Tank Chats

Join The Tank Museum's Curator David Willey as he discusses the Sd.Kfz 161, better known as Panzer IV: the most numerously produced tank by Germany during the Second World War.
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[@stev579]

I never realised that the turret was offset from centre and now I can't unsee it!

[@TheScudabear1]

stev579 yeah, exactly like tom cruise's monotooth...once you know he has it, you look for it in every scene lol

[@Vibakari]

then dont look too closely at the Abrams

[@stev579]

@@Vibakari I knew already about the front of the turret already on the Abrams and that deeply unsettled me. It's weird how I automatically assumed it would be symmetrical

[@apocalypticsurvivor1881]

@@Vibakari and aspecialy the tiger 1 my life never got the same

[@Vibakari]

stev579 the turret ring is also offset to the side lol

[@MrMaltheChannel]

One in my family actually drove the Panzer IV on the eastern front. One time his tank got knocked out. He climbed out. Crawled away but a t-34 hit it so it blew up and blew him a long way from the tank. When he got to himself he realized the 10ton turret was right beside him

[@tiinasavolainen8165]

Lucky man, and great story... Thanks for that :)

[@blueduck9409]

Amazing. Thank you for sharing that! I hope your relative survived the war and had good life.

[@gabrielleconway5219]

Blimey ! Lucky escape.I would add not all German soldiers were nazis.(Not a supporter of hitler but just an ordinary bloke who has no control over government policy or brainwashing and have served).(On my partners site so do not give her grief,in other words if you wish to give abuse i would request you do it carefully, to me).

[@pizzacutter5469]

@@gabrielleconway5219 true but most are too brainwashed by allied propaganda

[@survingsailor3107]

@@gabrielleconway5219 The average German soldier was in with the Nazi’s enough to invade other countries, perpetuate a genocide and commit uncountable crimes

[@hornet370]

unbiased, gets to the point, suttle voice, no excessive usage of wwii "memes" best channel

[@denmanfite3156]

"History Channel" quality where the History Channel has lost its quality.

[@Hybris51129]

The Panzer IV is probably the closest thing to a "Daliy Driver" panzer you could hope for.

[@polygondwanaland8390]

It almost makes one wonder what Germany would have fielded if Hitler didn't have his obsessions with huge guns and huge tanks. The 7.5cm/L43 could kill pretty much anything the Allies fielded short of the IS series or Pershing. I'm picturing a "baby Panther", with the 75/L43 instead of the L50 and slightly smaller, cheaper in every way.

[@hippoace]

@@polygondwanaland8390 If they slope its front 5-10 degs more...it would help alot with its protection...

[@bestestusername]

Good way to put it

[@jonesjohnson6301]

@@polygondwanaland8390 this would have done nothing to adress the Reich's biggest insufficiency, which wasn't as much the number of tanks, but the oil to drive them with. I get this "Hitler bad, so he must be stupid as well" shtick, but it doesn't hold true - a lot of German generals skipped taking responsibility for their own failures and blaming them entirely on Hitler. The Tiger and Panther were needed. For the same money one could have built more Panzer IV's, but not found the oil to drive them with. Furthermore, as the development of the tanks started much earlier than they were commissioned, and as the German tanks were still struggling with lots of Soviet armour and could reasonably expect the Soviets to make even stronger new tanks (which also happened -> IS), the risk of all of a sudden having to face tanks that were too well protected to be reliably taken out was palpable. TL;DR: The Reich favoured quality over quantity, because they had to, given the poor state of supplies.

[@Knallteute]

@@jonesjohnson6301 yeah and things like going for Stalingrad instead of the oilfields made the problem even worse

[@Vespuchian]

I've always liked the Panzer 4, just an all-round handsome tank, well proportioned and balanced, and very practically laid out. The sort of iconic tank that is on the short list of vehicles that immediately come to mind when someone says the word "tank" and almost certainly the first to come to mind when hearing the word "panzer".

[@kieranh2005]

WHAT? No Tiger? Same for me. PzIV best tank of WWII.

[@iankerridge5720]

Sadly, not the cutest tank. That honour belongs to the PzKpFWgn II Luchs

[@brucelamberton8819]

Me too

[@poikoi1530]

"well proportioned" *turret is offset from centre*

[@haloelite7944]

:D

[@Punisher9419]

One of my all time favourite tanks.

[@apocalypticsurvivor1881]

This panzer 4 is my favorite, because it shows how germany took the older tanks and tryed to keep them in service.

[@sam8404]

@eLKy 15 this is one of those comments where I really cant tell if it's a joke or not.

[@sam8404]

@eLKy 15 I guess they look a little similar at a passing glance but if you put a Pz IV and Tiger next to each other they are far from identical. The Tiger is a lot bigger, more boxy, has different road wheels, a bigger gun etc.

