Picture of the day
- Thread starter jwhc
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Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
Considering what it must have been like to have been there, I'm very glad I wasn't able to witness the sight of those tanks. Bad neighborhood.
Here's the caption from the website showing the following pic:
It's very seldom one will hear me say I'm ###ually attracted, in a very respectful way mind you, to a Lt. Colonel...
More interesting pics here:
http://www.capitalbay.com/mobile/mo...ht-about-the-end-of-the-second-world-war.html
The only cheerful faces are those two in front of the tree. As for the three in the back row left - the kind of faces you see in mugshots.
http://3.bp.########.com/-wU3bOkgAyhE/TvaXeWqQd4I/AAAAAAAAAUE/Yi7vIRMWRUk/s1600/xmas2.jpg
The date is 1940 from the calender on the wall so. If they think things are bad now, wait a while!
What's interesting is the Soviet tanks and the Sherman have been stripped for suspension parts. Suggesting that this was a tank salvage yard in Berlin or some other city where Allied and Soviet forces met and stayed. I doubt the Soviets would bother stripping a lend lease Sherman.
http://3.bp.########.com/-wU3bOkgAyhE/TvaXeWqQd4I/AAAAAAAAAUE/Yi7vIRMWRUk/s1600/xmas2.jpg
The date is 1940 from the calender on the wall so. If they think things are bad now, wait a while!
What's interesting is the Soviet tanks and the Sherman have been stripped for suspension parts. Suggesting that this was a tank salvage yard in Berlin or some other city where Allied and Soviet forces met and stayed. I doubt the Soviets would bother stripping a lend lease Sherman.
Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
Here's a nice shot of the front of the DHC factory.
And something I never knew existed - a Bolingbroke on floats.
http://1.bp.########.com/-bIMBbiSmpLo/UakRnZZRtII/AAAAAAAAITI/Ep-ew8TW-9s/s640/bolingbroke-7.jpg
And something I never knew existed - a Bolingbroke on floats.
http://1.bp.########.com/-bIMBbiSmpLo/UakRnZZRtII/AAAAAAAAITI/Ep-ew8TW-9s/s640/bolingbroke-7.jpg
Isigny-sur-Mer Normandy, Captured Equipment Collection point in France. By the 1946-47 farmers where demanding the equipment off the land so they could get back to farming. By then all the easy to pilfer vehicles like motorcycles, staff cars, smaller wheeled vehicles had pretty much vanished (in the dark of night).
Thon, collection point.
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Donny Fenn1
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- East Kootenays
could the tanks have been stripped of suspension/wheels because that was the easiest stuff to remove without the need for a crane/hoist/gantry?
bdft
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
That Sherman has the front glacis removed as well. That includes the final drives, sprockets, diff and maybe the transmission. You don't just pull that with a couple of wrenches and a crowbar. I've only worked on Sherman undercarriage on grapple yarders but I can tell you that its all heavy.
Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
Some wartime (or slightly prewar) prototypes:
The XP38:
Aerodynamic as hell. They cluttered her up with necessary scoops and such later, but what a lovely, clean design.
The Mustang I:
Allison engine, chin-mounted '50s. And a bit earlier yet, the XP51:
Very slick indeed. Finally, some early B29s in warpaint:
The XP38:
Aerodynamic as hell. They cluttered her up with necessary scoops and such later, but what a lovely, clean design.
The Mustang I:
Allison engine, chin-mounted '50s. And a bit earlier yet, the XP51:
Very slick indeed. Finally, some early B29s in warpaint:
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I've always preferred the look of the early Mustangs without the bubble canopy.
I've read that they were often confused with the ME 109 and shot at by AA crews due to the similar silhouettes. The bubble canopy would have been a distinguishing feature, but only in profile.
I've read that they were often confused with the ME 109 and shot at by AA crews due to the similar silhouettes. The bubble canopy would have been a distinguishing feature, but only in profile.
The other "5,000" or what happens when you park your plane in a neighbourhood and it gets gang tagged.
It never fails to impress me the sheer scale of American wartime production and (sadly) the speed at which these warplanes where disposed of post war.
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Aircraft like the B-24, the B-17 and prop driven fighters were obsolete at the end of WW2 and the demand for post-war consumer goods was huge. Countless numbers of aircraft were ultimately recycled into aluminum pots and pans.
4 engine bombers were also hugely manpower intensive in terms of crew numbers and maintenance overheads vs their payloads. The US Army Air Force was a huge organization in WW2 and was in direct competition for manpower with the army ground forces. The air forces got the pick of the manpower pool and was able to cream off the best educated and most physically fit.
4 engine bombers were also hugely manpower intensive in terms of crew numbers and maintenance overheads vs their payloads. The US Army Air Force was a huge organization in WW2 and was in direct competition for manpower with the army ground forces. The air forces got the pick of the manpower pool and was able to cream off the best educated and most physically fit.
Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
That 5000th B24 came from the Willow Run plant in Detroit. At their peak, they made one B24 each and every hour, 24 hours a day.
There's a move on to save a portion of the plant as the new home of the Yankee Air Museum. See more info here:
http://savethebomberplant.org/
There's a move on to save a portion of the plant as the new home of the Yankee Air Museum. See more info here:
http://savethebomberplant.org/
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Dark Alley Dan
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
- Location
- Darkest Edmonton
This is interesting. Just how hard up was the SS when it came to getting their hands on the latest and greatest?
Pretty hard up, it appears.
Pretty hard up, it appears.
