Strv m/40L
Contents
Description
The Stridsvagn m/40L was an upgrade to the Strv m/39, which was also an upgrade over the Strv m/38. At the outbreak of World War II, the Swedish Armed Forces were not satisfied with their tanks in service, and the Strv m/39 was seen as too weak, and they requested a version with increased armour thickness. Thus the m/39 was upgraded with more armour over the years, but this was not enough. The turret mantlet was modified and a commander's cupola was added along with side hatches. These also received the upgraded armour of the Strv m/39, and were designated as L-60 S/III (Strv m/40L). The tank was also the basis of the L-62 Anti II SPAAG designed for Finland.
It was introduced in Update 1.97 "Viking Fury". The Stridsvagn m/40L solves most of the weaknesses in early Swedish tanks like the Strv m/38 and m/39. The upgraded armour is good enough to protect from autocannon fire and even stop some low penetration shells like solid AP shots from 37 or even 40 mm cannons. However, the tank excels as a sniper and a flanker, using its good mobility to change positions fast and surprise your enemies. The unlockable APDS shell is excellent and is able to penetrate even heavy tanks such as the B1 ter, but their large crew still allow them to have very good survivability. Some of the most dangerous threats however are the M4A3 (105), Pz.IV E, and StuG III A, this is because of their good HEAT shells, that can overpressure the Stridsvagn m/40L in some weak spots and knock out the entire crew.
General info
Survivability and armour
The Strv m/40L is essentially the Strv m/38 with increased frontal armour. The frontal hull armour is increased to a maximum of 43 mm, while the turret is uparmoured to 50 mm. This provides a decent degree of protection against autocannons and heavy machine guns as well as low calibre anti-tank guns. However, the rest of the tank's armour profile remains identical (13 mm), and it is thus still very vulnerable from directions other than the front.
Armour type:
- Rolled homogeneous armour
- Cast homogeneous armour (gun mantlet)
| Armour | Front (Slope angle) | Sides | Rear | Roof |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Hull | 13 mm (58°) + 30 mm (46°-58°) Upper glacis 13 mm (45°) Lower glacis 13 mm (30°) + 35 mm (29°) Upper plate 13 mm + 35 mm Driver's cupola |
13 mm | 13 mm (33°) Lower 9 + 15 mm (14°) Upper |
4-13 mm |
| Turret | 15 mm + 35 mm (14°) Turret front 15 mm + 35 mm (9°-72°) Gun mantlet |
13 mm | 13 mm | 5-8 mm |
| Cupola | 13 mm | 13 mm | 13 mm | 5 mm |
Notes:
- Suspension wheels, tracks, and torsion bars are 15 mm thick.
Mobility
| Game Mode | Max Speed (km/h) | Weight (tons) | Engine power (horsepower) | Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton) | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Forward | Reverse | Stock | Upgraded | Stock | Upgraded | ||
| Arcade | 51 | 6 | 9.4 | 220 | 271 | 23.4 | 28.83 |
| Realistic | 46 | 6 | 126 | 142 | 13.4 | 15.11 | |
The engine of the Strv m/40L is identical to that on the Strv m/38. However, the tank is considerably heavier due to the increased armour, thus somewhat worsening its acceleration. Mobility characteristics are otherwise almost identical to its predecessor.
Modifications and economy
| Mobility | Protection | Firepower | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
|
|
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Armaments
Main armament
The Strv m/40L uses the same 3,7 cm kan m/38 gun as the Strv m/38. The turret mounting has been modified, however, to provide an even greater amount of gun depression (15°). The ammunition choice is identical: it starts with the unremarkable slpprj m/38 APBC shot. At tier IV, the slpgr m/39 APBC and slpprj m/49 APDS rounds can be unlocked. The former round has a small explosive filler while having only slightly less penetration than the stock APBC shot. The APDS round has over 100 mm of penetration at close range and a muzzle velocity of 1,150 m/s and is capable of penetrating anything the Strv m/40L is likely to face. The high velocity makes it good for sniping, but the APDS round tends to be less accurate than the APBC rounds.
