SOV - ZIS-E134

ЗИС-Э134
ZiS-E134 (ЗиС-Э134)


Development history:
In the early 1950s, tractor and load carrier types on tracked chassis were in fact the only type of vehicle with sufficient clearance over poorly graded terrain, while retaining the ability to carry military materiel and tow firepower.
Not only because of the short inter-transportation standards of the tracked vehicles, their relatively low speed both on paved roads and in the terrain, they were gradually replaced by wheeled tractors, which were applied especially in non-extreme terrain and climatic conditions.
With the help of the then representative of the USSR Ministry of Defense, Marshal G. K. Zhukov, the USSR Council of Ministers adopted Decree No. 1258-563 of June 25, 1954, on the creation of special design bureaus in the automobile factories ЗиЛ in Moscow and МАЗ in Minsk, whose main task was to develop projects of multi-axle wheeled tractors for the needs of the armed forces.
At the head of the design office at the Moscow plant ЗиЛ was placed the experienced author and head of many successful projects of off-road vehicles and two-time winner of the State Prize of the USSR (for the types ГаЗ-61, БA-64 and "485") Vitaly Andreyevich Grachev (1903-1978), while at the time of his appointment to the post in the enterprise were already underway verification tests of serial vehicles of type БТР-152; and prototypes of experimental designs ЗиС-121В, ЗиС-126, ЗиС-128 и БТР-Э152В, equipped with large-diameter tires with a high off-road arrow pattern with the possibility of central pressure regulation in them.


Special design features:
The overall concept of the model, represented by the project under the designation ЗиС-Э134, was determined by its intended use. In the shortest possible time, a multi-purpose military tractor-trailer was to be developed, carrying loads of up to 5-6 t, on an 8 x 8 chassis, with high passability over poorly navigable terrain. The vehicle was to be capable of transporting a fire-means operator and other cargo, with the weight of the trailer (fire-means) to be half the total weight of the tractor itself.
In order to achieve the best possible driving characteristics of the vehicle both on paved roads and in unpaved terrain, while maintaining the ability to tow the fire vehicle, and especially in view of the desire to shorten the development period as much as possible, proven design groups were used to the fullest extent in the construction of ЗиС-Э134, together with newly designed and previously unused design elements, subgroups and groups.
Virtually the entire chassis, with four axles spaced 1500 mm apart, was a new design, evenly distributing the pressure to all wheels and allowing high traversability of obstacles such as cross trenches, logs and large stones.
The cooperation of the special design office with the Scientific Research Institute of the Tyre Industry (НИ ШП) led to the construction of special eight-ply tyres with a diameter of more than 1.00-18 (model И-113).200 mm, which allowed the internal pressure to be changed over a wide range from 3.5 kg/cm to 0.2 kg/cm without any risk of damage to the sidewalls and tread when deforming up to 35 % of the tyre profile height at the above minimum air pressure. In this case, the tyre contact area with the ground was increased by up to a factor of five and the specific pressure was reduced proportionally to the level normally found on tracked vehicles. Later, four-ply tyres of 14.00-18 natural rubber were developed, which could achieve an even greater change in tyre contact patch with the ground for the same change in tyre pressure.
The power unit ЗиСС-120ВК underwent major changes to the cylinder blocks, valve system and other systems, resulting in increased engine performance.
Torque was transmitted to the vehicle's wheels using a hydrodynamic transmission to the main gearbox and further using crankshafts to the front and rear auxiliary/reduction gearboxes and axle differentials.
A special role in the vehicle's drive was played by a hydrotransformer directly connected to the power unit, originally designed for a "modified" ЗиС-155А bus. This device allowed up to a fourfold increase in torque in the case of starting up (increasing the traction) of the wheels and ensured smooth starting of the vehicle without torque fluctuations (jump in the power unit load) when shifting to higher gears. Similarly, the hydrotransformer was used in the vehicle's self-release by shifting the drive into forward-reverse...
Unlike other test designs and production cars, the main gearbox, taken from the design of the ЗиСС-150 truck, was located behind the cab and operated by the driver with a forward leaning/retracted gear lever. The reduction in the auxiliary gearbox could only be engaged when the drive of the front two axles was engaged.
Due to the location, all chassis and gearbox assemblies were easily accessible for both routine maintenance and repairs in field conditions. The dismantling of individual subassemblies and components did not require the dismantling of adjacent subassemblies and components in the event of their replacement.
The axles were suspended on leaf springs and the suspension was strengthened by double-acting hydraulic lever shock absorbers.
The entire chassis construction used a modified (reinforced) and partially shortened chassis frame from the ЗиС-151 vehicle at the rear, to which a massive steel U-profile bumper was bolted at the front.
The front two axles of the vehicle were steerable, the steering was equipped with hydraulic power steering, but the design of the vehicle allowed a turning radius of only 10.5 m. The control of the four-wheel disc brakes, mounted on all wheels, was by air pressure.
To the right of the driver's seat were located the control levers for the gearbox, the auxiliary/reduction gearbox, the hydrostatic converter and the handbrake lever. There was also an auxiliary dashboard with pressure and oil temperature gauges for the powertrain lubrication system, hydrotransformer, power steering... The location of these auxiliaries to the right of the driver's seat in the cab, taken from a conventional truck, made it virtually impossible to locate the commander's seat in this area.
A body was mounted on the vehicle, essentially identical to that on the three-axle ЗиС-121В, with a metal floor, a folding rear face and the possibility of mounting arches for a tarpaulin.
In the summer of 1955, the complete technical documentation of the prototype was completed, a test prototype vehicle was built in the plant's prototype workshop during June-August, and finishing work on the prototype was carried out until the end of October.


