South American Tanks

Petrus said:
Somewhere on the Facebook I have found info on a vehicle developed in Brazil that was based on the Stuart tank, namely a mortar carrier designated as Viatura Blindada de Combate, Morteiro 120mm, XM3B1.
The first version of the mortar carrier had the mortar mounted in the rear compartment (as in self-propelled mortars based on the M113 APC). Unfortunately it turned out that the hull and suspension were too weak to withstand the mortar recoil, which caused fractures. So a modification of the vehicle was developed: now mortar barrel, bipod (and ammunition, obviously) were to be carried in the rear, but the base plate was to be mounted on the vehicle's glacis. Therefore the mortar must have been reassembled on the ground before firing and disassembled when leaving the position. My guess is that such a procedure was so cumbersome that the project was cancelled.

Piotr
Click to expand...
Very clever and resourceful of the Brazilian's just the same....
The fact they simply didn't discard the chassis is impressive just the same.

Regards
Pioneer
 
4.jpg
Modification done to the M3/M5/M9 halftracks, the incorporation of a 105mm Recoilless gun on its top (Czekalski) oruga.jpg
This Halftracks were probably the longest ever serving vehicle on the Argentine Army, on mid 2000s a certain number of them were donated to Bolivia (i have an article about that somewhere). It was a pretty decent and cheap vehicle to use and certainly to maintain!
 
TENSA'S MOWAG

An interesting hybrid made during the mid-late 80s was the conversion of a Mowag grenadier to adding a turret with a 90mm cannon. The Mowag Grenadier was used by both Argentine Army and Navy, all of them purchased during the "Europa Plan" this little 4x4s were seen in variety of uses, but one major deal often made its use...a bit harder... if you see next picture during its deployment with the UN you're going to see that crew confort wasn't the best, and as stupid as it sounds, the average soldier didn't fit on them (A similar thing would happen years later with the chinese 6x6, but thats another topic for another day).
49893028672_ee51d8d584_o.jpg

The company TENSA saw this and offered a "recycling" program for them where they would contemplate modifications to make it a bit more useful, where 2 main ideas were put forward, the first was to fit a 90mm cannon so they could perform a similar role to the AML-90 (exploration and support), while the second idea contemplated the fitting of an AA turret. Both ideas also contemplated a rebuilding of the suspension, transmission and an engine change.
Mowag90mm.jpg
The 1st modification was completed and tested while the AA version remained a bit of a mystery, as there is no concrete info regarding the S530 turret being fitted to the Mowag. Its likely that it could have been tested, as TENSA enjoyed really close ties with Matra or other french companies (like SAMM), but there is really not much info regarding it.
EIwtYiOW4AAjboI.jpg
An AML with the S530 turret (planned/fitted? for the Mowag)
 
A project that i seen but rarely got info about it is the upgrade of the Argentine Navy's AAV-7s during the 80s. This vehicles were part of the Navy's Marines, known for their use in Operation Rosario out of ARA Cabo San Antonio with some success, but in the Mid-80s the arms embargo certainly was hitting hard on the availability of spares.
AA7.jpg
The example leased to TENSA​

Again, TENSA came to the rescue and proposed things, like engine and transmission replacement and a whole reconstruction of the vehicles using national and available components. Regarding if this happened to all the fleet its unknown (the most probable work is that they refurbished them "triangling" components from other users).
 
Fluff said:
Roland55 said:
View attachment 665230
Cleanest pic of the Crusaders out there (enlarged with AI). (also we never talked about them...i wonder why..)
Click to expand...
Sorry what did I miss? Are these british built crusaders? With field guns 'mounted'? By whom please? Rear 2 look like a different gun?
Click to expand...
Those are modified Crusader artillery tractors, an unknown number of them arrived to argentina by the late 40s, 3 different guns were mounted on them, a 75mm Krupp field gun, a 75mm Bofors field gun and lastly a 105mm field howitzer.
 
Roland55 said:
Fluff said:
Roland55 said:
View attachment 665230
Cleanest pic of the Crusaders out there (enlarged with AI). (also we never talked about them...i wonder why..)
Click to expand...
Sorry what did I miss? Are these british built crusaders? With field guns 'mounted'? By whom please? Rear 2 look like a different gun?
Click to expand...
Those are modified Crusader artillery tractors, an unknown number of them arrived to argentina by the late 40s, 3 different guns were mounted on them, a 75mm Krupp field gun, a 75mm Bofors field gun and lastly a 105mm field howitzer.
Click to expand...
Plus another variant with 40mm as AA and 2 variants with rocket launchers.
 
