V-8-H

V-8-H

The V-8-H was the first stand-alone design by ČKD. It arose from the experience of the joint construction of the ŠP-IIb infantry tank with the Škoda Plzeň company in 1936. However, soon Š-IIc (later ŠP-IIb) and cooperation on the ŠP-IIb stagnated. Therefore, ČKD was not lazy and embarked on its own development and construction of the V-8-H prototype. The design used many of the identical mechanisms from the ŠP-IIb project. Mainly, it inherited an imperfect powerplant.
The prototype began testing in the summer of 1937, and by the winter of 1937 had covered 3,900 km. As it had no major operational problems and the required performance was met, ČKD began offering the type for sale abroad. At the turn of 1937/38 this type was offered to England, China, Denmark, Egypt, Finland, Iraq, Iran, Yugoslavia, Lithuania, Norway, Romania, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and a year later to the Netherlands, Japan, Latvia, USSR, Siam and in 1942 to Italy. Due to the higher price of the medium tanks compared to the successful light types and because of a curiously limiting factor at the time - the load capacity of the bridges at the time (up to 10t), interest was minimal. Only Romania, Sweden and Italy showed some interest. However, in 1937, the Czechoslovak army headquarters decided to carry out comparative tests of the available designs of both cavalry and infantry tanks. In the II-b category, the V-8-H had no competition. The ŠP-IIb was not completed, Š-IIc had technical problems and for two years there were unsuccessful tests of medium ("heavier") tanks of the III category, Tatra T-III and Skoda-III.

The need for a medium type was a priority of the time and therefore ČKD put the V-8-H project into competition. The unfinished vehicle was transported to Milovice on 21.12.1937. It had only a makeshift turret with no possibility of weapon emplacements, no observation instruments, no means of communication, etc. The previously used designation V-8-He was changed to the simpler V-8-H. After the Christmas holidays, test drivers from the UUV Test Section (Lt.Vaníček) started testing it. Since 4.1.1938 the prototype had covered 12 735 km, of which 5 473 km in the field. Although it was performing decently, it was experiencing breakdowns and the prototype spent a full 4 months at its home factory undergoing repairs and refurbishment, reaching its final shape. Almost all parts were changed - hull, turret, engine with gearbox, chassis even 2 times, drive train etc. During 1938, the V8H thus changed its appearance considerably and its weight increased from 14,773 to 16,090 kg net weight. Because the political situation was tense (the Anschluss of Austria, the Sudetenland), the machine was accepted even without properly conducted tests on 20.4.1938 and the order was to be for 300 units. However, the tankers responsible for the tests blocked this order due to unreliability. According to the custom of the time, the people in charge of the task entrusted to them had the right of the last word and even the highest dignitaries had to submit to their decision. The ČKD was negotiating with the Škoda form for joint production. ŠkodaŠkodawas to produce 205 machines and all the guns, the rest (95 machines) were to be produced by ČKD. The production of the machines was to take place from 6/1939 to 2/1940. Armoured plates for the monthly production of 20-25 machines were to be supplied in equal proportions by Poldi Kladno and Vítkovice Ironworks. However, the official order never came and at the end of 1938 ČKD received the final decision to cancel the preliminary order. At a meeting of the MNO on 21.12.1938, the decision was made that the type could be offered abroad, but the Ministry demanded a minimum of 5% of the sale price for a share in the development of the vehicle. It was willing to formally introduce the type into the armament of the Republic under the designation "medium tank model 39"(ST vz.39).ČKD did not agree to the financial share and the fate of the V-8-N was sealed.
After the occupation and the creation of the Protectorate, the Germans became interested in the machine and already on 2 May 1939 they inspected the ČKD factory. The prototype was moved to Eisenach on 13.5.1939 for two weeks of testing on the polygon. However, the order did not come. Only the second prototype V8H-II without turret, with simulated concrete ballast, was purchased for 201,632 marks. There is no information about the further fate of the machine. The V-8-H was declared a secret affair on 9.6.1939. After this decision was unblocked, Romania, which had been following the development of this machine since 1937, showed interest. They were interested in ordering or licensing production. Between 10-12/1939 Romanian comparative trials of the V-8-H with the competing Skoda T-21(Š-IIc) were carried out. The trials were a tie, but the Skoda type suffered a moral defeat when the T-21 suffered a serious drivetrain failure. Although the V-8-H was superior in some respects, the T-21 won the competition and was ordered in numbers of 216. Even this order was not carried out due to military-political reasons. The V-8-H tried to break through in 1940-1942 in Sweden and Italy, but again failed. The fate of the machine was sealed for good, and it sat in the company's workshops for the entire war. Its fate is unknown,probably it ended up in a scrap yard after the war.

