We're the Military and Airpower Guys of Jonah Goldberg of National Review Online + a stray we found wandering around looking lost. All original material JHD, BHD, JR, WT, and KA 2003-2010 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html Sat, 24 Mar 2012 15:58:07 Z Movable Type 4.12 en Copyright 2012 http://www.rssboard.org/rss-specification Hey - old airplane guys - izzit me, or is this just a cool picture? A-12 Shrikes in the Phillipines before WWII. Heh. Anti-aircraft gunnery... the hard way. I really find it interesting that they kept their pantel (panoramic telescope, used for laying the gun for direction, 'dial sight' to a Commonwealth soldier) on the gun (the thing sticking up in front of the guy crewing the piece). There *is* a way you could use that sight to reflect lead... but a ring-and-bead sight would be better. Last, but not least... ain't tanks a mighty fine thing? As long as... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html Wed, 14 Dec 2005 06:49:00 -0600 Oh yeah the Finns did; but they did not have to load them down with a half-ton of USN-inflicted equipment, nor land them on carriers and distort the living poo out of the landing gear so that it would never again retract all the way. I also seem to recall reading somewhere that the Finns replaced the wings on some of them with wooden replicas made from that excellent Finnish birch plywood and spruce: Much smoother and more efficient, just like an old wooden Mooney or Bellanca. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36545 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36545 Sat, 17 Dec 2005 13:55:23 -0600 Thin walls 'round a large bore. Settle down, tanker-boy... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36443 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36443 Thu, 15 Dec 2005 16:48:15 -0600 thin walls? you callin me a "needle dick", dick? plenty thick enough (in tube ballistics is the crux) and that bit about thermal and bending --- yeah, what he said! http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36442 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36442 Thu, 15 Dec 2005 16:37:17 -0600 loved 'em ...]]> http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36419 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36419 Thu, 15 Dec 2005 12:59:03 -0600 Where, Oh Where is the Brewster Buffalo?? http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36415 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36415 Thu, 15 Dec 2005 12:15:34 -0600 Dang! Many thanx for the A-12 pix! I have some drawings of the plane in an old Model Airplane News; always thought it cool-looking if not practical. Had dispensers for light frag bombs between the cockpits, as I recall. These must be the later versions; they started out with big Curtiss liquid-cooled V-12s. That was back when Curtiss-Wright still sorta listened to their engineers (somewhat). On that other pic: Problems of quick slew/traverse and elevating aside, I wonder if the equilibrator and suchlike homeostatic parts of the piece were up to shooting at that angle. Well, they were trying, I guess, and let the enemy aviators know they were appreciated. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36390 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36390 Thu, 15 Dec 2005 00:06:01 -0600 Thin tube massave breach and chamber assy. APFSDS-T is out the end of the tube (pipe) at approx 1600 meters per second. The tube is thick enough to withstand the pressure and thin enough not to impart too much gravity induced bending and flexing. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36363 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36363 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 16:45:18 -0600 The absentee ballots I sent to some of the guys in the Sandbox are finally getting here, evidently. The voters have been kind of busy... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36341 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36341 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 12:31:59 -0600 Oh, it's still counts as neck and neck, but when I voted yesterday, you were behind 20-30 votes. http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36338 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36338 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 12:00:19 -0600 By my accounting... that's neck and neck. 'Specially since Phil isn't even trying... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36324 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36324 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 09:21:29 -0600 Hey, as of 9am Central, your up by 5 votes over Intel Dump: 532-527 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36323 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36323 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 09:02:14 -0600 Yes, that *is* nicht wahr. And I don't care about the interior ballistics... it *still* looks thin! http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36321 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36321 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 08:36:24 -0600 One of the old airplane guys, checking in. Oh. "Old" referring to *airplane.* %$#@! I always get into trouble with those indeterminate adjectives... http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36320 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36320 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 08:35:59 -0600 So, the A-12 "Shrike" is the successor to the A-10, nicht wahr? As for the barrel thickness on a M1: it's a smoothbore, thus there is little drag on the projectile, it goes down the barrel faster, thus with reduced pressure, therefore thick barrel walls are unnecessary. Tres simple! Cheers http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36318 http://www.thedonovan.com/archives/2005/12/a_little_historical_stuff_for_the_day.html#comment-36318 Wed, 14 Dec 2005 08:27:41 -0600