STZ-5

STZ-5
STZ-5
	STZ-5 captured by Hungarian army, 1943
Type	Prime mover
Place of origin	Soviet Union
Service history
In service	1937 – 1945
Production history
Manufacturer	STZ (Stalingradsky Traktorny Zavod)
Produced	1937 – 1942
No. built	9944
Specifications
Mass	5,840 kg (5.75 long tons)
Length	4.15 m (13.62 ft)
Width	1.855 m (6.09 ft)
Height	2.36 m (7.74 ft)
Engine	1MA (7.46 L In-line 4 cylinder petrol); 39 kW (52 hp) at 1250 rpm.
Payload capacity	Transport mass: 1.5t; Towable mass: 4.5 to 7.25t;
Ground clearance	Ground: 0.29 m (11 in); Wading: 0.8 m (31 in);
Operational; range	145 km
Maximum speed	25 km/h

The STZ-5 artillery tractor was a product of the Stalingrad Tractor Factory (STZ) (Russian: Сталинградский тракторный завод) from 1937 to 1942 in the Soviet Union. The tractor was designed to tow division to corps level guns and howitzers of 8 tonnes and less. The STZ-5 was one of the few artillery tractors specifically designed by the Soviet government for its role. With over 9900 built, it was the most-produced Soviet ‘military’ tractor during the war.

Description

The STZ-5 features a fully enclosed metal, two person crew compartment (cab over engine design) with a flat wood cargo bed with drop down wood side walls. The MA-1 multifuel engine (7.4 L. 4 in-line cylinders) was rated at 52HP (38.8 kW) at 1250 rpm. The STZ-5 was rated to carry 1.5 tonnes of cargo on its bed or tow 8 tonnes or less. Under optimum conditions its 6 gear transmission (5 forward, 1 reverse) could yield a maximum speed of 25 km/h (15 mph). It had an operational range of 140 km.

Development

The STZ-5 was designed at the Stalingrad tractor factory with initial work on the project beginning in 1933. The designers borrowed elements and ideas from the British Vickers-Carden-Loyd light tank and the American International Harvester TA-40 agricultural tractor. Their design goal was to achieve a vehicle capable of acting as a military (towing) tractor and a civilian agricultural tractor. They developed two vehicles on the same chassis and engine, the STZ NATI 1TA (STZ-3) agricultural tractor and the STZ NATI 2TB (STZ-5) military transport. The vehicles were submitted for trial in 1935 and were approved however design refinements for mass production were continued until 1937 when mass production began.

Operational history

The STZ-5 was designated to tow division level to corps level guns, howitzers and anti-aircraft guns.

This prime mover was praised for its reliability and good cross country ability. It was criticized for having low power, a narrow track and high ground pressure, which would have led to poor performance in snow and mud.

During the Siege of Odessa in 1941, the STZ-5 was used to make the improvised NI tank.^[2]^[3]

A small number of these vehicles had the 132mm rocket launcher system attached (BM-13-16).^[4] While not a common Soviet weapon system these variants of the STZ-5 were used at the battles around Moscow in 1941 and Stalingrad in 1942.

The German army readily pressed captured STZ-5 tractors into service and designated them as the Artillerieschlepper STZ 601(r).

References

Citations

^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Vollert 2006, p. 221.
^ NI tank (Tanks Encyclopedia).
^ Soviet Tractor Tanks.
^ Big Dreams, Small Chassis.

