Er, the T-34 wasn't the only tank in development... and the Soviets knew they needed a replacement for the BT tanks at least, even if they weren't sure about replacing the T-26s yet. So this isn't 'getting a T-34 by the backdoor' - this is 'Koshkin isn't assigned, but someone else's BT-series tank replacement is introduced,' which is the logical response.
Personally I'm not sure the BT-replacement would look like the T-50 (since that tank was designed as a light infantry tank, intended to replace the T-26); I think it would look like a sloped (sloped armor was already showing to be rather useful in tests of sloped BTs like the BT-IS), diesel-engined (less flammable than the gas engines that brewed up under fire at Khalkin Gol) BT, without the complex and unnecessary track/wheel system (which was complex & unnecessary, and proved to be such in the Soviet-Japanese clashes), or perhaps something even closer to the OTL A-20 design. Not a revolutionary tank like the T-34, but a reasonably good tank, all the same. One thing to consider, though, is that this upgraded BT (call it a 'BT-9?') would be in service earlier than the OTL T-34, since there's less political issues (no conflict with heavy tanks like the KVs) and since there's no redesigns to turn it into a universal tank.
Hi,
again... nothing against a bt-tank... it just has not the potential to be a great tank (like the t34 was - even if the germans build better tanks, this doesn´t say the t34 was bad... bad was the russian tank doctrine in ww2 - no, not even bad, just their enemy was much better in mobile warfare... but with the t34 (esp the 85er) they could havoc the "better" german tanks... and also the equal/worse tanks.
with a bt-tank and without the t34 the russians have SOME (double the numbers) heavy KV1 and many light tanks (like t26 and BT7)...
the germans killed so many tanks in 1941 that MORE tanks are just more captured or destroyed russian tanks.
For the war this means the germans loose less tanks in combat in 1941, mabye (big what if...) do better in winter (lesser losses, shorter retreat) and have in spring 42 only a few dangerous enemy tanks (the kVs), the BTs are against StugIII, TD like Marder I/II/III or Mark4 L40 in deepest troubles...
Oh, the germans will have different tanks, too... i doubt they produce the panther... without the t34 there is no need... they need more tigers (against KVs) and better mark4.... so for the germans they have vastyl superior tanks in the heavy-section (tiger versus KV) and extremly superior tanks in the medium section (Mark4 against BT 9), in the light section they still have mark3, cause even they with the l60 are much better as any light/medium russian tank
so we have the otl-much better tank doctrine, officers (for tank warfare) but also the much better tanks (compared to otl in that the russian t34 had been vastly superior to any german tank till the mark4-g (this tank was equal to the t34... that changed with the t34-85)...
so the better crews, with better tactics in better tanks against lesser numbers of dangerous tanks (KVs can´t be in this numbers, allied tanks are - well just as inferior as they had been, compared to ttl russian tanks they are better, a sherman is every day way better as any bt-tank) with higher losses (if you have more bt-tanks, you have much more destroyed bt-tanks after battle, all numbers compared to russians with t34...)
if you look at the combat records you learn that the lot light russian tanks (for example at kursk, here at procorovka the russians throw some light (BT) units against the german infantry, they died faster as you can think about it) did mostly nothing, but the t34 could break through and the could do it with SPEED.
the t34 was the KV with BT speed... if you have both you have tanks that can be destroyed by any german anti-tank gun (so Sdkfz 250/251 with 37mm at-guns are deadly against the bt-s (but they did not perform so good against t34)) but are fast and you have SLOW heavy tanks with good armor, but these - even if breaking through have the problem that german counter attacks with mark4 or tigers will destroy em...
so smaller gains with higher losses - if gains at all... russian strikes with this combination are not very useful, they advance and they run fast in technical problems with their heavies... so they have only bt´s for the follow up assault... but here they have to handle german panzerdivisions full of mark4 and tigers...
also the 75mm-L40 can kill a bt-tank from much greater range... even the 50mm-gun (quite useless against the KV1 and the later T34) kill it all day long...
So, the russians produce 20% more tanks as otl, but they have only 20% of the t34-numbers, the rest is cannon fodder... so the quality of russian tankers stay bad (if all vets are dead after 4 Weeks they cannot improve)
no - without the t34 the russians are in deepest troubles, like the brits without the spitfire (think about BOB with only hurricanes, but even more think about the air war in 1941-43 with NO spitfires, so the hurricane 5 with an inferior design try to handle FW190 or midwar Me109... no large german losses, a 5-1 ratio against british fighters would be normal.
similar effect for the russians without the t34... it was their backbone...
the kv1S is a better tank (but only from spring 42 on), but still to slow. the kv85 isn´t good enough and the IS2 is really problematic. great design with BIG failures, only some rounds to fire, no good opticals (so hitting something is difficult)... i doubt the russians will use their IS3 (better, much better), cause they are defeated much earlier