WI: Vezdekhod is mass produced?

What if Imperial Russia had decided to keep working on the Vezdekhod, eventually producing a steerable model, and mass producing it for use on the front? The tank looks like a very sound design aside from steering problems, and I think that with work it could have been very practical on the eastern front.

I'm picturing waves of nimble Vezdekhods mowing across the front and rolling back the German advance in relentless armored offensives. Could this have happened?

You're supposing that Imperial Russia has its act together and can spare the skilled manpower and resources to do so. By 1917, they had food riots going on, couldn't get bullets for infantry rifles, and you want them to build and use tanks?

You'd need a decade of clearing out deadwood in the Imperial general Staff, military supply chain, agricultural and industrial development to make that possible, (better agriculture so more peasants could work in factories and get trained/educated to make/maintain/modify more complex gear while still feeding everyone and a surplus for export) much less likely and near-ASB for it to be an effectively-used force.
Sure Russia was developing into an industrial titan as it was, but the automotive industry hadn't quite solidified yet. In 1925, it'd have been much more doable, but OTL 1917 Imperial Russia needed to quit and lick its wounds.

There's only so much you can kludge together on the fly- either you pick a design and make lots more faster and wear out your people and plants, or spend a ton of money and time putting stuff together and trying a new system until you get the bugs out of the next-big-thing. Russia didn't have the skilled manpower or plant to spare for it.

Tanks had a ton of teething problems- namely the engines were wimpy unreliable beasts and getting tanks guns that could knock a hole in defenses were a late development even for the British and French who weren't starving and had mature industrial systems that could build and maintain them.

Could the Russians have built equivalent tanks?
IMO, sure, but not enough to matter, which would've completely broken their supply system. If you can't feed or supply infantry, you have no business whatsoever trying to make and field tanks.

TxCoatl1970 said:

If you can't feed or supply infantry, you have no business whatsoever trying to make and field tanks.

Click to expand...

This.

Tanks, better artillery, more machines guns and even rifle rounds would all be useful but first and foremost Russia needs to be able to feed it's frontline troops. Because hungry troops are useless troops no matter their equipment.

And the original design would have proved unworkable in practice anyway. Aside from the problems with steering, the engine only produced 10 hp, and assuming weight in the final configuration to be in the neighborhood of 6 to 8 tons, which would be average for a tank of that size, that gives a hp/wt of 1.33 to 1.25, which is pathetically low.

For comparison the FT-17, at 7.2 tons, had a 35 hp engine, which gives hp/wt of 4.86. The FT-17 had a top speed of 7 mph (11 kph). So the Vezdekhod would have a theoretical top speed of roughly 2 mph (3 kph). And forget going up hills; anything but the gentlest of inclines would bring it to a halt.

The rubberized sheet used for the track would be unsuitable as well; not only would it wear out rapidly, it would be easily punctured by sharp objects, leading to the tank hanging up on tree stumps, rocks, and other obstacles.

The vehicle was tested without a turret, and performed satisfactorily, but the addition of a turret would probably make it top heavy and prone to overturning on side slopes.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vezdekhod

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Renault_FT

Besides which, the Brits, French and Germans, each with MUCH more mature industries, with far more engineers and experience with building complex machinery, had a TERRIBLE time with their early tanks.

Iirc, a typical attack would start with 100 tanks, theyd cross a couple of trench lines, and theyd bog down because half the tanks had broken down with mechanical problems. Ignoring the ones damaged in combat.

And thats just over a mile two (a few km). Again, iirc.

The Russians most assuredly wont do as well, annd on the Eastern Front you need mobility measured in 10s or 100s of miles/km, not individual ones.

Thirdly, as was pointed out: 10hp!?!? When the whole point of a tank is going through mud and difficult terrain, a tank that a wound soldier can keep up with on a good road isnt going to be much use. 'Nimble' it most certainlty wont be.

Dathi THorfinnsson said:

Besides which, the Brits, French and Germans, each with MUCH more mature industries, with far more engineers and experience with building complex machinery, had a TERRIBLE time with their early tanks.

Iirc, a typical attack would start with 100 tanks, theyd cross a couple of trench lines, and theyd bog down because half the tanks had broken down with mechanical problems. Ignoring the ones damaged in combat.

And thats just over a mile two (a few km). Again, iirc.

The Russians most assuredly wont do as well, annd on the Eastern Front you need mobility measured in 10s or 100s of miles/km, not individual ones.

Thirdly, as was pointed out: 10hp!?!? When the whole point of a tank is going through mud and difficult terrain, a tank that a wound soldier can keep up with on a good road isnt going to be much use. 'Nimble' it most certainlty wont be.

Click to expand...

Bear in mind, though, that the Vezdekhod prototype was developed in 1915, before the Russian Army and economy had collapsed. If a more mature model had been made by late 1915, then it might have helped in Poland. The Vezzie was also one of the first tanks to have been developed. It could give the Russians a significant head start.

Dorozhand said:

Bear in mind, though, that the Vezdekhod prototype was developed in 1915, before the Russian Army and economy had collapsed. If a more mature model had been made by late 1915, then it might have helped in Poland. The Vezzie was also one of the first tanks to have been developed. It could give the Russians a significant head start.

Click to expand...

By the time the problems are sorted out it, which going by the Allied experience will take at least a year, it will be too late anyway; by mid 1916 the Russians have been driven out of Poland, the Romanians are collapsing, and the western Allies are in no condition to offer any substantial help. (Not that the Central Powers are in great shape either, but at this point they have the upper hand in the east.) Even if they are used to support the Brusilov offensive their numbers will be too few to have any substantial impact.

Furthermore, when the Germans get their hands on one, which they certainly will, it is going to get them thinking about their own designs. IOTL their only experience was with the large British tanks, so they built large tanks and never really considered smaller vehicles. The Vezdekhod is going to spur them on to develop their own light tanks, which will have interesting consequences for the western Allies.