Posts Tagged ‘tanks’

Pictures from the Bovington Tank Museum: German Tanks

Tuesday, August 12th, 2014

(Cross-posted from BattleSwarm to here for non-political tank buffs.)

I hope you like tanks.

Here’s the first batch of pictures taken at the Bovington Tank Museum in Dorset, which I visited on Saturday as a gift to my inner 12-year old. (There are few prospects more pleasing to the preadolescent male mind than being encased in a 30 ton metal killing machine.) The first batch is all German tanks and tank destroyers from World War II. Let’s face it, the Germans had far and away the best tanks, and shortly after the allies managed to catch up, Germany would be about ready to introduce something better. Germany’s problem (as compared to America or the Soviet Union) was an inability to manufacture enough of them. (Good thing for us.) They had an enormous array of German tanks, and probably the best collection outside Germany’s own tank museum in Munster.

The first picture of the first of two King Tigers (AKA Tiger II, AKA Königstiger, Panzerkampfwagen Tiger Ausf. B) they had on display. The most powerful tank Germany produced during the war, its 88mm main gun could destroy any tank on the battlefield. It didn’t get on the battlefield until 1944, and Germany produced less than 500 of them.

The other Tiger II they had there.

Here you can see the Zimmerite anti-magnetic mine coating the Germans used.

Selfie, with tank.

The first of several tank destroyers.

This is a German tank destroyer that ended up in Finland. Stalin thought he could walk all over Finand, but the Finns tore the Soviets nine different new assholes in the Winter War, though this tank destroyer obviously post-dates 1940.

Alternate barrel used for the Sturmtiger close assault variant.

Here’s an early Panzer Mark I command tank. It’s amazing to realize that the initial German blitzkrieg was carried out with relatively slow, under-armed, and underpowered Mark I and Mark IIs, that, with Heinz Guderian’s new tactics of mechanized warfare, were simply Good Enough.

A Mark II.

I think this is the Mark III, would would be the mainstay of the Wehrmacht armored divisions through the end of the war.

A muzzle-eye view.

Armoured car.

An 88mm field canon.

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Where Would I Park It?

Saturday, July 12th, 2014

If I were made of money, this would be very tempting indeed:

Centurion Mk 5 Main Battle Tank (MBT)

Crew: 4
Armor:
Up to 6′ (152-mm)
Weapons:
-Primary
1x QF 20-pdr (83.4mm) cannon
-Secondary
1x 7.62-mm L8A1 machine gun co-axial with main armament
1x 7.62-mm L37A1 machine gun in AA mount
-Ammunition
65x 20-pdr
4,250x 7.62-mm
Engine: Rolls-Royce Meteor gasoline, 650-hp
Power/weight: 11.8-hp/ton
Fuel Capacity: 120-USG (455-l)
Range: 65-miles (105-km)
Speed: 21-mph (35-km/h)

The tank being offered, Centurion Mk 5, VRN 12BA97 K, #370/450, was built in April 1953. It is an older restoration that needs an exterior cosmetic restoration. The wheels and tracks are serviceable. The canvas mantlet cover is in good condition. All bazooka skirting is present. Spare track shoes and a tow cable are fitted to the tank’s exterior. This tank is equipped with a 20-pdr “A” barrel. Cutting the breech has demilled the gun. All gunner’s controls are present. This Centurion is powered by a Rolls-Royce Meteor engine – the non-supercharged version of the famous Merlin engine used in Mustang and Spitfire fighters of the day.

The Centurion was designed during World War II to provide a tank that could do the work of both the Infantry and Cruiser tank classes. It was designed to have firepower and protection that would allow it to survive with the latest German types of tanks and self-propelled guns seen during the war. The first Centurions entered service too late to see action in World War II. Initially, they were equipped the 17-pdr (76.2-mm) cannon which was one of the best tank guns used by the Western Allies during the war. By the time Centurions saw combat in 1950 during the Korean War, they had been upgunned to the more powerful 20-pdr (83.4-mm) cannon. This remained the standard gun on Centurions until the early 1960s when they were upgunned with the 105-mm L7 cannon.

The four-man crew of the Centurion was well-protected with armor up to 6-inches (152-mm) thick. Stowage bins mounted on the turret sides provided standoff protection from HEAT rounds while skirts along the suspension helped protect against anti-tank rockets. Various upgrades throughout the years allowed the Centurion to stay in service with many countries well into the 1980s. The Centurion has been exported to numerous countries including the Canada, Denmark, Israel and South Africa. They saw action in numerous wars including the Indo-Pakistani Wars, Arab-Israeli Wars, the 1956 Suez War, and various conflicts in southern Africa between South Africa and Cuban forces.

Transport Cost to Storage: $5,808

Alas, a few tiny problems present themselves:

  • It is a wee bit out of my price range.
  • The auction is in California, so transportation would be a pain (and expensive).
  • Where would I park it?
  • Likewise, parking spaces are crowded enough at my current job, and I’m pretty sure this would take up at least two spaces.
  • What’s the point of having a tank with a demilled gun? Except, of course, that no one will ever cut you off in traffic ever again.
  • Even if it weren’t demilled, finding 83.4mm ammunition would likely prove challenging, and I don’t think anyone makes a reloading press for HEAT rounds…
  • And what sort of BATFE permit do you need for a tank anyway?

    • Really, I’d need a ranch to buy something like this. Or, as the news reports would inevitably refer to it, a “heavily fortified compound.”

    There are many other interesting items in this auction, which is happening today. Including a Jagdpanzer Kanone, which, alas, looks pretty crapped out, and, I kid you not, an actual SCUD launcher. (I’m not sure any BATFE permit would cover a working SCUD launcher…)

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    A Few Recent Book Aquistions of Interest

    Wednesday, December 14th, 2011

    The book buying continues apace here at Stately Person Manor. I plan to have a comprehensive roundup of every damn thing I bought toward the end of the year (which is nigh), but here are a few particularly interesting, obscure, and/or lustworthy books I’ve picked up since Worldcon (a;; pics enbiggenable):

  • Graham, H. E. The Battle of Dora. William Clowes & Sons, Ltd. 1931. First edition hardback, a Very Good copy in a Good+ dust jacket with three 1/4″ chips at edges. Future war book set in an imaginary European country concerned with primarily with the evolving tactics of mechanized warfare. With fold-out maps!

  • Howard, Robert E. The Coming of Conan. Gnome Press, 1953. First edition hardback, a Near Fine+ copy with slight bends at head and heel and slight foxing to strip along front and back gutters, in a Near Fine dust jacket with slight dust staining to white rear cover and a few touches of rubbing to spine panel (but no spine fading). This completes my Robert E. Howard Gnome Press Conan collection. (At some point I suppose I’ll pick up the De Camp and Nyburg volume but, eh. what’s the rush?)

  • Oliver, Chad. Another Kind. Ballantine Books, no date (1955). First edition hardback (an unrecorded variant binding of green boards with red lettering), a Near Fine copy with slight age-darkening to page (most noticeable in one signature) and slight bending at head and heel in a Near Fine dust jacket with slight age darkening and touches of wear at extremities. Actually quite nice. All of the Ballantine SF hardbacks if this era are hard to find.

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