COLDOWN said:
Roland55 said:
Fluff said:
Roland55 said:
View attachment 665230
Cleanest pic of the Crusaders out there (enlarged with AI). (also we never talked about them...i wonder why..)
Click to expand...
Sorry what did I miss? Are these british built crusaders? With field guns 'mounted'? By whom please? Rear 2 look like a different gun?
Click to expand...
Those are modified Crusader artillery tractors, an unknown number of them arrived to argentina by the late 40s, 3 different guns were mounted on them, a 75mm Krupp field gun, a 75mm Bofors field gun and lastly a 105mm field howitzer.
Click to expand...
Plus another variant with 40mm as AA and 2 variants with rocket launchers.
Click to expand...
I've always thought the 40mm AA variant never existed, i had seen the rocket versions, one with a more russian style of rail launchers and the other with a system similar to the one on the Calliope.
 
Roland55 said:
COLDOWN said:
Roland55 said:
Fluff said:
Roland55 said:
View attachment 665230
Cleanest pic of the Crusaders out there (enlarged with AI). (also we never talked about them...i wonder why..)
Click to expand...
Sorry what did I miss? Are these british built crusaders? With field guns 'mounted'? By whom please? Rear 2 look like a different gun?
Click to expand...
Those are modified Crusader artillery tractors, an unknown number of them arrived to argentina by the late 40s, 3 different guns were mounted on them, a 75mm Krupp field gun, a 75mm Bofors field gun and lastly a 105mm field howitzer.
Click to expand...
Plus another variant with 40mm as AA and 2 variants with rocket launchers.
Click to expand...
I've always thought the 40mm AA variant never existed, i had seen the rocket versions, one with a more russian style of rail launchers and the other with a system similar to the one on the Calliope.
Click to expand...
There is no picture of the 40mm. Unfortunately it is something that will remain an anecdote.

Museums and others in Argentina are already opening. Perhaps some more information can be obtained directly or indirectly and if it has not been burned or stolen.

For my part, I am going to dedicate these months to argentine warships. But next year I will re-start on argentine armoured vehicles. So if you want, we can investigate them together.

Regards
 
Regarding the Crusader TDs...
First off, i already told that their initial number is unknown, sadly the same thing can be said about a lot of aspects regarding their service, deployment, retirement..etc. So ill go around what i got about them (each individual version and a bit of info)

Much like every other projects of this class, the Crusaders were modified in the "Esteban de Luca" Arsenal (AKA the same place where the Nahuel was assembled).

The first to come to my attention was (what i believe to be the first to be made of this things) the example that mounted the 75mm Krupp model of 1909 field gun (gun also present in some Halftracks and in the Nahuel).
10277014_0f5c1fbb99a204ac9066c98376542209_t-2 2.jpg
As you can see the gun (externally) retains most of its visual characteristics when comparing it to the common field gun
Krupp-75mm_field-gun-_Argentina_Model_1909.jpg
​
The second seen example was the one that had another 75mm gun mounted, this time it was the Bofors mod of 1935 field gun.
d5wmks3-85e2cdd1-a172-4600-9be3-077f9665e002.jpg
This time, and like the other example, the gun remains extremely similar to the standalone gun used.
43878507_924940704367978_4585907852350062592_n.jpg
​
The last of the "gunned" crusaders is the one that carried the 105mm Schneider-Cruisot mod 1928 field Howitzer, supposedly this next picture of of them, but i never found a detailed picture of them, where the gun can be well appreciated.
6449947549_940d8df12e_o.jpg
The tank and the gun
uboccaL.png
​
But..What about those so called...rocket crusaders???

23f4c1d0c71fdf09349c13e5d3d4c86a.jpg crus.jpg
Here they are!
 
Jason Dykstra (Wyvern) said:
I also found a picture with an up-gunned variant. Was this real or is this some form of fictional artwork? If it is real, does anyone have any further documents or pictures related to it?

View attachment 629669
Click to expand...

Merely wishful. In reality, the designers considered up-gunning the Nahuel with a Bofors 75 mm L.40, a weapon manufacture and delivered in 1938 that was standard equipment for all field artillery regiments in the Argentine Army until the late 1960s. It never went pas the planning stage. However, one of Nahuel chassis was fitted with a Bofors 40mm L.60 mod. 1938 A.A. guns, but never actually completed, Production of the Nahel ceased in 1945...
 

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