E-100 vs IS-3 | SECRET WW2 APDS SIMULATION | 128/88mm Pzgr.39 TS APCBC-DS Armour Piercing Simulation

In the late stages of WW2, Germany was working on a number of projects, such as the E-100 super heavy tank and sub-caliber discarding-sabot projectiles, like the 128/88mm Pzgr.39 TS. This round essentially fired the 88mm Pzgr.39/43 APCBC round from the 128mm KwK44 at around 1230m/s, extending the effective range of the cannon, but never entering service.

However, this increased velocity made the round susceptible to shattering, despite the presence of an armour piercing cap. The IS-3's pike nose results in an extremely steep impact angle from head on attacks, imparting high lateral stresses on the projectile and causing it to shatter. Despite the close range, the projectile only manages to slightly crack the back face of the plate.

The simulation assumes a good quality projectile with hardening equal to that of the standard 88mm Pzgr.39/43 round. The design follows the diagram for the 150/88 round as this was the best that could be found at the time. A slightly different diagram for 128/88 has been found since, which will be used for any future simulations with this projectile.

Amazing thumbnail artwork from: Henrik Larsen https://two_larsens.artstation.com/projects/l8L8z#top