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Semovente da 90/53 and 149 variants

The various prototypes surrounding the Semovente da 90/53 M41M. These were mostly found and originally posted by Vollketten and Raptor Fulcrum from WOT. Two or three of the wooden mock-ups are from Ceva/Curami pics and posted here:
http://ritastatusreport.blogspot.com/2016/01/italys-big-guns-semovente-m41m.html

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From Bottom to top we have the Studio 90/53 based on the M40 hull.
Next is the Prototype Semovente 90/53 with reduced gun shield.
Then we have the Semovente da 90/53 M41M (production model)
To the right of that we have the Semovente da 90/53 M42M (The M15s hull)
Above that we have the Semovente da 90/53 CA (anti air) version possibly mounted on the P40 Chassis.
The top mock up is another CA 90/53 (anti air) version possibly mounted on the P43 Chassis.
The two top right vehicles are simply the Semovente 149/40 and its wooden mock up.

Earlier 149/40 mockup
Snip-it_1613762381836.jpg
 
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Blog article about the Semovente 149/40:

"A few days after the shooting tests the prototype was requisitioned by the Germans, who designated it gepanzerte Selbstfahrlette M 43 mit 15 L/42 854(i), perhaps a sign that the vehicle was informally mentioned by Ansaldo as M.43. The prototype was transferred by rail to Hillersleben in Germany, where it was found by U.S. troops and transferred to the Aberdeen Proving Ground in County Harford, Maryland. In the winter of 2010/2011, when the U.S. Army Artillery Museum was transferred to Fort Lee near Petersburg, Virginia, the self-propelled artillery was transferred to Fort Sill, Oklahoma.
The armament coincides with the Ansaldo 149/40 Mod. 1935 howitzer alone: it had a maximum range of almost 22 km, with an initial speed of 800 m/s and a firing rate of about one shot per minute as a normal rate (equal to 60 shots per hour).
The shooting tests, possible only with ploughshares on the ground, gave an excellent impression both for the stability and for the possibility of operating on all types of terrain. In addition, compared to the 149/40 self-trailed piece, it had the advantage of being able to be put in position quickly, it required less manpower, was protected in the propulsion components and weighed less (24 tons compared to 32 tons of cannon and two tractors for transport)."
 
Info on the Semovente 149/40s wider hull.

Sources: Beutepanzer http://beutepanzer.ru/Beutepanzer/italy/spg/DA_149_40/Da-149_40-1.htm

Italy's Big Guns: Part 2 from ritastatusreport live

Buried in here iirc, a report describing the wider M42 hull. Italian tanks and armored vehicles, wot forum

Semovente da 149/40 GEP.SFL M43 149/40 854(i)
"History & Development Built in 1942 on a modified P40 hull and parts of M42, evaluated in august 1943 by Italian army." >photo< sitting next to what looks like a Nashorn spg.
"Germans seized prototype after armistice and sent it to Germany, where it was found at the end of the war."

Comparable width of other vehicles according to wiki: P38t 2.14m M13 2.280m M15 2.20m Semovente 149/40: 3 meter width P40 2.80m

From Italy's Big Guns part 2:
"The original plan for the vehicle though was not to use that M.15 tank hull but instead a special Ansaldo tank chassis made for the purpose almost certainly based on the P.26 tank hull and was to use a strengthened type of P.26 tank suspension. Production of the M.15/42 tank though was still underway and the fabrication of the P.26/40 heavy tank (by this time in the war really a medium tank for all intents and purposes) was only just starting and hampered by a shortage of engines. The special Ansaldo chassis is therefore possibly the ‘L’ (Larga) version of the P.26/40 hull modified to suit this gun. (Like the other two there’s no official name for it but ‘Semovente Ansaldo 149/40 seems appropriate) Such a hull was already planned anyway for other Semovente which suffered the same development problems as this one. Even mounted as it was though on this very limited M.15/42M chassis the prototype Semovente 149/40 had a very respectable 53 degrees of traverse and could carry 6 rounds itself. Had it ever been fielded as designed on that special chassis and using the engines off the P.26/40 programme instead of the rather weak M.15/42 tank engine this would have been a very capable piece of equipment although given the size of the shells I suspect it would still have required the use of ammunition tenders as well."

20210112_224533.jpg


Definitely wider than M42 hull. Might even be wider than the Nashorn.
 
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