[烛光生存狂]-波兰TK-3和TKS超轻型坦克简介

Camouflage

Between 1932 and 1936 there was an early camouflage scheme used for Polish tanks and armoured cars, often called in Poland the "Japanese-style" camouflage. It consisted of big patches in bright yellowish sand, olive green and blue-gray, separated with thin black stripes (in older books, dark brown colour was named instead of blue-gray). Initialy there was one standard camouflage pattern for each tankette type, but later peculiar tanks started to differ. Interior was blue-gray, inner surfaces of hatches were camouflaged.

From 1936 on there was a standard camouflage scheme introduced for all military vehicles. It consisted of irregular or regular patches of greyish sand and dark brown (sepia) over a base color of olive-green. Patches were airbrushed, with soft transitions. Their shapes were mainly horizontal, often rectangular. There was not any standard pattern of patches, although patterns used were similar. Often patches created a kind of a chessboard. Interior was painted sand, including hatches.

In 1939, the tankettes generally carried no insignia at all. From the early 1930s, Polish armoured vehicles carried no nationality signs. Before the war, there were attached tactical signs of metal sheet for training purposes - discs (the 1st platoon), triangles (the 2nd) or squares (the 3rd). Squadron commanders had a sign of a triangle in a circle in a square (example). Initially signs were white with a vertical red beam for a platoon commander or a small red disc, triangle or square for the 2nd in command. The colors could be also inverted. Usage of any insignia was forbiden from 1938, but there are some photos known of tankettes captured in 1939, carrying tactical signs. There are also known a few cases of unofficial individual insignia painted on captured tankettes. Registration numbers were painted on front plates only until 1936, then new registration plates were carried inside.

Technical description:

Armament

Serial TK and TKS tankettes were armed with one 7.92mm Hotchkiss wz.25 machine gun, mounted in a front plate, before a commander/gunner. It was a standard weapon of Polish armoured vehicles.

In the TK, the machine gun was mounted on a pivot behind a drum armoured cover, which was turning horizontally with a weapon. Horizontal angle of fire was 40°. Vertical angle of fire was 50°, after opening gunner's observation hatch above the machine gun. The machine gun had standard open sights only. Ammunition was 1800 rounds, in 120-round belts.

In the TKS, the machine gun was mounted in an universal ball mounting, with telescopic sights. Horizontal angle of fire was 48°, vertical angle of fire was -15 +20°. Ammunition was 1920 rounds, in 120-round belts.

About 20-24 tankettes TKS were armed with 20mm automatic cannon wz. 38 model A (FK-A) (see tankettes with 20mm cannon).

On both sides of the TK superstructure, and right side of the TKS superstructure, there was a pivot anti-aircraft mount for the wz.25 MG. It could be used only from outside of a parked vehicle, after dismounting a weapon from the inside. There is no information if it found any practical usage.

Armour

Armour of rolled plates, thickness: (thicker ones were vertical plates)

Front sides rear top bottom

TK-3: 6 - 8 mm 8 mm 6 - 8 mm 3 - 4 mm 4 - 7 mm

TKS early: 6 - 10 mm 5 - 8 mm 5 - 8 mm 3 - 6 mm 4 mm

TKS late: 8 - 10 mm 8 - 10 mm 8 - 10 mm 3 - 6 mm 5 mm

Construction:

Chassis: on each side of the vehicle there were four road wheels, rubber rimmed, blocked in two two-wheel bogies, sprung with a pair of semi-eliptical leaf springs in each bogie. Bogies were moving up and down in runners of a suspension frame, and were sprung with a main semi-elliptical leaf spring, fixed centrally to the hull side (it was the main improvement over the Carden-Loyd suspension). A sprocket wheel was in front. An idler wheel was at the rear, mounted on a suspension frame, with a tension adjustment mechanism. On each side there were 4 return rollers, mounted on an upper frame. The suspension of TK and TKS was generally similar, but differed in details, mainly in mounting of the idler wheel and a front frame connector shape. Tracks: metal, single-pin: TK-3 - width 140 mm, pitch 45 mm, TKF and TKS - width 170 mm, pitch 45 mm (?), average length 124 links.

Hull of armour plates, screwed to a frame. The major part of the hull was taken by a combat compartment. A driver's seat was on the left, a commander/gunner's seat on the right. Seats were separated with an engine and a gearbox before it. In front part of the hull there were drive gears with a differential mechanism, under two service hatches. Behind a driver there was a vertical water radiator with a fan (cooling air was drawn through a radiator from a crew compartment and, in need, from a small bottom hatch before the radiator). Behind a commander there was a fuel tank and, in a rear, a battery, under a right rear service hatch. Left rear service hatch had a grill for the cooling air to come out. Under this hatch there was a shaft of a crank, for emergency starting the engine by hand. The air also came out by a mesh above a fan housing and, in need, by a small hatch in the rear bottom plate (operated by the driver). In the upper part of the superstructure, there were observation hatches around the vehicle (first series TK-3 had two observation hatches on each side, later series had one hatch). On all the flat roof above the compartment there was a common, wide, four-part hatch (TK-3) or two individual hatches, four-part above driver and three-part above commander (TKS; earliest series without a periscope had two four-part hatches). The hatches had pairs of leather straps attached underneath and above for handling.

In the TKS, the driver's front observation hatch had a vision slot with a periscope. In the TK-3 there were simple observation hatches without vision slots (they could be raised leaving a slot). In the TKS, from the 54th tank, the commander had the Gundlach reversible periscope for all-round observation. Tankettes were not fitted with a radio, except for some tankettes used as armoured draisines (they had part of equipment in outside boxes). Signaling in a platoon was carried out by colour flags. TK3 had 6V electric wiring, TKS - 12V. The TK-3 had a single headlight on the left or a detachable searchlight, the TKS had a detachable searchlight only (usually not seen on photos). Both tankettes had a single red light at the rear, on the left.

Engine: petrol, inline, 4-stroke, water-cooled:

TK-3: Ford A - 4-cylinder, 40 HP at 2200 rpm, capacity 3285 cm³

TKS (first 82 serial tanks): Polski FIAT-122AC - 6-cylinder, 42 HP at 2600 rpm, capacity 2516 cm³

TKS (from the 83th tank): Polski FIAT-122BC - 6-cylinder, 46 HP at 2600 rpm, capacity 2952 cm³

Transmission: multi-disc dry main clutch; mechanical gearbox - 3 (TK-3) or 4 (TKS) gears forward, 1 reverse (TK-3 had a reducer multiplying number of gears). Differential steering mechanism with band brakes; side drives. Turns were made by braking one track, using a steering wheel, connected with brakes. Fuel tank - 60l (TK3) or 69l (TKS)

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