"Favorite Halftrack?" Topic

What is your favorite halftrack?

SdKfz 250/1 alt – I just would love to own one for realz… :)

Type 1 Ho-Ha, definitely.

The SDKFZ 251(D). That version came into its own when the straight angle was made.

Burford-Kegresse MG carrier

251 D is the coolest looking.

The 250/10. Awesome little machine.

Sorry, but I have to go with the good ol' American M3 Halftrack. It was a thing of beauty, reliability, and really cool looking….see here:

link

I prefer my halftracks to be bulletproof. So not the German ones.

US M3.

US M3 for me.

I want a SDKFZ 250, would be really cool driving it on snow days to work.

The M15A1--not as pretty as the German halftracks, but with a utilitarian look and an aesthetic that looks like something a couple of ork boyz came up with it. Plus, Ma Deuce goodness with a 37mm punch!

Rob

Best looking is the sdkfz 250 series. But for weirdly compelling the Citroën Kergasse takes some beating.

250 / 9

Israeli version of the US M3.

Yes, the US M3 for me … And as mentioned on another thread here. In the '73 War, the IDF had 4000 old US M3s …

SdKfz 251 for me

Sdkfz 9 Famo. Just because it's such a huge beast. Dates back to when I was a kid and bought a model kit of it. I thought, this can't be right, it towers over most of my tanks!

I prefer my halftracks to be bulletproof. So not the German ones.

Presumably not the US M3 either then as they were even less bullet proof than German ones.
My choice the SdKfz 10/4 the little one with the 20mm flak. Cute.

I do like the German maultier (sp) a half track truck

SdKfz 8 Bunkerknacker

link

Sdkfz 250 series, just like the look.

Meatchopper-a very good anti-sniper and anti-Graboid weapon

YouTube link

The AMC Schneider P16.

General Halftrack of course!

M3A1 for me. Reliable not too difficult to maintain. Parts still available.

Let's see, bulletproof halftracks "so not the German ones." SdKfz 251D – 6 to 14.5mm of armor. M3 – 6 to 12mm of armor. Which ones then?

I've never heard of the M3 quad .50 cal being called the "meat chopper", always thought it was called the "meat grinder"

SdKfz. 250 (alte with the boed sides) is the cutest!
250/9 is my favorite variant.

AMC Schneider P16 is the best butch variation on the 250/9 styling.

I kinda like the German conversion Le U304(f), but then I think all the converted French stuff looks funky.

M3

I think I could get away with driving one of the SdKfz250s on the roads here, but the US M3 (series) is easier to maintain.

I'd really rather have a CVR(T)!

The one in this picure, which I had when I was boy:

link

Kettenkrad!

Oooh, MiniMo for the win!

I prefer the US line of halftracks. The rubber-band tracks are just so easy to work with, and give a noticeably quieter and smoother ride (at least on paved surfaces). Also the suspension is substantially less complicated for both maintenance and driving, and whatever one gives up with tracks that have no steering, I think is regained by power-driven front wheels.

As to bullet-proofing … none of them were particularly "proof" to deliberate rifle-caliber fire at close range, and in particular none of them were proof to AP bullets from rifle-caliber weapons. German halftracks held a bit of an edge of the US M3, in that there were more angles to the plates, and so it was more likely the round would strike at enough of an agle to get a slope effect. US halftracks had vertical slab sides, and so if shot from a 90 degree flank there was almost no slope.

The worst of the lot, though, with regards to bullet-proofing, were the US M5 and M9 halftracks. The production method involved bending the plate to form the rear body (one of the visual recognition cues for the International Harvester halftracks is the rounded corners from the bending process). To be bendable, the plate had to be of a softer steel. These halftracks offered even less resistance to penetration by rifle caliber bullets.

But even after all that, my favorite is the M5. Why? Well, halftracks were not supposed to be bullet-proof, and bullet-proofing is, I believe, the wrong priority. Being resistant to infantry weapons is quite valuable, but if you are facing short-range concentrated infantry fire, you have done something wrong. However, it seems that those who rode in M5s and M9s took fewer casualties from HE near misses, mine strikes, and hits from cannon-sized AP projectiles. The armor was more maleable, it bent more, and did not shatter, leading to fewer cases of spalling or fragmenting from the armor.

And, every Israeli halftrack I've managed to see up close has been an M5. I know we've discussed it, and the documents show a lot of M3s, but I've never seen one.

-Mark
(aka: Mk 1)

Another vote for the Sdkfz 9. Big and beautiful!

M3A1.

Box on a wheels and tracks with MG pulpit up front may not win many design prizes, but it was very functional and could be produced in large numbers.

AMC Schneider P16 is the best butch variation on the 250/9 styling.

Actually the 250/9 is the best butch variation on the P16, since the French halftrack was designed and produced a decade before the 250 and 251 series.

I remember reading a quote (although it might have been my uncle) that those angles on the Sdkfz 250-251 did make it more resistant to penetration by US rifles and .30 MGs – that the bullets bounced off.

On the other hand that the armor on the M3 was just thick enough that when the 7.92mm MG bullets penetrated one side they were stopped by the other – at which time they just ricocheted around inside the halftrack.

Made nice wounds.

M16 followed by the M3s and M5s.

Hard to beat those Quad .50s !

M3 Tank Destroyer version with the 75mm on it.

I want a Bombadier Skidoo Bus