Just curious, but where did you get that figure? My book shows 8,023. (I could have some listed under other acronyms, perhaps, if they're being used for other duties besides MBT.)

Off a website, actually now that I think about it, it said produced over 8800. We probably have lost some in battle and decommissioned some others or sold them to FMS countries. So your number is probably correct.

http://www.fas.org/man/dod-101/sys/land/m1.htm

Ah, yes. 533 have been sold to Kuwait and the Saudis, which would get us up to almost 8,600. And then you can figure that maybe a couple hundred could've been lost or attritioned, or maybe been built in the past year.

Egypt has 650 on order. That seems like a lot.

I've always wondered if we imbed those things with a secret kill switch, so if anything ever happened, we could immobilize them quickly.

Right. The ones we sell to "questionable" countries are made out of paper mache. I have it on good authority.

I hope so, because we are selling Egypt a far superior tank than what we have sold Israel.

Something along those lines wouldn't surprise me too much. I doubt it's an outright kill switch, but it's probably considerably less sophisticated than the US models.

The old USSR had a similar trick. Every piece of equipment that was going to be used and sold for export had 2 models made. The USSR one, and the "monkey-model" as they termed it. For instance, the BMP-1 when first deployed to Pact allies and the ME nations had no turret stabilization, no automatic loader for the 73 mm cannon, minimal NBC protection, and a very basic, if any, IR sensor suite.

Because of the USSR's habit of deploying new material to the internal districts first, and keeping it under wraps, these "monkey-models" could be sold as the latest technology available. It had the added benefit of giving the West a dramatic mis-assessment of the capability of capture equipment passed on by the Israelis, among others.

I knew it!


When I was a kid, I lusted after a couple of ads in the backs of my comic books. There was the "real, working submarine" (similar ad below) and there was the battle tank that really fired artillery. In my day, they were both priced in the $20 range and so were far beyond my means, but I envisioned them as being actual, working submarines and tanks and I wanted them desperately. I actually assumed that I would be able to use the submarine underwater, which probably wouldn't have been a good idea since I suspect that was nothing but a cardboard box.

Those ads were very misleading to a typical six year-old.

http://freakcomics.com/images/posts/comicads/sub_sm.jpg

I think the Merkeva 3 could hold it's own against an Abrams. Interesting theory of design. They put the engine in the front of the tank, IIRC.

I'm fairly certain the Israeli tank crews would be superior.

Should have read what you asked without responding, however China has the best army. Horses are their way, and will rule with that. Beating all of the above.

Agree on their crews, they probably have the best trained military in the world.

This is the last contract I signed with China, providing them with the "latest in American Construction Technology"...that they're using to build 3 Gorges Dam...Some assemby required. Since they've had such overwhelming success, I ponder giving one to my nephews.

http://www.vintageprojects.com/kids/backhoe-plans.html

I'll bet the tanks we sell to questionable allies, are part of the same kit as the Boyscouts Boxcar derby.

Good job banyon. I thought you got bored and wandered off.

ATARI!!!

http://okgames.altervista.org/html/m...battlezone.jpg