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For Russia the T-55s they have in storage can be used where a gun with some protection is needed.
It does not need a lot of upgrades and is simple and reliable and in most cases effective.
When it comes to export I would say it would make more sense to get export customers interested in newer designs even just T-72 types which have the complication of an autoloader but also the advantage of an autoloader.
125mm ammo is in mass production in huge numbers and availability is not a problem.
I might say an idea to upgrade the T-55 might be to replace the gun with the 100mm gun of the BMP-3, but with modifications.
There are rounds called telescopic rounds which is based on the idea that modern guns have digital fire control systems and can load specific rounds for specific targets, so as opposed to old guns that fired rounds in a belt like a 30mm cannon where all the rounds had to shoot to a single point of aim so HE rounds couldn't be too heavy and armour piercing rounds couldn't be too light and too high velocity otherwise on the same belt the HE rounds would go low because they are heavy and slow and the armour piercing rounds would go high because they are lighter and much higher velocity.
The 100mm rounds for the BMP-3s gun is a big heavy HE round with a tiny propellent charge to lob it at targets, but the volume or space the entire round takes up is quite big so replace the big heavy HE bomb with a narrow long penetrator dart and replace the empty space with lots of high energy propellent and you can have a decently powerful APFSDS round in the same space... all you need is a gun that can take the high pressure high velocity APFSDS round.
It is what they did with the 57mm grenade launcher round they are using... big heavy powerful (for the calibre) HE rounds with a tiny stub propellent charge to lob it at the target. But for an armour piercing round you can replace the HE bomb with a thin long penetrator dart and replace the HE volume with propellent to get a decent APFSDS round, so 57mm grenade launcher becomes an anti armour gun with more room for a longer heavier APFSDS penetrator than you could fit in a 30mm cannon round with more than enough space for lots of propellent to make it go faster than a 30mm cannon round could manage too.
They could do the same with the 100mm HE round of the BMP-3 main gun, you could fit a decent APFSDS penetrator in a sabot and lots of propellent in the space the 100mm HE round fitted, which should be more powerful than a 57mm gun or APFSDS that could be fitted to the vehicle.
Not much effect against modern first tier MBTs, but against medium and light vehicles it would be very potent and the 100mm HE round is very effective too with very very compact single piece ammo and of course the missiles can be used against surface and light air targets too.
Recoil would be moderate and you could use the autoloader in the BMP-3 so you only need two turret crew and a smaller calibre gun which should free up some space.
Add some modern decent optics and perhaps some BDD armour add on modules and you have a potent little vehicle that you could use even on high tier front lines taking out enemy light armour... use the complete BMP mount including the 30mm cannon and engage aircraft too with airburst 30mm cannon shells.
Fit a twin barrel 2M38M 30mm cannon from a Tunguska as a fire power vehicle for use against troops and soft vehicles and VIED attacks.
The options are wide... increase the track size so it can operate on soft ground, or modify it for use in the mountains...
It does not need a lot of upgrades and is simple and reliable and in most cases effective.
When it comes to export I would say it would make more sense to get export customers interested in newer designs even just T-72 types which have the complication of an autoloader but also the advantage of an autoloader.
125mm ammo is in mass production in huge numbers and availability is not a problem.
I might say an idea to upgrade the T-55 might be to replace the gun with the 100mm gun of the BMP-3, but with modifications.
There are rounds called telescopic rounds which is based on the idea that modern guns have digital fire control systems and can load specific rounds for specific targets, so as opposed to old guns that fired rounds in a belt like a 30mm cannon where all the rounds had to shoot to a single point of aim so HE rounds couldn't be too heavy and armour piercing rounds couldn't be too light and too high velocity otherwise on the same belt the HE rounds would go low because they are heavy and slow and the armour piercing rounds would go high because they are lighter and much higher velocity.
The 100mm rounds for the BMP-3s gun is a big heavy HE round with a tiny propellent charge to lob it at targets, but the volume or space the entire round takes up is quite big so replace the big heavy HE bomb with a narrow long penetrator dart and replace the empty space with lots of high energy propellent and you can have a decently powerful APFSDS round in the same space... all you need is a gun that can take the high pressure high velocity APFSDS round.
It is what they did with the 57mm grenade launcher round they are using... big heavy powerful (for the calibre) HE rounds with a tiny stub propellent charge to lob it at the target. But for an armour piercing round you can replace the HE bomb with a thin long penetrator dart and replace the HE volume with propellent to get a decent APFSDS round, so 57mm grenade launcher becomes an anti armour gun with more room for a longer heavier APFSDS penetrator than you could fit in a 30mm cannon round with more than enough space for lots of propellent to make it go faster than a 30mm cannon round could manage too.
They could do the same with the 100mm HE round of the BMP-3 main gun, you could fit a decent APFSDS penetrator in a sabot and lots of propellent in the space the 100mm HE round fitted, which should be more powerful than a 57mm gun or APFSDS that could be fitted to the vehicle.
Not much effect against modern first tier MBTs, but against medium and light vehicles it would be very potent and the 100mm HE round is very effective too with very very compact single piece ammo and of course the missiles can be used against surface and light air targets too.
Recoil would be moderate and you could use the autoloader in the BMP-3 so you only need two turret crew and a smaller calibre gun which should free up some space.
Add some modern decent optics and perhaps some BDD armour add on modules and you have a potent little vehicle that you could use even on high tier front lines taking out enemy light armour... use the complete BMP mount including the 30mm cannon and engage aircraft too with airburst 30mm cannon shells.
Fit a twin barrel 2M38M 30mm cannon from a Tunguska as a fire power vehicle for use against troops and soft vehicles and VIED attacks.
The options are wide... increase the track size so it can operate on soft ground, or modify it for use in the mountains...