[@sam8404]

@eLKy 15 they built a lot more Panzer IV's than Tigers but both were used a lot, especially in the second half of the war. The Panzer IV was produced first (the initial model came out in 1936) and they started designing the Tiger in 1938, though the first Tigers weren't produced until 1942. Tigers are very impressive machines, but they cost a lot more time and resources to build than a Pz IV. They used a lot more fuel and also tended to require more maintenance due to being larger/more complex; it was often hard to find parts and men with the knowledge/time necessary to carry out repairs in the field, especially during the later years of the war which led to a lot of Tigers being abandoned by their crew when they ran out of fuel or received damage they were unable to repair.

[@jonathanbaron-crangle5093]

Made in 1/76 & 1/35 scale?

[@lowesmanager8193]

Finally, my favorite German tank! Not as big or as beautiful as the cats, but a tank that was there from the start to the end and managed to remain threatening for the entire duration. A tank that started out with several advanced features like a full 5 man crew, a 3 man turret, a turret basket, a radio, hatches for each crew member, a commander's cupola, and good access hatches for internal components. A tank that was upgraded numerous times and also served as the platform for numerous other vehicles including SPGs, tank destroyers, a recovery vehicle, a command vehicle, an observation vehicle, a bridge laying vehicle, and some AA vehicles. Truly the Panzer iv was a phenomenal design, and it's a shame that it doesn't get more attention.

[@BHuang92]

It became Germany's best all-round tank during WW2. But, the Germans realized that even though it can be upgraded, it has reached its very limits of effectiveness against newer Allied tanks. The last "upgrade", the Aust. J was more of a downgrade due Germany's waning resources. Still the Pz. IV, was last used by the Syrians in the Six-Day War which is impressive (where it was hopelessly outdated)

[@fatdad64able]

Couldn't agree more. Greetings from Germany.

[@MrRugbylane]

Panzer IV: The Hawker Hurrcane of the tank world.

[@talknight2]

@@BHuang92 Not a single PzIV managed to score a kill in 1967... tsk tsk

[@lowesmanager8193]

@@talknight2 Yes they did, they knocked out several Israeli Shermans, The Scottish Koala made a video where he went into detail about the battle. The video is called "The last Panzers The Last Ever Battle Between WW2 Tanks" Also, the Syrians were nowhere near as well trained as the Israelis, and they mostly used their panzer 4s as pillboxs with turrets instead of tanks, not to mention the fact that they had to go up against more advanced Cold War vehicles in addition to the Shermans. Good kit is only good when used correctly.

[@jjbasco4714]

Finally a tank chat that i have been waiting for since the M4 Sherman and the T-34 tank chats. Now we got this...great!

[@mattdickson2]

truly the 3 most influential tank designs ever created. every modern tank can draw lineage from one of them if not all 3

[@lyndoncmp5751]

@@mattdickson2 No. Modern MBTs are more like Tigers and Panthers, not light, cheap mass produced averageness.

[@dongiovanni4331]

@@lyndoncmp5751 I don't know. They seem to use assembly lines for modern tanks.

[@lyndoncmp5751]

@@dongiovanni4331 They had assembly lines for Tigers and Panthers too.

[@lyndoncmp5751]

@@gomiyaro Read my post again. I said they are NOT light, cheap massed produced averageness. They were highly expensive, finely crafted, state of the art Rolls Royces of the tank world, just like the Abrams, Leopards and Challengers.

[@theironcross2933]

I heard something about how the last panzer 4 ever knocked out was a Syrian panzer knocked out in 1967 by an Israeli sherman which is ironic to me

[@haroldfiedler6549]

Even morons get lucky sometimes.

[@testaccount4191]

well the Israelis actually used pz4 during some of their conflicts

[@anthonyhayes1267]

That's part of why the 1948 arab israeli war is so interesting to me. Both sides used just about anything they could get their hands on. Even obsolete early war French R35s saw service

[@thomaskositzki9424]

Don't know if tha LAST Pz4 knocked out in the Six Days War was killed by an israeli Super Sherman (could have been a Centurion or M46) but it did happen in that war.

[@haroldfiedler6549]

@@anthonyhayes1267 Especially the Israelis. They took every obsolete armored fighting vehicle they could get their hands on and put a big gun in it. Ironically, like the Germans in WWII. Beggars definitely couldn't be chosers in those wars. As for the Arab attackers, they had the latest and greatest armor courtesy of the Soviets. And the latest Soviet aircraft. They did a lot of damage to the Israelis, but lost in the end.

[@diggydumbo9294]

I've been waiting for this moment

[@samholdsworth3957]

🤗

[@nickbutler7935]

This is beyond doubt my favourite German tank. Thanks for a good chat.

[@smallpigpoopfix3520]

I still prefer the king tigers (probably because of associated badarseness) but yeah the Panzer IV is iconic. A bit like the halftrack.

