On 9 September 2017, a replica of the SU-76M built by our craftsmen was unveiled at the Stalin Line Historical and Cultural Complex.
The SU-76 light self-propelled gun, armed with a 76 mm gun, was developed in late autumn 1942. After completing state trials, which took place from 6 to 16 December 1942, it entered service. The first SU-76s, which had fully armoured enclosed fighting compartments, were formed into two regiments and sent to the Volkhov Front.
A modernised version, the SU-76M, was developed due to numerous defects caused by the vehicle’s parallel installation of two engines. Trials conducted in June 1943 showed that its weight needed to be reduced. The thickness of the frontal and side armour plates was reduced, and the roof of the fighting compartment was removed. In August 1943, the SU-76M successfully completed state trials and was soon adopted by the Red Army.
A total of 560 SU-76 and 11,494 SU-76M self-propelled guns were produced during the war. This self-propelled gun became the most widely produced fighting vehicle after the T-34 tank.
K. P. Kolesov, who fought in an SU-76M, left a fascinating account of the vehicle in his novella «Self-Propelled Gun No. 120». Read it. You will not regret it.
Work on our SU-76M replica began by cutting down a BMP hull and constructing a new hull body, into which the engine and transmission were installed:
A new stage of the work began on 10 April 2017, when a 76 mm ZiS-3 gun was installed on the replica. Once the gun was in place, work began on constructing the vehicle’s fighting compartment.
Work on the running gear began in June 2017. The suspension arms were taken from a BMP, while the road wheels and tracks came from an AT-P light artillery tractor. To restore the tracks’ flexibility, they were cleaned of dirt, heated over a fire, cooled with water and lubricated with oil. An opening was cut into each track link for the drive sprocket teeth.
Work on the SU-76M was completed on 8 September 2017. Journalists attended the ceremonial first run of the Stalin Line Historical and Cultural Complex’s latest creation.
On Tankers’ Day, 9 September, the SU-76M underwent its ‘baptism of fire’ by taking part in a reenactment of a Great Patriotic War battle.
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