L-1/2

Wooden mock-up of the 17-ton tank design.

Although the M41 Bulldog entered production in 1951, it did not completely fulfill the requirements for a light tank as specified by the Army Field Forces. It was thus regarded as an interm vehicle, while the Army sought designs for a more lightweight tank, that was both inexpensive and had a longer cruising range. In an effort to meet these new requirements, numerous light tank concepts were proposed at the first of what would be many Questionmark Conferences, where tank designers and tank users could meet to determine the future of armored vehicle development.

Detroit Arsenal submitted six design proposals for a new light tank concept. The first of these was a 17-ton design with the engine located in the front hull beside the driver. The turret was installed at the rear and as a result, this configuration gave the tank a highly sloped front plate. Armor was expected to be equivalent to the M41 Bulldog and the tank was manned by a usual crew of four.

This 17-ton design would serve as the basis for the L-1 and the L-2. The L-1 was armed with an unspecified 76 mm gun and utilized the AO-536 engine, giving the tank an expected power-to-weight ratio of 14.7 horsepower per ton. The turret ring was 73 inches in diameter. The L-2 was identical, except it mounted the 90 mm T139. The weight increased to 19 tons, however.

This vehicle I'm proposing, the L-1/2, it a combination of these two designs. The 76 mm gun used is unspecified, but there's two options to choose from. There's the M32, found on the M41 Bulldog, and there's the T185 which was used on the T71 and T92. I personally don't see an issue with using them both. We can also take one of the engines from the next tank in this series as a top module.

In total, the L-1/2 should be fairly unremarkable. But it's the start of a unique rear-turreted light tank branch, and it leads up to a rather punishing Tier X tank.

Guns: 76 mm Gun M32; 76 mm Gun T185, 90 mm Gun T139

Engines: Continental AO-536 (250 hp); GMC AX-660 (430 hp)

Turrets (Turret Armor (mm)): L-1 (25/25/25); L-2 (25/25/25)

Suspensions/Alternate Hulls, Total Weight (metric tons): L-1 (15.42); L-2 (17.23)

Hull Armor (mm): 25/25/13

Top Speed: ?? km/h

Crew: 4 (Driver; Gunner; Loader; Commander/Radio)



Parent: M41 Bulldog
Children: L-3/5
See Also: L-7

Sources:

Hunnicutt, R. P. Sheridan, 2015.