Bibliography

Vollert, Jochen (2006). Tyagatshi: Soviet Full Tracked Artillery Tractors of WW2 in Red Army and Wehrmacht Service (First ed.). Tankograd Publishing. p. 221. ISBN 3936519021.
"STZ-3 (SKhTZ-NATI)". weaponsystems.net.
"STZ-5 (STZ-NATI 2TB)". weaponsystems.net.
Willkerrs (April 30, 2015). "Odessa Tank / NI". tanks-encyclopedia.com. Retrieved February 7, 2024.
Samsonov, Peter (May 4, 2013). "Soviet Tractor Tanks". tankarchives.com.
Pasholok, Yuri (February 12, 2017). Samsonov, Peter (ed.). "Self Propelled Artillery on a Tractor Chassis". tankarchives.com.
Pasholok, Yuri (September 16, 2017). Samsonov, Peter (ed.). "Big Dreams, Small Chassis". tankarchives.com.
Pasholok, Yuri (March 15, 2025). Samsonov, Peter (ed.). "Tractors and Prime Movers". tankarchives.com.
MSW (August 11, 2020). "STZ-5". warhistory.org.
"STZ-5". kfzderwehrmacht.de.

External links

"Medium Tractor STZ-5". Engines of the Red Army. August 30, 2014.
"STZ-5 BM-13-16 Rocket Launcher". Engines of the Red Army. October 2, 2014.
"STZ-5 "Stalingradec". Retrieved April 1, 2016.

[FOOTNOTEVollert2006221-1] ^ ^a ^b ^c ^d ^e ^f ^g ^h ⁱ ^j ^k ^l ^m Vollert 2006, p. 221.

[FOOTNOTENI_tank_(Tanks_Encyclopedia)-2] NI tank (Tanks Encyclopedia).

[FOOTNOTESoviet_Tractor_Tanks-3] Soviet Tractor Tanks.

[FOOTNOTEBig_Dreams,_Small_Chassis-4] Big Dreams, Small Chassis.

[1]

[2]

[3]

[4]

v t e Soviet artillery of World War II (naming convention)
Anti-tank guns	37 mm anti-tank gun M1930 (1-K) 45 mm anti-tank gun M1932 (19-K) 45 mm anti-tank gun M1937 (53-K) 45 mm anti-tank gun M1942 (M-42) 57 mm anti-tank gun M1943 (ZiS-2) 100 mm field gun M1944 (BS-3) 100 mm D-10 tank gun
Mountain guns	76 mm mountain gun M1909 (76-09) 76 mm mountain gun M1938
Regimental guns	45 mm regimental howitzer M1929 (12-K) [de] 76 mm regimental gun M1927 76 mm regimental gun M1943 (OB-25)
Divisional guns	76 mm divisional gun M1902/30 76 mm divisional gun M1933 76 mm divisional gun M1936 (F-22) 76 mm divisional gun M1939 (USV) 76 mm divisional gun M1942 (ZiS-3) 85 mm divisional gun D-44 107 mm divisional gun M1940 (M-60) 122 mm howitzer M1909/37 122 mm howitzer M1910/30 122 mm howitzer M1938 (M-30) 152 mm mortar M1931 (NM)
Corps and army level guns	107 mm gun M1910/30 122 mm gun M1931 (A-19) 122 mm gun M1931/37 (A-19) 152 mm howitzer M1909/30 152 mm gun M1910/30 152 mm gun M1910/34 152 mm howitzer M1910/37 152 mm howitzer M1938 (M-10) 152 mm howitzer M1943 (D-1) 152 mm howitzer-gun M1937 (ML-20)
Very heavy guns	152 mm gun M1935 (Br-2) 203 mm howitzer M1931 (B-4) 210 mm gun M1939 (Br-17) 234 mm Vickers howitzer 280 mm howitzer M1914/15 280 mm mortar M1939 (Br-5)
Super heavy guns	305 mm Vickers howitzer 305 mm howitzer M1915 305 mm howitzer M1939 (Br-18) TM-1-14
Air defense guns	25 mm automatic air defense gun M1940 (72-K) 37 mm automatic air defense gun M1939 (61-K) 45 mm anti-aircraft gun (21-K) 76 mm air defense gun M1931 76 mm air defense gun M1935 (34-K) 76 mm air defense gun M1938 85 mm air defense gun M1939 (52-K)