[@Bochi42]

I really like how he points out the wink, smile or whatever of non-verbal communication and it's contribution to the crew and effectiveness possible due to the layout. People do that all the time and it's especially important in high stress situations, but it's so often overlooked how very valuable it is. It's about 7 mins in. He goes with the happy expressions but it's also very reassuring when glances of worry, looks like things are going to to get a bit hairy are exchanged. It's acknowledgement that your mate feels it too but we'll get through this together. Leads to a let's just get about our job together mind set that alleviates fear and anxiety. That's a poor explanation of what I mean but thought I'd throw it out there.

[@haakonsteinsvaag]

You are absolutely right, and Hans von Luck, one of Rommel's senior commanders would often use this on purpose. In high stress situations, he would often play games of Solitaire, and his subordinates would think, "if he has time to play card games, it cant be that bad".

[@eriklagergren7124]

"Do you like these Tank chats" Well, the Panzer IV is my favorit tank, sooo

[@brucelamberton8819]

Forget the Panther and Tiger, Germany's two most important tanks (well, AFVs) were the StuG III and the Panzer IV.

[@daweedbekhemm8549]

Yep

[@johnny_pilot]

Can't "forget" the Panther and Tiger! Without those and other strong AFV's, the Battle of Kursk - and Germany - would have been lost much more quickly! Yes, the PzKpfW IV made up the backbone of all tank divisions, but it was the Pz V and VI that helped to counter the T34, the JS and KV tanks, not the Pz IV's... which would have been pulverised without their successors in support to both take and deliver the big punches.

[@nbewarwe]

@@johnny_pilot Eh, the big cats were pretty overrated imo. They were prone to breaking down, and even though they were tough, they were hard to replace. Being difficult to repair and being too expensive and complex to mass produce effectively. Most of Germany's heavy tanks were lost to their own technical difficulties rather than combat. And and since the germans were fighting a war of limited resources and fuel, they were probably more costly than they were worth. The light and medium tanks and the cost effective stugs were the real peak of German engineering during the war.

[@michaelpielorz9283]

@@nbewarwe the usual comment again, :-)) and as usual not that true.

[@muhammadsiraj5537]

AFV is an apt translation for Panzerkampfwagen: Pzkfw

[@kyle857]

"About 8,353 of them were built." Idk why, but that made me laugh.

[@imrekalman9044]

"It could have been 8,352.8 or 8,353.1, we're not sure, so it's about that many." - is what I was thinking. 😁

[@awkwarddoggo05]

Meanwhile the US and USSR build tens of thousands of their tanks

[@imrekalman9044]

@@awkwarddoggo05 49 thousand Sherman and 64 thousand T-34, yeah, I guess there were more of those.

[@haroldfiedler6549]

@@imrekalman9044 The Soviets built 85,000 of the crappy T-34's alone. And the Germans destroyed 55,000 of them. Counting the tens of thousands of even crappier light tanks and the heavy KV and IS tanks destroyed by the Germans, you've got tank Armageddon for the Soviets. It's basically human wave attacks with crap tanks instead of rifles.

[@shogaal14]

@@haroldfiedler6549 Not really -- the (human) loss ratio was only about 2:1 for the Soviet Union to Germany respectively, and most of that discrepancy was from the early stages of the conflict. The Red Army was probably the most capable land force in the world by 1944, and certainly by 45.

[@janwitkowsky8787]

My favorite WW2 Tank. A real underdog, when looking at the work-horse tanks of that war.

[@thetreblerebel]

According to the Treaty of Versailles peace agreement. These are merely tractors....wink wink

[@polygondwanaland8390]

Very well armored and armed tractors. For combat plowing.

[@fulcrum2951]

Nudge nudge

[@lakrids-pibe]

Is your wife a goer, eh?

[@thetreblerebel]

@@lakrids-pibe more of a mover and shaker .

[@imranhazim5434]

How to lies your enemies? British: Water tank German: Tractor America: Car

[@PNolandS]

Ah yes, the good ol Panzer IV. Looks great, and doesn't break instantly when you decide to go up a bit of a hill.

[@huyhoangtahuu9733]

@AKUJIRULE you first

[@stevenblack7928]

​@AKUJIRULE youre point being?

[@customerservice1565]

(Sad Elefant noises)

[@Vibakari]

AKUJIRULE maybe they should have used their brains when designing the panther with a sealed hull lmao

[@HaVoC117X]

@@Vibakari they did. where do you cross rivers when most bridges (in the east mostly made out of wood) can only support 25tons. Sealing up the engine and add deep wading capabilities was pretty clever. If I watch the Swedish post war tests of panther and sherman, the panther continues to climb slopes and hills, plows through deep mud and snow without catching fire, while the Sherman fails on most obstacles.

[@dannyhanny1191]

Just want to write that the testing and war footage interlays, on top of David's excellent presentation, created one of the best videos you guys have done. Outstanding work, Tank Museum.

[@markfryer9880]

Yes, well said. A lot of footage that I have never seen before.

[@Theduckwebcomics]

My fave WW2 tank. It really has the classic "tank" look more than any other: chunky and blocky, yet sleek and practical in a way... Not fat and rounded like US and Frech cast tanks, or bizarrely shaped and proportioned like Russian and British tanks.