The V-8-H was intended to support infantry against heavily built enemy defences.

Vladimir Frantsev - V8H - tank, which came late, HPM 6/1994, ISSN 1210-1427

I attach anything to those tanks construction FAQ. From the source that I use in no way implies that tankette AH-IV were produced in cooperation with Pragou - the only thing that unites them is the engine. However, e.g. for Sweden was mounted the engine of the VOLVO. Otherwise, later the LT-38 has already been shipped to Peru, Lithuania and Switzerland.
For the quality of the photos, I'm sorry, but perhaps of them it will be possible to recognize that a V-8-H tower with the cannon fitted with had, (indeed, even in Your photos the tower is a)only, instead of TK 37 had a mock..

V-8-H ST vz. 39


I basically agree with the text of the post by my colleague "bran", except for a few reservations and observations below. Therefore, I will take the liberty to respond by clarifying some of the data.


The evolution of the names and abbreviations of the CKD export tank:
V8-T9 = older form of the tank name for Turkey
TT-II = Turkish tank, type 2 (the term type 1 was reserved for AH-IV series machines)
TT-12 = Turkish tank, weight 12 Mg
TT-15 = Turkish tank, weight 15 Mg
V-8-H = tank with Praga engine, eight cylinders in V, caterpillar (for tracked vehicles)
V-8-He or V-8-H/I = "e" for export, during the occupation "e" for German one "eins", or first prototype
V-8-Hz or V-8-H/II = "z" as German for two "zwei" or second prototype
V8H-Sv = "Sv" for Svenska or Swedish


A bit of polemic with some of the views presented here:


1/
It cannot be assumed that the V-8-H tank was based on the design of the "botched" co-production tank SP-II-b. Rather, it can be assumed that its progenitor was the prototype of the P-II-b tank. Memorials at the ČKD claimed that its chassis could have led to the successful series of export tractors T-6, T-7, T-8 and T-9. Based on the abbreviation V8-T9, I assume that the chassis of the V-8-H tank and the T-9 tractor were designed at the same time.


2/
It cannot be assumed that the V-8-H tank inherited the SP-II-b imperfect power unit. On the contrary, the Praga V8H engine was a fast-running version of the NR engine, which at that time was fitted to the T-9 export line of crawler tractors. From the V8H engine, the Praga NR I tank engine was developed, which was, for example, incorporated into a prototype tank TNH n.A. and a prototype tracked transporter Kätzchen 38 (t).


3/
It cannot be assumed that the tankers blocked the order due to unreliability. The army requested their private designs, the V-8-He and Š-II-c, from ČKD and Škoda for testing, so that it could compare them with the army prototype ŠP-II-b. ČKD lent its prototype to the army free of charge. Tests with the V-8-H, despite numerous defects, were more successful than with the other machines being compared. However, no inter-comparison runs were made.


Due to the geopolitical changes after the Munich Agreement, there were also changes in orders for the Czechoslovak army. The preliminary order for 300 tanks of category II-B was first suspended and later cancelled by the decree of the Main Staff: no. 2135 Taj.-hl.št./1. section 1938.


After the order was changed, the army anticipated the release of the V-8-H tank for export, so it demanded a fee from ČKD: 5% of the licence and 2% of each unit sold, on the grounds that it had twice the usual share in its technical improvement. At the same time, it offered to formally introduce it into the armament to improve ČKD's starting position in commercial negotiations. The company presumably agreed to these proposals, because on 25 January 1939 it applied to the MNO for an extension of the export permit to include optical parts of the episcopes.


