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Damage to Ammo Storage Compartment


Tacbat

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I was playing a scenario recently (in Beta) when my M1 took a hit in the turret which damaged the ammo storage. When I checked my ammo remaining in the top right-hand corner of the screen, both KE and HEAT indicated 0/0.

I understand that all the ammo in the storage compartment was lost, but why did the ammo in the ready rack disappear as well? If the ready rack ammo was also damaged, wouldn't that result in a catastrophic internal explosion?

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I was playing a scenario recently (in Beta) when my M1 took a hit in the turret which damaged the ammo storage. When I checked my ammo remaining in the top right-hand corner of the screen, both KE and HEAT indicated 0/0.

I understand that all the ammo in the storage compartment was lost, but why did the ammo in the ready rack disappear as well? If the ready rack ammo was also damaged, wouldn't that result in a catastrophic internal explosion?

easy, after the ammo doors have blown opened and throwed out the ammo in turret the tank is pretty much out of the combat, it need to get back and be repaired and have the hatches fixed again before filling upp ammo, so I guess Esimgames decided to zero all the ammo to get the player to stay out of combat.

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Would,nt make much sence to protect the crew from internal explosions while the ready rack ammo would just remain exposed.

If the ammo wasn’t exposed, then the ready rack wouldn't be very "ready".

easy, after the ammo doors have blown opened and throwed out the ammo in turret the tank is pretty much out of the combat, it need to get back and be repaired and have the hatches fixed again before filling upp ammo, so I guess Esimgames decided to zero all the ammo to get the player to stay out of combat.

Possibly, but if you've been hit and damaged, it would be nice to have some rounds to fire back until you've extracted yourself from the situation. If you've been hit once, chances are there's another round headed your way unless you can knock out the EN vehicle first.

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My understanding is that the M1 Ready rack is the 17 rounds in the left half of the turret bustle, protected by armoured blast doors and blow off panels.

The right hand of the turret bustle contains the semi-ready rack, which is similar, but inaccessible to the loader - he requires the commander to cooperate in transhipping ammunition. In addition there are 6 rounds next to the driver in the foward hull. These are not AFAIK protected by blow off panels but do have a flash-proof door to the locker?

Leopard II has the bulk of the ammunition stored in protected storage in the hull with blow off panels. There are some rounds stored in the fighting compartment - I'm not sure what the precise arrangements are for their protection, but I am not aware of any space available in the bustle - AFAIK it is used for batteries and filtration/ac equipment.

Challenger has only inert/insensitive projectiles stored in the open above the turret ring, the charges are stored in various blast proof charge bins located in various locations in the fighting compartment.

Older vehicles did have live rounds stored in the open in the fighting compartment which is one reason that the newer generation is considered much safer.

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Both the semi ready and ready racks on the M1 are protected by blowout panels on top of the roof and both compartments are divided by a wall. If you take a round in this area then it is likely that it will pass through to the other storage compartment, or, at the very least, one compartment detonating would blow off the top panels which exposes the other compartment as well.

*Technically* if this happened you would still have six rounds in the hull storage which would be used in an emergency situation like this. These rounds also have blow out panels on the side of the hull, just behind the skirts. HOWEVER, to get to these rounds you have to put the turret over the side and open the blast doors (two compartments of three rounds). This is a very slow and tedious process.

It is an abstraction at this time to just simply remove all remaining rounds when you suffer an ammo compartment hit because it is better to do that (currently) than to keep a remainder of six rounds which are loaded normally. Of course it opens the argument that those six rounds should be subtracted from the maximum allowable rounds until the hull storage is modeled, but it is a sort of in between solution to a complicated issue.

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the leopard 2s hull storage is not protected by blowoff panels, only the 15 rounds in the rear turret is secured behind a blast door, with a roof blowoff panel.

the leopards hull storage is essentially in the fighting compartment, protected from minor spall fragments by residing in metal tubes.

the 6 emergency rounds in the M1A1 is not located beside the driver, but in the right hull rear behind the turret basket.

if the turret bustle is hit, you'd have a rapidly burning fire for about 30 seconds, after the initial pressure buildup has been released through the blowoff panels, before the fire starts dying down. while this is going on, you're forced to traverse the turret to the 3 or 9 o'clock position

to avoid damage to the engine. when the fire dies down, the TC or loader can go up on the roof and extinguish the remaining fire.

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We only have a single bit reserved for the status of the ammo on board. What I do is to divide the likelihood of an ammo loss among the different areas so that each area is less likely to actually blow up - however, on the broad scale an equivalent number of tanks will suffer this kind of damage.

There is however another point. I simply don't believe that, once that you survived the rapid deflagration of ten rounds of 120mm ammunition, even if you are still alive, you will go on fighting with that tank as if nothing had happened. It's a mission kill for that tank, so taking away ALL ammo is still justified.

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  • 2 weeks later...

Now, I've never been an M1 tanker- I'm Stryker FSV all the way- but I could've sworn the M1 ready rounds were on the left, behind the gunner, and the semi-ready rounds were stored to the right of the turret (all directions are referenced facing FORWARD in the turret, not facing back looking at the racks), behind the commander.

Also, doesn't the 120mm have a small non-combustible end cap? Though obviously what is depicted in the picture is not that.

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this first pic is from an M1 with a 105mm gun.

basemodelM1load.jpg

these 2 are from an M1A1 with a 120mm gun.

readyracksml.jpg

the blast door, and towards the bottom you can see the flip-down knee switch.

bdoorwkneeswitch.jpg

and loading the M1A1, you can see the knee switch used to open the ready rack.

very fast, basically by the time you grab for a round, the rack is open.

loadM1.jpg

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Also, doesn't the 120mm have a small non-combustible end cap?

That could be one in the right side (as looking at it) compartment, centre, at the top.

Otherwise, it was quite a fire, the entire tank burned to the ground. Possible the aft caps just melted, like the roadwheels did.

I'm Stryker FSV all the way- but I could've sworn the M1 ready rounds were on the left, behind the gunner, and the semi-ready rounds were stored to the right of the turret (all directions are referenced facing FORWARD in the turret, not facing back looking at the racks),

Someone has been indoctrinated into autoloader tanks!

NTM

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