Comments on: Pentagon Seeks More Power From Vehicles

By: KenZ

KenZ — Sat, 13 Jun 2009 15:14:48 +0000

Cenobyte: A house might have 100A service, but that’s at 120V. A military vehicle is operating at 26-28V. Granted, there’s the RMS correction factor for AC, but a first swag at it is that a house at 100A service is equivalent to a vehicle at 400A. So we can start with that…
TB basically fills in the list just about correctly. I’ve seen the entire power load that one can have (yeah, it is class), and there are some surprises in there. 600A worth? No, but 200A doesn’t cut it.

By: Byron Skinner

Byron Skinner — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 19:31:07 +0000

Good Morning Folks,
Efforts have been made to mislead the public on Stryker since it inception. In considering wheeled vehicles it appears that nobody in the DOA bothered to read the 1937 Ft. Bliss study on track vs. wheeled vehicles nor the operational records of the german Panzer units of WWII especially their unit maintenance reports, but that’s all water over the dam, it’s no use now. What is of value in deciding the future of Stryker is the vehicles performance in Iraq.
The Stryker has enjoyed very favorable press including on this web site, the military isn’t going to provide embeds into the combat zone, tickets to defense contractors trade shows and access to reporters who don’t “get it”. Sorry Christian, Waed et al.
The only reporting we got was how fast the Stryker is, what a smooth quiet ride it had, since it could leave the road this make sense, but nothing about the problems. As was shown with the body armor issue, when the public finds out thing happen. I true and honest reporting of the Stryker happened how many lives would have been saved, how many wounded wouldn’t have been?
What has not been widely reported about Stryker in Iraq:
The slat armor doesn’t work at stopping PRG rounds, a roll of chain link fencing does a better job, the 5K pounds of extra weight has move the Strykers center of mass to the point where roll overs are common, the Striker is too heavy, no one know exactly what a Stryker weights but the first KIA in a Stryker was a driver who was crossing a bridge over a river and the bridge gave way and the driver could not get out.
The remote gun. No one has mentioned the fact that the remote gun system takes a full 60 seconds to rotate 360 degrees and the fastest a target can be acquired and the the M2 aim is 15 seconds. This gus is useless and in most cases has been removed in the field and a conventional manned mounted M2 mount has been installed in the commanders hatch.
The engine and drive train with the additional weight is to stressed and blown engines and transmissions are a common maintenance problem.
Like wise the brakes, tires and suspension are to light and have placed operational limits on the vehicle.
The wheel bearings and brakes are not sealed against the fine sand of Iraq and have been be ground down require frequent replacement.
The direct fire variant, a 105mm gun has been with drawn from service to be redesigned because it couldn’t handle the recoil and the auto loader was subject to malfunction because of the sand.
The first strikers went over to Iraq w/o AC and all the electronics fried in the desert heat. The entire fleet had to be sent back to Canada to have AC installed at a reported change order cost of $250K per vehicle.
All of the 2,131 Strykers have have had to have their engines and transmission replaces in a fleet wide up grade of 07.
Now we hear that the internal power requirements are insufficient to handle the digital communications package that was planned for the vehicle since day one. What’s next?
All these faults were know and were reported on various sites, usually by disgruntled soldiers who put their lives on the line and were failed by command vanity and a press so hungry for the goodies and perks the Army had to had out they lost site of journalism.
The Stryker has become the symbol of all that WRONG with the military/ industrial/ journalistic complex.
ALLONS,
Byron Skinner

By: Dennis

Dennis — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:19:47 +0000

Cenobyte I understand your confusion. But after thinking about it the key factor here is:
–multiple IED jammers
I do not know anything about them, and they are probably classified.
However, thinking about how an electric system could interfere with an IED triggering system two words come to mind. High energy.….
And these systems have to run continuously while moving.…
The quickest fix would be change the alternator and add as many more as needed.
But the humvees are already overloaded.….

