T18 (Boarhound)

History

The T18 "Boar Hound" evolved from a two-part US Army ordnance requirement that required medium and heavy armored vehicle designs for use in World War II (1939-1945). Specifications published in July 1941.

To meet the demand for medium armored vehicles, the Ford Motor Company introduced their T17 (6x6 wheels) and T17E1 (4x4 wheels) models, which later became "Deerhound" and "Deerhound" vehicles - about 4,000 were produced, Widely used in many countries including the UK - although no one's work on a heavy armoured vehicle in the US army ended up producing the T18 Boarhound, it only served with the British army during WWII.

The Yellow Bus Company led the development of the T18, offering a pilot vehicle as early as 1942. By now, Britain had been at war for several years, and now under the American lead, control of North Africa was paramount before an advance from Rome and Berlin could take place.

Armored vehicles are becoming increasingly important in desert terrain, where their speed and maneuverability can be put to good use. Heavy armored vehicles with medium armor quality (weapons, armor) seem to be a possibility for the future of the British army.

The resulting T18 was a large armored car. It features an 8x8 wheel configuration with two axles paired at the front and the remaining two at the rear. Steering is via the front four wheels. A typical operator has five people. The vehicle weighs about 30 tons, and the barrel measures 20.4 feet long, 10 feet wide and 8.5 feet high.

The turret was mounted amidships above the hull superstructure and was initially armed with an American 37mm M6 anti-tank gun. A coax.

The Browning M1919A4 30 caliber air-cooled machine gun was the standard anti-infantry unit, while a second M1919 was added to the ball seat on the right front fuselage. The driver sits on the left. Armor protection for this type of vehicle is very good, ranging from 9.5mm to 50.8mm along the respective fairings (more critical fairings get greater armor thickness). Power is provided by 2 GMC 6-cylinder engines with 125 hp each (250 hp combined), allowing a useful road speed of 50 mph and a working range of up to 250 miles.

All wheels are suspended to improve assistance when crossing the country.

Before the T18 was delivered to British Army units, the desert campaign had shown the limited value of American 37mm anti-tank guns against German medium tanks and Italian heavy tanks. Hence the attempt to arm new armored vehicles with American 57mm M1 anti-tank guns - these are just locally produced versions of the British QF 6lb series. With this change, the T18 became a modified "T18E2" (note that the development designation "T" is still used), and the vehicle was designated "Boarhound" when it entered British Army inventory.

A six-wheeled variant "T18E1" was also in development, but development was eventually stopped pending product realization. The 57mm main gun accepts 60 x 57mm projectiles, while also carrying 2,500 x .30 caliber ammunition.

The Brits intend to procure 2,500 impressive examples of this type before priorities shift. The design of the T18E2 also showed some of the limitations of the wild boar dogs that were actually put into service.

Despite its four-wheel approach, twin-engine layout and suspension, the car has a reputation for poor off-road performance. The design was also too expensive to procure in quantity compared to competing designs of the time, which pushed Boarhounds' total production to an astonishingly low 30 units at the end of the run.

The few who do serve are deployed when needed in a variety of roles - from convoy protection and base defense to reconnaissance and infantry support. It is believed that few people have ever seen a real fight.

Specification

Basic

Roles

Dimensions

Performance

Performance

for everyone else in our database)

Armor

60 x 57mm bullet

2,500 x .30 caliber ammunition

Changes