Difference between revisions of "T-34-85 No.215"

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m (T-34-85 “215” in the Korean War)
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The '''T-34-85''' would not make a very suitable short-range brawler though even with the 85 mm gun as the gun has a rather tedious reload for the specific playstyle and the [[T-34-57|T-34]]'s armour is very poor at its BR. With that, the '''T-34-85''' would tend to be able to fire one shot at a close enemy before it gets taken out by other enemies nearby. However, it is understandable that the situation is unavoidable, so it is recommended to stay steady by firing one shot at an unsuspecting enemy at close range before retreating to reload, evading enemy shots.
 
The '''T-34-85''' would not make a very suitable short-range brawler though even with the 85 mm gun as the gun has a rather tedious reload for the specific playstyle and the [[T-34-57|T-34]]'s armour is very poor at its BR. With that, the '''T-34-85''' would tend to be able to fire one shot at a close enemy before it gets taken out by other enemies nearby. However, it is understandable that the situation is unavoidable, so it is recommended to stay steady by firing one shot at an unsuspecting enemy at close range before retreating to reload, evading enemy shots.
  
While the T-34-85 Gai is a fairly well-rounded tank, its poor armor and high speed mean that one should play it more like a light tank than a medium. The gun is very lethal but the penetration is not particularly good, so it is better to flank and go for side shots, which can instantly knock out all but the largest and most spacious opponents. During frontal engagements, Tiger Is should be shot in the flat portions of the hull (avoiding the driver's port), Panthers should be shot in the turret (in the less curved portion of the mantlet) or possibly in the lower glacis, and non-Jumbo Shermans can generally be shot anywhere. The Tiger II (P) is only vulnerable in a small portion of the turret cheeks and the Tiger II (H) is essentially frontally immune, so for these kinds of targets, circle around to get a good look at the hull sides and let the slope modifiers take care of the rest. Watch out for American tanks like the [[M4A3 (76) W]] and [[T25]], as they have vertical stabilizers and can often shoot first if they are aware of you.
+
While the T-34-85 Gai is a fairly well-rounded tank, its poor armor and high speed mean that one should play it more like a light tank than a medium. The gun is very lethal but the penetration is not particularly good, so it is better to flank and go for side shots, which can instantly knock out all but the largest and most spacious opponents. During frontal engagements, Tiger Is should be shot in the flat portions of the hull (avoiding the driver's port), Panthers should be shot in the turret (in the less curved portion of the mantlet) or possibly in the lower glacis, and non-Jumbo Shermans can generally be shot anywhere. The Tiger II (P) is only vulnerable in a small portion of the turret cheeks and the Tiger II (H) is essentially frontally immune, so for these kinds of targets, circle around to get a good look at the hull sides and let the slope modifiers take care of the rest. Watch out for American tanks like the [[M4A3 (76) W]] and [[T25]], as they have vertical stabilizers and can often shoot first if they are aware of you.
  
 
===Tactics===
 
===Tactics===
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== History ==
 
== History ==
=== T-34-85 “215” in the Korean War ===
+
''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).''
The PRC make quite bold claims about their use of armour during the Korean War. Perhaps the most famous story is of T-34-85 “215”, of which variations exist, but is generally as follows:
 
 
 
T-34-85 “215” and two other T-34-85 belonging to the 2nd Tank Division of the 2nd Tank Regiment (of the PVA) were deployed along with elements of the 200th Infantry Regiment on 6th July 1953. Their task was to fortify positions on Hill 346.6 (known as 石砚洞北山 to the Chinese) against the advancing American 7th Infantry Division.
 
 
 
Upon arriving at the hill on 7th July, the T-34-85s were tasked to find and destroy three M46 Patton tanks reported in the area. The T-34-85s took up ambush positions around the hill but unfortunately the Americans were able to hear their engines roar as they were approaching, thus ruining the element of surprise for the PVA. The Americans began to barrage the Chinese positions with artillery and as a result, “215” was inadvertently entrenched between two artillery craters and was unable to get out.
 