[@ThePerfectRed]

A detail often overlooked is that the Panzer IV seems to be the first tank with a turret basket. The Mathilda II had one too, but came a bit later.

[@kshatriya1414]

Either the Panzer IV or the Churchill. Seems like the Turret basket was first introduced on the Panzer IV ausf F which would place it at the same production year as the Churchill mk1 which was 1941

[@dividedbyzerotx]

M2/3 Stuart has'em all beat.

[@kshatriya1414]

DividedByZero Higly doubt that, Almost certain no M2/M3 stuart had a turret basket, Can’t even find a blueprint that suggest it..

[@dividedbyzerotx]

@@kshatriya1414 Tank Chats #72, friend. Edit: Ah, the A1 is a 1942 production though. Thought it came in earlier.

[@kshatriya1414]

DividedByZero Sorry, meant non before and not non at all haha. But either way all of the tanks we mentioned are all beautiful machines and it doesn’t matter who came first with the turret basket because in the end they all did make the life of their crew a little bit better :)

[@ducksareurlords3782]

Here in Finland, we still have few of these left around. Most of them got repainted and were used as training tanks after the war. Also we blew one of them up in the 1955 Finnish film "The unknown soldier".

[@simonthegreat543]

My favourite tank with the full side skirts. Another great tank chat.

[@Tank_Driver4822]

Finally! The Panzer IV, we were waiting for this.

[@lisandrochavez7169]

Love your nickname!

[@1SaG]

Love the Pz IV. It might not be as sexy as the big kitties, but it certainly did its job very well. My granddad repaired these things on the Eastern Front. He died in the mid 90s and I could kick myself for not asking him more often about his experiences in the war.

[@davidgoodnow269]

Did you ever look for journals, diaries?

[@CthulhuInc]

thanks, david - great chat on the workhorse of german panzers

[@simonboughey1720]

David speaking fluently and in detail without a word of notes.

[@markedwards158]

This is probably one of the best tank chats I’ve seen. Very very informative and interesting. I like theses extended ones that give such a great overview but at the same time so much useful detail. Keep up the good work.

[@philipchristiansen1989]

The view at the end of the video from the turret of the Panzer IV looking towards the Sherman is one I'm sure many Allied tankers didn't enjoy.

[@flybobbie1449]

Simple aiming device.

[@MGPW01]

Workhorse, arbeitstier or slitvarg whatever sobriquet one may chose, you could hardly imagine the panzerwaffe without III and in the end even more 161/ IV. The Ausf G being Zaloga's all time winner slightly ahead of M4 medium.

[@maade9642]

Who is Zaloga?

[@AdamMann3D]

@@maade9642 this is why Bovington sucks. Fing WoT kids that don't know anything.

[@MGPW01]

@@maade9642 apologies for the strange answer before. I ment to share the most relevant book he authored. Steven J. Zaloga is one of the most prolific writers in this area. Well regarded and one of the board members of wargamings operation think tank Q/A. Here's another recently relesed book that might be of interest. books.google.se/books?id=9hazDwAAQBAJ&printsec=frontcover&dq=zaloga&hl=sv&sa=X&ved=2ahUKEwj1_N_9yeTrAhUdi8MKHQ7FDGUQ6AEwCnoECAcQAQ#v=onepage&q=zaloga&f=false

[@maade9642]

@@MGPW01 thanks

[@maade9642]

@@MGPW01 and I agree with you, the Panzer IV is arguably the best tank of this era.

[@andywppl]

Hit the notification like an AP round

[@LazyLifeIFreak]

Hitting a sherman tank before wet stowage.

[@grahamr4916]

I’ve been waiting for this for, no joke, 2 entire years

[@mackfisher4487]

Excellent presentation, 1. Well presented on target lecture on a subject you know so well. 2. Video cuts of historic film stock to emphasize talk with examples I believe that this is the best tank chats episode that you have produced us far, continuing in this vein using the tank chat subscribers I believe you could create another revenue stream for your museum. Obviously you would have to do a cost-benefit ratio but I think that time would be well spent.

[@jtonguam]

How could anyone give this a thumbs down? Been waiting for this video for along time.

[@greenlamp9219]

ive been waiting for this for ages!! great work guys!

[@Ramistrov]

Great stuff as per usual, thanks for finding the time to produce these videos.

[@philsosshep4834]

Only David Willey could make a panzer 4 look small ! Great tank chat many thanks

[@Masada1911]

I have been looking forward to this one :-) Thank you so much Tank Museum team, love you guys

[@lightanddark2673]

Excellent lecture from a man who knows his stuff. Very enjoyable.

[@J0RDANLE]

I'm really enjoying the increased production value of these recent tanks chats, especially the close-ups, and internal shots. Great work TTM and Mr Willey.

