How does a Tank work?

Come see how a tank works! In this video we're going to look specifically at the American M1A2 Abrams tank. The tank weighs 68 US Tons and can go up to 42 miles per hour. Parts of the tank include the caterpillar tracks, the wheels, the hull, and the turret. The caterpillar tracks are used to displace the weight of the tank allowing it to cross rough terrain. The tank holds a crew of 4 - the driver, gunner, commander and the loader. The driver is up front and the other 3 are in the turret. The engine is in the back of the tank, it's an AGT-1500 which is powered by jet fuel. The main gun fires shells at about 3500mph. It can hit a target 2 miles away. There are a few countries besides the USA that use variants of the M1 Abrams tank. M1A2 Abrams tank continues to be the main battle tank for the United States military.

I apologize for not including metric units in the video. I normally include both metric and imperial but this video I got lazy. (and yes, even as an American I agree our system is pretty wonky)

I made a mistake with the smoke grenade launchers in the video. They do not emit smoke directly - they shoot out grenades around the tank and then those grenades emit smoke.

For those of you that noticed the anime paint job on the helicopter in War Thunder - yes this is a real thing. Do a google search for "Kisarazu Sisters" 

For today’s video, were going military. Let’s look at how a tank works. We’re gonna focus specifically, on the American M1A2 Abrams Tank. Well look at the caterpillar tracks, the turret, where the crew sits, and the engine in the back that powers it all.

The M1 Abrams Tank was introduced in the year 1980. The tank was named in honor of United States Army General Creighton W. Abrams Jr, who was a commander in the Vietnam War. The idea with the M1 Abrams Tank, was to keep it low to the ground, so that it was harder to hit. Angled sides on the tank, allowed enemy fire to deflect off the side. It’s a bit cozy inside, so I hope you’re not claustrophobic. During operations, the crew may spend hundreds of hours inside with very little sleep. There are many versions of the tank. We have the M1, then came the M1A1, and then the M1A2.

There’s also minor variants of the tanks, with many different enhancement packages. But to keep things simple, let’s not worry about these, just these three major versions. They look very similar on the outside, but there’s been plenty of improvements, to items such as the armor, electronics and the weapon systems. Each new version is generally heavier, and slower, but the increased tech makes up for it. For the rest of the video, I’m gonna focus specifically on the M1A2 Abrams Tank. Though some of what I’ll say, will be true of the previous versions as well. Let’s look at some specs. The height is eight feet, the length is 32 feet, and the width is 12 feet. For comparison, here’s the size of a person. This tank weighs a whopping 68 US tons.

That’s equal to the weight of about 35 cars. Even with all that weight, the tank is capable of speeds of up to 42 miles per hour. It has a fuel capacity of just under 500 gallons. Again, just for comparison, most cars can only hold about 16 gallons. But tanks need all of that fuel because they only get about point six miles per gallon, compared to the average car 25 miles per gallon. So it’s a gas guzzler but its heavy and powerful. Let’s look at some other features of a tank.

We have the caterpillar tracks, the wheels, they’re seven on the ground on each side, the main body which is called the Hull, and the Turret, which is the part that spins on top, and holds the weapons and other equipment. The engine is housed in the very back. The tank holds a crew of four, three of them are inside the turret, and one of them is way up front.

Now that were familiar with the outside of the tank, let’s look at more specifics, and well start with the caterpillar tracks. These are sometimes called tank treads. They are made of steel with replaceable rubber pads. There are seven road wheels on each side of the tank, a raised idler wheel in the very front and the drive sprocket in the back. This one has gear teeth on it, and it’s the only one that’s powered by the engine. It moves the entire track along. The other wheels spin freely, as the tank treads move past it. The road wheels also have suspension built into them. The whole reason we use caterpillar tracks, is to allow the tank to go over some very rough terrain. Most barriers don’t pose any problem for the tank to pass.

A lot of this is pretty similar to how other tanks work, you’ll find a lot of the same components. War Thunder is actually a pretty good way to learn about the different types of tanks. You’ll see they have all three variants, of the M1 Abrams Tank. But they have lots of others too, from countries like the USA, Germany, Japan and France. And it’s not just tanks. They have aircraft, helicopters and ships at sea. War Thunder has over 1500 of these vehicles, from the 1930s all the way through the 1990s. So there’s quite a lot there. But for now, let’s focus on the tank. Regular vehicles with four wheels have limited surface area in contact with the ground. They can get stuck much easier. That’s why it’s a good idea to stay on paved roads. The tank on the other hand, has a much larger surface area to displace all that weight.

