Big Gun, Small Turret

 "State Committee of Defense Decree #4873ss
January 1st, 1944

On installing 85 mm guns on T-34 tanks instead of the 76 mm F-34 gun

To improve the artillery armament of the T-34 tank, the State Committee of Defense orders to:

1. Accept the 85 mm tank gun designed by the Central Artillery Design Bureau of the People's Commissar of Armament (comrade Grabin) into service with the Red Army under the name "85 mm tank gun model 1944 (S-53)".
2. Starting with January of 1944, equip T-34 tanks with 85 mm model 1944 (S-53) tank guns installed in turrets on the stock turret ring instead of the 76 mm F-34 gun.
3. Establish the following plan for transitioning the factories of the People's Commissariat of Tank Production to T-34 tanks 
1. January: 25 units
2. February: 100
3. March: 300
4. April: 800
   Starting with May of 1944 all T-34 tanks are to be produced with 85 mm guns.
4. The NKO (comrades Yakovlev and Fedorenko) must be supplied with the following amount of 85 mm guns for arming T-34 tanks and SU-85 SPGs on the T-34 tank chassis by the People's Commissar of Armament (comrade Ustinov):
1. January: 270 units
2. February: 400
3. March: 650
4. April: 1000
5. May: 1650
5. To permit T-34 tank and SU-85 SPG production establish the following plan to transition to producing 85 mm guns instead of 76 mm F-34 guns:

Factory	Gun	January	February	March	April	May
92	76 mm divisional gun ZIS-3	1100	1100	1100	1100	1100
	57 mm anti-tank gun ZIS-2	200	200	200	200	200
	76 mm tank gun F-34	1150	1000	700	400	-
	85 mm tank gun model 1944 (S-53)	35	150	300	600	950
13	76 mm tank gun F-34	400	200	-	-	-
	85 mm tank gun model 1944 (S-53)	-	50	150	250	400
8	85 mm AA gun	200	200	200	200	200
	85 mm tank gun D-5	35	50	100	150	300
9	122 mm howitzer M-30	300	300	300	300	300
	85 mm gun D-5	200	150	100	-	-
	122 mm tank gun D-25	40	70	125	160	160
	152 mm howitzer D-1	15	15	15	15	15

6.  

Chairman of the State Committee of Defense, 

I. Stalin

 

RGASPI F.644 Op.2 L.255 L.104-108