🇩🇪 Tiger Tank ' Hand Crank Engine Start Up '

The crank starter, is the recommended way of starting a Tiger in cold weather conditions, because batteries in WW2 were not very reliable, the tank also has an electric starter. The hand crank turns a heavy flywheel at the rear of the engine, when it reaches a high rotation speed, a pin is pushed or pulled, this connects the spinning flywheel to the crank shaft, which spins up the pistons thus starting the engine.

[elitemation]

Lets be honest, no matter who’s side you are on or even none. The Germans are really impressive when it comes to machines.

[doubleT]

First time that Brits cheered when a Tiger engine started running ...

[paulknuff]

Those crafty Germans always make the best wind up toys.

[davecrupel]

For those who don't know, This is called an *inertial starter.*
That pole would be connected to a gear inside that hole, which would be connected to a few other gears in a step-up fashion. (Gear reduction but the opposite way). The other end of that gear train would be a *heavy* gear that connects to the engine's flywheel (connected to the crankshaft). Now that gear is heavy for a reason.
When you got that last gear up to a high enough rotational speed, the momentum, the driver would use whatever mechanisms to connect that gear to the flywheel. Then, the energy of the _inertia_ of that gear's fast rotation would go into the flywheel, turning it. It wouldn't turn it for long. But it would be just long enough to get the engine started. Which is why i love german engines. They barely make a full revolution before starting up. Which, even by modern standards, is damn impressive.

Even as old as this big heavy Maybach engine is, it started up in no time at all! And in my book, the mark of a well-designed engine is the quick fidelity of it's starting process.
EDIT: Maybach engine, NOT porsche. I always thought it was a porsche engine. Thanks for the correction!

[Явеличайшийагрономнаэтойпланет]

"Dad why is my sister's name Rosa?"
"Because you mother loves roses"
"Thanks dad"
"No problem Panzerkampfwagen VI Ausführung H 1942"

[thomaswoll-vjvf]

Welch ein Glück, das es noch betriebsbereite Fahrzeuge gibt. Ein Tiger ist natürlich ein besonderes Highlight. Toll!

[viraxo]

70 years and he still works. My 5 year old car not -_-

[AitoKurittaja]

It is very respectable how good care you take from this Tiger 131 in there. It looks like it just came out from the factory.

[Happykillerrr]

60 years later.. still an impressive machine.

[BeforeTheNoose]

Gear change was as smooth as an Egyptian whiskey

[quepacho]

Absolutely amazing, it even sounds like a roaring tiger!

[SimonFS]

I got to say it's so nice to see your "former enemy" working on a German tank and just enjoying the same passion about technic together. Besides its basically build for the opposite.

[Livedracersteve]

I remember a time when my grandpa’s friend (who was much older then my grandfather) told me about his time in the army in WW2, he was a tanker and one night when there 3 tank platoon had set up camp, they were getting ready to sleep when they heard a group of tigers starting up in the night. His platoon hid in the dark because they wouldn’t be able to take on the group of tanks that had started up in the night. He told me the tigers had to be started every few hours to keep the engines warm and batteries charged.

[__jarek__]

Piękna maszyna. Choć w 44 r, ich widok nas nie cieszył 😁

[tonigrace]

The Tiger is the sexiest tank of WW2❤
Imagine trying to crank start that thing in winter outside Stalingrad!

[michelangelosghost]

Only a German gearbox could stand that kind of abuse after so many years. Incredible noise. A truly beautiful machine!

[EdinProfa]

"Are you crying mein Fuhrer?"
"Nein."

[joegardiner]

You can see why they felt invincible. Beautiful machine and probably driven by many brave young men

[ktkt]

Anytime you see people so close to the Tiger, it gives you an accurate perspective of it's size- what a beast!

[ChallengerA]

All I can say is that although I'm a woman, I've loved this tank for years! Oh the sound of it starting up! It's impossible to explain why I love tanks in general, and 131 especially, people either understand or they just don't get it. Mostly they just don't get it! At least other commentators on this site will understand. My kitchen is full of tank photos, and I would buy one if I could.