By: The Cenobyte

The Cenobyte — Mon, 08 Jun 2009 14:04:48 +0000

600 amps… I still don’t understand how you are using 600 amps? Please keep in mind that most houses in the US have 100amps or less going to them. Most new modern high tech houses have two 100 amp phases pulled to them. How in the heck is anyone running out of power with 600amps onboard. If the lights, remote weapon system, computers, intercom, receivers, sirens and normal functions take more than 20 or 30 amps you have done something very very very very wrong. The only thing I can think is that you have a 5000watt radio on board, at which point I don’t thik I would want to sit in the darn thing. Power management is not rocket science and I can’t for the life of me figure out why this should ever be a problem.

By: Charles

Charles — Sun, 07 Jun 2009 05:24:26 +0000

TB: I hope that comment doesn’t qualify for “swept under the rug for OPSEC reasons”.
Most vehicles are going to be that heavy until we can build them out of magical light-weight materials. Could always go back to tracks…maybe a de-turreted Bradley, or a new vehicle entirely?

By: flying fart proudly joyned

flying fart proudly joyned — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 22:20:05 +0000

The Stryker was a bad idea from inception and it’s only gets worse.–
nope stryker was a good idea for a good old front war with clear frontlines and fast pushing forward.. but it was a bad idea to make this into infantry tank and network-war tool. it should be what it was developed for; the infantry transport vehicle with light-support capabilities. and yep.. in Irak Stryker was droped with wrong tactics, strategy and failed formation. aside that Stryker is a car. you cant make it havier and better just by add new tools and upgrades. Styker was done for speed not for being a moving fortes.

By: Byron Skinner

Byron Skinner — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 19:34:06 +0000

Good Afternoon Folks,
The Stryker was a bad idea from inception and it’s only gets worse. The Army has worked itself into a hole with Stryker. With ownership now of over 2100 Strykers and another 746 to be build we have a vehicle that is over weight, under powered, can’t handle the electrical requirements of the digital battle field that it was to fight in, is under armored and has only a vehicle defense fire support capability with a single M2HB or Mk. 19.
I shutter at what the final per unit cost of Stryker will be when that Army finally decides that it is even marginally acceptable as an operational vehicle. I wouldn’t be surprised that the current $10 million sticker price for the Marines EFV wouldn’t be considered a bargain.
This feeble vehicle will be along with the 15K MRAP’s bought will be a significant part of the Army’s order of battle for the next two generations or more.
Boy did the Army screw up on this one. New war fighting concept, combat vehicles to expensive to risk in combat. Or in short hand the F-22 of land warfare.
ALLONS,
Byron Skinner

By: TB

TB — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 18:02:33 +0000

Cenobyte:
power consumption:
–normal vehicle functions
–2 or more radios
–intra-team intercom
–FBCB2
–sirens
–extra lights
–multiple IED jammers
–UAV receiver
–electrical turret
–remote operated weapons station
M1151 humvees will have some combination of the above toys. The alternator maxes out after 5 of them.

By: flying fart proudly joyned

flying fart proudly joyned — Sat, 06 Jun 2009 04:36:39 +0000

Oh yeah,now that we sold AM General(& the rest of Hummer) to the RED Chinese,I guess it is time to find a replacement.–

Hey you’re confused what GM sold to china is the Hummer not the Humvee. Humvee belongs to AM General not GM. Hummer is actually a pathetic copy of AM General Humvee. Hummer is nowhere near the capabilities of the AM General Humvee they are totally different.
Actually the Hummer is a piece of shit? and its base on the Tahoe chassis. blablabla..—-
just in case but chinese do build the Hammerwe anyway.. (and they will get the bulletproof Hammer patents and high-tech wich has the best VIP protection)
btw. back in 50’ens FBI have hunted GM down just becuz they were ready to se

By: Roy Smith

Roy Smith — Fri, 05 Jun 2009 23:26:35 +0000

Oh yeah,now that we sold AM General(& the rest of Hummer) to the RED Chinese,I guess it is time to find a replacement.