WoT RU: Three New Soviet Heavy Tanks (KV-4 Tseits, KV-4 Mikhailov, TET-100)

Soviet premium Tier VIII heavy tank KV-4 Tseits
Historical Reference:
After receiving intelligence about the development of super-heavy tanks in Germany with a mass of around 90 tons, the USSR announced a competition to create a similar vehicle. The authors of successful designs were promised rewards. More than two dozen tank projects were submitted, all designated KV-4.

Third place in the competition was taken by the design of N. V. Zeitza. The tank was armed with a single 107 mm gun and a flamethrower. The machine-gun armament consisted of two Degtyaryov tank machine guns, model 1939. The drive sprockets and gearbox were located at the front, while the engine was placed in the rear. They were connected by a driveshaft running above the floor of the fighting compartment. Repair and maintenance of the transmission were intended to be carried out “over a pit” through a hatch in the bottom of the hull. Two small hatches in the upper glacis plate were used to adjust the side clutches; the large angle of inclination made this possible without compromising frontal protection. This project later formed the basis for the heavier KV-5 tank.

Soviet researchable Tier VIII heavy tank KV-4 Mikhailov
Historical Reference:
In April 1941, the Council of People’s Commissars of the USSR issued a task to design new super-heavy tanks, with a prototype to be completed by October 1, 1941. Due to the tight deadlines and the high priority of the assignment, the head of SKB-2, Zh. Kotin, was forced to involve nearly all engineers of his design bureau on a competitive basis. One of the lowest-mass projects submitted within the competition was the vehicle designed by engineer P. Mikhaylov.

The conical turret was intended to mount a 107 mm ZiS-6 gun and two “rear” machine guns in the turret bustle. To protect the turret ring, it was proposed to increase the height of the fighting compartment, which, in addition to the hull-mounted machine gun, made it possible to install a 45 mm 20-K gun in the hull with a horizontal firing arc of 45°. A flamethrower was also planned to be installed in the hull. Mikhaylov’s original solution was the shape of the track run, dictated by the relatively high placement of the drive sprocket and idler wheels to ensure more confident obstacle crossing.

However, design work on the KV-4 was soon discontinued in favor of the KV-5, and Germany’s attack on the USSR, combined with the subsequent evacuation of industry, ultimately put an end to the serial production of super-heavy tanks in the USSR.

Soviet researchable Tier X heavy tank TET-100
Historical Reference:
Breakthrough super-heavy tanks appeared in the Red Army’s armament system as early as the beginning of the 1930s. The peak of design work came in the spring–summer of 1941, but with the outbreak of the Great Patriotic War, all work was once again halted. One of the waves of renewed activity occurred in late 1943. Development of new heavy tanks began, among them the TET (Tank with Electric Transmission). The tank was intended as a means of combating long-term fortified firing positions and was therefore armed with a 130 mm gun. The projected combat weight exceeded 100 tons. The work did not progress beyond the conceptual design stage.