 
 
The Chinese were met with a serious dilemma. Would they abandon the tank and lose a large part of their firepower or would they concentrate manpower on digging the tank out? In the end, the crew of “215” spent half the day attempting to dig the tank out with help from infantry but were unsuccessful. It was only until the day got dark when the crew gave up and instead decided to make do with their current situation by camouflaging the tank with mud and foliage.
 
 
 
The following day, the Chinese began their assault and three American M46 Pattons appeared to fend off the Chinese infantry. Upon revealing themselves the Pattons immediately came under fire from “215”. At a range of approximately 1,450m, the first Patton was reported to have been taken out with a single armour piercing shot which caused an ammo rack explosion. The second Patton was seemingly also reported to have been taken out with a single shot at approximately the same range. The third Patton, however, was taking cover behind a hill which prevented “215” from hitting it. As such, “215” fired twelve high explosive rounds at the hill which exposed the Patton. A couple of these shells supposedly hit the Patton and crippled it.
 
 
 
Having somehow not attracted any attention, “215” waited for night to fall, at which point it began revving its engine in such a manner as to make it sound as though the tank was reversing away. A PVA artillery unit then rescued “215” from the crater and the tank escaped down a road.
 
 
 
At this point, “215” encountered another column of three Pattons. Cunningly, the crew waited in a nearby woods until the column was close, and then somehow stealthily joined the column as the second tank. “215” stayed with the column until the convoy reached a US checkpoint, at which point “215” destroyed the Patton behind it (thus trapping the rearmost Patton), chased down and destroyed the leading Patton, and also proceeded to destroy a number of US bunkers and supply lorries. “215” escaped and the crew were celebrated as heroes, with the tank still standing today in the Tank Museum, Beijing.
 
 
 
Undoubtedly, this story is untrue because there are no records of these Patton's being lost at this stage of the war (although in a private conversation with the authors, Steven Zaloga advises that US records were poorly kept). In fact, the story fits in well with other CCP myths such as ‘Gongchen Tank’ and the more famous (although non-tank related) story of ‘Comrade Lei Feng’ and should therefore be dismissed as fake.
 
 
 
See External links [1]
 
  
 
== Media ==
 
== Media ==
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== External links ==
 
== External links ==
[https://tanks-encyclopedia.com/coldwar/China/Type-58-MBT.php]Type 58 And Chinese T-34-85
 
 
 
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
 
''Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:''
  

Revision as of 18:55, 17 September 2020

Rank VII | Premium | Golden Eagles
Challenger DS Pack
T-34-85 No.215
cn_t_34_85_zis_53_no215.png
T-34-85 No.215
AB RB SB
5.7 5.7 5.7
Purchase:4 880 Specs-Card-Eagle.png
Show in game

Description

GarageImage T-34-85 No.215.jpg


The T-34-85 No.215 is a premium rank IV Chinese medium tank with a battle rating of 5.7 (AB/RB/SB). It was introduced during Update 1.95 "Northern Wind" in the Lunar New Year Sale 2020.

General info

Survivability and armour

Armour type:

  • Rolled homogeneous armour (Hull, Turret roof)
  • Cast homogeneous armour (Turret, Cupola, Driver's hatch, Machine gun port)
Armour Front (Slope angle) Sides Rear Roof
Hull 45 mm (60°) Front glacis
45 mm (60°) Lower glacis
75 mm (60°) Driver's hatch
65 mm (30°) Machine gun port
45 mm (39-40°) Top
45 mm Bottom
45 mm (47-49°) Top
45 mm (46°) Bottom
20 mm
Turret 90 mm (1-69°) Turret front
90 + 40 mm (8-61°) Gun mantlet
75 mm (19-22°) Front 2/3rd
52 mm (13-19°) Rear 1/3rd
52 mm (9°) 20 mm
Armour Sides Roof
Cupola 90 mm 20 mm

Notes:

  • The gun mantlet has 90 mm in front with additional small and thin 40 mm plates on the sides of the gun. See here.
  • Suspensions wheels are 20 mm thick and tracks are 18 mm thick

Any enemy vehicle around the T-34-85's BR bracket can destroy it if it can get a solid shot on the hull armour. Beware when exposing hull when coming out to take a shot on an enemy, someone is bound to be watching for the T-34-85 and they won't be afraid to plant a shell into the 45 mm hull armour.