Chauchat was a pile of junk because the parts were non-interchangeable for reasons of quality control during manufacture.
Guns were made by mass-production processes, inasmuch as the French were able to do so, but they were individually hand-fitted.
Get a Chauchat running right, and there is no real reason that the thing should not continue to run right.
Remington Model 8 semi-auto rifle also used a long-recoil action and they seem to be able to run forever. Mine is built in 1908.
Chauchat was a nice lightweight gun and had decent pointing qualities. Apart from fitting, its biggest downfall seems to have been that open-side magazine.... which absolutely INVITED dirt and filth to come for a visit.
It would not be my first choice, but....... if nothing else was available...... it would be better than nought.
And you are right: even the Waffen-SS was getting pretty hard up for manpower, about mid-1944. Note the guy with glasses; originally the only man in the SS who wore glasses was the Reichsfuhrer-SS himself, Heinrich Himmler. RHIP, y'know!
Guns were made by mass-production processes, inasmuch as the French were able to do so, but they were individually hand-fitted.
Get a Chauchat running right, and there is no real reason that the thing should not continue to run right.
Remington Model 8 semi-auto rifle also used a long-recoil action and they seem to be able to run forever. Mine is built in 1908.
Chauchat was a nice lightweight gun and had decent pointing qualities. Apart from fitting, its biggest downfall seems to have been that open-side magazine.... which absolutely INVITED dirt and filth to come for a visit.
It would not be my first choice, but....... if nothing else was available...... it would be better than nought.
And you are right: even the Waffen-SS was getting pretty hard up for manpower, about mid-1944. Note the guy with glasses; originally the only man in the SS who wore glasses was the Reichsfuhrer-SS himself, Heinrich Himmler. RHIP, y'know!
gewehr76
CGN Ultra frequent flyer
Looks like set up pics for propaganda. The mag is empty on Chauchot
This is interesting. Just how hard up was the SS when it came to getting their hands on the latest and greatest?
Pretty hard up, it appears.
The CSRG had many shortcomings.
Some assembly was with thread fittings that could loosen in use.
Once the guns got hot, there could be failures of barrel return.
Mud could cause the same problem. Mud in the gun shut it down. Guns were issued with covers, which were not to be removed until use was imminent.
The magazines were flimsy, with poor springs. The open side allowed entry of mud.
Ergonomics were poor; using the sights required being at an acute angle, rather than behind the gun. This resulted in an unstable hold, hardly desirable with an automatic firearm. If the sights had been offset another half inch, this problem would have been lessened.
Holding the gun as in the photo would result in a modest contusion to the cheek.
There was no provision for zeroing the sights. The front sight was part of a one piece assembly; the rear had only elevation adjustment.
The bipod tends to flop around. Only when it is fully forward, as in the photo, is there any stability.
The best features of the CSRG was that they were available in quantity from 1916 on, and well trained automatic riflemen could get effective service from them.
Note that in the photo there are no pouches or other support equipment; the magazine is empty, and the gun not cocked.
Probably a posed training photo, with the actual type of gun being unimportant.
Of course, the SS did specialize in shooting people who couldn't shoot back.
Hate to mention it, but the SMLE was also selectively assembled, hand fitted, with serially numbered parts.
Some assembly was with thread fittings that could loosen in use.
Once the guns got hot, there could be failures of barrel return.
Mud could cause the same problem. Mud in the gun shut it down. Guns were issued with covers, which were not to be removed until use was imminent.
The magazines were flimsy, with poor springs. The open side allowed entry of mud.
Ergonomics were poor; using the sights required being at an acute angle, rather than behind the gun. This resulted in an unstable hold, hardly desirable with an automatic firearm. If the sights had been offset another half inch, this problem would have been lessened.
Holding the gun as in the photo would result in a modest contusion to the cheek.
There was no provision for zeroing the sights. The front sight was part of a one piece assembly; the rear had only elevation adjustment.
The bipod tends to flop around. Only when it is fully forward, as in the photo, is there any stability.
The best features of the CSRG was that they were available in quantity from 1916 on, and well trained automatic riflemen could get effective service from them.
Note that in the photo there are no pouches or other support equipment; the magazine is empty, and the gun not cocked.
Probably a posed training photo, with the actual type of gun being unimportant.
Of course, the SS did specialize in shooting people who couldn't shoot back.
Hate to mention it, but the SMLE was also selectively assembled, hand fitted, with serially numbered parts.
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True enough but, with the SMLE, the only parts which were serialled were the main 6 which were critical for ACCURATE shooting: Body, Bolt, Barrel, Nosecap, Sights and Forestock.
The rest of the parts interchanged very freely and required adjustment or fitting very seldom, if at all.
With the CSRG it was more than a bit different: the entire GUN had to be hand-fitted in order that it FUNCTION AT ALL.
They had the IDEA right; the biggest downfall was QUALITY CONTROL. It was almost as if they were trying to build a machine-gun without using a micrometer!
Difference: you can build up an SMLE that will FIRE with unnumbered spare parts and do it fairly quickly. I really don't think you can do that with a Chauchat!
The rest of the parts interchanged very freely and required adjustment or fitting very seldom, if at all.
With the CSRG it was more than a bit different: the entire GUN had to be hand-fitted in order that it FUNCTION AT ALL.
They had the IDEA right; the biggest downfall was QUALITY CONTROL. It was almost as if they were trying to build a machine-gun without using a micrometer!
Difference: you can build up an SMLE that will FIRE with unnumbered spare parts and do it fairly quickly. I really don't think you can do that with a Chauchat!