[@c.j.zographos3713]

I'd been hoping for a chat on the Panzer IV for quite a while. Fascinating. Thanks David!!

[@wekker090]

Another great Tank Chat, the details are again amazing.

[@clatz13]

Superb presentation David. Thank you!

[@jamesfreeman4290]

Wonderful stuff. Incredibly interesting. Keep the tank chats coming and thank you so much. A really very good idea indeed

[@steve1315]

Always good chat David , was surprised how small this tank was when I saw it at Bovington , one on my list to see Fury and Matilda were broken didn't see them , great excuse to go back again.

[@jasonfishmd]

First class technical military history. Wonderrfully detailed, flowing, presentation. Well done.

[@T4nkcommander]

I've been waiting for this one for quite some time! I think I recall von Rosen talking about the fuel trailers in his memoirs. They spent a lot of time in the cold getting their tank set up to be able to tow it - and the system was pretty ingenious with a quick combat disconnect - but in the end nobody ended up using it as it was just too much trouble.

[@jeffreyjefferson536]

Great video, lots of technical and historical information, and the presentation by Mr. Willey is outstanding!

[@BleedingUranium]

My favourite tank! So happy to see you guys finally cover it! :)

[@kentburles7991]

This level of expertise, and delivery of information is unparalleled. I look forward to each new video.

[@bbcmotd]

This has been a long way coming! Finally a Pz IV tank chat on this channel. I hope we can get updated 30 minute chats on the Panther, Tiger and TIger II as well!

[@johndoerayme7064]

An excellent presentation for an excellent vehicle, thank you Tank Chats.

[@KyriosMirage]

My favorite tank! Got an H in my Axis & Allies Miniatures starter set back in 2005. Loved the look, and it was a reliable unit in the game.

[@petethebastard]

...Best clip? ...2nd to last... Panzer crews shaking hands and a kameradly salute to the workshop guys! Thanks, we're away again!Tankies go nowhere without Spanners! (RAEME/REME)... Bravo to the Greaser and Fitters. Great vid! Is David Fletcher OK?

[@DavidGarcia-fe7lv]

These videos are fantastic, keep em coming!

[@cx3264]

Classic as always! Enjoyed listening such great content from such great narrator

[@pepper7171]

Now we already got the big '4' -M'4' Sherman -T-3'4' -Panzer 'IV'

[@awesomeaustin531]

Its been a long time coming, but it finally came. The panzer IV!

[@averagerow1029]

This is one of my favourite tanks - love the tank chats and learning more about how these designs came about. I like this one because it doesn't have all the side panels, which I felt made it ugly looking. I wasn't entirely sure about how effective those panels were, but this tank is one of the best looking. Great chat!

[@ivorbiggun710]

I keep getting the Tank Museum shop Christmas advert coming up and I love it. In fact it is the ONLY advert I don't skip when it comes on. David's skipping at the beginning is priceless.

[@ryanmoeller3308]

EXCELLENT video!! I love seeing these videos. I'm a Helicopter Mechanic for the US Customs and Border Protection. I'd love to come see the Tank Museum and talk to you guys in person! Keep up the great work! 👍👍

[@johnianilustrisimo4951]

Miho Nishizumi would be proud

[@Sh-epard]

The best part of the Tank Chats are the photos, drawings and footages relative to the vehicle; good information and graphic materials as always!

[@raytrevor1]

I wondered what 'smoke handles' were and then I realised they were 'smoke candles'. I feel a Two Ronnies sketch coming on!

[@junaidazam12]

A very formidable workhorse.

[@Winter-gs9ko]

I served in 1st armoured regiment recon troop. Ive worked Puckapunyal tank museum under joe Lindford. And next year I’m heading up to cairns to have a bit of a volunteer my time for a while at cairns Artillery and Armour museum. I’m going to build trumpeter 1/16th panzer IV series. I love tanks

[@arashimiyazawa8165]

4:54 Gotta love the guy in the coat and tie with the rivet gun standing in the turret ring. I'm guessing this was a promotional video showing management getting their hands dirty with the workers or something.

[@irdiverdan]

Panzer IV was one of the best looking tanks ever produced IMHO...

[@bengtgronlund9447]

Fun fact: The Swedish citizen and wermacht soldier (Not SS) Nils Rosén faught for 600 days in a P4, from 1943 to the end of the war on the eastern front. One time his group destroyed 70 Leand Lease Shermans on a single day. It seems like the P4 was a very stable and good working tank, doing what its supposed to do.

[@richardmack4905]

I wonder why I never heard of him?

[@edhuber3557]

Nice detail on timeline and technical upgrades. Well done.

[@PoLPaoPoL]

Tank you for this!

[@rosselliot8971]

Panzer IV: The Thickening.

[@Electronzap]

Panzer 4 has such an amazing history. It's sad that most tank documentaries rush right to talking about the Tiger being the first good German tank.