Mobility

Game Mode Max Speed (km/h) Weight (tons) Engine power (horsepower) Power-to-weight ratio (hp/ton)
Forward Reverse Stock AoA Stock Upgraded Stock Upgraded
Arcade 62 10 32 0.2 775 954 24.22 29.63
Realistic 55 9 442 500 13.81 15.53

Armaments

Main armament

Main article: ZIS-S-53 (85 mm)
85 mm ZIS-S-53 Turret rotation speed (°/s) Reloading rate (seconds)
Mode Capacity Vertical Horizontal Stabilizer Stock Upgraded Full Expert Aced Stock Full Expert Aced
Arcade 60 -5°/+22° ±180° N/A 23.8 __._ __._ __._ __._ 9.6 __.__ __.__ 7.4
Realistic 14.9 __._ __._ __._ 25.0

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
BR-365A APHEBC 135 133 125 115 106 97
BR-365K APHE 148 143 126 106 90 77
BR-365P APCR 195 187 154 120 94 74
O-365K HE 10 10 10 10 10 10
Shell details
Ammunition Type of
warhead
Velocity
(m/s)
Projectile
Mass (kg)
Fuse delay
(m)
Fuse sensitivity
(mm)
Explosive Mass
(TNT equivalent) (g)
Normalisation at 30°
from horizontal
Ricochet
0% 50% 100%
BR-365A APHEBC 792 9.2 1.2 14.0 164 +4.0° 48° 63° 71°
BR-365K APHE 792 9.2 1.2 14.0 73.92 -1.0° 47° 60° 65°
BR-365P APCR 1,050 4.99 N/A N/A N/A +1.5° 66° 70° 72°
O-365K HE 793 9.54 0.1 0.3 660 +0.0° 79° 80° 81°

Ammo racks

Ammo racks of the T-34-85.
Full
ammo
1st
rack empty
2nd
rack empty
3rd
rack empty
4th
rack empty
5th
rack empty
6th
rack empty
Visual
discrepancy
60 51 (+9) 41 (+19) 31 (+29) 21 (+39) 11 (+49) (+59) no

Turret empty: 24 (+12)


Machine guns

Main article: DT (7.62 mm)
7.62 mm DT
Mount Capacity
(Belt capacity)
Rate of fire
(shots/minute)
Vertical
guidance
Horizontal
guidance
Coaxial 1,890 (63) 600 N/A N/A

Usage in battles

The T-34-85's best playstyle is that of a flanker. Due to its high mobility, fast turret traverse, and a capable cannon with excellent post-penetration damage, the T-34-85 fills this role perfectly. Since the turret is so tall, it makes combat behind low obstacles difficult, as the turret segment above the main gun is visible. The T-34-85's other playstyle can be as a support tank, by keeping up with more protected vehicles like the IS-2 and supplement firepower while their heavy armament reloads.

The T-34-85 would not make a very suitable short-range brawler though even with the 85 mm gun as the gun has a rather tedious reload for the specific playstyle and the T-34's armour is very poor at its BR. With that, the T-34-85 would tend to be able to fire one shot at a close enemy before it gets taken out by other enemies nearby. However, it is understandable that the situation is unavoidable, so it is recommended to stay steady by firing one shot at an unsuspecting enemy at close range before retreating to reload, evading enemy shots.

While the T-34-85 Gai is a fairly well-rounded tank, its poor armor and high speed mean that one should play it more like a light tank than a medium. The gun is very lethal but the penetration is not particularly good, so it is better to flank and go for side shots, which can instantly knock out all but the largest and most spacious opponents. During frontal engagements, Tiger Is should be shot in the flat portions of the hull (avoiding the driver's port), Panthers should be shot in the turret (in the less curved portion of the mantlet) or possibly in the lower glacis, and non-Jumbo Shermans can generally be shot anywhere. The Tiger II (P) is only vulnerable in a small portion of the turret cheeks and the Tiger II (H) is essentially frontally immune, so for these kinds of targets, circle around to get a good look at the hull sides and let the slope modifiers take care of the rest. Watch out for American tanks like the M4A3 (76) W and T25, as they have vertical stabilizers and can often shoot first if they are aware of you.