Prototype tests:
Testing of the vehicle began immediately. The central tyre pressure regulation system proved excellent in the tests, and when the tyre pressure was reduced to 0.5-0.3 kg/cm the vehicle's handling characteristics on sandy terrain and in marshy mudflats were better than those of the previously introduced artillery tracked tractors... which lagged behind the prototype in speed on paved roads. The winter phase of testing continued in January 1956, and the continuous snow cover of the collective farm fields with a layer of 60-65 cm of snow and slopes of up to 13° were no obstacle for the prototype, which used a central tyre pressure regulation system and reduction gears in the auxiliary transmission. The ЗиС-121В used in the tests (to compare driving characteristics) fell short of the prototype in many parameters.
During the tests, plate differential covers were fitted to the prototype for the axles of the first two axles in order to reduce the driving resistance in poorly bearing terrain; based on this experience, the bottom of the "hull" was in many cases designed as a tub with a smooth, longitudinally profiled pontoon-type bottom in future off-road vehicle designs. Another device tested was the "snow plough", which allowed the prototype to drive smoothly over a 70 cm thick layer of frozen snow and which even allowed (after several runs into an obstacle) to overcome a 120 cm high barrier of frozen snow. The use of a hydrotransformer was an important element in facilitating the overcoming of this obstacle at a speed of 1-2 km/h.
The highlight of the winter part of the tests of the prototype ЗИС-Э134 was the comparison with the best types of wheeled and tracked equipment. The trials included two-axle vehicles ГАЗ-69, ГАЗ-62, ГАЗ-63 and the best soft-terrain tracked vehicle at the time (снегоболотход) ГАЗ-47, then ЯАЗ-210Г (6х4) and ЯАЗЗ-214 (6х6), МАЗ-502 (4х4), ЗиС-151, prototype ЗИЛ-157 and ЗиС-152В (БТР-152В). The comparative tests included light (АТЛ), medium (АТС), heavy (АТТ) and semi-armoured (АТП) artillery tractors.
The results of the winter tests clearly showed that the driving characteristics of the prototype ЗиС-Э134 in unpaved terrain with snow cover approach or equal the driving characteristics of the previously established tracked tractors, including the heavy type АТТ, and the driving characteristics of the established wheeled tractors the prototype ЗиС-Э134 in all parameters surpasses.
In the course of the tests, it was found that, due to the use of very soft tyres, additional suspension elements are practically not used when overcoming obstacles and uneven terrain. This has been used in other constructions, e.g. for future constructions ЗиЛ-135, ЗиЛ-Э167.
The design ЗиС-Э134 no longer offered the possibility of further development, so the development of the prototype was terminated not only because of the development of Soviet "military science" and the associated changes in the tactical and technical requirements of the command of the USSR Artillery Forces for a new artillery tractor. The requirement for the load capacity was increased up to 8 000 kg, the weight of the towed trailer (artillery vehicle) was doubled according to the specifications.
In order to be able to meet the newly formulated technical requirements, it was necessary to start the development of a new and considerably stronger wheeled tractor, which became the ЗиЛ-134.


Specifications:
Ground clearance 370 mm
Curb weight 7,000 kg
Load capacity 3.000 kg
Gross weight 10,000 kg
Weight of trailer towed
On paved road with 3t load 6,000 kg
Off-road with 3t load 5,000 kg
Power unit (type) ЗиС-120ВК (К, inline six-cylinder)
Power unit displacement 5,550 cc
Power unit output 130 hp at 1,500 rpm
Maximum speed
on paved roads 65 km/h
35 km/h off-road
Overcoming obstacles:
Overrunning up to 1.5 m
overcoming perpendicular terrain up to 0.6 m
gradients up to 35°
sideways inclination up to 25°
wading depth up to 1.0 m


With the use of the website RUSSIAN FORCE - SOUDOBÁ VÝZBROJ compiled by a stoker.
If some of the wording gives you a bit of bile, please know that in translating it, I have tried only to preserve the author's pathos with which he wrote about the vehicle in the original article...
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ZIS-E134


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SOV - ZIS-E134 -


URL : https://www.valka.cz/SOV-ZIS-E134-t39537#150239 Version : 0
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