[@TigerBaron]

I mean if you have a tank that can take 252 hits from all sorts of Soviet caliber guns and makes it back to friendly lines 60km away even with a damaged suspension. A gun that can take out enemy tanks at around 2 miles and a fearful reputation you'd also make more documentaries about this thing.

[@sam8404]

Depends on what you consider 'good' really. If that means reliable and/or efficient then the Tiger definitely wouldn't be the first good German tank.

[@TigerBaron]

@@sam8404 It was the first tank to virtually not have any competition for like what, at least 2 years? Give or take.

[@reimundboxhammer1447]

again a great tank chat Mr. Willey. Some new information about the PZ IV i never know before.

[@TrikeRoadPoet]

A serious look at the Panzer 4, far more to it then I had previously known. LOVE this channel, history both factual and clear. Many thanks for bringing us such an insight in the history of fighting vehicles.

[@billd.iniowa2263]

14:40 "The muzzle brake reduces recoil by 55%?!!" I had no idea that they could be that effective. Is that a common effectiveness for most muzzle brakes? Thanx for this chat in particular David. The PZ-IV doesnt get enough coverage. Workhorse of the German army.

[@sjent]

When shell/bullet leaves barrel any remaining gasses, that previously accelerated it forward, expand uncontrollable in every direction, including backwards, creating additional recoil. Muzzle break is meant to control this expansion, redirecting most of it those excess gasses sideways instead, as bullet passes thru areas with baffles, venting gas thru them, resulting in significant reduction in backward motion, aka reducing recoil and sway. Since baffles are placed in pairs, venting gas acceleration is cancelled by two streams going in opposite directions. Average reduction of recoil is ~30% with muzzle break having ~75% efficiency, but there are quite a lot of factors involved. kzbin.info/www/bejne/j5OYn4Kgptuqf5o

[@Erwin_Von_Heidenheim]

It is quite obvious

[@uegvdczuVF]

@@Erwin_Von_Heidenheim Percentages are quite obvious?

[@Erwin_Von_Heidenheim]

@@uegvdczuVF yes

[@petersouthernboy6327]

You should see the massive muzzle brake on the Barrett .50 cal sniper rifle

[@c1ph3rpunk]

This one is still, by far, my favorite tank of all time. Ever since that Tamiya model I built in the early 80’s as a kid I was hooked. Imagine a world where Germany built millions of them.

[@raidbandit1283]

Darren Young we would be speaking German

[@jakobrinsdorf7791]

They would have stood infront of the factory without fuel

[@HeavyH2006]

Big thank you to David Willey & Tank Museum - a truly great narrative of German's go-to workhorse PzIV. Its a remarkable vehicle and the upgrades are fascinating. Thank you.

[@paulhills1967]

Superb talk. Enjoyed this whilst eating my breakfast (sausage & egg sandwich & a mug of tea). Cheers David!

[@mkms685]

The German "Sherman".

[@yellowjackboots2624]

Nice one 😄

[@sthenzel]

If they had build it in the same numbers...

[@yellowjackboots2624]

Against the Soviets, USA and British Empire? It wouldn't have mattered.

[@sjent]

No, PzKpfw IVs were actually good tanks.

[@yellowjackboots2624]

Tanks were insignificant in the overall scheme. Artillery, airpower and sheer weight of human bodies won the day.

[@muzzmac160]

Wouldn't it be good to to have two tank chats on the same tank one by the Moustache Fletcher and one by Willey . i think the chats would be different.

[@T4nkcommander]

I am not dissing Fletcher, but Willey is on another level.

[@philleotardo_o]

DW: And here, once again, we see evidence that towards the end of the war German tank design was becoming more simplified due to the chronic shortage of raw materials needed in tank production, due to both the success of the Allied bombing campaign and, particularly from the beginning of 1944 onwards, the Soviet advance into areas like the Donbass industrial region. All of these factors combined to place huge pressure on men like the German Armaments Minister Albert Speer, to come up with ideas to keep the production lines open. And that's when we start seeing factory modifications being applied even while the vehicles were still being built. DF: Now all these shortages meant that the Germans had start cutting some corners during construction. Now if you look over here you'll see the bow gunners hatch, with the offset long-barreled 75mm gun sitting right over the top of it, totally preventing the poor sod sitting under it from having any chance of getting out of the tank in a hurry at all, say in the event of a fire or some other form of Teutonic catastrophe. Not the best way to design a tank modification really, but there you go.

[@polygondwanaland8390]

KZbin has become something of a treasure trove of extremely high quality videos on WW2 vehicles. If you haven't watched it, I would strongly reccomend the Chieftans Hatch video on the Pz IV. He really going into detail of the excellent ergonomics the curator mentions in passing here

[@leighharding5449]

Tanks book and Haynes manual for the chuchill turned up this week, postage to Australia wasn't bad and they arrived pretty quickly. Thanks for the new content it's good to see both of the Davids back, your efforts are greatly appreciated.