Obstacles in the way are usually not a problem. The tank can even climb some very steep hills. Most of the time it’s still a smooth ride for those inside the tank. The tank is steered by altering the speed of the tracks. For example to turn left, the right tracks need to move faster than the left tracks. Unfortunately, the caterpillar tracks, are the most likely part of the tank to break. The good news is that the tank usually carries tools, and spare parts so that broken links can be replaced, and the tank can keep moving again. Next up is the engine, which is in the very back of the tank. For repairs, the entire engine can be lifted up out of the tank. This is an AGT 1500 engine, which can run off of several different fuels but most of the time it runs off of jet fuel.

In your car, you’ll find what’s called a piston engine with the pistons moving up and down to rotate the shaft. But in the tank, you’ll find a turbine engine. This one works a little bit more like a jet engine, that you would find on an airplane.

However, this engine is actually fairly quiet. Which is really important, so you don’t give away the tanks position to nearby enemies. The engine gets very hot, so these two side cooling units will help remove the heat. The exhaust comes out the back, so make sure and stay clear when the engine is on. There’s actually a phone, on the back of the tank. This way soldiers on the outside can communicate with the crew on the inside. The sides have armored plates, called Side Skirts to protect the wheels and the caterpillar tracks. These can be opened up in sections, for better access to the road wheels.

On the front, there’s headlights here, and four tow hooks down here. Remember there are many different variants of the M1A2 Abrams Tank. So another tank, might have slightly different features on the outside. And this top part is called the turret. It can rotate all the way around and in about nine seconds. This is the main gun, which is a 120 millimeters Smoothbore Cannon. This means that the shells or ammunition are 120 millimeters. 

And so is the bore or the hole that it goes through. The shells leave the barrel at about 3500 miles per hour. It can hit a target two miles away. The automatic stabilizers, allow the gun to stay locked on targets, even while going over rough terrain. This way the driver doesn’t have to stop every time the tank needs to fire. The tank can even spin in place while the main gun remains locked on target.

Right next to this, is the smaller coaxial machine gun. Up on top, there’s usually at least one more machine gun to operate. On the sides, are smoke grenade launchers. There’s one on each side of the tank. These make it harder to be seen during combat. There’s not much room for equipment inside of the tank, so oftentimes the crew put it out here on the bustle rack. There are two hatches on top of the turret; the commanders hatch and the loaders hatch. Inside of the turret, you’ll find three out of the four crew members. It’s a bit cozy in here. 

The gunner sits down below to the very right. The commander sits directly behind the gunner. The loader is off to the left of the main gun. When the turret rotates, all three of these crew members rotate with it. Underneath here, this is called the turret basket. The seal between the turret and the hull is so good, that it could protect the crew inside in case of chemical or nuclear warfare. Now in War Thunder, we can get a good look inside of the tank as well. just come up here to X ray mode, and look at that.

There’s the crew, the main gun, some of the armor and the engine in the back. This view was helpful to me while making this video, because it’s hard to find reference images, for this kind of stuff. You can do this yourself too. War Thunder is free to play, and it’s available on PC, PS4 and Xbox One. Give War Thunder a try. Just click the link in the video description below. You’ll also get a premium aircraft, tank or ship, and a three day account upgrade as a bonus.

The game is a lot of fun, and you’ll get help on my YouTube channel at the same time. Alright, there’s a few more things I wanna show you about this tank. The commander can see 360 degrees around the tank, through the viewing ports. The shells for the main gun are stored in a large compartment on the back of the turret.

The loader can then open up an access door, grab a shell and load the main gun. This must be done quickly during combat situations. If any of the ammunition is ignited, the panels on top are weak to blow off, so that the explosion goes up instead of into the turret where the crew is located. The driver sets up at the very front. There’s a hatch up here that can be opened to go inside. There’s not much room up here either, so the driver has to lay back in the seat. The controls are up here and two brake pedals down here. There’s no gas pedal in the tank, just use the two black handlebars, for acceleration and steering. The driver also has periscopes, that allow him to see a 120 degree field of view. Usually the driver enters through the hatch up front. But if needed, the driver can climb into the turret, and then through a tiny door in the basket, and into the seat.

The United States isn’t the only ones, to use the M1 Abrams Tanks. It’s been sold to other countries, such as Australia, Egypt, Kuwait, and Saudi Arabia. The M1A2 Abrams Tank has been in use for almost 30 years now. At some point it may be replaced but for now it continues to be the main battle tank, for the United States military. My name is Jared, and I create 3D animations on how things work. Visit my YouTube channel, for lots more animations just like this one. Go ahead and click on the link here. And thanks again to War Thunder.

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