T29 Heavy Tank
The T29 heavy tank project designed a heavy tank with the armament and armour to take on the recently appeared German Tiger II heavy tank. The T29's 105mm gun is more than capable of knocking out most enemy tanks. An additional loader for the big 105mm gun's two-part ammunition ensures the tank's rate-of-fire does not suffer.

The T29 design specifications required it to have greater armoured protection than that of the T26 Pershing, in theory to protect it against German high velocity cannons, such as the long 8.8cm cannon of the Tiger II, while its substantial side armour makes it ideal for assaulting its way through fortified enemy defences.

High-velocity Gun
In order to penetrate the armour of heavy German tanks a 105mm high-velocity multi-purpose cannon was required. It was developed from an anti–aircraft gun, like the 90mm gun of the Pershing before it. As well as being effective against tanks, the high explosive shell could also penetrate 1.3 metres of concrete.

Large Crew
The tank had a crew of six, two acting as loaders for the gun to maintain an effective stationary rate of fire of six rounds/minute, as well as a commander, gunner, driver, and radio operator/hull machine-gunner.

T30 Heavy Tank
The T30 heavy tank was developed in parallel to the T29, mounting a different engine and a 155mm main gun. It utilised the same heavily armoured hull and turret. The T30 was fitted with the largest gun ever used on an American tank.

The 155mm gun fired separate loading (shell and charge) ammunition. The loader was assisted by a semi-automatic rammer to push the extremely heavy rounds into the breech. The large turret was needed to accommodate the standing loader and large gun mount.

Apart from modifications to fit the different engine, the hull and running gear were the same as on the T29.

Powerful Engine
The T30 heavy tank featured a powerful engine in the form of the Continental AV1790-5A air-cooled V12 petrol engine delivering 908 horsepower with an improved transmission. This helped to maintain the tank's speed despite the additional weight compared with the T29.

Extra Loader
The total weight of the 155mm round was 61 kg (134 lb), split between 43 kg (95 lb) shell and 18 kg (40 lb) charge. Even with the semi-automatic rammer the T30, much like the T29, had an additional crew member to help load the gun.

T34 Heavy Tank
The T34 evolved out of the development of the T29 and T30 tanks, designed during World War II. The earlier tanks were designed as a counter to the threat that was the heavy German Tiger II. Following the conclusion of the war the Ordnance department began work on turning a 120mm anti-aircraft gun into a tank gun as a counter to the increasingly well-armoured Soviet tanks. 

Two test models were delivered to the army to begin testing in 1974 where issues around the performance of the gun and weight of the tank were highlighted. These issues resulted in further development stalling as the Army pursued the M103 tank instead.

The T34 project sat on the shelves for the next few years until the start of hostilities following the Hungarian Revolution, when the need for more tanks capable of defeating new Soviet models became apparent. Older T29 tanks were hastily up-gunned and shipped to Europe.

Old Tank, New Gun
The T34 featured the same gun as the M103 but lacked the sophisticated rangefinder and fire control systems of its newer cousin. It was however still more than capable of stopping an enemy IS-3 in its tracks with one shot.

Large Crew 
The tank had a crew of six, two acting as loaders to feed the massive two-part shells into the 120mm gun, as well as a driver, assistant driver, gunner and commander.

THIS BOX CONTAINS:

• 3x Highly Detailed Plastic T29, T30 or T34 Tanks

These miniatures require assembly and are supplied unpainted.