Odd question for you

[carracer]

Since I grew up in the 60's I watched lots of "Combat", "The Leiutenant" Sargent Bilco and others. I always wondered what would happen if the infantry shot down the barrel of a tank? Would a fifty round lodged between a tank round and the chamber create a sufficient pressure increase to disable it? All those Panzers seemed to be indestructible.

 

[XD357grandpa]

I've wondered that myself. It doesn't take much of a barrel obstruction to lead or burst a small gun barrel, what about a tank or howitzer?

 

[Nat'lGrdTop]

I'm confused by your question, but I may be able to answer. I was never a Tank Soldier, but I am Field Artillery and the principles and operation of a tank gun are the same.

IF (and that's a mighty big IF) a round was shot straight down the barrel of a tank and was able to hit the very end of the tank round, it would disable the fuse which would render the round a dud. It would fire and go out of the tube and probably hit what it was aimed at, but no "boom" without the fuze. The fuze is not armed until it leaves the tube and rotates a set amount of rotations, so it would not set off the round inside the chamber.

It's more likely that the round you fired (if you could get it in the muzzle brake) would travel downt he length of the tube and strike the tank round, damaging it. It's aerodynamics might be affected but it would probably still be able to be fired.

IF you were lucky enough to fire down the barrel of the tank with no round in the chamber and before the breech was closed, the round you fired would of course, bounce around INSIDE the turret causing all sorts of havoc, but that's a VERY short window of time.

Does that answer your question?

 

[carracer]

Partially answered. I was actually thinking that the small round would wedge itself between the barrel and the side of the tank round thus causing an "obstruction" to overcome. Perhaps I'm thinking incorrectly or it would be insignificant.

 

[Nat'lGrdTop]

Generally speaking, since it's a direct fire weapon, the gun would use the largest charge possible to propel the round without damaging the tube, therefore few obstructions short of the tube being filled with concrete would stop the gund from firing it's round. The round would more than likely go out the tube, but might damage the tube on the way out because of the small arms round (if it were indeed wedged in the tube with the tank round. If the obturating band or rotating band were damaged by the small arms round, it might allow the hot gasses to escape around the round and down the tube without propelling the round, but again, a very remote possibility.

 

[AndeyHall]

Write a letter to mythbusters. Sounds right up their alley.

 

[2Awarrior]

All those Panzers seemed to be indestructible.

No kidding, man.
My father knew a guy who was in Shermans during the war. Him and eleven other Sherman tank crews were chasing a Panzer Tiger II, firing at it and hitting it the whole time. The Tiger went as far as it could and got cornered somehow, as the twelve Sherman's closed in from the same direction, still firing and smacking the Tiger time after time.
The Tiger crew, apparently not fully aware of their own capability, swung the turret around and fired twelve rounds, one for each Sherman.
Then they drove away.

 

[dcselby1]

In 1945 my dad was a tanker in Normandy and his Sherman was hit and he was wounded, probably by an 88 he thinks A few months ago (he's into collecting small scale-model cars) he showed me one of the catalogs he has which also featured scale-model military vehicles including a Tiger Tank. He's 89 years old and I showed him the picture. (He's never really talked about his war) and asked him, jokingly, what he would do if he walked outside and spotted "One of these?" He said immediately, with absolutely no hesitation, "I'd probably piss my pants!" You never forget.