Steel Soviet Union

"It's not welded like that. Adjust the position and move it a little to the left. The gun mount must take into account the posture of the user. Open the turret cover and get in to see if you feel comfortable using it like that?"

"Bring the machine gun over and prepare to install it! Move quickly, don't delay!"

"Hey! Don't go from there! Didn't you see the main gun hanging above your head? Be careful of it falling and being crushed to death!"

As the saying goes, you hear the person before you see him. Before Malashenko even stepped into the preparation room, he heard Karamov's shouts and shouts inside. It sounded indeed powerful and tenor-like. .

"What the hell is he doing?"

"Uh, renovate the tanks. Comrade division commander and comrade regiment leader are personally leading the maintenance team to renovate the tanks."

"Modify the tank?"

Damn it, did I hear it wrong because I had donkey hair in my ears?

In Malashenko's mind, shouldn't modifying tanks be Comrade Kotin's specialty? Why did Karamov start tinkering with this stuff on the front line?

Putting aside everything else, Malashenko knew that Karamov had this ability. This guy knew technology, could draw, could measure, and was proficient in mechanics. He was a rare multi-functional talent.

But the problem is that modifying a tank is not a job that can be done just by talking or using your hands. It requires the use of heavy machinery and equipment. Where did Karamov get these things? Malashenko did not remember that there were such basic conditions for heavy industry on the front line.

The more he asked, the more curious and confused he became. He ignored the deputy commander who was leading the way and chose to directly open the door of the maintenance warehouse in front of him and go in to take a look in person.

Before Stalin's 1st Guards Tank Division moved forward and moved to this village closer to the front line, and chose this place as the division headquarters, this place that is now used as a maintenance depot was once a granary with a very large indoor area. Volume and a roofed environment sufficient to protect against wind and rain.

It is said that this village was a food distribution center and storage point for nearby villages before the war. It is not surprising that there is such a large granary. It's just that the food inside has long been empty, and I don't know where it went. It may have been transported away when the Red Army evacuated, or it may have been robbed by the Germans, but this was not important to Malashenko who was borrowing the treasure land.

Because there is a large enough indoor environment, there are a lot of mechanical equipment and tools for the maintenance of tanks, and they need to be properly stored and stored. Malashenko simply waved his hand and threw the granary to Karamov. Use it to prevent the maintenance machinery and tools from being exposed to the wind and snow in the open air and causing problems, and then this place becomes a logistics maintenance warehouse.

The first thing I saw when I pushed the door in was a huge and empty maintenance warehouse filled with all kinds of equipment and equipment, including tools for repairing tanks, various spare parts and new engines for tanks, and even... There were hoses and refueling valves for refueling the tanks stacked in the corner.

But the most eye-catching thing is the huge heavy tank that has been dismantled and parked in the center of the maintenance warehouse.

That familiar look that seemed familiar but with mottled scars all over his body made our Comrade Ma exclaim on the spot.

"Wori! This thing is still there. I thought the Germans had blown it up!"

The torn apart heavy tank parked in the maintenance warehouse is none other than the vehicle that Malashenko abandoned and lost earlier in Prokhorovka. It is one of the IS6 heavy tank prototypes numbered 177 on the front of the vehicle. .

Malashenko, who had almost forgotten about it, always thought that the Germans must have destroyed this abandoned heavy tank that could not be taken away. The German crew that suddenly saw this steel behemoth thought that someone inside fired two cannons, and it seemed to be a very reasonable and obvious end to turn it into a ball of blazing torches.

I can see my lost and recovered previous-generation car and my former "wife" here again.

To be honest, Malashenko was both unexpected and extremely surprised at the same time.

But what makes Malashenko even more curious is what Karamov, who tore the tank into pieces and dismantled it into pieces in front of him, is doing now.

"What are you doing? Karamov, where did you get her car?"

Facing the question from Malashenko, who had already arrived at the tank, Karamov, who was leading people to work on the turret after disassembling the main gun, immediately took off his oily canvas gloves and patted them. He clapped his hands, jumped down from the turret, jumped out of the car, walked to Malashenko and said.

"We found this car when we were recovering and cleaning the battlefield after the war. I recognized it as your car at a glance."

"The tank was paralyzed there, and one track was broken. After we went up to check, we found that the power cabin was intact, and there were no problems with the transmission system and gearbox. We found tools and called a tow truck at that time, and tried to find a way to move it slightly. After a while, I replaced the broken track shoes with new ones, reattached them, and then drove the car back.”

"Originally I wanted to ask you how to dispose of it, but you were recuperating in Moscow at the time, so the car was left there without anyone caring about it. It wasn't until the past two days that I suddenly remembered that this was the case."

"Because the armor of this vehicle was already scarred, I led people to repair it, fill in the damaged armor, and upgrade the equipment. Now it is more powerful than when it first left the factory."

Karamov's speech did not end there. Karamov, who was interested in introducing the results of his work to Malashenko, immediately came to the side of the car and reached out to pat the turret.

"Did you see the ring-shaped machine gun mount on the top of the turret? I designed it. I plan to put this thing on it. It is a twin-mounted Deshi Ka heavy machine gun with a shield. It takes three people to lift this baby. But don't I’m worried that the machine gun mount will be equipped with bearings and locks in time, making it as easy and flexible as operating a Deggarev.”

"When you need to fix the shooting position and stabilize the machine gun, press the lock and it will lock. Feel free to send the cordial greetings of communism to those fascists. When you need to move the gun body, press the lock again. , easy to release, does not require any external assistance, purely mechanical structure, a hundred times stronger than the German’s shabby design.”

"Oh, don't rush to praise me yet, there are other modifications here. But if you praise me now, I don't mind."

Karamov, who moved forward, arrived not far from the main gun, which was hoisted high and three meters above the ground. He raised his hand and pointed at the clearly visible breech mechanism that was completely exposed, and looked at the man next to him who was also looking up. Malashenko said.