The door coupola is an amazing piece of German engineering, forcing the user to perform the Nazi "heil" greeting each time he enters or leaves the vehicle.

1:37 - at least the hatch enabled the commander to give a proper salute before entering his captured tank...

I love the disbelief in the voice when he utters "1946" :)

Somua was also used by Finnish forces in the Continuation War, together with Hotchkiss and Stug 3. Rumour is, that Mannerheim had demanded 3 things from the Germans as a condition to enter the co-belligerent role that Finland played. One battalion of German state-of-the-art tanks, expressively "not polish Beute tanks", an SS-division as direct support of the Finnish Army and a batallion of Stug3s. He got the Stug 3s. The Somua and Hotchkiss were sold as the s-o-a tanks. They were not polish beute tanks, but french, and the Germans argued, that when tanks were necessary in extremely dense and swampy conditions, the Wehrmacht would deploy the frenchies, so they were kinda state of the art for the terrain. For the SS-Division the Nordland-SS was recruited on the spot from people who had failed muster to join the Wehrmacht and could now proudly strut around in Elite-SS uniforms after a shortened basic training. They provided the Finnish army mostly with moral support, as laughing stock, comic relief and source of numerous funny episodes for their special mixture of arrogance and incompetence. Still, the Finnish were very happy with the Stugs and grew quite fond of the Somuas, as they actually proved indeed quite useful in the rough terrain as semi-mobile fortifications. The Somua turrets were well armoured enough to defeat anything, that could have maneuvered to were they were positioned, and the guns were equally adequate, as they never had to shoot at anything heavier than a BT. I think someone said, that as part of the deal, the Germans had even made sure, that they all had radios, which was quite valuable in itself. Admittedly, this are all rumours, stuff, that some Finnish Jaeger veterans told after a few beers, especially the deal-making between Mannerheim and the axis forces, that officially never happened.

The guy in the hatch at 4:24; We saw you!

Radio man: "Sir! We lost contact to our platoon!" Commander: "How? Arent they beside that 20 meter wide dense forest?" Radio man: "Yes, but our radio can pen through that forest!"

1:32... that face is like 20% of the reason I watch these videos. The resigned disappointment at bad tank design.

8:38 "not eye-deal"... hahaha

You make good video's about tanks. You know what you are talking about. (No wonder, a former tanker) And you do so in a pleasant way. Thanks! I enjoy your video's.

No “Oh my good the tank’s on fire!” through the cupola? :D

Another great Chieftain's hatch!

Thorough & witty . Thank you for sharing .

The slide they have by the main hatch is a nice touch, would make getting in and out a little easier...unless you're prone to slipping on it :) Also I like your pin.

Thank you for these videos!

Excellent video, thank you!

Hope your Xmas was a good one. Health, happiness and prosperity to you, your family and all the gamers out there! Keep up the good work Battle On!

One tank that I'm really surprised hasn't come up yet is the Panzer IV which is one of the most common tanks of WW2.

This tank is sooo neat in nuances!)

The fire suppression system sounds like it was a pretty good idea.

Nice Christmas Gift! :)

I think the independent MG is brilliant. I assume the setup is the same in the Char B1bis, although i don't remember it being pointed out that it could be locked in as a coax gun. That gives you the benefit of stable fire for precise targets, and a free pivoting gun that can be used while moving and at area targets. Since neither tank has a bow gun and that was one of the main reasons they kept those so long, it makes sense that they would make the turret MG work in either role. And it's also a lot faster if there are smaller fleeting targets, it's a lie faster to swing a flexible MG over a bit to cut down a running enemy than to be stuck rotating the turret. And in this case you can still rotate the turret to any arc you want to fire into, unlike a bow gun. Only drawback i see is that i wonder how well the gun returns to zero when you lock it into place again. Although it doesn't need to be super close for most purposes.

I’m curious which tank he’ll do next, I hope it’s the AMX 50 or the ARL 44

Given the reputation as being one of the best tanks in the world at the time, I'm surprised Nic didn't go more into that and give his opinion on how good it would've been back then.

