DriveTanks.com has the only fully operational M4A2E8 Sherman tank in the world. The German Leopard defended the Western European frontier against the Soviet scourge during the Cold War. Its 105mm Royal Ordnance L7A3 rifled main gun fires 10 rounds per minute and can reliably kill an enemy tank a mile away. Although it weighs approximately 84,000 pounds, it will still do 40 mph on straightaways.
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The T34 was adequate to kick the Nazis’ teeth in during World War II. The Russians built more than 84,000 of them, and the tank’s 38.8-liter V-12 diesel engine puts out more than 500 horses. The Russian T34’s Christie suspension, designed by an American, eventually drove almost every proper tank in the world.
The British Chieftain was classic Cold War chic. Still in active service, the Chieftain tips the scales at 110,000 pounds. The DriveTanks.com guys primarily use the Chieftain to crush cars.
The German Sd.Kfz. 251 Hanomag halftrack totes a fully operational 75mm Pak 40 anti-tank gun to the range and back. DriveTanks.com maintains two, both of which are converted from Czech-surplus troop carriers. There is also an FV101 Scorpion light tank, a ComBloc BMP1 and an FV433 Abbott.
You can shoot an AKM, a PPSh, an M3 Grease Gun, a German MP40, an MG34, an MG42, a 1919, a .50-caliber Ma Deuce and a classic German MP43. Modern iron includes an FN P90, HK MP7, PKM, M240 and Barrett M82 as well as an M134 minigun. Then there’s the 25mm Puteaux, the 75mm German Pak 40 anti-tank gun and an operational 105mm howitzer, all of which are available for live-fire fun. As you can see, I could go on for days. Not only can you drive these historically significant war machines across rugged terrain, but you can also fire all these weapons. No place else lets you live history quite like this.
For more, visit DriveTanks.com.
This article was originally published in “Ballistic” Fall 2017. To order a copy, visit outdoorgroupstore.com.
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