Verkhnyaya Pyshma. Autumn 2024. Ceremonial crew.
I have repeatedly witnessed heated verbal battles over the issues of soiling (weathering) equipment and causing realistic signs of wear. I recently encountered this again: the color of the tracks of tanks from the First World War.
I will not duplicate the arguments of the parties, I will only note that they are numerous and from various fields of knowledge. I will do the opposite: I will tell almost nothing, but simply show.
The museum in Verkhnyaya Pyshma is a place where original equipment from the period of the WWII, as well as, possibly, their copies, replicas and other products with reduced, but not zero, historicity, march several kilometers once a year on Victory Day (photo below – 2022).
Sometimes more than once a year – also on Tanker’s Day (the second Sunday in September). The mileage can be even more – running-in, checking and other preparatory work remain outside the scope of observations. The key: tanks are not repainted before and after the race.
Of course, it is necessary to take into account that it is located in a covered and heated hangar.
Tanks drive on asphalt, not on the ground, and at the same time the lugs are leveled (that’s why I took less pictures of the outer side). Otherwise the asphalt will be damaged. Plus: I’m a mediocre photographer, the camera is so-so. The lighting in the hangar is bad, and the flash distorts the colors.
After such an optimistic introduction, you can look at the photos
I took the photos in the fall of this year, i.e. several months had passed since the run.