Super-Pershing "Thumper"

[HERMAN BIX]

The strain on the elevation gear was excessive.
The tubes on top were basically dampers and I believe they were also in later versions connected to pressure to assist with the elevation.
The mantlet 'ears' were counterweights to try to change the leverage moment that the added weight influenced on the barrel/mantlet assembly.

I have no idea why I know this, yank tanks are not my thing, but these were so odd that I read up on them a bit to see what the fuss was all about !!
The Cologne Panther incident got me curious about these Pershing thingos!

[wibblywobbly]

They are called equilibrators. They contain coil springs that work in conjunction with the counterweight on the rear of the turret. This was a big non-standard gun stuck in a turret that wasn't built to take it.

I built one, the tubes are attached to the mantlet and rotate up and down when the barrel elevates and depresses. They look like hydraulic dampers but its springs inside on the real thing.