I’ll start off by saying this will be a long one… Your first thought might be, “Why?” well the KV-5 is much tougher than most think if you look outside the main radioman turret(R2D2) on the front of the tank. When facing a capable KV-5 driver who can minimize this weak spot the KV-5 becomes a very difficult tank to damage for tanks with sub 180mm pen. This guide will mainly be focused for those tanks who cannot punch through the majority of the KV-5’s armor(since 200mm+ guns can slice through it rather easily even without weak spots) which are most tanks 8 and under. Those tanks with 200m+ pen should still try and use the weak spots however unless you hit a bad angle or the mantlet the KV-5 becomes rather squishy.
Frontal View
Frontally the KV-5 is at it’s weakest even though going off of the raw stats it has it’s toughest armor on the front(180mm hull and 180mm turret). However, it is only easy if you focus on the primary weak spots otherwise you will have a difficult time.
Area One:
The radioman turret(or commonly known as the R2D2) is the primary weak spot for the KV-5 if engaged frontally. Guns with over 100mm pen can reliably penetrate and do full damage.
Area Two:
Top turret is difficult for short tanks to hit up close, however it is as weak as the radioman turret just very elevated making it a bit tougher to hit at times.
Area Three:
The smaller turret next to the radioman is the driver. It is also easy to penetrate(120mm+ pen guns) however it is smaller and has a decent amount of slope on it making it tough to penetrate if you do not land the shot where the yellow area is outlined.
Area Four:
Another hatch on the top of the tank which is weak but due to it’s height, size, and angles it can be hard to penetrate since your shell might just “roll” off of it. Only use this if it is the only spot available.
Area Five:
Lower hull is tough for sub 170mm pen guns but it is weaker than the armor located above it which is 180mm thick. Given that this location of the tank when exposed also means the radioman turret is exposed you won’t need to shoot here very often.
Area Six:
Frontal glacis is 180mm thick with a slight angle(15 degrees or so) making it tough to penetrate for guns with under 220mm penetration.
Area Seven:
This location is the outside portions of the driver’s turret is tough to penetrate due to the sloped sections of the turret and also the upper deck around it is at a near auto bounce angle.
Area Eight:
Frontal turret armor is 180mm thick(mantlet much more) so avoid shooting here unless you have over 220mm+ pen and even then it can be bouncy at times.
Area Nine:
Angled portion of the top hatch is difficult to penetrate and produces a lot of bounces.
Frontal Angle View
A KV-5 angled slightly becomes slightly harder to penetrate for higher tiers since it forces them to aim for the weak spots. But many of the same weak spots are visible from this angle. If angled from the other side the only difference is for the two frontal turrets.
Area One:
Front radioman turret is still the easiest spot to penetrate the KV-5 from this angle for guns with 100mm+ penetration
Area Two:
Top turret is still visible(besides at close range for short tanks) and is still easy to penetrate if visible for tanks with 120mm+ penetration.
Area Three:
Smaller driver’s turret easy to penetrate if the shot is placed correctly(middle of turret not to high).
Area Four:
This small flat portion can be used if the first three are not available. It is part of the rear section of the tank that can produce fuel tank damage/engine damage but also can be tricky since if you miss to the left you hit strong angled turret armor and to the right the toolboxes are not part of the hit-boxes so you’ll actually hit angled side armor(150mm)
Area Five:
Angled portion of the driver’s turret can be hard for tier 5-7 tanks to penetrate if they hit at a bad angle.
Area Six:
Frontal turret are is 180mm and side armor is 150mm and both are angled at this view making them tough to penetrate for most tanks facing a KV-5 normally.
Area Seven:
Frontal 180mm armor(at a slight angle) gains even more armor from this view due to the increase in angle making it tough any tank to penetrate.
Area Eight:
Side 150mm armor which is angled from this view makes it difficult to penetrate unless you have 250mm+ penetration and even then just aim for the primary weak spots!
Side View
A KV-5 from the side can be a tough opponent for lower tier tanks and tanks with sub 160mm pen because aside from the weak spots its side hull/turret armor is 150mm.
Area One:
This area of the tank is easier to penetrate than the 150mm section of the hull and also can cause engine damage. Toolboxes below it sometimes soak up shells for some odd reason so avoid shooting them. Guns with 130mm+ penetrate reliably.
Area Two:
Top turret is very visible from this view and is easy for any tank to hit(unless you are to close to the KV-5 and are short.
Area Three:
Hello radioman! Poor fellow is still visible from the side(much more from the other side) and is still easy to penetrate.
Area Four:
Small portion of the driver’s turret that is the easiest point to penetrate.
Area Five:
Angled portion of the driver’s turret can be difficult for lower penetration guns to damage.
Area Six:
Side turret armor is 150mm with essentially no angle on it making it tough for a lot of tanks to penetrate that the KV-5 faces however guns with 160mm+ pen go through it reliably.
Area Seven:
150mm of side hull armor is much like the side turret armor…tough for sub 140mm penetration guns to damage but easier for guns with 160mm+ penetration.
Rear Angled View
Most tanks are a piece of cake to penetrate reliably but the KV-5 is one of the few that can be tough to do so and sometimes actually is harder to penetrate from the side/rear angle to rear than it is frontally.
Area One:
Top turret on the turret is easy for any tank to penetrate if visible,
Area Two:
Easy for most 120mm+ penetration guns to penetrate although due to it’s slight angle here it can be bouncy for tier 5-6 tanks.
Area Three:
This portion of the side armor is somewhat hard to penetrate for tanks with under 170mm penetration due to the angle at this view. But if the first two spots are not available it becomes your next best chance.
Area Four:
Very small view of the driver’s turret can be penetrated although it is a tough target. From the other side of the tank the radioman’s turret is also visible and slightly easier to hit than the driver’s turret.
Area Five:
High angled “deck” armor and also the sloped portions of the driver’s turret are tough to penetrate.
Area Six:
150mm of side armor at an increase angle makes it hard for sub 210mm pen guns to penetrate reliably.
Area Seven:
Side turret armor is 150mm and rear armor is 140mm. Depending on the angle it can be easy or difficult to penetrate. Tanks with over 220mm penetrate can fire away however as it becomes a gigantic weak spot.
Area Eight:
Rear armor is a very tricky spot on the KV-5 since it is 140mm thick and from this angle is angled away from you.
Rear View
Now to the rear of a KV-5 which is very tough compared to other tanks. For low tier tanks(sub 150mm penetration) this is actually tougher to face than the front of the KV-5! Tanks with over 170mm penetration have no trouble dealing with a KV-5’s rear with no angle on it from this view.Area One:
The turret on top of the turret makes a return as the all around weak spot for the KV-5! Shoot it if its is visible.
Area Two:
The top parts sticking up from the deck(including the engine exhaust) is easy to damage by most tanks. Tanks hovering around 130mm pen and lower have some trouble at times.
Area Three:
This part of the 140mm rear armor is the easiest part to penetrate.
Area Four:
Flat piece of the rear 140mm turret is easy to penetrate depending on your gun’s penetration.
Area Five:
Highly angled parts of the turret will bounce most shots.
Area Six:
Highly angled part of the rear deck will auto bounce most shot on level ground.
Area Seven:
Rear portion of the KV-5 is 140mm and these spots have different angles on them making them harder to penetrate than the yellow area above them.
Area Eight:
Toolboxes will simply soak up shells as they do not take damage the majority of the time.