it popped the track off the sprocket. I was no fun at all cutting off that big chunk of twisted wire and getting it out of the wheels in 6" of muddy Ft Stewart swamp!

I remember back in the late sixties our driving instructor deliberatly threw a track in a four foot deep puddle in the middle of Soltau training area in January it was snowing at the time and getting dark, he wasn't the most popular guy in the Squadron

Co. C 3/33 Armor, 3rd Armor Division, Kirch Gons FRG, "The Rock"

BY the way Carl, I think your pig is obnoxiously great! He reminds me of my Loader!

Steve :-)

Great idea!

After reading, one after the other, Tigers in the Mud, Panzer Aces I & II, Armor Battles of the Waffen SS and presently Grenadiers (auto-bio of Kurt "Panzer" Meyer) I am struck by the impression that the Panzerwaffe spent as much time repairing/remounting tracks as fighting. Often during combat combat, under fire. Whether from battle damage, wear N tear, or the Tigers' bulk, these things came off often.

It seems that whether in combat or not, the general public doesn't realize just how much maintenance these tanks require, no matter what the nationality. Thats why tankers on parade are generally the smelliest, ugliest, dirtiest and most obnoxious troops in the army. Most infantry or support units look at this as a lack of discipline, but really, it's just a result of Q service, no air tools, and being stuck with three or four non bathing individuals in a space the size of a closet for weeks on end.

The smell of diesel fuel, cordite and B.O. is our calling card. We don't look good in uniform because our bodies are deformed from humping ammo, slinging roadwheels and squeezing into the tightest places, which are full of sharp edges and things that will kill you. We can't hear well, and we tend to sleep better sitting up than lying down. Not to mention our perveted sense of social well being, in that we are only amused by the enemy exploding in our sights @10X!

The clatter of an infantry M-16 is hardly impressive, therefore our distain for any one who sleeps in a mud hole rolled up in a poncho. Hot food rarely catches up with us, and when it does, it ain't hot no more (but, we eat it). We shoot, move and communicate, first round hits are the key to survival. Since virtually every weapon on or above the battlefield is designed to find and kill us, we live a life of constant paranoia. Anybody want to Re-up?

Steve

Lost a track off a 113 at speed on a tank trail at FT. Carson.

Started to climb the embankment and almost rolled. I got to play human pin-ball in the back of the track.

I've got nice photo of the 13 up at a 30-40 degree angle. If I can find it I'll scan it and post.

Those were the days!

BTW - Crockett - love the StarShip, my favorite US tank. Just picked up the Tamiya kit, any more photos?

N E O

Hot food for us was C ration cans stuffed in the end of the heater outlet near the loader's seat.When we HAD a functioning heater.
Ever break a torsion bar in front and have to change it?
Ever raid the boneyard at Graf for a support roller from an M-47 target tank?

[quote]It seems that whether in combat or not, the general public doesn't realize just how much maintenance these tanks require, no matter what the nationality. Thats why tankers on parade are generally the smelliest, ugliest, dirtiest and most obnoxious troops in the army. Most infantry or support units look at this as a lack of discipline, but really, it's just a result of Q service, no air tools, and being stuck with three or four non bathing individuals in a space the size of a closet for weeks on end.

The smell of diesel fuel, cordite and B.O. is our calling card. We don't look good in uniform because our bodies are deformed from humping ammo, slinging roadwheels and squeezing into the tightest places, which are full of sharp edges and things that will kill you. We can't hear well, and we tend to sleep better sitting up than lying down. Not to mention our perveted sense of social well being, in that we are only amused by the enemy exploding in our sights @10X!

The clatter of an infantry M-16 is hardly impressive, therefore our distain for any one who sleeps in a mud hole rolled up in a poncho. Hot food rarely catches up with us, and when it does, it ain't hot no more (but, we eat it). We shoot, move and communicate, first round hits are the key to survival. Since virtually every weapon on or above the battlefield is designed to find and kill us, we live a life of constant paranoia. Anybody want to Re-up?

Steve /quote]

Ain't it so ain't it so !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Rank was thrown out the window on your tank. It didn't matter if I was an LT and my driver an E-2 it was our tank...our home and if she didn't work we all fixed her. I was blessed with one of those traits that band people together. I had my entire 5 tank platoon as a family. If one tank had a problem we all chipped in and helped. I wore my tanker overalls proudly

I realise this may be a few days late but here is my lost track story. We were doing driver training for the M60A3TTS and the TC told me hard left turn on very soft ground after a rain storm in central California. I started hearing that loud distinctive popping sound so I straightened out. That was a mistake. He proceded to yell at me to keep going, so I said OK. Needless to say we shed a track. It got better. The -88 we had with us had a partial load out of tools, the compressor and the winch was broke, it was getting dark and raining again and they didn't get chow to us that night. That was a long misserable night in the mud. but looking back it was a memorable experience.

Hi,
I have a question to the people who served on tanks. I really don't know how do people fix broken tracks. I tried to find books, articles, anything, but nothing. It's pretty easy to change the wheel on a car -you just have to lift it. But what do you do on a 40 ton beast on soft ground? How do you get the broken link out, put a new one in and join the ends?
Thank you.

(One story, though. My English teacher served in the Romanian army before he emigrated. As he wasn't a very tall man, he was first considered to be appointed to the tank divisions. After the basic training they had a series of tests, practice, everything, to see who is fit to the particular division they were assigned to. One task was to fire a live RPG on the test range. My teacher picked it up... and he was left-handed. Everybody just sprayed away from behind and shouted to put it down very, very carefully.
He went to the infantry.)

This post has brought back some very happy memories of being an armoured soldier, we were lucky in the British Army as we had the most fantastic invention ever of the Boiling vessel, that sat happily keeping water hot for tea and ensured that meals were hot even although there were times that you cursed the menu selection. The vehicles could be pigs to maintain and track bashing was a real pain, but I have always given thanks to the fact that I could close the hatches, turn up the heating and forget the rain and cold, although the smell inside could be terrible at times, especially after the Curry or Chicken Supreme.
Oh well happy memories.......

John

Track breaing...even in he motor pool on a nice flat piece of concrete is not fun. I was on an M60a1

The first step is separation or breaking the track. First step would be to loosen the compenating ideler wheel, this is the first large wheel that is higher up than the road wheels. We would unbolt and remove the center guide, then using a very large crow bar (tanker bar) we would place it on the inside end connector and bang it off then the outside one and do likewise. The book said to unbolt them, but we always had new replacements so the hell with it) Track is now broken we would drive the tank in a straight line one way to lay the track out. We'ld do what we had to do. next step was to tie a cable to one end of the track and the other to the spocket, then use the spocket rotation to help pull the track up and over using tanker bars to help guide it over the upper rollers. when we finally got the track ends close together we would reattach a ceneter guide then end connectors , The last thing would be to retighten tracks by turning the adjustment bar on the compensating idler assembly. Now picture doing that in the mud because 90 % of the time that's where you threw it. That and sliding down sideways into a ditch or down a hill. You would have to get an M88 to pull you to level ground.