You're right George, return rollers were used in tanks with smaller wheels; it just happens in scale models that the rollers hold the track on one level, thereby minimizing flapping. That's a "side effect". I was talking about the effects that occurr on scale tanks with to-scale spaces and materials. Still, in great speeds, the wave - though a smaller
wave- bounces on the rollers of the model and is transferred from the rollers to the front. That's if you don't have suspensions...
Materials in different scales work a little different. That's mainly because we tend to overdo it with stunts, like driving and abusing in a rocky terrain with a "real" speed of 60 kms/h (and, do real tanks jump and fly and land in one piece like YOUR tank does?). See bending momentum, say of a rod, when you double the scale. The volume and weight increases 8 times, however the section of the rod is increased only 4 times while the strength of the material remains the same. Meaning, the smaller, the stronger.
Tracks to scales 1:5 - 1:10 tend to flap more easily, either because the tracks have the proper dimensions but they don't have the proper to-scale weight (made of different materials)
or are made of more elastic materials. However, the "wave" effect for flapping appears on tracks made of individual links. I think. I checked it on a video, in slow motion! - again without road wheel suspensions.
CHrys
From what I understand return rollers where to stop the track flapping around. Tanks with return rollers usually have their road wheel arms dropped lower to improve ground clearance with smaller wheels. T34 was a very low tank compared with US tanks with rollers.
T34 was also a tank that was considered to have a tight track due to its sprocket/track design and wheel placement