M48 Patton
| GENERAL DATA | |||
| Other Designation(s) | Patton III
|
Type | Main
battle tank |
| Crew |
4 (commander, gunner, loader, driver) |
||
| Manufacturer(s) | Chrysler Newark
Tank Plant, DE
Fisher Body Grand Blanc Tank Plant, MI Ford Motor Company Livonia Tank Plant, MI |
||
| Production Quantity | 11703 (all variants) |
Production Period | 1952-1956 |
| Designed | 1950 |
In Service | 1953–1990s |
| Variants | |||
| M48 | Differed from the M47 in having yet another new turret design and a redesigned hull, doing away with the bow machine gun position, featuring the M41 90 mm gun. These turrets give the M48 its distinctive non-M26 style look. Originally, the gun featured a Y-shape muzzle brake, but this was changed to the more characteristic T-shape. | ||
| M48C | Over a hundred original production hulls were found to be lacking correct ballistic protection and were relegated to training as the M48C. | ||
| M67 "Zippo" | M48 armed with a flamethrower inside a dummy model of the main gun with a fake muzzle brake. Named after a popular brand of cigarette lighter. | ||
| M48DB | (M48 Dozer Blade) Outfitted with dozer blade type M8 and M8A1 (Bulldozer, Earth Moving, Tank Mounting M8/M8A1) | ||
| DIMENSIONS | |||
| Mass | 45000 kg (combat ready) |
Length | 6.767 m (hull), 8.607 m w/Gun |
| Width | 3.632 m (width over tracks) |
Barrel Overhang | 1.84 m |
| Height | 3.241 m (over AAMG) |
Ground Clearance | 0.419 m |
| Turret ring diameter | 2.16 m |
Ground pressure | 0.786 kg/cm² |
| ARMAMENT | |||
| Primary Armament | 90 mm gun M41 * |
Ammunition Carried | 60 |
| Secondary Armament | 1 × .50-caliber (12.7 mm) M2HB ** |
Ammunition Carried | 500 |
1× 7.62 mm (.308 in) M1919A4E1 *** |
5900 |
||
| Turret Traverse | 360° (manual and electric-hydraulic) |
Gun Elevation | +19° to -9° (manual and electric-hydraulic) |
| Max Traverse Rate | 24°/sec |
Max Elevation Rate | 4°/sec |
| Other Armament | - |
||
(*) Initial speed: ? m/s, firing rate: ? rounds / min, range: ? m, (**) Flexible in turret AA mount, (***) Coaxial to 90mm gun
| ARMOR | ||||
| Assembly | Welding, Hull: Cast homogeneous
steel, Turret: Cast homogeneous steel
|
|||
| Armor Detail | Front |
Side |
Rear |
Top/Bottom |
| Hull | 61-100 mm / 37° |
76 mm equivalent
/ 90° (front)
51 mm equivalent / 90° (rear) |
25 mm / 30° |
38 mm / 0°(front) 31/8 mm / 0°(center) 13 mm / 0°(rear) |
| Superstructure | 110 mm /
30° |
35.1 mm
/ 60° |
57.2 mm
/ 0° |
|
| Turret | 180 mm equivalent / 90° |
76 mm equivalent / 60° |
51 mm equivalent / 87° |
13 mm / 0° |
| Mantlet | 110 mm /
60° |
- |
- |
- |
| AUTOMOTIVE | |||
| Engine | Continental AV-1790-5B,
-7, -7B, or -7C; 12 cylinder, 4 cycle, 90° vee gasoline |
||
| Horsepower | 810 hp at 280 0rpm |
Power/Weight Ratio | 17.6 hp/t |
| Transmission | General Motors CD-850-4A or -4B |
Speeds | 2 forward, 1reverse |
| Steering/Brakes | Mechanical, wobble stick / Multiple disc |
Fuel capacity | 757 L |
| SUSPENSION | |||
| Type | Torsion bars |
Road wheels | 6 independently sprung dual/track |
| Track return rollers | 5 dual/track |
Sprocket-Wheels | 11-tooth rear drive |
| Idler Sprockets | Dual compensating at front of track; dual track tension wheel behind last road wheel |
Shock absorbers | On first 2 and last road wheels/track |
| Track Type | T96, Center guide, double pin, rubber backed steel | ||
| Width | 710mm |
Pitch | 176 mm |
| Links(shoes) | 79 |
Track ground contact | 4.001 m |
| Track Type | T97, Center guide, double pin, rubber chevron | ||
| Width | 710mm |
Pitch | 176 mm |
| Links(shoes) | 79 |
Track ground contact | 4.001 m |
| PERFORMANCES | |||||
| Operational range | On Road | 113 km
|
Speed | On
Road |
45 km/h |
| Cross-Country | ? |
Cross-Country |
? km/h |
||
| Vertical Obstacle | 0.90 m |
Ditch crossing | 2.59 m |
||
| Fording | 1.20 m, ? m w/ preparation |
Gradient, Side slope | 60 %, side slope 40 % |
||
| Sources | |||
| Wikipédia | FAS | ||
| afvdb.50megs.com | |||
Drawings |
