ChMZAP Convertible Trailers

     Notes: These are heavy load trailers designed for towing behind a standard heavy truck (normally the KrAZ-255B in Russian service).  The trailer has three rear axles and a removable four-wheel front dolly; this dolly may be removed, and then the trailer is used as a semi-trailer.  The trailers have decent off-road performance, and have an excellent suspension along with airbrakes, and a mechanical parking brake on the rearmost axle.  The standard equipment with these trailers includes loading ramps, guide bars, guide rollers, and the various materials for securing the loads.  The ChMZAP-2303V has three axles on the rear and four on the dolly, each with two tires; the other three have four axles in the rear and four on the dolly.  The ChMZAP-5523 has folding loading ramps, and is designed to carry vehicles in addition to cargo.  The others are meant primarily for large cargoes, pallets, containers, or large shelter-type bodies.  The ChMZAP-5524 has a high cargo capacity, but is almost 1.5 meters shorter and half a meter shorter than the first two, though a variant, the ChMZAP-5524A is a meter longer than the ChMZAP-5524.  The ChMZAP-5208 is even shorter at 9.33 meters, but is 200mm wider than the first two trailers on the chart at 3.2 meters.  These trailers have been in production since at least 1957 and are believed to still be used and possibly even still be in production.

ChMZAP-5247

     These are a pair of heavy load semi-trailers most often used as tank and tracked vehicle transporters, though they are also used to carry heavy equipment and cargoes.  The ChMZAP-5247B is a simple flatbed transporter with two axles in the rear of the trailer and a total of eight tires, each with airbrakes.  The ChMZAP-5247B has adjustable track guides, guide bars, and the standard selection of tools and materials for the securing of vehicles or cargo.  Two spare tires are also provided.

     The ChMZAP-5247G is a more advanced form of this trailer; the load deck is within a “well” of sorts, with an incline behind the load area and the gooseneck in front of it.  It is a little over half a meter longer than its predecessor and almost three-quarters of a meter wider.  It can carry more weight, and has powered folding loading ramps at the rear (the ChMZAP-5247B has only removable loading ramps).

ChMZAP-5212

     Notes: This is a heavy flatbed trailer designed for use on hard roads and with little off-road capability.  It is normally used for heavy cargo, containers, and palletized loads, but is also capable of being a tank transporter.  The ChMZAP-5212 has four axles with a total of 16 tires, and all wheels are fitted with airbrakes.  The trailer has the standard track guides, guide bars, and the normal assortment of tools and load-securing equipment.  Power-operated loading ramps are provided at the rear of the trailer.  The trailer is short compared to a lot of comparable trailers, but it is adequate for most Russian-made tanks.

MWTP-99941

     Notes: This largest of Russian tank transporter semi-trailers is designed specifically to be towed by the MZKT Volat 74135 semi-tractor.  It is built from high-strength steel in a longitudinal frame with a thick steel with anti-skid flooring and adjustable guide bars.  (This flooring is thick enough to give the load bed an AV of 2.)  The loading ramps at the rear are hydraulically operated, and are also thick enough to give an AV of 2 to anyone hiding behind them.  The trailer has its own 5 kW APU to operate the ramps, adjustable guide bars, and a 25-ton winch.  The MWTP-99941 also has a central tire inflation system which allows the towing truck to adjust the pressure of the tires, giving the trailer considerable off-road capability.  The trailer has six axles in three sets, each with independent suspension and two tires each.  The load bed may carry any combination of vehicles which can fit on the load bed (which is 13.9 meters of the total length of the trailer) and 70 tons total.  Stabilizing stands may be lowered at each corner of the trailer when loading vehicles.

Russian General-Purpose Cargo Trailers

     Notes: Russia (and the Soviet Union before them) has made a wide variety of general-purpose trailers, ranging from small ones designed for use by very light vehicles to large one meant for towing by Russia’s largest trucks.  Unfortunately, little information is available for these trailers other than raw statistics, but there is enough to present the statistics given below.  Most of them are still in service, or in some cases, still being built.  Many of them are capable of being used for shelter carriers, container carriers, and water tanks.  Some of the larger ones carry spare tires (sometimes more than one), and some even have features like rollers, tie downs, and tools and materials for securing loads.  In general, the more expensive the trailer is, the larger it is physically (but not necessarily in cargo capacity); however, a lower price and relatively high cargo capacity could also mean the trailer is a flatbed-type (this is especially true of the high-capacity trailers that have relatively low weights).

      The little information about the trailers I do it know is as follows: The 2-ASP-4.5 is a side-tilting dump trailer.  The 2-PN-2, 2-PN-4, 2-PN-6, TAPZ-755A, and MAZ-5224 are low-bed trailers designed primarily for pallets and containers.  They do not perform well off-road. The GKB-817 has a wooden cargo bed floor, drop sides, and a tailgate.  The MAZ-886 may drop all four sides and is almost always fitted with bows and a canvas top.  The MAZ-5206 is a flatbed trailer designed primarily for carrying shelter bodies, but also capable of carrying containers or palletized loads.  The PAZS-3137 is a fueling trailer; it is equipped with a large fuel tank and the requisite hoses and pumps, as well as a small 2 kW APU to power the pumps; it is not designed to carry water.  The TAPZ-754V can drop on all sides except the front, and has a wooden cargo box floor.  The TsV-50 is a tank trailer for the transport of drinking water; it is not designed for fuel or POL, and has the appropriate taps for use by soldiers.  The PTs-4.2-754V and PTs-6 are tank trailers designed for the carrying of fuel; they have hoses and valves, but are gravity-operated.  The VMG-40-51 is a water tanker designed for arctic climates; it is well-insulated and is equipped with a small heater to keep the water from being frozen (powered by the towing vehicle).

General-Purpose Russian Cargo Semi-Trailers

     Notes: These semi-trailers include general cargo carriers for large cargoes, containerized loads, pallets, or shelter bodies, as well as some tank transporters.  As above, little information is available to me at present other than raw data, but there is enough to give game statistics.  Many of these vehicles carry spare tires, and most have features like rollers, tie downs, lockdowns, and tools and materials for securing loads.  In general, physically larger trailers are more expensive, and less expensive ones are physically smaller.  These semi-trailers are mostly flatbed-types in their basic form, though some can have removable sides added to them, or jury-rigged.  They generally are meant for on-road use and have poor off-road capability, with the exception of tank transporters, which are somewhat better off-road.

     Here’s a little information about the trailers I do know: In general, the MAZ-938, and MAZ-938B are special-use shelter carriers; the various ChMZAP-x trailers are tank and vehicle transporters, with loading ramps at the rear and the normal equipment and accessories associated with such vehicles.  The rest can be used as ad hoc vehicle transporters, but are generally used for large cargo.  The KAZ-717 has a wooden cargo bed floor and three hinged sides (all except the front).  The MAZ-584B also has three hinged sides, but has a metal cargo bed floor.  The OdAZ-740, 784, 794, 795, 832, 828, and 935 carry a van-type body.  The OdAZ-760 carries a cargo body with a tailgate and bows with a canvas tilt.