The T-34 was a Soviet medium tank which
had a profound and lasting effect on the fields of tank tactics and
design. When plans for an entirely new soviet tank fell through and
the project was cancelled, the Soviet command made the decision to
retool the factories to produce an improved version of the T-34. Its
turret ring was enlarged, allowing a larger turret to be fitted and
thus the larger 85 mm gun. The prototype T-43's turret design was
hurriedly adapted by Vyacheslav Kerichev at the Krasnoye Sormovo
Factory to fit the T-34. This was a larger three-man turret, with
radio (previously in the hull). Now the tank commander needed only to
command, leaving the operation of the gun to the gunner and the
loader. The resulting new tank, the T-34/85, was seen as a compromise
between advocates for the T-43 and others who wanted to continue to
build as many 76 mm-armed T-34s as possible without interruption. The
T-34-85 gave the Red Army a tank with better armour and mobility than
the German Panzer IV tank and StuG III assault gun, though it could
not match the armour or weapons of the Panther or Tiger tanks.
However, its improved firepower made it much more effective against
Panthers and Tigers than earlier models.
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