Tactics

In AB, you should play this tank like any other T-34. Push because you have a pretty well-rounded tank and will generally be able to adapt to whatever situation that develops. The AB meta generally favors more heavily armed and armored tanks due to the presence of markers making flanking and ambushes more difficult, so play carefully and take advantage of your high mobility.

In RB, play this tank offensively yet carefully. Use your speed and keep up with your teammates, or alternatively play it like a light tank and go on long flanks. If one decides to use the T-34 as a main battle tank, it's advisable to hide the hull as well as possible which has the weakest armour. Unfortunately, most heavy tanks like the Tiger II are nearly invulnerable from the front, but many mediums and even Cold War MBT's can still be destroyed. At this rank bracket, however, its speed, turret location, and poor armour push it towards a flanking role, away from the 1940-43 main battle comfort zone. The gun is still very potent, and the ammunition often knocks out nearly the entire crew, but the increases in armour of enemy vehicles necessitate learning their weakspots. The gun is generally accurate and most shells retain their velocity even into far ranges -- at 1000 meters a Tiger I can be destroyed with a frontal hit.

In SB, play this tank very cautiously because the optics aren't that good and most of the time you will face tanks from pretty far distances. Panthers generally have better optics than you so try to avoid encounters with Panthers or Tigers.

Modules

Tier Mobility Protection Firepower
I Tracks Parts Horizontal Drive BR-365A
II Suspension Brake System FPE Adjustment of Fire
III Filters Crew Replenishment Elevation Mechanism BR-365P
IV Transmission Engine Add-on Armor Artillery Support
This is a premium vehicle: all modifications are unlocked on purchase

Pros and cons

Pros:

  • Excellent gun with adequate penetration, destructive damage and good reload rate
  • 56 km/h top speed and great manoeuvrability allows it to reposition easily
  • 5-man crew increases survivalility
  • Access to BR-365P APCR to effectively penetrate tough tanks up cloes (M4A3E2s, Tigers & Panthers)
  • Has two types of AP for players to choose: BR-365K with higher pen but less TNT, and BR-365A with less pen but plenty of TNT
  • Similar playstyle with the previous T-34s which is beginner-friendly
  • Fast turret traverse to easily deal with targets from multiple directions
  • Sloped hull and round frontal turret might bounce small caliber shells

Cons:

  • Armour is fairly useless in its BR
  • 5 degrees gun depression is below average
  • A bit below average penetration with standard ammo
  • High profile. Since the turret is so tall, it makes combat behind low obstacles difficult, as the turret segment above the main gun is visible

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: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Vehicle-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />. This section may also include the vehicle's dev blog entry (if applicable) and the in-game encyclopedia description (under === In-game description ===, also if applicable).

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

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.

External links

Paste links to sources and external resources, such as:

  • topic on the official game forum;
  • encyclopedia page on the tank;
  • other literature.


China medium tanks
ZTZ59  Type 59 · ZTZ59A · ZTZ59D1
ZTZ69  Type 69 · Type 69-IIa
ZTZ88/96  ZTZ88A · ZTZ88B
  ZTZ96 · ZTZ96A · ZTZ96A (P)
ZTZ99  ZTZ99-II · ZTZ99-III
ZTZ99A  ZTZ99A · WZ1001(E) LCT
Export series  MBT-2000 · VT4A1
ROC  CM11
Other  Т-34-85 Gai · Object 122MT "MC"
Bangladesh  T-69 II G
Japan  ␗Chi-Ha · ␗Chi-Ha Kai
Pakistan  Al-Khalid-I
USA  ␗M4A4 · ␗M4A4 (1st PTG) · ␗M4A1 (75) W · ␗M48A1 · ␗M60A3 TTS
USSR  ␗T-34 (1943) · ␗Т-34-85 (S-53) · T-34-85 No.215 · Т-62 №545

China premium ground vehicles
Light tanks  T-26 No.531 · ␗M3A3 (1st PTG) · ␗M41A3 · M64 · WMA301
Medium tanks  ␗M4A4 (1st PTG) · T-34-85 No.215 · Т-62 №545 · ZTZ59A · Type 69-IIa · T-69 II G · ZTZ96A (P) · Al-Khalid-I
Heavy tanks  IS-2 No.402