View source for T-126

{{Specs-Card
|code=ussr_t_126sp
|images={{Specs-Card-Image|GarageImage_{{PAGENAME}}.jpg|ArtImage_{{PAGENAME}}.png}}
|store=8167
}}

== Description ==
<!-- ''In the description, the first part should be about the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle, as well as its key features. In the second part, tell the reader about the ground vehicle in the game. Insert a screenshot of the vehicle, so that if the novice player does not remember the vehicle by name, he will immediately understand what kind of vehicle the article is talking about.'' -->
The '''{{Specs|name}}''' was a Soviet prototype tank, which was further developed and resulted in the T-50 light tank. Unlike the T-50, the hull has a slightly different shape and thicker armour with 55 mm thick armour at the front, 45 mm thick sides and less armoured 30 mm thick back compared to 45 mm all around found on the T-50. The turret of T-126 is also missing the commander cupola found on the production T-50 as well as features a different shape and thicker 45 mm all-around armour compared to the 40 mm thick front and sides as well as the 15 mm thick back of the T-50s turret. Two T-126 prototypes were built.

The T-126 was introduced in [[Update 1.47 "Big Guns"]] as a GE premium. A premium version of the [[T-50]], it shares its similarities due to its prototype design but is better due to a much thicker all-around armour. An unfortunate side effect results in a decrease in top overall speed due to the weight of added armour, although the vehicle is still quite mobile.

== General info ==
=== Survivability and armour ===
{{Specs-Tank-Armour}}
<!-- ''Describe armour protection. Note the most well protected and key weak areas. Appreciate the layout of modules as well as the number and location of crew members. Is the level of armour protection sufficient, is the placement of modules helpful for survival in combat? If necessary use a visual template to indicate the most secure and weak zones of the armour.'' -->

Compared to the T-50, the {{PAGENAME}} can boast a better all-around armour for both the hull and turret. The only areas that the {{PAGENAME}} had same or weaker armour compared to the T-50 is the roof and the rear armour.

The front hull has the most impressive improvement, from a 40 mm plate on the T-50 to a 55 mm plate at the same sloping angle. This gives the {{PAGENAME}} a front armour protection similar to that of a medium tank, which is enough to shrug off most tank armament kinetic shells at a distance. The {{PAGENAME}} can even compound angle itself towards the enemy to present significant armour thickness on the front and side armour.

With the rather thick armour all-around the tank, a {{PAGENAME}} does not need to worry much about how they are presenting the tank towards the enemy when taking enemy fire. The only concerns would be shots directly perpendicular to the side armour, which can hit the ammo rack or crew.

The crew is tightly packed in the light tank, and so a penetrating shot through the front armour is most likely to knock out most, if not all, of the crew in a single shot. Shots to the side hull armour are also concerning as a large line of ammo racks line the port side of the hull, which means a clean penetration on either side of the hull can hit one of these racks and detonate the ammunition. The fuel and engine in the rear are also a concern, but are packed there isolated from the crew. They may also absorb any shells coming directly from the {{PAGENAME}}'s rear armour, protecting the crew. However, this will immobilise the {{PAGENAME}} and allow the enemy to flank for a side shot that will hit thez ammo rack of crew.

'''Armour type:'''

* Rolled homogeneous armour

{| class="wikitable"
|-
! Armour !! Front !! Sides !! Rear !! Roof
|-
| Hull || 55 mm (53-54°) ''Front glacis'' <br> 45 mm (53°) ''Cheeks'' <br> 45 mm (44°) ''Lower glacis'' || 45 mm (38-41°) ''Top'' <br> 45 mm ''Bottom'' || 30 mm (56°) ''Top'' <br> 30 mm (5-42°) ''Bottom''|| 15 mm
|-
| Turret || 45 mm (6-72°) ''Turret front'' <br> 40 mm (9-48°) ''Gun mantlet''|| 45 mm (24-27°) || 45 mm (24°) || 15 mm
|}

'''Notes'''

* Suspension wheels and tracks are 15 mm thick in armour.

=== Mobility ===
{{Specs-Tank-Mobility}}
<!-- ''Write about the mobility of the ground vehicle. Estimate the specific power and manoeuvrability, as well as the maximum speed forwards and backwards.'' -->
With the same 300 hp engine (572 hp in arcade) as the T-50, the {{PAGENAME}} has a significant difference in movement characteristics due to being about 5 tons heavier. Despite this, the {{PAGENAME}} is a rather quick vehicle. The forward acceleration is great and the {{PAGENAME}} can reach a sufficiently high forward speed quickly. Turning when moving can also be done in bursts for fast correction courses, but prolonged turning will drain the speed quickly.

