In German, “Kugelpanzer” means “ball tank,” and that’s an apt descriptor for the spherical would-be menace. Overall, not much is known about the Kugelpanzer, except that it’s shaped like a ball and was recovered from somewhere in Axis territory during the closing days of World War II.
The history is not clear as to where the Kugelpanzer came from exactly, but it was possibly either lent to Imperial Japanese forces as the war came to an end, or it spent its days rolling around Nazi-occupied tank proving grounds (via Tank Encyclopedia). Either way, the Kugelpanzer ended up in the possession of the Soviet Red Army in its sweep through Europe.
The sole existing example of a Kugelpanzer consists of two rotating hemispheres, a smaller outrigger wheel behind it, and a small slit the driver was supposedly meant to see out of. It was likely a reconnaissance vehicle, and as such, it would have had limited offensive capabilities. Armament was more than likely a German or Japanese light machine gun, and power was allegedly supplied by a two-stroke motorcycle engine. If that is indeed the case, the Kugelpanzer would have a top speed not much faster than a brisk jog (via Tank Encyclopedia).
Today, the weird ball tank lives in the Kubinka Tank Museum in Russia, where Western experts have been unable to study it further.
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