4/
Note on the fate in the Protectorate: the last known Czechoslovak document with data on the V-8-H tank is the report of the Military Supervisory Body, No. 5248 Taj.-1939 "Regarding paragraph V-8-H: The vehicle was sent on 13.5.1939 by delivery note No. 24022 to the Kraftfahrversuchstelle des Heereswaffenamtes Wa.Prüf.6 Berka-Eisenach-Thüringen accompanied by an engineer and 3 fitters. After 14 days of testing, the vehicle was returned to CKD for inspection and testing will resume again at another location in the near future." The order for the V-8-H tanks did not materialize, probably because their technical parameters did not significantly exceed the driving performance of the already established German tanks Pz.Kpfw. III and Pz.Kpfw. IV.


5/
Note on dimensions and appearance:
According to drawing ČKD 1-SPE-926 "V 8 He"
- Length: 5050 mm
- Width: 2190 mm
- height: 2270 mm


Drawing 1-SPE-926 figures as documentation of several export offers and price proposals of tanks with the following designations: V8-T9, TT-II, TT-12 and TT-15. Drawing 1-SPE-926 shows the observation superstructure running transversely across the full width of the V-8-He turret. The appearance of the turret in drawing 1-SPE-926 corresponds to the turret of the prototype P-II-b tank.


6/
The dimensions of the V-8-H tank, given in the "gate" post, belong to a vehicle tested by the Romanian military report in the autumn of 1939. This vehicle already had a reconstructed turret fitted with a 4.7 cm cannon of the Škoda A-11 system. Instead of an observation superstructure, the V-8-H turret was equipped with a rotating command turret, similar to the TNH-P-s type.


Background:
J. Tintěra: research notes from 1970-1990.
M. Ludvík: Czechoslovak medium tank vz. 39, Army Technical Picture Monthly, 1984, No. 1, pp. 12 and 13.
C. Kliment: CKD Medium Tank V-8-H, AFV News 1993 (28), No. 2, pp. 12-15.
V. Francev, drawing Ivo Pejčoch: History and Plastic Modelling, 1994, no. 6, pp. 20-24.
V. Francev and C. Kliment: Czechoslovak Armoured Vehicles 1918-1948, Ares 1999, ISBN: 80-8615806-3
PA ČKD VHJ, fund AS, KL: 18, SL: 30, "... permission to offer abroad ..."
PA ČKD VHJ, fond AS, KL: 18, SL: 30, "Equipment for combat. V-8-H vehicles for tenders abroad."
PA ČKD VHJ, fund AS, KL: 252, SL: 1106, "Hydraulic press V-8H."
PA ČKD VHJ, fond AS, KL: 252, SL: 1106, "Summary table ..."
PA ČKD VHJ, fond AS, KL: 252, SL: 1106, "Advantages of V8H over Rek 12 1/2 t."
PA ČKD VHJ, fond AS, KL: 262, SL: ?, "Kampfwagen V 8 H-Sv."
PA ČKD VHJ, fond AS, KL: 262, SL: 1176, "V8H Sv demonstration."
PA ČKD VHJ, fond AS, KL: 361, SL: 1734, "Praga - V 8 H - Mittelschwerer Panzerkampfwagen."
PA ČKD VHJ, fund AS, KL: 361, SL: 1734/18, "V 8 H"
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 253, SL: 43 5/6-8, "Prototype tanks ... liquidation."
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 293 F, SL: 43 5/12-10, "Minutes"
VÚA, fond MNO, KL: 293 F, SL: 43 5/12-11, "V-8-H, modifications of gears, status of tests ..."
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 293 F, SL: 43 5/12-15, "Minutes"
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 293 F, SL: 43 5/12-6, "Minutes"
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 293 F, SL: 43 5/12-9, "Minutes"
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 293 F, SL: 43 5/8-2, "Tanks - payment."
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 294, SL: 43 5/25-2, "Minutes"
VÚA, fond MNO, KL: 12135, SL: 2 11/29, "Technical data - tank V 8 He Praga (rear drive)."
VÚA, fond MNO, KL: 12135, SL: 2 11/29, three-view ochotted drawing ČKD: 1-SPE-926, V 8 He.
VÚA, fond MNO, KL: 12462, SL: 43 3/12-11, "New types of tanks ..."
VÚA, MNO fund, KL: 13233, SL: 2 11/11-11, "... meeting of representatives of the ČKD company with representatives of the Reich Army ..."