I wince everytime i watch one of these pre modern tabk videos. Everything seems designed to hurt, slam, drop, bang, graze and strain the human body... I have nothing but the utmost respect for those who actually went to war in such machines.

I think that the sloped hinges on the hatch would also keep it from swinging shut suddenly when the tank is moving. I would be nervous driving it with the hatch hanging open, it might hit something. Unless it opens all the way to lie flat? But if they want ventilation it might be worth it. And even stationary, if the hinge was a conventional hinge, it would be poised ready to swing down really hard if someone bumped into it, which would suck for anyone with a body part in the way. This way you have to really work to close it. Although i can't imagine that's very easy from inside the hull. I guess that's why you have strapping young men do these jobs.

You guys should do a inside/outside the hatch on the amx-50 and/or ARL-44

Thankee, Chieftain! Me ole da' was the last commander of the two Hungarian SOMUAs. Ah well, maybe one day I'll get a peek at it!

4:25 - independent co-ax? I have a memory of reading somewhere back in the day that the French wanted to use the machine gun for AA defence. Maybe this was the intended function. On the topic I remember a website done by a man who had been with North Irish Horse in Tunisia. They were a Churchill regiment and were on occasion straffed by Jabos when in laager. The tactic was to close hatches and shoot back with the co-axials, a method that apparently was effective enough to actually shoot down a couple of the attacking 109s. Apparently. :D

i would really like to see you examine the king tiger next time ♥

The s-35 and b1 had episcopes which provided a decent visibility and protection. They're just missing on the Saumur models you toured.

4:22 Looks like you have a secret admirer! Lol

does anyone else like the "bloopers" just as much as the actual video

Wonder if Chief will ever be able to get around to the AMX ELC bis or the Luchs eventually.

Happy New Year!

Hey major think your ever get around to doing a inside the hatch of a Pz IV? Done videos on its contemporaries the M4 and the T-34 would be interesting to see.

Why do I get the feeling there were several points in this video where you were thinking "I'm getting too old for this crap" ? I hope you're doing well Chieftain, Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you.

You should do an inside the hatch on kv2, also maybe sturmtiger and jagdtiger

ELC AMX Review Please please please! (you don't even have to move: it is in Saumur)

Make a video on the cromwell Please

Oh my god the tank is on fire

Hi Nick, I’d like to ask a question: Just watched a video about the perceived poor performance of the leopard 2 of the Turkish Army, against the ATGM’s in Syria. Would love to hear what you think? Is there an issue or is it a case of ‘Old tanks against modern technology’ ? Cheers.

Please, a review of the misbegotten M551 Sheridan!

Nick: what's your take on the Width versus Height thing? I read that the S35 was prone to toppling on hillsides. What does your Tankee Sense tell you about it?

Nick, your channel rocks man! As a diehard tread-head, I can’t get enough of your videos. Can I make one suggestion; and I have no idea if anyone else feels this way, but please, please lose that brain-melting background electronic music. Or at least consider getting some new music. Other than that, everything else is awesome!!

How TF did De Gaul fit in this?

Are you going to do an inside the hatch on the tiger II

Sounds like getting of that tank really took it out of you 😁

Please cover the Tiger II in Samuar. PLEASE CHIEFTAIN!

The Average ( mean value ) of US Troops in WW2 was 5’7” tall. For every 6’ tall troop there was (1) 5’2” tall troop to net an average with (2) people. Millions of troops would be included into the 5’7” average. Troops were sorted out based on height into occupations. Submarine crews were small men. Tankers were also smaller men. So when a man about a foot taller than the height of Frenchman in the 1920’s intended for tank crews tries to fit in a tank of that era it is by design. They were not designing vehicles that men could not fit into. So it looks like they designed clown cars but they did not.

lol you can just extend the clutch pedal by simply weld in 2 metal bars pointed to the left and somua you go

Hey chieftain can you make video about the inside of M551 sheridan light tank

Idk if I'll get an answer or not, but where can I find (the brand of) those boots you've got on here?

Chieftain will you ever visit Poland and do episodes on the TKS and 7TP?

