99% done - just have to take pictures in sunlight.
Doors open:
I had to sand down the bottom of the tire because the ball tank has a tendency to roll forward (where it gets stopped by the 37mm barrel) or back, where the side wheels keep it from rolling back. It still rocks back and forth, but not as badly.
Inventor's mark:
I slapped together a quick figure of the inventor. I used one of the figures from the Miniart
Auto Travelers 1930 - 40s re-positioned the right arm, and added a new right hand and head from random figure parts I had in my spares box.
Backstory:
Aaron D. Tuit was in the US Army during WWI and experienced trench warfare at Meuse-Argonne. Horrified by the experience, he envisioned a device that could easily roll over barbed wire and trenches. After the war and hoping to put those memories behind him, he became a businessman, owning a small but successful foundry in Kansas.
In the mid 1930s, the US Army was seeking to modernize their tank forces. This rekindled Mr. Tuit's desire to build his ball tank and also to support his business. With a contract from the Army, he was finally able to bring the Tuit Ball Tank to reality.
The ball tank was powered by a 201-cubic-inch straight four engine from a Ford AA truck. The main weapon was the new 37mm borrowed from the Army, with a .30 machine gun for rear protection.
After testing in the factory parking lot, the design looked promising. The Army had the ball tank transported to the Aberdeen Proving Ground in Maryland, where the many flaws in the design became apparent. Army testing officers noted the following shortcomings:
1 -The driver has very poor and limited visibility from his single vision slit and only of objects and obstacles directly ahead on the left side of the tank.
2- The 37 mm gun has a limited range of motion and can only effectively engage targets on the left forward quadrant of the tank. Targets on the right side are only visible when they're beyond effective range.
3- The 37mm loader has a difficult time reaching the ammunition and loading it into the gun. The most effective solution was to have the loader remove the round from the rack but have the gunner load the weapon. Gunner and loader could switch tasks due to fatigue, but this requires training two gunners.
4- There is very little space for the gunner when aiming and firing the gun. Some gunners were injured by the recoil.
5- The tank Commander is on the driver side of the tank, with a periscope that only provides very limited view of targets on the left side of the tank. The tank commander must stand to look through the periscope, which precludes effective target acquisition while the tank is moving.
6- A field modification was attempted, by swapping the fume extractor and tank commander periscope positions. This allowed the tank commander slightly more effective targeting and range calculations, but he also had to act as loader. The fume extractor was found to be ineffective in its new position and the tank filled with both engine and gun fumes, requiring that the tank be operated with the armored doors open. This was not considered to be an ideal situation in combat.
7- During trials, volunteer troops had no difficulty approaching the tank from the rear right, even knocking on the tank's hull before retreating. The .30 cal machine gun on the left side was considered somewhat effective, but again, with a very limited field of fire.
8- The tank is not able to ford streams deeper than three feet. In addition, the main wheel is not sealed by gaskets, allowing water to collect at the bottom of the tank and fall from the top of the tank as it attempts to cross the stream.
9- The two side wheels prevent the tank from rolling side to side, but are of limited effectiveness in keeping the tank from rocking back and forth, either while driving or firing the main gun. Crews expressed concerned that the tank might roll uncontrollably, much like a pet gerbil in a small ball ("gerbilling")
10- The tank was not tested on steep inclines. It is capable of climbing small hills, but on the last test run, it rolled forward on the down slope. The crew believes "Gerbilling" was prevented by the 37mm slamming into the ground and acting as a brake.
11- Directional control is achieved by applying brakes to the left or right side of the main tire. This results in a slow and wide turning radius.
Heart broken by the Army's rejection of his tank, Mr. Tuit returned to Kansas and focused on his business, leaving the Ball tank behind.
When asked about removing or scraping the Ball tank, officers at Aberdeen said that they would get Aaron D. Tuit ...
