Model of the Burstyn motor gun tractor in front of the Army History Museum in Vienna (2011)
General characteristics:
Crew: 3 men (commander/loader/driver)
Length: 3.5 m (without trench crossing boom)
Width: 1.9 m
Height: 1.9 m
Mass: 7,000 kilograms
Armor:
Front; 8 mm (0.314 in)
Side: 4 mm (0.157 in)
Rear: 4 mm (0.157 in)
Fighting compartment (turret and center compartment): 3 mm (0.118) mm (additional armor laminated.
Main armament: 37 mm (1.5 in) /40 QFNR
Secondary armament: 1 or 2 coax 7 mm (0.275) machine guns planned.
Propulsion: 34 kW (45 HP) 4 cylinder gasoline engine.
Road speed: (predicted) 25 km/h (18 mph)
Cross country speed: (predicted) 8 km/h (5 mph)
Power to weight ratio 4.7 kW /tonne (6.6 hp ton)
The Burstyn engine gun was the design of a first modern tank that had been developed before the First World War. The invention of the vehicle was in 1911 by the Austrian navy Lieutenant (s.g) Günther Burstyn.
While operating a torpedo boat, Burstyn came up with the idea of designing a "land pedal powered boat" in 1903. It should be fast and armored, as well as be able to carry its own cannon. For official reasons, however, he did not pursue the idea at first.
On November 24, 1904, the first "Holt tractor" with a "moving chain" (track layer suspension) was used in California and was dubbed "Caterpillar" by its developer, Holt. A little later, large Hungarian farms used such tractors.
In the spring of 1905, Burstyn noticed Daimler's armored automobile at Vienna's first motor show, but he thought the wheels on Daimler's car unsuitable for off-road rides. Instead of the wheels, he wanted to deploy a caterpillar drive (track layer suspension) (Burstyn called it "glide band"), as was used in the Holt tractors.
However, Burstyn did not begin technical planning until 1911. At the end of the same year, he presented his design for the "motorized gun tractor," the world's first modern tank, to the Austrian military (K.u.K.) War Ministry. However, the ministry rejected the designs, pointing out that the automotive directorate could not carry out testing of the motor gun traxctor at the expense of Army management and budget. For this reason, but also out of disinterest, the construction of a prototype was rejected (The K.u.k. military administration was not only extremely conservative, but also always extremely short of funds.). Nevertheless, from 1912, the K.u.k army also experimented with Holt tractors in order to use them as tractors for fortress artillery.
Burstyn then submitted his proposal to the German War Ministry, which, however, also showed no interest in it.
Burstyn patented his "motor vehicle device for crossing obstacles," i.e. only the tractor and ditch crossing boom of the motor gun tractor, both in Austria-Hungary (e.g. patent 53248, 25 April 1912) and in the German Empire.
Description:
· The motor gun tractor already had the typical features of a modern tank: An armored structure
· Track laying drive instead of wheels
· A swiveling turret with a cannon;
· The special feature was the position of the crew:
· -The commander and the loader sit at the front right
· -The main gun sits at the front left
· -Unhappily chosen, however, is the position of the driver. He sits with his back to the direction of travel, so he can only either see forward through a periscope or only steer at the direction of the commander.
Burstyn's design had been well thought out, as well as largely calculated statically and dynamically. His design possessed some features that were unique in the time:
Mobility:
Due to its small size and maneuverability, the motor gun tractor would have been superior to most vehicles used in the First World War: On the road and off-road, it would have been faster than the types of the Allies and could even be used in confined and mountain areas. Only in parts of wooded terrain would maneuverability have been limited due to the boom. The wheel pairs and the suspension bogeys of the motor gun tractors were, however, very complicated constructions at that time. However, the design itself was extremely advanced even without a boom and wheels (ditch crosser). Another advantage was the relatively high mobility and small size of the vehicle.
Caterpillar drive (tracklaying suspension):
Burstyn did not copy the chassis of a Holt tractor, as French tank builders did later in World War I. He designed his own caterpillar drive, which he improved several times until the German patent was applied.
Lift and sink wheels: (This is confusing. Does this correspond to the drop wheels one finds on some of the worst Christie designs that were intended to provide road traction after the track was removed, or are these vertical suspension travel wheels intended for steer and motive transmission to the tracks as featured on some of the worst Vickers designs of the late 1920s? Or is it those ditch crossing boom arms? McP.)
The motor gun tractor should also have two vertically moving pairs of wheels, which would have allowed a quick journey on the road as well as in the appropriate terrain. The front pair of wheels should be controllable, while the drive should be done via the rear pair of wheels. Since these wheels do not exist on any drawing, the intended attachment – inside or outside the vehicle is unclear. When the vehicle was later implemented by Austro-Daimler and Saurer, these wheels were installed outside.
Motor vehicle device to cross obstacles:
Burstyn was protected by patent in Austria-Hungary and Germany. By means of a side arm lift powered from the engine, each of the booms with a mechanical clutch should be raised – or lowered. Thus, the motor gun tractor could have overcome trenches, as well as barbed wire entanglements, and other obstacles. At the same time, with this constantly present tractor lifter device, it would have been possible to carry out repairs to the chain or drive on an open field. Similar devices later appear on other vehicles; An almost identical concept was patented by the British company Vickers-Armstrong in 1929.
Armament:
The rapid-fire cannon in a rotating turret enabled the fight against artillery and other armored vehicles (the successes of German anti-tank guns later show that a 37mm cannon against British and French armored vehicles possessed enough penetration to kill them.). Added to this advantage was a high rate of fire. The space required for the small-caliber ammunition would have made a large supply of ammunition possible. The vehicle, while weakly armored, protected against infantry weapons and splinter effect.
The motor gun tractor was to be equipped with a 37mm rapid-fire cannon in a rotating gun tower. In addition, secondary armament in the form of two 7 mm machine guns can be assumed, although these are not present on the drawings.
Patent:
"Armored cars, suitable for moving with motor traction not only on roads but also on rough terrain, characterized by suspension caterpillar tracks for getting around, by elevator and retractable wheels for driving on roads as well as by cantilever arms, which enable the armored car to cross wide trenches as well. "
– patent specification 252,815 [1]
Under number 53248, a patent was also granted in Austria-Hungary for the same system.
Conclusion:
The dimensions and performances would have roughly matched the later Renault FT, one of the best tanks of the First World War.