Marine Corps specific Abrams MEP3 build with A.I. plus Cannon Smoke + BB Firing + Barrel Recoil + 360 Degree Rotation

[Mithras]

The Marines were never completely happy with the Abrams. In lieu of no sufficient lighter vehicle, some of my buddies would have preferred to keep their upgraded M60s waiting for a replacement better suited to their needs. I know that a new light tank project is underway, though I’m not sure the prototype selected has been publicly confirmed. I do know that they were all too happy to get rid of their Strikers. Don’t know a Marine who doesn’t think of them as death traps.

[Aurelius]

Yep Mithras, ... the US Marines use some vehicles I just would not feel fully safe in, ... most notably the V-22 Osprey, the aforementioned Strikers, and the AAV amtracs. Watching some of the footage from the Russian invasion of Ukraine and it seems to me that the days of the tank may be drawing to a close. When a $500 drone can drop explosives powerful enough to take a MBT out of service, their expense and maintenance becomes questionable. I'm no seer but I could easily see the battlefield of 2070 as being too lethal for almost any humans (even special forces operators) to operate in.

On another head thumping note, as I learn more about tanks and their abilities, I can't help but feel how dumb it was of the U.S. Army to go with a turbine for the Abrams A 1500 hp diesel like the Germans chose for the Leopard seems a no-brainer. Sure it has been debated endlessly here but still surprising to me as a tank newb.

[Aurelius]

Does anyone know of any online shop that sells the SEP add-ons but in plastic or resin? Doesn't look like the Marines ever got any of the SEP or TUSK upgrades, but my son and I may pick and choose. We are trying to keep the weight of our Abrams down, which is why we would like the plastic versions if they exist.

[Mithras]

I have seen TUSK, at least, in various online shops, and even eBay.

[Aurelius]

Thanks Mithras!

The weapons available to modern tankers seem fairly powerful, ..... at least until an Ultramarine from 38,000 years in the future looks at them.

Ultramarine laughing at tanker weapons.jpg (495.34 KiB) Viewed 269 times

You can't see it because of his helmet, but he is laughing, .... hard. (According to Warhammer 40K lore, it supposedly only takes about 300 to 500 of these guys to defeat an entire world.)

My son and I decided to do some detailing on the weapons. This is Stage I for now, ... we will see what we can turn out in the end.

[Meter rat]

I'm no seer but I could easily see the battlefield of 2070 as being too lethal for almost any humans (even special forces operators) to operate in.

That’s a joyful note. Thank god I won’t be around.

[Aurelius]

Yep, I've been watching video from the Ukrainian Invasion and humans really aren't that mobile on the battlefield due to the deadly drones. People are dug in not dissimilar to WWI, and even then, the drones can wreck havoc. So many on both sides have died sleeping in their trenches. It is no way for an infantryman to go out. I will mention later when I get more time, some ideas I have on battle balls and proper tank design. I don't really know my a## from a hole-in-the-ground with respect to tank warfare, but from my vantage point, they are horribly designed. I have many questions for the experts here down the road ....

[MrChef]

Here is The Chieftain talking about the "Tank Obsolescence" topic-

phpBB [video]

The Tank is most successful with combined forces and has been since it's inception. "Achtung-Panzer!" by Heinz Guderian is a good technical read albeit boring.

[MrChef]

Here's another assessment by Military History Visualized-

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He specifically addresses "Combined Arms" importance.

[Tiger6]

The Chieftain put out another video where he pointed out that you only get to see the successful attacks, and showed examples where footage that had been widely circulated had also been heavily cut to suggest that the missiles were more effective than they actually were - in the one case, they wanted you to see the massive single explosion in the clip, and assume that the tank was dead, where as there was actually 7 separate less spectacular hits before and after that one before the crew decided they had had enough and bailed out...

As with everything else, don't accept what they tell you at face value - whether that be war footage, or the various works of fiction by Hr Guderian...