The speed the {{PAGENAME}} is able to pick up makes it able to perform in a scout or flanking role on the battlefield.

{{tankMobility|abMinHp=465|rbMinHp=265}}

=== Modifications and economy ===
{{Specs-Economy}}

== Armaments ==
{{Specs-Tank-Armaments}}
=== Main armament ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|1}}
<!-- ''Give the reader information about the characteristics of the main gun. Assess its effectiveness in a battle based on the reloading speed, ballistics and the power of shells. Do not forget about the flexibility of the fire, that is how quickly the cannon can be aimed at the target, open fire on it and aim at another enemy. Add a link to the main article on the gun: <code><nowiki>{{main|Name of the weapon}}</nowiki></code>. Describe in general terms the ammunition available for the main gun. Give advice on how to use them and how to fill the ammunition storage.'' -->

The 45 mm 20-K cannon is familiar to those researching the Soviet tech tree, making up the main armament of the reserve tanks BT-5 and T-26. However, at rank II, the 45 mm starts to feel lacking at a distance against the even medium tanks. This is made up with the availability of APCR rounds for the cannon, but this is only useful at targets less than 1 kilometres due to the faster penetration drop-off and also on flat armour due to the poor slope attack characteristics of APCR.

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="100%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[20-K (45 mm)|45 mm 20-K]] || colspan="5" | Turret rotation speed (°/s) || colspan="4" | Reloading rate (seconds)
|-
! Mode !! Capacity !! Vertical !! Horizontal !! Stabilizer
! Stock !! Upgraded !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
! Stock !! Full !! Expert !! Aced
|-
! ''Arcade''
| rowspan="2" | 150 || rowspan="2" | -8°/+25° || rowspan="2" | ±180° || rowspan="2" | N/A || 7.62 || 10.54 || 12.80 || 14.16 || 15.06 || rowspan="2" | 3.77 || rowspan="2" | 3.34 || rowspan="2" | 3.07 || rowspan="2" | 2.90
|-
! ''Realistic''
| 4.76 || 5.60 || 6.80 || 7.52 || 8.00
|-
|}

==== Ammunition ====
{{:20-K (45 mm)/Ammunition|BR-240, BR-240SP, BR-240P}}

==== [[Ammo racks]] ====
[[File:Ammoracks_{{PAGENAME}}.png|right|thumb|x250px|[[Ammo racks]] of the {{PAGENAME}}]]
{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center"
|-
! Full<br>ammo
! 1st<br>rack empty
! 2nd<br>rack empty
! 3rd<br>rack empty
! 4th<br>rack empty
! 5th<br>rack empty
! Visual<br>discrepancy
|-
| '''150''' || 121&nbsp;''(+29)''|| 91&nbsp;''(+59)'' || 61&nbsp;''(+89)'' || 31&nbsp;''(+119)'' || 1&nbsp;''(+149)''|| Yes
|-
|}
'''Note''':

* Sides empty: 31 (''+119'') shells.

=== Machine guns ===
{{Specs-Tank-Weapon|2}}
<!-- ''Offensive and anti-aircraft machine guns not only allow you to fight some aircraft but also are effective against lightly armoured vehicles. Evaluate machine guns and give recommendations on its use.'' -->

{| class="wikitable" style="text-align:center" width="50%"
|-
! colspan="5" | [[DT (7.62 mm)|7.62 mm DT]]
|-
! Mount !! Capacity (Belt) !! Fire rate !! Vertical !! Horizontal
|-
| Coaxial || 1,890 (63) || 600 || N/A || N/A
|-
|}

== Usage in battles ==
<!--''Describe the tactics of playing in the vehicle, the features of using vehicles in the team and advice on tactics. Refrain from creating a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view but instead give the reader food for thought. Describe the most dangerous enemies and give recommendations on fighting them. If necessary, note the specifics of the game in different modes (AB, RB, SB).''-->
Being the prototype of the [[T-50]], the {{PAGENAME}} plays very similarly to it. Some major performance differences come in the {{PAGENAME}}'s construction compared to the T-50. The {{PAGENAME}}, despite being almost 5 tons heavier than the T-50, still moves at a serviceable speed for most light tank operations. This weight difference is due to the {{PAGENAME}} armour being somewhat thicker at the front and sides, giving the {{PAGENAME}} more protection compared to the T-50 and so it translates to better protection against most small-calibre enemy projectiles. The two tanks do share a very slow turret traverse rate, slow enough that it is faster to turn the hull towards the enemy than the turret.

