Su-101 Uralmash

Su-101 Uralmash
Country	Soviet Union
Role	Self-propelled gun (prototype)
Designed	1944-1945

The Uralmash-1 (Уралмаш-1) was a Soviet prototype self-propelled gun developed during World War II. It was a turretless, tracked armoured fighting vehicle designed by the Yekaterinburg-based Uralmash design bureau (UZTM) between autumn 1944 and spring 1945. It used the chassis of the T-44 medium tank and was intended to replace the SU-100 which itself had only entered service with the Red Army in late 1944. Two prototypes of the Uralmash-1 with different armament were built in early 1945, one with the 100 mm D-10 tank gun, the other with the 122 mm D-25S tank gun. While mass production was initially recommended, the end of the war with Germany in May 1945 eventually caused the project to be cancelled due to lack of necessity. If the Uralmash-1 had entered service, the 100 mm variant would have been designated SU-101 (СУ-101) while the 122 mm variant would have been designated SU-102 (СУ-102), in accordance with Soviet military nomenclature, where the “SU”-label stood for Samokhodnaya Ustanovka, or self-propelled gun.

Source: Su-101 Uralmash on Wiki

Su-101 “Uralmash” Walk Around
Photographers	Vladimir Kubinka Armor Museum
Localisation	Unknow
Photos	29

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Su-101 Uralmash 09

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SU-101 Uralmash Tank Destroyer Walk Around
Photographers	Unknow
Localisation
Photos	32

SU-101 Uralmash Tank Destroyer Walk Around

The “Last Word” in Tank Hunting

The Su-101 (also known as the Uralmash-1) was an experimental Soviet self-propelled gun developed at the very end of WWII. Based on the chassis of the T-44 tank, it was designed to replace the Su-100. Its most radical feature was the rear-mounted casemate, a complete reversal of Soviet design tradition. This layout was intended to solve the “long-nose” problem of previous tank destroyers, where the gun barrel often stuck out so far it would dig into the ground or hit obstacles during maneuvers.

Attribute	Technical Specification (Su-101)
Role	Self-Propelled Gun / Tank Destroyer
Crew	4 (Commander, Gunner, Loader, Driver)
First Prototype	April 1945
Main Armament	100 mm D-10S gun
Secondary Armament	12.7 mm DShK anti-aircraft machine gun
Frontal Armor	120 mm (sloped at 55 degrees)
Powerplant	V-44 diesel (500 hp)
Top Speed	54 km/h (33.5 mph)

A Masterclass in Ballistic Protection

Rear-Mounted Casemate: By moving the fighting compartment to the rear, the designers were able to shorten the overall length of the vehicle significantly. This improved the weight distribution and allowed the heavy 100mm (or 122mm on the Su-102) gun to be mounted with minimal overhang.
Extreme Sloped Armor: The Su-101 featured armor plates sloped at aggressive angles. Its 120mm frontal plate was effectively much thicker against incoming kinetic energy shells, making it nearly invulnerable to the German 88mm PaK 43 from the front.
Engine-Forward Protection: Like the modern Israeli Merkava, the engine was placed at the front. This provided an additional layer of mechanical “armor” for the crew sitting in the rear compartment.
Low Silhouette: Despite the powerful gun, the vehicle stood only 2.1 meters high, making it an exceptionally difficult target to spot and hit in an ambush.

The “Oven” Problem

The Heat Issue: The most significant flaw of the Su-101 was the heat. Because the engine was directly in front of the crew with poor ventilation, the interior temperatures became unbearable during summer testing, sometimes reaching 50°C (122°F).
Cramped Fighting Compartment: The rear-mounted design and low profile left very little room for the crew. Working the large 100mm shells in such a tight space was exhausting and dangerous during rapid fire.
The Su-102 Variant: A second prototype, the Su-102, was built using a massive 122mm D-25S gun. The recoil of this gun proved to be so violent for the light T-44 chassis that it caused structural concerns.
Post-War Fate: By the time the issues were being ironed out, the war was over and the T-54 tank was entering production. The T-54’s rotating turret offered similar firepower with much more versatility, rendering the fixed-casemate Su-101 obsolete. The only surviving prototype is now a star attraction at the **Kubinka Tank Museum**.