Mike W Posted November 4, 2002 Share Posted November 4, 2002 I know this is a bit off topic, but I'm not sure where to put it. How does a tank turn? I know this sounds stupid, but I've never thought about it before. I'm sure someone knows and would indulge my question. -Thanks. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeyD Posted November 4, 2002 Share Posted November 4, 2002 Just like in the game! If you look close you'll see the tracks on one side stop or slow while the others continue to move. Some tanks can pivot in place by having one set of tracks move forward while another moves backward. This feature has resulted in a lot of torn-up pavement in Europe over the last five-six decades! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dar Posted November 4, 2002 Share Posted November 4, 2002 Ever played that old arcade game "Battlezone", with the crude polygon tanks that you shoot up with your own tank? It had two joysticks, one for each tread on your tank. To go straight, you pushed both up. To reverse, both back. To pivot left or right push the right or left joystick--respectively. To pivot faster, push one joystick and pull the other. In modern times, most tanks have steering wheels like cars, but in WWII most tanks used controls just like the "Battlezone" game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brightblade Posted November 4, 2002 Share Posted November 4, 2002 That´s not quite true. German tanks had steering wheels very early. AFAIK already PzIII had a steering wheel, maybe even the earlier models. Shermans on the other hand had those brake handles (you pulled one handle to slow down one track), and probably even long after the war, as long as they were in service. The M113 APC still has them nowadays. [ November 04, 2002, 03:16 PM: Message edited by: Brightblade ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brightblade Posted November 4, 2002 Share Posted November 4, 2002 [deleted because of a double posting] [ November 04, 2002, 03:17 PM: Message edited by: Brightblade ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Emil Seibold Posted November 4, 2002 Share Posted November 4, 2002 The mechanics of tanks. Complicated machines, tanks. Any more questions? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cameroon Posted November 4, 2002 Share Posted November 4, 2002 Originally posted by Dar: Ever played that old arcade game "Battlezone", with the crude polygon tanks that you shoot up with your own tank? It had two joysticks, one for each tread on your tank. To go straight, you pushed both up. To reverse, both back. To pivot left or right push the right or left joystick--respectively. To pivot faster, push one joystick and pull the other. In modern times, most tanks have steering wheels like cars, but in WWII most tanks used controls just like the "Battlezone" game.To get a feel for it now, the arcades have a Pod Racer type game (from Star Wars I) that is controlled just like that. Two levers to control the thrust of the pods on each side of the craft. Yeah, you're moving a bit faster I'll admit It sure is difficult if you aren't used to driving that way. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MikeyD Posted November 5, 2002 Share Posted November 5, 2002 The steering wheels (and even joystick on the M47!) work the same as operating the tank with two steering levers. Turn the wheel one way and the track on one side slows down. Turn it the other way and the track on the other side slows down. Simplicity itself. Nothing in the suspension is meant to "turn" like a car's front wheel. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brightblade Posted November 5, 2002 Share Posted November 5, 2002 Originally posted by MikeyD: The steering wheels (and even joystick on the M47!) work the same as operating the tank with two steering levers. Turn the wheel one way and the track on one side slows down. Turn it the other way and the track on the other side slows down. That may be true for older tanks, I don´t know much about it, but in newer tanks it works a little bit different (at least in the German Leopards which I already had the pleasure to steer). Turning the steering wheel not simply uses brakes on the tracks but works with the gearing mechanism by changeing the power distribution from equal (driving straight) in a way to make the tank turn where you want it to turn. At least that´s what they told me in the driving school how it works. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bastables Posted November 5, 2002 Share Posted November 5, 2002 Originally posted by Brightblade: Originally posted by MikeyD: </font><blockquote>quote:</font><hr /> The steering wheels (and even joystick on the M47!) work the same as operating the tank with two steering levers. Turn the wheel one way and the track on one side slows down. Turn it the other way and the track on the other side slows down. That may be true for older tanks, I don´t know much about it, but in newer tanks it works a little bit different (at least in the German Leopards which I already had the pleasure to steer). Turning the steering wheel not simply uses brakes on the tracks but works with the gearing mechanism by changeing the power distribution from equal (driving straight) in a way to make the tank turn where you want it to turn. At least that´s what they told me in the driving school how it works.</font> Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Dar Posted November 5, 2002 Share Posted November 5, 2002 Originally posted by Brightblade: That´s not quite true. German tanks had steering wheels very early. AFAIK already PzIII had a steering wheel, maybe even the earlier models. Yes, hence the word "most" instead of "all". Of course, maybe "many" would have been a better choice, since most implies ">50%". Oh, the semantics! The humanity! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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