As such, the {{PAGENAME}} excels in an open map with sufficient cover when advancing, such as [[Karelia]] or [[Ash River]]. Players should make the most of the {{PAGENAME}}'s speed to advance towards the point. Use the {{PAGENAME}}'s front armour, which can get to more than 70 mm of effective thickness when facing head-on, to bum rush through any encountered enemies. When making a mad dash to the point, the most common enemy tank type met are other light tanks, which at this battle rating tend to have light-calibre guns ranging from 37 mm to 50 mm. Against these guns, the {{PAGENAME}} stands a good chance at resisting the enemy projectile so long as the {{PAGENAME}} player prevents them from obtaining a good shot. Once a point is captured, one should focus on advancing towards the next point rather than stick around and defend the point. Unfortunately, while the 45 mm gun is still sufficient for close-range attacks, it is rather poor at longer ranges and against heavier armoured vehicles, even medium tanks. This, combined with the {{PAGENAME}}'s slow turret traverse rate, means it is poor in the defense where it has to react to an enemy offensive that is at liberty to approach the captured point from any direction.

Terrain where the {{PAGENAME}} would be rather poor at is on extreme open area with no cover available and in city maps. Open area are a concern due to the presence of tank destroyers that could quite easily pierce through the {{PAGENAME}}'s armour. With the 45 mm inability to have a threatening punch from a long range away, the tank destroyers could plink at the {{PAGENAME}} with ease. City maps are also a concern due to the poor turret traverse rate of the {{PAGENAME}}. Encountering an enemy around the street corner could be difficult and time-consuming if the turret must be angled correctly to get a good shot off, especially if the space does not permit the freedom to use the hull to turn the turret towards the enemy. While the {{PAGENAME}} could still perform on both of these terrains, extra care should be used by the {{PAGENAME}} player to ensure it does not get outmatched and destroyed.

Tanks of concern are in general medium tanks and tank destroyers as by this battle rating, the typical guns encountered are now at or greater than 75 mm while also being at a high-enough velocity to punch through the {{PAGENAME}}'s armour. As such, when moving between points, be wary of zones where enemy would hide and ambush the {{PAGENAME}} as it drives by. Medium tanks with sloped armour will be of big concern if encountered from the front, and so attempts must be made to attack the side armour either by ambush or by outmanoeuvring the tank.

Some concerning vehicles to keep an eye for:

* [[M4|M4 Shermans]]: Their sloped frontal armour leaves little frontal weakpoints available to the {{PAGENAME}}'s 45 mm cannon, while the M4's 75 mm can cleave through the {{PAGENAME}} with relative ease. Most of these M4 also have a sufficiently high turret traverse rate that it could respond to the {{PAGENAME}}'s attempt to outflank it if spotted. The one M4 variant that is easier to deal with is the [[M4A3 (105)]] version, which has a slower traverse rate and a longer reload time compared to the 75 mm variants. The 105 mm shells also have a lower muzzle velocity, meaning the M4A3 (105) is less likely to engage a moving {{PAGENAME}} at a farther distance.
* [[M10 GMC]]: Despite being a lesser-armoured and slower-traversing version of the M4, the gun is upped to a 76 mm that can more than easily cut through the {{PAGENAME}}'s armour. The front armour is slightly easier to penetrate from the front, but only in relatively short ranges. The slower turret traverse rate could be exploited by attacking the M10 from an angle it is not facing.
* [[M24]]: Compared to other light tanks, the M24 is equipped with the same 75 mm as the M4 Sherman tanks. As such, the M24 can be troublesome if when rushing a capture point since while the {{PAGENAME}}'s armour can shrug off other light tank guns, the M24's 75 mm can be quite lethal with a good hit. That said, if the {{PAGENAME}} could manage a shot off at the M24 before the latter could fire, then it could become a non-issue.
* [[Pz.IV F2|Pz.IVs]]: The Pz.IV's long gun is of big concern as these guns can very easily cut through the {{PAGENAME}}'s armour without issue. The fast muzzle velocity also means the Pz.IV is more inclined to take out the {{PAGENAME}} from a distance before the {{PAGENAME}} could get close enough to be able to effectively damage it. The one caveat the Pz.IV has is the rather boxy armour construction, which means there is little sloping effect involved in preventing the 45 mm from penetrating. As such, it is easier to find the Pz.IV head-on and aim at a perpendicular angle right in the front hull armour and penetrate with the 45 mm cannon. A hit in the front would immobilize the Pz.IV and can allow for a flanking manoeuvre to hit the enemy tank from the sides directly to the crew compartment.
* [[Sd.Kfz.234/2]]: As Germany's premier light tank at the battle rating, the 234/2 "Puma" is extremely fast and can usually beat the {{PAGENAME}} at a race to the capture point. Armed with a 50 mm cannon, the 234/2 can also penetrate the {{PAGENAME}}'s armour and so they are a cause of concern for {{PAGENAME}} players.

