[X]Plan The Train May Not, But The Tank Sure Has Brakes.
-[X]Include all tanks, including the W-5 and 6.
-[X]Endurance testing - Run the tanks for 5 hours or until they can no longer proceed without a specialized repair crew, over a variety of terrain including trenches, craters, road, mud and all other regular battlefield features if within financial means. Record any and all breakdowns, tracking type (including crew breakdowns) and frequency. The vehicle's speed on each terrain type should also be recorded, as well as the rate of turning and similar properties.
--[X]For crew-related stoppages, have Folgers consult on solutions.
-[X]Weapons testing - Having the vehicle stationary, fire on a series of targets. Arcs of fire of the various weapons is to be tested, as is the number of weapons that can be brought to bear in various angles. Rate of fire needs be recorded for non-automatic armament, both in sustained and burst firing.
--[X]Note ammunition stores for weapons - if a vehicle uses multiple calibers of main armament, which runs out first? For all vehicles, how long does it take to exhaust ammo stores?
-[X] Armor testing - Split into 3 branches, ordered by which is to occur first. After the completion of one, the vehicle is to be repaired and put under the next test.
--[X] infantry resistance - Measure spalling and penetrating distances using an infantry rifle and a dedicated anti-tank rifle, using pigs as crew stand-ins and run the engines at idle, so that damage to those components can be reliably measured during each break for measurement, which is to occur after every minute of fire until either the engine is disabled past easy repair or more than half the 'crew' is shot.
--[X] Explosives resistance - Detonate artillery shells and grenades at variable distances from the vehicle, with the vehicle configured as in the last test. After every 30 seconds of detonations, pause to evaluate the vehicle's health, ending under the same conditions as last time.
--[X] Anti-tank fire resistance - Using guns identical in projectile to those of the other contestants, fire on the target vehicle. After every hit, pause and evaluate crew and engine health.
[X]The Tank Train Has No Brakes
-[X]Include all tanks, including W-5, W-6, and W-8 variants.
--[X]Request armor specifications (thickness, etc) from Wanderer for records/testing purposes.
-[X]Conduct mobility and machine/crew endurance testing
--[X]Evaluate speed and maneuverability over flat terrain, on road surfaces (dirt, gravel, cobblestone, and metaled, if at all possible), broken terrain, in mud, and against various depths of trenches, barbed wire, etc. Record speeds for comparison.
--[X]Survey crew comfort and ease of use throughout.
---[X]Request input from Leutnat Erich Folgers on this point.
--[X]Test rate of breakdown and ability of crews to repair breakdowns that occur without outside assistance.
--[X]Evaluate ease of preparation for transport via rail, ship, etc.
---[X]Check on whether tank will actually fit on standard railcars or is transportable via railcar.
-[X]Conduct weapons testing
--[X]Evaluate accuracy of weapons, as well as effective rate of fire, from the halt and while moving.
---[X]Evaluate "ammo" endurance - i.e. how much ammo for their main weapon and machine guns (if applicable) can each tank reasonably carry and expect to have on hand without increasing risk of fire or ammo explosion.
---[X]Check for potential blind-spots.
--[X]Evaluate usefulness/effectiveness of weapons against dummy positions (sandbags, trenches, log and earth blockhouses, concrete bunkers if we have the time/funding to build one).
-[X]Armor testing after all other tests are exhausted and complete.
--[X]Evaluation will be made after each weapon-type test to see if failure point can be determined and to try to evaluate what sort of damage would have been had the vehicle been manned (use pigs as a stand-in, if budget allows). All results will be cross-checked and compared at the conclusion of armor testing.
--[X]Systemic, starting with armor piercing small arms in controlled bursts or in single shots, moving up to anti-tank rifles if we have any available, against front, side, and turret armor. This isn't to test the failure point, but rather see what the armor might reasonably deflect in combat and to determine general resistance/deflection.
--[X]Test armor against typical hand-held infantry explosives; similar procedure as above.
--[X]Test armor against shell splinters from field guns; similar procedure as above.
--[X]Test frontal armor against direct fire from light (< or equal to 5,5cm) field/infantry guns; similar procedure as above.
