Found this on Achtung Panzer and thought it may be of interest...

Introduction from Report On Pz Kw VI (Tiger) Model E

by Military College of Science, School of Tank Technology, Chobham Lane Chertsey, January 1944


The Pz. Kw. VI was introduced into service by the enemy in the Autumn or Winter of 1942, and appeared in North Africa in January 1943 and later in Sicily and on the Russian front.

The vehicle which has been examined is a Pz. Kw. VI (E) or Sd. Kfz. 182 and is also known as the "TIGER". This model to have been developed by Henschel u Soehne G.m.b.H.

The "TIGER" is of course outstanding by reason of its being the heaviest A.F.V. in general service, scaling approximately 56 tons in battle order. Its main armament is an 8.8 cm. gun, whilst its heaviest armour (on the frontvertical plate) is 102 mm. Another feature of outstanding tactical interest is its deep wading facilities, and limited under water performance, to a depth of approximately 15 ft.

Its size and weight, however, impose certain tactical disadvantages, the cost outstanding being the restriction on transportation due to its width, and its limited radius of action, due to heavy fuel consumption, (stated by the enemy as 2.75 gallons per mile on normal cross-country running).

The workmanship appears to be of a high order, and the design has been executed freely from the drawing board, in general unhampered by the utilisation of existing components. There are exceptions however and certain points of detail design appear unnecessarily elaborate and costly to manufacture.

An interesting development in German A.F.V. construction is the introduction of plate interlocking in addition to the normal stepped jointing. This method has no doubt been made necessary by the use of thicker armour.

The steering unit is in principle similar to the "Merritt-Brown" with the further refinement of a twin radius of turn in each gear. This adoption of a full' regenerative steering system is a distinct departure from the simple clutch/brake system hitherto employed on German tanks. The weight of the TIGER no doubt enforced a radical change in the steering design and the adoption of this system is therefore of interest. The gearbox has much in common with other Maybach pre-selective units, and probably the outstanding merit of this design is the provision of a large number of forward ratios (in this case eight) in a relatively compact main casing. This use of a fully automatic change speed operation is in distinct contrast with current Allied practice.

The transmission and steering units are extremely complicated and undoubtedly costly in man/hours to produce. The resultant light control of such a heavy vehicle may be some justification, since those who have driven the tank comment favourably on this feature.

As yet there is no indication that the Germans favour a compression ignition engine and the Pz. Kw. VI is powered by a V-12 Maybach petrol engine. This engine which has undoubtedly been expressly designed for a heavy tank, is a logical development of the Maybach V-12 type 120 TRM used in the Pz. Kw. III and Pz. Kw. IV and is similar in general design. As this engine represents the very latest German practice it merits close study, and it must be conceded that the design has achieved its purpose in a great measure. It is compact, light and very accessible.

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"Watch that Fu*ker, he'll 'ave someones eye out!" King Harold at Hastings 1066.

Wonder why the "diesel"engine did'nt get considered as an tank engine.IMO, they are way better than a gas motor,especially in a heavy tank. Diesel fuel does'nt ignite as fast as gasoline,they make their power at lower rpm's[torque],etc.Not to mention that diesels have less moving parts than a gas engine. Or less expensive/complicated to make than high-octane gas.

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Interesting article. [img]smile.gif[/img]

Because it complicates other things. First, most countries had auto industries set up to produce gasoline powered trucks and cars. In military terms this meant that gasoline engined trucks and cars were cheaper and easier to produce as the means to do so were already in place. By going to diesels in tank engines now military units would require two types of fuel, a larger number of repair parts, wider skills sets for mechanics etc.
This, for example, was why the US Army stuck with gasoline engines through the end of the war. The two diesel powered Sherman tank models (along with diesel powered M3 and M5 light tanks etc) were exclusively supplied to either the US Marines or as lend-lease (mostly to the Soviets). In the Marines case, the reason diesel was desirable was that it was widely available in the US Navy where it was used in marine propulsion on a large number of ships and craft whereas gasoline wasn't. This simplified supply for the Marines.

Didnt some diesel engined Shermans or TDs see service in the ETO? Will check...

See the point of all petrol though... For once the Germans thought about supply and logistics!

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"Watch that Fu*ker, he'll 'ave someones eye out!" King Harold at Hastings 1066.