=== Pros and cons ===
<!-- ''Summarise and briefly evaluate the vehicle in terms of its characteristics and combat effectiveness. Mark its pros and cons in a bulleted list. Try not to use more than 6 points for each of the characteristics. Avoid using categorical definitions such as "bad", "good" and the like - use substitutions with softer forms such as "inadequate" and "effective".'' -->

'''Pros:'''

* Up-armoured angled front plate gives good protection
* Serviceable cannon at its rank
* Angled armour all around upper hull
* Decent mobility

'''Cons:'''

* Slow turret rotation
* Gun mantlet is a significant weak spot
* Struggles in an up-tiered battle
* Cheeks on the corner of the frontal armour, which results in massive weak spots if you are not facing enemies
* Limited gun depression
* 4-man crew extremely tightly packed - a penetrating APHE can easily knock out all 4

== History ==
<!-- ''Describe the history of the creation and combat usage of the vehicle in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the vehicle and adding a block "/History" (example: <nowiki>https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History</nowiki>) and add a link to it here using the <code>main</code> template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <code><nowiki><ref></ref></nowiki></code>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <code><nowiki><references /></nowiki></code>. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under <code><nowiki>=== In-game description ===</nowiki></code>, also if applicable).'' -->
===Development===
The Spanish Civil War gave the Soviets insight on the future of tank warfare, and the knowledge led to an attempt to upgrade or replace their tank forces that consisted mainly of the [[T-26|T-26]] light tanks. The development started in 1939 to create a replacement with for the T-26 and [[BT-5|BT]] light tanks.

The project for the new tank began as the SP project, which is short for ''Soprovzhdeniya Pekhoty'', which means "Infantry Support". The project was headed by the OKMO tank design bureau at the S.M. Kirov Factory No. 185 in Leningrad under the individuals L. Troyanov and I. Bushnevov. Two prototypes, the '''T-126''' and the T-127 was built, and the T-126 was to be further developed into the finished design. The finished design would become the [[T-50]] light tank, which was an intricate light tank for the Soviets at the time. The tank featured sloping armour, torsion bar suspension, diesel engine, three-man turret, and a commander's cupola, all of which were advanced features at the time.

===Production===
The tank would eventually be produced in 1941 during the German invasion in Operation Barbarossa. Only 69 T-50s were made before production ended in January 1942, the design suffered from being expensive, unreliable, and over-engineered. Today, two T-50 survive in intact condition, one normal variant in the Kubinka Tank Museum, and an up-armoured variant in Finland at a museum in Parola.

{{break}}
{{Navigation-Start|{{Annotation|Archive of the in-game description|An archive of the historical description of the vehicle that was presented in-game prior to Update 1.55 'Royal Armour'}}}}
{{Navigation-First-Simple-Line}}
The T-126 experimental light tank was built in the summer of 1940 at Leningrad Experimental Automobile Factory #185. The project was developed on the basis of combat experience in Spain with the goal of creating a tank suitable for the conditions of future wars. Only one model of the tank was ever built, and it was never used in combat.
{{Navigation-End}}

== Media ==
<!-- ''Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.'' -->

;Skins

* [https://live.warthunder.com/feed/camouflages/?vehicle=ussr_t_126sp Skins and camouflages for the {{PAGENAME}} from live.warthunder.com.]

;Videos
{{Youtube-gallery|PosWOnOGkSo|'''Best experimental vehicles''' discusses the {{PAGENAME}} at 4:53 - ''War Thunder Official Channel''}}

== See also ==
<!-- ''Links to the articles on the War Thunder Wiki that you think will be useful for the reader, for example:''
* ''reference to the series of the vehicles;''
* ''links to approximate analogues of other nations and research trees.'' -->

* [[T-50]] - Production version of the {{PAGENAME}}.

== External links ==
<!-- ''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
* ''topic on the official game forum;''
* ''other literature.'' -->

* [https://www.tanks-encyclopedia.com/ww2/soviet/soviet_T-50.php [Tanks-encyclopedia<nowiki>]</nowiki> T-50 light tank (the production model of {{PAGENAME}})]
* [https://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.php?armor_id=1151 [Military Factory<nowiki>]</nowiki> T-50- Light Infantry Tank (1941)]
* [http://tank-photographs.s3-website-eu-west-1.amazonaws.com/t50-russian-soviet-light-tank-ww2.html [<nowiki>www.Tank-Hunter.com]</nowiki> Surviving Soviet WW2 Tanks - The T-50 Light Tank (with one image of the T-126).]

{{TankManufacturer OKMO}}
{{USSR light tanks}}
{{USSR premium ground vehicles}}