Repair Tanks

[Karl Ritter]

I have prove that tanks where actually repaired on the field, even one that I know of during combat under fire.
(SS-Unterscharfuhrer hans Thaler won the knights cross during an hour lasting battle between 15 T-34's and 3 german tanks, where his tank got damaged. Hans crawled out of the tank and decided to repair his vehicle under enemy fire.
..the battle did end with ten burning sovjet tanks )

Anyway..I think it should be implented, and not new class needed, but the crew themself. Offcourse, im not talking bf1942 stuff, but..lets say your tracks broken, or blown off...you could get out and it might take like a minimum of two tankcrewmembers to fix it (motivating people to not drive solely in tanks as well by this) and still it might take 3-4 minutes. Thats a long time to be in the open next to a monstertarget.
So it wont be easy, need two crewmembers, takes time, but once shot up, your not lost.

Offcourse, not everything should be fixable..armour, engine to a certain degree,...

 

[LukeFF]

lets say your tracks broken, or blown off...you could get out and it might take like a minimum of two tankcrewmembers to fix it (motivating people to not drive solely in tanks as well by this) and still it might take 3-4 minutes.

As another poster has already said, it took (and still takes) a LONG time to swap out a damaged track with a new one, longer than any map time currently available. This isn't auto racing, where one pops in for a quick pit stop and then continues on in no time flat.

I suggest those that don't have a clue about matters like this ask a real world tank mechanic how long it takes to repair broken tracks and other types of damage. The common answer you will get, is, "a long while."

 

[WimpBastard]

Repairing is unrealistic but on the other hand I would like to see a system where i can drive my damaged tank back and get a replacement. Currently it makes more sense to get you and your tank blown up when heavily damaged, then respawn and run to your freshly respawned tank.

I think a system where you can drive to your resupply point and "recycle" your damaged vehicle for a brand new one would be neat. Also a limited number of tanks that can spawn, salvaging your damaged tank might only take off half a point instead of a full tank loss (eg, if your team had 50 tanks left and you salvaged yours it would only be a loss of .5 rather than a full tank).



Also what exactly did Hans repair?

 

[Carazor]

Emergencies happen in the war, but are you saying that EVERY crew is capable of crawling out of their damaged tanks, then making repairs to it under live fire? I've said this before in older threads; "**** happens in war." I am completely sure that tanks were repaired while a battle was going on in an emergency (regardless of what the other guys said ) but unless the vast majority did it, it shouldn't be represented in RO.

 

[Git R Done]

Mind you super-realism dudes (realism rocks anyhow) that, in the end, the tanks are not realistic themselves, they don't show things like individual shells being loaded, or the drivers fumbling with gears or what not, so why would there be a demand for a four minute track repairing animation when we can't even handle our own gear . All realism-minded computer games will still have limitations (unless they come out with some new VR technology man that'd be so cool).

1 minute repair depots in spawn would be so more practical. A minute out of combat means a lot (maybe not in real life but in a video game it is). Plus there is the time it takes for a tank to drive back too. So all that time spent travelling should be worth a nice repair depot.

 

[chairmanLMAO]

sorta on the sibject of this... does anyone use the tank resupply depots on the maps?

to me, either the tank is dead too quick, or the depots are so far out of the way its not worth it....

 

[takadi]

Ehh like I said...too BF1942. People wouldn't try to drive a tank all the way back to base while in the middle of battle just to get it repaired/replaced, and even if they tried, they would probably havve their tank destroyed or be killed themselves in the process.

 

[Michael Wittmann+]

The tank repair depot is a good idea not a bad one

I'll keep you informed as to when the devs laugh their heads off at this ridiculous suggestion.

Mate your not the only one laughing at your ignorance I'm laughing at you too HA HA HA HA HA.
anyway.

Repairing is unrealistic but on the other hand I would like to see a system where i can drive my damaged tank back and get a replacement. Currently it makes more sense to get you and your tank blown up when heavily damaged, then respawn and run to your freshly respawned tank.

I agree, It's stupid about having to get blown up so you can respawn or having to blow up your tank so it repawns! Is that realistic? NO.
You aren't seeing the whole picture if you think that a repair depot kicks the **** out of realism.

"Fendesack's Tank lost a track. One second later Knispel spotted the Anti-Tank Gun. One of the remaining tanks provided cover while Fendesack's crew carried out repairs"

 

[takadi]

Well if you wanna get all technically, basically a "repair system" is already there, with how short the respawn times are for tanks. You can pretend they they were repaired and sent back, if that's what floats your boat.

 

[DreamWeaverz]

Also what exactly did Hans repair?

He gelled his hair back into place, the seven hours of fighting caused him to burst out into the open for fresh air and check himself out in his personal mirror

 

[Michael Wittmann+]

He gelled his hair back into place, the seven hours of fighting caused him to burst out into the open for fresh air and check himself out in his personal mirror

ROFL!

 

[takadi]

lol hanz and franzz

 

[Karl Ritter]

As another poster has already said, it took (and still takes) a LONG time to swap out a damaged track with a new one, longer than any map time currently available. This isn't auto racing, where one pops in for a quick pit stop and then continues on in no time flat.

I suggest those that don't have a clue about matters like this ask a real world tank mechanic how long it takes to repair broken tracks and other types of damage. The common answer you will get, is, "a long while."

No offense Luke, but trust me, I know how long it takes, served in a tankunit in the army. So I know what I am talking about, I did say/proposed to make it last several minutes. Someone else posted he feels it more realistic to run back to spawn every time to get a new one...think tanks where just waiting at HQ to be picked up one after another? I dont like the idea of a vehicle depot witch fixed it either. Just proposing a crew could be able to fix minors, but like I said, make it last, it wont be that long as in real life, but standing/sitting fixing for example a track in the open next to your tank for 3-4 minutes is still very, very risky, and that might even seem like hours while standing there so vulnerable next to a huge target. So in my opinion it comes pretty close to realism, add with a wider variaty of options available to keep a vehicle operational.

