The Lonely Lovechild of Bicycle And Tank
Submitted by: dunno source via Submission page
Favorite comment: “While this vehicle was originally designed this way, I think in it’s heart of hearts it always wanted to be just a two-wheeler. Which is why it’s stalking that red bike to the left. Tomorrow morning it’s going to wake up in a tub of ice, missing it’s back wheel, with a note that says “See a repairmain quickly”.”
By Scuzz
That is what is known as a Kettenkrad. The Germans used em in WWII.
Tank-cycles are awesome.
they teh awesomes… until you roll it on top of you… squish…
google “Kettenkraftrad” and enjoy more awesomes…
schwimmwagen is awesome as well…
I can’t remember the name of these but they were used as aircraft tugs by the Germans during WWII.
Just for the record, this isn’t a custom job. This is a Kettenkrad, of which over 8500 were produced for the german war effort in WWII, and production continued until 1949.
Why this appeared on this blog is beyond me. Its a vehicle made for a specific purpose, which it performed well.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SdKfz_2
Wikipedia says top speed of 70 km/hr…that was pretty impressive for a tracked vehicle at the time. Actually, it’s not that bad for a tracked vehicle *today*.
Orv: 70km/h, or in British/American units – “terrifying”
Driving that thing must be an experience and a half.
While this vehicle was originally designed this way, I think in it’s heart of hearts it always wanted to be just a two-wheeler. Which is why it’s stalking that red bike to the left. Tomorrow morning it’s going to wake up in a tub of ice, missing it’s back wheel, with a note that says “See a repairmain quickly”.
You, sir, win half of all my internets. Tubes included.
The rest goes to the designers of this magnificent vehicle.
Why would this “buff out”? It’s not even a “there i fixed it”. Sheesh.
I saw a picture of Albert Speer, the third reich’s minister of production testing one of those and he had a huge grin on his face! There’s one in the Deutsches Museum in Munich. Powered by an Opel 4 cylinder watercooled engine, it looked drivable. Kettenkrad- “Chain Wheel” in English.
Didn’t Moto Guzzi also come out with a similarly designed halftrack for the Italian army in WWII?
I never quite understood how the front wheel managed to get enough leverage to turn these suckers….
The NSU Kettenkrad was for hauling/towing stuff/people through the slop of Russian summers and ice of Russian winters, not as an aircraft tug. Peterjford must be thinking of those French Citroen halftracks that were used by the Germans after 1940 (I think they also used captured Bren mini troup carriers for similar jobs.)
American troops called these things “rabbits” because of their speed.
If you watch “Saving Private Ryan”, one of these makes an appearance in that movie, captured and used by two American troops for scouting, and to draw some German troops into a trap.
So I can’t image the front wheel actually turning this thing. Did turning the wheel just trigger one track to stop moving? If so, isn’t the front wheel completely unnecessary?
These were a blast to drive in heavy mud. The spokeless front wheel would steer by acting like a rudder.
@Mr Mike: The Luftwaffe used them to tow Me262 jet fighters onto the runway, as the jet engines were prone to problems when taxiing the aircraft. Originally the Kettenkrad was issued to paratroopers early in the war as a light towing vehicle for their 28-21mm squeezebore anti-tank guns, but found a multitude of uses.
as a side note, I recently saw a hovercraft laid out much like a Kettenkrad, with a motorbike like front for steering. Just paint it german yellow, and you’d have a hoverkrad!
@Scuzz – You, sir, are full of win.
Isn’t the front wheel a little useless? There’s no way it can dig in enough to turn (effectively anyway).
I’m just trying to figure out how the tag/tax/insurance paperwork describes this without having to resort to having a special “Kettenrad” box to check. Well, it’s not a bike, not a trike, not steered by its tracks. Hmmm. And Orv and tahrey are right: 45 mph on this must be a blast. Not to mention the hunks of asphalt in the roostertails!
sadly, unlike true tank tracks, the lugs on the tracks are rubber… so no asphalt roostertails for Kettenrad
Everyday, on my commute, yelling at some guy in a Hummer to get out of the bike lane… no more.
The wheel’s enough to steer it slight amounts. If you steered far enough it’d actally turn off one track or the other.
One of my favourite WWII vehicles. Really neat as a 1/72 scale model.
From WP:
Steering the Kettenkrad was accomplished by turning the handlebars: if little movement was used then the wheel would steer the vehicle, however if they were turned further they would engage the track brakes to help make turns sharper.
In old soviet Russia motorcycle is tank too
DO WANT!!! So fucking bad!
Video of it at; http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YA2lSTXcGc
lone-wolf tank
A lot of places consider trikes as motorcycles. They just may consider this one as well?
Okay, that’s actually kinda cool, and now I want one
I used to collect military vehicles several years ago. (went broke, job went away, long story) Used to have a 1962 unimog command truck. It was my third choice behind a Pinzgaur (not the horse) or one of these. For a time, there was a company making repros. I *have* ridden one of these – it was at the surplus truck place where I got the benz truck. It will drive like a bat out of hades! And you will feel like you were dragged through hades as it has no suspension to speak of!! Ten years later, I can still remember the bruises from riding over this guy’s obstacle course…. ow….
And I really miss the unimog. Though it only got 8 mpg on flat terrain, it never failed to attract attention. What’s worse is now I have a Smart car. It’s a diesel, gets about 70 mpg, and probably turns more heads. lmao
Before I get bashed for owning one, why is it that many of the bashers are bike riders? I have a roll bar around me and they don’t, but they still say it’s a wreck waiting to happen. LMAO (I agree, of course, as all the drivers on the road – except me – are CRAZZZYYYYYYY!!! hahahahahaha)