92 began providing KhPZ with the new F-34 in place of the L-11, and the first unofficial T-34 Model 1941s began to appear shortly before the war started. Grabin, with the connivance of the director of Zavod Nr. 92 in Gorki had designed a much superior gun, the F-34, before the war, but in the confused state of gun production brought about by Kulik’s interference, none of the relevant bureaucrats would authorize its production. The T-34 Model 1940 was armed with the short L-11 gun which did not meet the stated requirements. The GKB-T-34 ( T-34 Main Design Bureau), headed by Morozov since Koshkin’s death, was shifted to Nizhni Tagil as well. 112 which began T-34 production in July 1941. 183 to Nizhni Tagil, production of the T-34 shifted to the Stalingrad Tractor Factory and to Krasnoye Sormovo Zavod No. The early production batches had serious transmission defects, and indeed, probably more T-34s were lost in 1941 to mechanical trouble than to enemy action.ĭuring the evacuation of KhPZ No. The early T-34 was not without its problems. While the 88 mm AA gun could be used as a stopgap in limited circumstances, only the arrival of the PAK 40 75mm anti-tank gun could restore the balance. The appearance of the T-34 also forced the Germans to completely revamp their anti-tank arsenal because the existing 37mm PAK 36 and 50mm anti-tank guns were largely ineffective against the T-34 and KV tank. This forced the Germans to begin a costly programme of up-gunning and up-armouring its tanks, and initiate the development of a new tank, the Panzer V Panther to serve as an antidote to the T-34. The revolutionary combination of thick, angled armour, heavy firepower and superb mobility placed it in a dass above its closest German contemporaries, the Panzer III and Panzer IV. The combat debut of the T-34 Model 1940 tank in the summer of 1941 revealed it to be unquestionably the finest tank design of its time. The T-34 Model 1942 closely resembled the Model 1941, but incorporated a number of detail changes which had been introduced to simplify production and reduce costs.

Tank battle t-34