How do you break a tank?! Give it to a tanker. lol

The "oh my God the tank is on fire" test makes me very glads I was in Recon. We had our own risks, but we seldom risked burning to death.

Wondering when the next vídeo :3

4:24 I see the Turret Gremlin!

how much better does the sherman feel now? :}

The S35 wasn't a bad tank in Blitzkrieg 1 Allied Campaign. I had a lot of fun with the game.

The coax was the MAC mle 31 "Reibel" in 7.5mm developed for La Ligne Maginot and dragooned into use as a coax and the side mounted pan magazine looks truly awkward. Maybe it was OK in a fortress, but a one man tank turret... not so much en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Reibel_machine_gun

What ah... what happens... if you get stuck in the hatch? How do we get you out?

4:23 Oh hai

I love this tank, I have over 200 battles in it with a 2000+ wn8, but seeing how cramped it is... it scares me. Lets say the tank was on fire... it is so hard to get out.

Hey Chieftain, is it just me or did your video where you talk about US Armor history get deleted? The newest one if I remember correctly. Not the one you shot with a webcam or the TankFest Northwest 2015 one.

"-Its not "eye"deal...-" XD

Compared with the other pre war French tanks this one seems rather modern .

The side hatch design with the door sliding down on an angled piece of the hinge is very clever - but I'll bet it wasn't invented for the tank. Looks like a good design for a heavy iron door in a fortress, and France had plenty of those. It could have been invented 200 years before the tank.

Am I remembering it incorrectly or has it changed to "The_Chieftain" from "The Chieftain"?

Anyone else think the SOMUA S.35 looks cute especially with that red heart insignia on the left side of the turret? No wonder the Germans kept this thing around.

Chieftain please do a video on M60, or at least M48...

1:39 When the replacement hatch is so German that you must make a Nazi salute in order to get in or out.

4:30 their is a random person in the driver's view port

How tall are you, and what is the high restriction, and is it still in place?

4:24 just watch that guy xD

Wonder if he’s ever going to do a japanese built tank

Great video. But I got a severe case of claustrophobia watching you in that small cupola. Seriously. I thought the Somua was large, Photos are deceiving. Thanks for letting me know how to pronounce 'Somua'.

Make inside The Chieftain s hatch AMX ELC bis

So being a tank driver is massivly better than being in the turret

I bet you sound like Rush Limbaugh to those people passing by the tank lol.

And they make fun if British WWII armor.

Have the captured German version of this tank in game, for training my Panzer III and IV crews. Which makes me wonder how on earth if fits a full crew of five... Edit: my bad, I have this and a five-man Czech vehicle.

No firing pins?!

Well it certainly seems to be much better than the R35, low of a bar as that may be.

As I mentioned in the recent Lindybeige video, the new WW II colab effort being put together really needs to recruit you as their tank expert. No offense to the Beige one but you'd be a far better tank expert than him, assuming that's what they're recruiting him for.

-NO WONDER so many Frenchmen got cooked during the initial phases of the war?!.... THAT turret HATCH!... -Not so much a Man-Hatch, but a small door in which to pass the crew a hand of bananas with not much room to spare!

The thumbnail tank's gun looks very odd.

I have always wondered why the French used that stupid dome. Having met me,you know I’d be screwed in this thing.

it seems to me that a lack of visibility is a pretty common problem in the early war tanks. France just made it worse by over working the commander

How tall are you?!

Another bizarro tank from France! Delightfully bizarro, but a late war remember would have had a different attitude.

Oh bugger the tank is on fire. This one would screw em good.

what no terminator2 thumbs up? missed opportunity chieftain.

Please, for the love of god, change up the background music. It's getting to the point I'm considering not watching your videos anymore because of how grating it is to have the same guitar loop run in the background of the whole video, every video.

S40 premium confirmed?

Les concepteurs de ces chars connaissaient-ils les conditions du combat blindé ?

That tight hatch made it tough for the French commander to get the white flag out.

.... but that turret design ! Why !!!

photo bomb at 4:25

It looks pretty roomy actually

The Cross of Lorraine is a nice political statement.