Author Topic: Curious, improvised and other unusual weapons - as ideas for creativity (Read 11054 times)

cuprum · « **Reply #15 on:** March 29, 2014, 04:56:28 PM »

Everyone knows about the Soviet antitank rifles PTRD and PTRS. But not everyone knows that they are very often used as an improvised anti-aircraft guns. And even managed to shoot down low-flying aircraft ...

Finisterrae · « **Reply #16 on:** March 29, 2014, 08:07:04 PM »

Quote

Dogs-tank destroyer
Have undermined more than 300 fascist tanks, including 63 during the Battle of Stalingrad.

I was wondering about this claim since I read that the soviet anti-tank dog program was a failure.
To quote said wikipedia article:

Quote

This claim [i.e., 300 disabled vehicles] was questioned by Russian historians as propaganda, trying to justify the dog training program. There are however documented claims of individual successes of the program, with the number of damaged tanks usually being within a dozen.

Regarding the "curious" aspect, the Churchill AVRE has to be mentioned:

http://www.defensemedianetwork.com/stories/hobart-and-his-funnies-gen-bradley-and-the-d-day-controversy/

... as well as the Japanese FB swamp crossing vehicle

http://www.strange-mecha.com/vehicle/track/scv.htm

...and, of course, the strange German "Kugelpanzer" captured by Soviet Forces from the Japanese in Manchuria.

http://strangevehicles.greyfalcon.us/KRUPP%20KUGELPANZER.htm

... not to mention the bat bombs, of which I could find no photo.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bat_bomb

Johnnytodd · « **Reply #17 on:** March 30, 2014, 12:18:13 AM »

Charlie "Bazooka" Carpenter turned his lowly Piper Cub into a tank buster:

cuprum · « **Reply #18 on:** March 30, 2014, 06:06:58 AM »

Quote from: Finisterrae on March 29, 2014, 08:07:04 PM

I was wondering about this claim since I read that the soviet anti-tank dog program was a failure.
To quote said wikipedia article:

In Russia there is a joke: "Russia - a country with an unpredictable history."

Unfortunately, many modern Russian historians can not be trusted ... In an attempt to fight against "Stalinist legacy" written many false history books, where to vilify the Stalinist period in Russia's history - slandered and a history of the Great Patriotic War.
Though in the history books a lot of liars a also in the communist period - for a different reason.
I prefer to believe reminiscences of the participants events. Here are two specific combat episodes involving dogs-destruction tanks. I took them from the book memories Soviet officers, veterans of war. The fighting in the Crimea in 1942:

"July 21, 1942 north of the village Chaltyr, from the city of Taganrog, on the position of 68-th Separate Marine Rifle Brigade attacked about 40 tanks. Twelve of them, suppressing the battery 45-mm anti-tank guns, were advancing to the command post. The situation became critical. And then the brigade commander, Colonel Athanasius Efimovich Shapovalov used last reserve - 4th company of SIT (Dogs - Tank Destroyer).
Fifty-six dogs rushed towards the tanks. As recorded in the short history of combat operations brigade, "at this time through the combat formations defending sailors raced dogs - tank destroyers. On their backs been fastened explosive charge and, like an antenna sticking out lever from contact with the bottom of the tank which tripped detonator and explode a bomb. Tanks exploded one after the other. Field covered with black plumes of acrid smoke. Tank attack stopped. The surviving tanks with accompanying infantry began their retreat. Fight subsided ... ".

"July 22, 1942 near the village of Sultan-Saly, north-west of Rostov, in the defense zone of the 256th Rifle Regiment of the 30th Infantry Division there was an emergency situation. At 11.40 more than fifty German tanks and about regiment motorized infantry - went out in the rear of our battalions. And how and day before that near Chaltyr, north of the village Krasnyy Krym - dogs have saved the situation.
By order of the commander of the 30th Division Colonel Boris Nikititch Arshintsev - Captain Ivancha pulled off leash 64 dog-bomber. In a matter of minutes were undermined 24 enemy tanks - a unique result! Left without dogs, killed under the tanks and shot by German machine guns, soldiers of the 3rd company "Dogs - Tank Destroyer" downed volley fire from rifles enemy twin-engine bomber.
Many soldiers-dog owners mourned their animals, "We are soldiers, we are defending Motherland and they just blindly trust us and love us. But we betrayed them ... ".

The last episode of the successful use of dogs-tank destroyers, which is known to me, was in 1943, during the Battle of Kursk.
But the results of these units were not stable - well trained dogs was difficult, especially during the war. Good dogs were needed for other military activities (as well as like good dog training specialists), and turn them into a disposable weapon was very wasteful.
Poorly trained dogs bombers were dangerous to their own troops.

In Russia, there are monuments dogs fighter tanks. And I tend to believe named digit - about 300 destroyed enemy war machines. Only in one case described by me above the Nazis lost about 30-50 tanks ...

carlos marighela · « **Reply #19 on:** March 30, 2014, 08:03:32 AM »

Rin-Tin Tick Tick Boom.

Pavlov himself would have been impressed. Of course it reminds one of the old Soviet era joke:

'How do we know socialism isn't a scientific theory?'

'Because they would have tested it on dogs first'.

cuprum · « **Reply #20 on:** March 30, 2014, 10:47:44 AM »

At the end of the 1930s in the USSR Mitin brothers was constructed one of the first mass-produced barrel suppressor expansion type. The device has been called "BraMit" in honor of its inventors and was designed to be installed on the revolver Nagan and Mosin rifle.
Suppressor could be used without problems with a standard revolver, for use on the Mosin rifle was needed cartridge with reduced charge of gunpowder.
Suppressors "BraMit" is widely and successfully used by Russian diversionists, snipers and partisans.

Suppressor "BraMit" for the revolver Nagan

Suppressor "BraMit" for the Mosin rifle.

cuprum · « **Reply #21 on:** April 06, 2014, 10:02:56 AM »

Mountain packhorse rocket launcher M-8 "Katyusha"

Mountain packhorse rocket launcher M-8 had a total weight of 68 kg. Rocket launcher was the guide rails for 8 missiles (4 on top and 4 bottom). Vertical angle aiming was 45 °, horizontal - 360 °. Salvo launches was carried out for 1-2 seconds, firing range at 5.5 km. Rocket launcher was simple and reliable in operation, easy to was dissociated into 3 a pack and quickly translated into the firing position.

It was formed on 12 mountain missile batteries through 4 rocket launchers each battery.

Were used these rocket launchers in the battles in the Caucasus, in the Crimea, in amphibious operations on the Black Sea coast, this weapon was used by Soviet partisans.
In 1944, these rocket launchers were used in battle in the Carpathian mountains and foothills. During this period, a rocket launcher mounted on the car, "Willis" and could fire out of such a provision, or can be easily removed from the car for shooting from the ground.