The Cruiser Mk VII was a Cruiser Tank designed in 1941, manufactured by Nuffield Mechanization & Aero Limited, it was based on the fully tracked A15 chassis and was in use from 1942 to 1945. It was commonly called a Cavalier. General Details (Cruiser Tank) Specifications Operational Date(s) 1942 - 1945 Ordnance classification A24 Quantity Produced 500 Weight 26.5 tonne Crew 5 M.G's small 2 M.G's large(>10mm) n/a Length 6.40 mtr Width 2.95 mtr Height 2.46 mtr Engine Details/Performance Max Road Speed 24 mph Max Cross Country Speed 13 mph Range Road 165 miles Range Cross Country 66 miles Fuel Type Petrol Fuel Capacity unknown Horse Power 410 hp Power/Weight 15 hp/tonne General Information The Cruiser Mk VII was a Cruiser Tank designed in 1941, manufactured by Nuffield Mechanization & Aero Limited, it was based on the fully tracked A15 chassis and was in use from 1942 to 1945. It was commonly called a Cavalier. The vehicle was powered by Nuffield 'Liberty' petrol powerplant producing 410 HP which could drive the vehicle on roads at up to 24 mph with a range of about 165 miles before refuelling. Its cross country performance was good providing a max speed of about 13 mph and a range of about 66 miles. It was armed with 2 light machine guns which were BESA Machine Gun 7.92mms. Its main armament consisted of an Ordnance Q.F. 6pdr 7cwt MKI-III which could penetrate 106.3 mm of flat plate at 200 metres. The A24 was a heavy cruiser tank based on the Crusader, the first model armed with the 6pdr gun, and was only used for training. Eventually ending in the Cromwell this version had the 410 Hp Liberty engine, the Cavalier was only used for training. Armour Details Turret Front 76mm @ 0° (76mm) Side 63mm @ 0° (63mm) Rear 57mm @ 0° (57mm) Top 20mm @ 81° (20mm) Superstructure Front 63mm @ 0° (63mm) Side 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Rear 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Top 20mm @ 90° (20mm) Hull Front 57mm @ 0° (57mm) Side 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Rear 32mm @ 0° (32mm) Top 20mm @ 90° (20mm) Armour (x)mm @ (y)° (Effective mm @ 0°) Effective Armour - Maximum 76 mm - Minimum 20 mm Weapon Details Ordnance Q.F. 6pdr 7cwt MKI-III (Anti Tank Gun) History The 6pdr Mk II—differed from the pre-production Mk I in having a shorter L/43 barrel, because of shortage of suitable lathes. The subsequent Mk IV was fitted with an L/50 barrel, with muzzle brake. Manufactured 1942 - 1945 Calibre 57mm Length L/43 Number of Rounds  64 Ammunition Details Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content Shot, AP, Mks 1 to 7 (AP Armor Piercing) 57mm 2.86Kg 853M/Sec Quoted Penetration 68mm@915m Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.12 0.24 0.49 1.03 1.61 2.24 2.91 3.62 Penetration(mm@30°) 95 92 85 74 64 56 48 42 Penetration(mm@0°) 110 106 99 86 75 65 56 49 Hit Probability(%) 88 88 88 79 61 49 34 13 Weapon Details BESA Machine Gun 7.92mm (Machine Gun) History Developed by BSA from the Czechoslovak ZB vz.53 heavy machine gun which used the German 7.92×57mm Mauser ammunition. It was mostly used as the main armament of the Light Tank Mk VIC and Armoured cars such as the Humber Mk I to Mk III. This 7.92mm gun was used in the armoured divisions as their supply lines were separated from the infantry who used .303 bullets. Once the British started capturing German ammunition this could be immediately used in these tank machine guns. Manufactured 1939 - 1966 Calibre 7.92mm Length L/93 Rate of Fire 450 rpm Number of Rounds  4950 Ammunition Details Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content Cartridge SA, 7.92 (AP Standard Small Arms) 7.92mm 0.011Kg 785M/Sec Quoted Penetration 11mm @ 1000mtr/0° Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.13 0.25 0.51 Penetration(mm@30°) 6 5 4 Penetration(mm@0°) 8 7 5 Hit Probability(%) 74 74 72 Cartridge SA, 7.92 (BALL Standard Small Arms) 7.92mm 0.012Kg 785M/Sec Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.13 Penetration(mm@30°) 1 Penetration(mm@0°) 2 Hit Probability(%) 74 About Penetration Figures All penetration figures in this database are calculated to a common standard based on German WWII testing criteria (complete penetration with functioning fuze). This allows direct comparison between all nations' guns. Original national test figures would be higher for some nations due to different criteria: German: 1.00? (baseline - strictest) British: 1.02? (slightly looser) American: 1.05? (50% mass through plate) Soviet: 1.10? (75% mass through plate) For example, a Soviet gun showing 159mm here would be published as ~175mm in Soviet documents, and a German gun showing 120mm would be published as 120mm in German documents. The 159mm figure is directly comparable to the German 120mm - the Soviet gun really was more powerful. National Testing Standards German: 1.00? - Complete penetration, fuze functions (strictest) British: 1.02? - Complete penetration American: 1.05? - 50% of shell mass through plate Soviet: 1.10? - 75% of shell mass through plate All database figures are normalized to German standard for direct comparison. Multiply by the factor above to see original national test figures.

Hit probability is based on a static 2 x 2.4 metre panel at 0 degrees(vertical) at the range specified.

The data that has been used to create these records has come from Wikipedia, The Lone Sentry, The Bundes Archive and numerous books and websites that have provided the detailed information that has not been available anywhere else. The information we use to calculate the penetration tables, flight times and the hit probability comes from the Gun Calibre, the Shell Mass(Kg) and the muzzle velocity, plus range reductions to allow for gravity and wind resistance. This calculation originally came from a pre-war Krupp calculation which has been modified, and seems to fit the actual test results.

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