It should be noted that if the "Camera from tank gunner sight" option is enabled, there is a protrusion in front of the gunner's sight that can block part of the gunner's sight view when depressing the gun.
| 37 mm kan m/38 | Turret rotation speed (°/s) | Reloading rate (seconds) | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mode | Capacity | Vertical | Horizontal | Stabilizer | Stock | Upgraded | Full | Expert | Aced | Stock | Full | Expert | Aced |
| Arcade | 100 | -15°/+25° | ±180° | N/A | 15.2 | 21.1 | 25.6 | 28.3 | 30.1 | 4.03 | 3.57 | 3.29 | 3.10 |
| Realistic | 9.5 | 11.2 | 13.6 | 15.0 | 16.0 | ||||||||
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 | ||
| slpprj m/38 | APBC | 59 | 55 | 41 | 28 | 19 | 13 |
| slpgr m/39 | APHE | 55 | 51 | 37 | 26 | 17 | 12 |
| 3,7 cm slpprj m/49 | APDS | 115 | 111 | 95 | 78 | 64 | 52 |
| 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% | ||||||||||
| slpprj m/38 | APBC | 785 | 0.74 | - | - | - | 47° | 60° | 65° | |||
| slpgr m/39 | APHE | 800 | 0.74 | 1.2 | 9 | 15 | 47° | 60° | 65° | |||
| 3,7 cm slpprj m/49 | APDS | 1,150 | 0.3 | - | - | - | 75° | 78° | 80° | |||
Ammo racks
| Full ammo |
1st rack empty |
2nd rack empty |
3rd rack empty |
4th rack empty |
5th rack empty |
6th rack empty |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 | 81 (+19) | 71 (+29) | 61 (+39) | 51 (+49) | 41 (+59) | 34 (+66) |
| 7th rack empty |
8th rack empty |
9th rack empty |
10th rack empty |
11th rack empty |
Visual discrepancy |
|
| 28 (+72) | 21 (+79) | 14 (+86) | 8 (+92) | 1 (+99) | No |
Machine guns
The tank is also armed with two 8 mm ksp m/39B machine guns mounted alongside the main gun.
| 8 mm ksp m/39B | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mount | Capacity (Belt) | Fire rate | Vertical | Horizontal |
| Coaxial | 1,750 (250) | 649 | -10°/+25° | N/A |
| Coaxial | 1,750 (250) | 649 | -10°/+25° | N/A |
Usage in battles
The Strv m/40L is a light tank with a large bite for its small calibre. Being armed with a 37 mm Bofors gun doesn't seem like a huge threat to most tanks that it faces, as its contemporaries will often equip similar or larger calibres. However, unlike other nations' tanks, the Strv m/40L is able to research potent APDS rounds.
The Strv m/40L excels in hull-down combat where it can exploit its outstanding gun depression and relatively good rounded turret armour. The powerful APDS round allows it to easily penetrate and disable even the heaviest of tanks it can normally encounter, such as the B1 bis and Valentine. However, it has relatively weak post-penetration effects, and will often require multiple shots to destroy larger tanks due to the larger crew compartments. The tank's mobility is quite respectable and allows it to keep up with other medium tanks and making it able to move around the battlefield with ease, not only fighting from hull down positions but also bringing the fight to the enemy side. The frontal armour is quite good, but thin elsewhere making the tank vulnerable to side and rear shots so it is best to always point the frontal armour towards the enemy.
Strv m/40L might have a lot of positives to it but there are also negative sides. Until the APDS round is researched, it has to deal with using the Slpprj m/38 and Slpgr m/39 APBC rounds which have 59/55 mm penetration at 10 m forcing it to fight up close and personal. The APDS also does not hit accurately at longer distances, making it mostly useful at medium to close range to be a fully effective round. Though forward mobility is good, Strv m/40L lacks the means to reverse away out of danger, making it better for it to turn around fast and drive back into cover. Doing that exposes the Strv m/40L's weak side armour and possibly the rear armour which will be a good chance for the enemy to knock it out with ease.
Enemies to be aware of include tanks like M4A3 (105), Pz.IV E and StuG III A, which have HEAT rounds easily knocking out the Strv m/40L. With the crew compartment being so compact they can easily take out the 3 man crew with one shot making a lot of these targets a priority enemy for the Strv m/40L. Targets with large crew compartments and higher numbers of crew like B1 ter, LVT and T-28E can also be a threat to the Strv m/40L as having a lot of crew can make it hard for the Strv m/40L to knock them out fast, which forces it to try to knock out the enemy tank's gun and work down its crew one by one. Taking too long here will expose it to being surrounded or outflanked by nearby enemies that will come to assist the target in need.