[@nielskoester4065]

Great job and great video again. I like this tank chats and the Tank Museum at all so much. Specially all guys are presenting their knowledge, the informations, the tanks without so much national bias you sometimes get in this topic (WW 2) from other presenters.

[@Axemantitan]

20:36 Was this antenna-saving device the result of someone having the foresight to predict the gun accidentally knocking off the antenna, or was it the result of hard-earned experience of crews losing their antennae in battle?

[@catfish552]

Foresight. You'll already see it fitted on photos of very early models.

[@ulissedazante5748]

The Germans overengeneered everything from the beginning. ;-)

[@uni4rm]

@@ulissedazante5748 A radio arm is hardly overengineering. Other tanks from other nations had them too.

[@Zagskrag]

Was there some clear reason why the Germans didn't upgrade the turret armour to match the 8cm on the hull? The only one I could think of is that maybe the extra weight on the turret front might cause issues with the turning mechanisms.

[@XtreeM_FaiL]

Zagskrag The weight is always an issue. Have to remember also that if you add extra armor on front, you also need counter weight. Engine, gearbox and chassy also have their limits. Tigers really suffered that. Thicker armor and bigger gun made everything bigger and heavier.

[@PanzerChicken69]

Nothing as good as to get the knowledge from the people that care about it.. Thanks once again guys!

[@user-gt4nu8nb1i]

About 8,535 made...glad you didn’t spend the time to find out exactly! Just a little jab at a great presentation and fabulous speaker. Thank you, Sir.

[@KenjiMapes]

Very underrated tank It’s not as sexy as a Tiger or Panther but was one of the most resilient armored platforms. The Panzer III as most know was supposed to be the main anti-tank tank while the Panzer IV’s primary role was infantry support with it’s short barreled 75 The Panzer III quickly became outgunned and out armored. Ironically the Panzer IV’s platform turned out to be an good baseline that was easily improved upon, upgraded and retrofitted. It was more reliable overall than even the later model Mark V & VI Panzers It’s gun and armor were improved enough that it still have decent survivability and kill capability until the end of the war. The Panzer IV was still expensive, complicate and too precision grounded, if you will, in its production T-34’s were great tanks but tolerances were loose and craftsmanship wasn’t a hallmark of it during production Like most German products, the Panzer were made with great care, strict tolerances, and were overly complicated and expensive. Precision was aimed for, but when production times and material concerns mattered, this hindered tank production. For all the excellence in German engineering they never settled for a “good enough” design, lightened up on tolerances ir understood the benefits of interchangeable part and simpler designs and solutions. A Panzer IV Is a beautifully crafted machine while T-34s could be rather crudely put together-this never really affected the lethality of it on the battlefield. You could argue it was less comfortable, didn’t have as good optics, and lacked the radios German tanked enjoyed that helped them tactically and technically, but while not as nice the T-34 was on par or better.

[@davidm5421]

The Germans never caught on to mass production (then). It was as if they were building BMWs. Continual improvement can be a good thing, but the number of minor, incremental improvements added greatly to the maintenance burden in the field.

[@George_M_]

Having seen it in person, it's one of those tanks like the IS-3 that looks much smaller in person.

[@flybobbie1449]

Think it was said earlier in another chat that 3 of these could be made for the cost of one Tiger. Just like the Sherman and T34, it was a numbers game.

[@zafranorbian757]

@@flybobbie1449 Cost was not really the limiting factor for germany though, and germany was from the beginning exoecting to be outnumbered in tanks. They biuld the best tank they could, and in the 1930s, that were Pz 3 and 4.

[@1971stretch]

Excellent as usual, thank you. 👍

[@Bultish]

thank you for this!

[@WindHaze10]

Well look at that, some of Hitler's demands were pretty common sense (TD gun in a tank, heavier armor).

[@PitFriend1]

It still completely baffles me that Panzer IVs actually had ignition keys instead of just starter buttons. You have to wonder how often those got misplaced.

[@zafranorbian757]

All german tanks had ignition keys. And I imgine they would not get lost more often that your keys for your private car.

[@Bochi42]

@@zafranorbian757 Bit less often given the importance and consequences I'd imagine.

[@alexroselle]

was Grand Theft Tank a problem back then?

[@RW4X4X3006]

@@alexroselle I'm sure it wouldn't be too difficult to hotwire one.

[@kdegraa]

How many different key barrels were produced? In the tractor world there are usually only a few different key shapes for a manufacturer’s tractors. So tractor thieves have an easy time starting up and stealing commonly used tractors.

[@wvbygraceofgod5508]

I liked that this video was almost a half hour long. They should do all their videos this long. I would love to go to Bovington one day. Bovington to me is the benchmark of tank preservation. Thank you Bovington for what you do. I hope things get back to normal cause I know it’s been a bad year. I know Bovington and other museums depends on visitors and they just haven’t had them this year. If things don’t get back to normal soon, a lot of museums and other attractions, not to mention small businesses may close their doors for good. Godspeed Bovington through this tough time and thank you again for what you do.