 

[Karl Ritter]

"What exactly did Hans repair":

No idea, it is not stated, but it must have been something crucial, why else repair it during a fight.

Altough, meanwhile I'm re-reading a book about the Hitlerjugend, and this for example tells the story of the attack on Bart. The spearheading tanks fell under a serious Russian barage as the night was coming to an end. Several panthers lost their tracks because of the heavy fire there. And the crew, with the help of several grenadiers of the 9th kompanie, 26th regiment panzergrenadiers helped them repairing the tracks while the Russians baptised them with mortars, machine gun-, antitank gunfire and tanks. Theres more stories about such actions, cant believe why yall find it so hard to believe one could attempt to fix his vehicle under fire.
(btw: this was 1945, and despite Bart was stuffed with Ruski tanks and units, the Germans took and held the town against several furious counterattacks)

 

[LukeFF]

No offense Luke, but trust me, I know how long it takes, served in a tankunit in the army. So I know what I am talking about, I did say/proposed to make it last several minutes.

Fair enough, and I respect your expertise on the matter. I just think that, for the typical player, taking the time to jump out of their tank and to repair damage just isn't likely, given that one will also be highly vulnerable to gunfire. Me, personally, if my tank is intact but my tracks or engine is shot out, I just exit the tank and make my way back to the vehicle spawn. As such, I think the current system works fine.

 

[SargeDC]

"What exactly did Hans repair":

No idea, it is not stated, but it must have been something crucial, why else repair it during a fight.

Altough, meanwhile I'm re-reading a book about the Hitlerjugend, and this for example tells the story of the attack on Bart. The spearheading tanks fell under a serious Russian barage as the night was coming to an end. Several panthers lost their tracks because of the heavy fire there. And the crew, with the help of several grenadiers of the 9th kompanie, 26th regiment panzergrenadiers helped them repairing the tracks while the Russians baptised them with mortars, machine gun-, antitank gunfire and tanks. Theres more stories about such actions, cant believe why yall find it so hard to believe one could attempt to fix his vehicle under fire.
(btw: this was 1945, and despite Bart was stuffed with Ruski tanks and units, the Germans took and held the town against several furious counterattacks)

not "hard to believe" especially if your life depends on that tank being mobile....but let me ask you this:

- how much time did they have to repair the tank
- how much help did they get from the inf support

the notion that a tank crew, in a damaged tank under fire, is going to get out and repair even the most simple damage is ludicrous

can tell you from experience (13 years as a tanker in the US Army) - it takes a 4 man crew, WITH power tools and every resource in a motorpool available....at least 20-25 minutes to just change ONE track block. That's on an undamaged track, on a concrete pad, not under fire.

I imagine it would be a lot quicker to do it in a Sherman, Panzer, or T34...but quicker meaning 15 minutes or so for a track block - let alone repairing larger sections or replacing roadwheels...

to think that a tank is going to take battle damage, roll back to a "magic garage" and be fixed in a minute or so is so "gamey" it's not even funny

 

[Karl Ritter]

but let me ask you this:

- how much time did they have to repair the tank
- how much help did they get from the inf support

the notion that a tank crew, in a damaged tank under fire, is going to get out and repair even the most simple damage is ludicrous

How much time? I pressume the time witch is needed, and as for the infantery support, that is not stated, there where several tanktracks damaged and a whole regiment grenadiers in the field supporting them.

I presume only the most vital parts are being repared at such moments, other things are indeed ludicrous to exit your tank for anyway. Altough it was stated as a heavy battle, I think one battle varies allot from another: The number of friendlies supporting you, either pinning the enemy down or providing a cover screen when passing you, the distance between you and the enemy, the visibility(this battle was still fought out during darkness) and numerous other factors. For example I doubt any crewmember would jump out and start fixing his tank during the tankclash at Kursk where tanks mixed and fired on oneanother at point blanck range. But in certain circumstances it is possible in my opinion, as has been proven numerous times in the past.

My only point is to prove it is possible, because some people refused to believe it. Never claiming it to be wise or not timeconsuming. And doing it in Ro would be the crews decision totally, bailing out and getting a new one, or attempt to repare it, by that risking their lives perhaps.

 

[CaptRanger]

Broken tracks were a major repair for a tank in the field. It wasn't just a thing where you could grab a wrench and easily jack up the mammoth tank to get the track back under (remember that if a track came undone, the crew would normally keep going without knowing and outrun it). Maybe fixing some light engine damage or something like that would be possible in a firefight, but anything else would need a full repair crew and at least a night's work.

This reminds me of the movie "To Hell and Back", which is Audie Murphey's biography for those not in the know. In it he's protecting a farm house and it's night time, with the fields really muddy. A German tank outran it's track and a repair crew is fixing it during the night. Murphy goes out and kills the repair crew and further cripples the tank so that the road would still be blocked.

 

[Zbojnik]

This is a Tiger I Crew struggling to replace a track.

These are trained men who know what there doing. Does it look easy? Does it look like a 5 minute job? That track weighs more than than the two guys you see there.

Here's a crew waiting to install a track.

Once again does it look like an easy job? If Red Orchestra is striving for realism then this is not the way to go.​

 

[SgtH3nry3]

This is a Tiger I Crew struggling to replace a track.

These are trained men who know what there doing. Does it look easy? Does it look like a 5 minute job? That track weighs more than than the two guys you see there.

Here's a crew waiting to install a track.

Once again does it look like an easy job? If Red Orchestra is striving for realism then this is not the way to go.​

Exactly, this isn't a Leopard or Abrams tank!