Pros and cons
Pros:
- Good frontal armour
- Access to an outstanding APDS round
- Good mobility
- Fast reload
- Excellent gun depression in combination with good turret armour makes it great at hull-down
Cons:
- APDS is somewhat inaccurate at long range and lacks post-penetration damage
- Very thin armour other than on the front
- Poor reverse speed
- APDS is tier IV modification, and without it you have to shoot terrible AP shell with 59 mm of max penetration and low post-pen damage
History
In 1934, a new light tank was designed for Sweden by Landsverk, the L-60. It was based on the Landsverk L-10/Strv m/31, but with a new torsion bar suspension system. The torsion bar suspension system was a large improvement over the Christie suspension system. The L-60 S/1 entered service with the Swedish military in 1938 as the Strv m/38. The L-60 S/1 Strv m/38 was armed with a Bofors 37 mm gun. In 1939, Sweden ordered an improved version of the Strv m/38. It was designated as the L-60 S/II Strv m/39. The Strv m/39 was armed with an improved Bofors 37 mm gun and had a new engine. During World War 2, the Strv m/39 was upgraded with additional armour welded onto the glacis and mantlet.
At the same time, there was a need for another upgrade of the Strv m/39. The turret mantlet was modified and a commander's cupola was added along with side hatches. These also received the upgraded armour of the Strv m/39, and were designated as L-60 S/III Strv m/40L. The L-60 served with the Swedish military throughout World War 2, and also became the basis of the L-62 Anti II SPAAG designed for Finland, which was used as the basis for the Hungarian 40M Nimród. In 1960, 20 L-60 tanks were sold to the Dominican Republic by Sweden. Rebels, backed by the US Marine Corps, fought against the L-60 during the Dominican Civil War. 3 were destroyed by M48 Patton III's, M50 Ontos, and anti-tank fire. 12 were upgraded and saw service until 2002.
Devblog
We recently told you about the Swedish "reserve": the Strv m/31 light tank. Landsverk's work on this tank resulted in a project with the factory designation L-60, where the mistakes the m/31's trials had encountered were taken into consideration – including, among other things, problems with the suspension. The enhanced tanks were put into service under the designation Strv m/38, and Landsverk was commissioned to manufacture a series of these tanks. All 16 tanks of the m/38 series were Sweden's only armoured vehicles when WWII erupted in Europe. However, the military wasn't thoroughly satisfied with these vehicles – and, on top of that, they needed a whole lot more of them. The outcome of future upgrades in the L-60 project were two new models: the Strv m/39 and the Strv m/40. They received a turret with a new shape, a fully upgraded engine compartment, and a set of add-on hull armour. The m/40 was equipped with an automatic gearbox and an enhanced frontal turret section to which another machine gun, not paired to the cannon, was added. The Strv m/40 was manufactured until March 1942. A total of about 100 units of this modification were released.
Media
- Skins
- Images
See also
- Related Development
- Similar Role
External links
References
- Bibliography
- David B. (2014, December 1). Stridsvagn m/38, m/39 & m/40 L-60. Tank Encyclopedia. https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/sweden/L60_stridsvagn_M38-39-40.php
- Stridsvagn m/40. (2019, February 1). Military Today. Retrieved May 24, 2020, from https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=549
| AB Landsverk | |
|---|---|
| Light Tanks | |
| L-10 | Strv m/31 |
| L-60 | Strv m/38 · Strv m/39 · Strv m/40L |
| Pbil m/40 | Pbil m/40 |
| Strv 74 | Strv 74 |
| Unimog 404 | U-SH 405 |
| Medium Tanks | |
| Lago | Lago I · Strv m/42 EH · Ikv 73 · Strv m/42 DT |
| Tank Destroyers | |
| Ikv 72 | Ikv 72 · Ikv 103 |
| Pvkv m/43 | Pvkv m/43 (1946) · Pvkv m/43 (1963) |
| Pvkv II/III | Pvkv II · Pvkv III |
| SPAA | Pvlvv fm/42 · L-62 ANTI II |
| Sweden light tanks | |
|---|---|
| L-60 | Strv m/38 · Strv m/39 · Strv m/39 TD · Strv m/40L |
| Strv m/41 | Strv m/41 S-I · Strv m/41 S-II |
| Ikv 91 | Ikv 91 · Ikv 91-105 |
| CV 90 | Strf 9040B · Strf 9040C · Strf 9040 BILL |
| CV 90105 · CV 90120 | |
| Wheeled | Pbil m/40 · U-SH 405 |
| Other | Strv m/31 · Strv 74 · Pbv 501 |
| Finland | Vickers Mk.E · ▄T-26E · BT-42 · ▄PT-76 · CV 9030FIN · CT-CV 105HP |
| Denmark | CV 9035DK |