[@terrystephens1102]

Thanks for another excellent presentation. 😃👌👏👏👏👏

[@sjent]

_75% of all PzKpfw IV losses were actually on the Eastern Front._ They better, considering that 80%+ of fighting took place there.

[@iatsd]

Tell us all about how you came up with that number.

[@sjent]

@@iatsd Majority of land warfare took place on the Eastern Front as Wehrmacht rolled thru Europe in less than 2 years, taking minimal losses and then was stuck fighting Red Army for almost 4 years. Eastern Front saw the most brutal fighting during that conflict, with most major tank battles taking place there. In addition to that, even after D-Day, despite Americans liking to believe how they won that war(or at the very least were critical to Nazi defeat), number of divisions engaged on the Eastern Front was around 300, to around 50 in the west. With latter also being mostly in subpar condition, as France was used for recuperating, rearming and resupplying units that sufferer heavy losses on the Eastern Front. While Western Front saw some properly equipped, trained and experience units, like Panzer Lehr, those were few and far between.

[@sjent]

@Tom Sanders _Eastern Front seemed to lack the Battle of the Atlantic and the strategic bombing offensive._ Battle of Atlantic was not a priority for Germany, as Luftwaffe and Kriegsmarine together were only getting about 40% of all military funding. Main push and priority was on Wehrmacht. _In June 1944 40% of the German army was not on the Soviet front._ Nice try. Two can play this game. Excluding anything but France, taking in account total manpower of Wehrmacht during that period, extrapolating... In summer of 1944 ~85% of German army were not on American front. _In June 1944 the greatest concentration of German armour was in Normandy._ By what standard ? Total number of tanks was roughly equal between Westers and Eastern front. While Germans did not have a lot of tanks in Normandy itself, they brought in reinforcements from other parts of the France. Granted, they were scraping bottom of a barrel, so it included completely outdated machines as well. _If one looks at where Germany spent its treasure it was in systems which were most actively engaged against the West - high tech stuff like radar, aircraft, rockets, U Boats._ I have and the answer is "no". Radars were used all over. Luftwaffe received about 28% of all military spending. Rockets were fun, but there were nothing more but pet project, especially in second part of the war, as Germany was concentrating on weapon systems that proved their effectiveness. U-Boats did a lot of damage, but it was due to their good design and crew training, plus abundance of targets. Total expenditures on Kriegsmarine were around 13% of military budget. _and 70% of single engine day fighters ended up in the West_ No, majority of aircraft, at this point in time, ended up in Germany. Not that there was much left of them at this point. _Even that supposed sideshow of Italy peaked at almost 29 German divisions - quite a lot for a rather small length of front!_ Tessin work is considered to be competent, but he was dealing with quite limited data(considering how this rather extensive summary was released in 66) and hardly conclusive, as even in this article it is stated on multiple occasions that many numbers may not be accurate.

[@RW4X4X3006]

Well, if the Nazis and Soviets would have simply moved the eastern front to France, SHAEF could have rolled them up together and smoked them both.

[@lyndoncmp5751]

@@sjent. Some of the best panzer divisions were in Normandy, including 5 of the 7 Waffen SS panzer divisions and 3 of the best Tiger battalions including the most successful of all, 503. Around Caen, the British Commonwealth faced the densest concentration of German armour ever deployed in WW2. 7 panzer divisions and 3 Tiger battalions in just 20 miles of front. There were no outdated machines in any of these divisions and both the King Tiger and Jagdpanther made their combat debuts around Caen. 2/3 of German WW2 expenditure and material resources went on their air and sea forces and these were largely destroyed in the west. Already by the end of 1942 only 25% of German fighters were on the Eastern Front. Most German army divisions on the Eastern Front were second rate horse drawn non mechanised rabble.

[@rupert5390]

For the aussies amongst you - for a laugh - since when did Don Burke develop an interest in tanks - you can never unsee it

[@markfryer9880]

Ah very true, but still David is a far nicer bloke than Don Burke.

[@southerncharity7928]

Burke's shows were always for low brow normies. This channel is where one can learn something.

[@rupert5390]

@@southerncharity7928 you can say that even though you’re watching a channel about tanks - you miss the whole point the guy is Burke’s doppelgänger

[@richard4short5]

Maybe Burke shoula done a segment re: suburban camouflage for family vehicles using naturally grown foliage........

[@henrysara7716]

Thank you, very informative clip.

[@allgood6760]

Thanks for this...I recently got a 1/35 Panzer 1V model kit so this video helps 👍🇳🇿

[@svdlaan]

Since the German tankmuseum Das Panzermuseum closed to the public three months ago they have been churning out more and more very well made videos on some very interesting subjects, recently an elaborate series on the question why German tanks had petrol in stead of diesel engines, and made in a thoroughly German fashion: overengineered, lots of attention to perfection in details, always an eye on bureaucratic decision making. For those tankheads that are fluent in German of course: kzbin.infovideos