February 19, 2008
I didn't really take the whole weekend off...
...we did have a winter storm blow through that caused us to lose connectivity to the satellite. We got around 8 inches of snow in about 5 hours. The fluffy, heavy, wet stuff. Fortunately, it came with enough wind that it didn't build up too much on the trees, which haven't had a chance to recover from the ice storm yet.
Saturday, I did take off to get some work done 'round the Castle while the weather briefly permitted. That involved schlepping all the downed limbs from the ice storm of December and building a funeral pyre for them. It's green wood, so it took all day to burn the debris of the 6 trees in the immediate area, what with cutting them up and piling them on, and keeping the fire hot enough to burn green wood without too much smoke (it was all Chinese Elm).
Sunday, we got hit with the snow, and the temps were back in the teens. So, I worked on the Vickers guns in the basement.
I have two versions of the Vickers, the corrugated water jacket and the later smooth water jacket. I keep them (generally) in WWI configuration for the corrugated jacket gun, and WWII Indirect Fire configuration for the smooth jacket. Both are ex-Turkish guns. The smooth jacket sits in an Australian WWII tripod, the other in the original Turk tripod, which sits higher, and has provision for an anti-aircraft extension in the long leg of the tripod. Purists are gouging out their eyes already, as I've got mixed parts and bits from all the users of the Vickers - Brit, Aussie, Kiwi, South African, Canadian, and Indian, too. Part of the appeal of the gun to me is all the users, and the true interchangeability of the parts. Purists are also tearing their hair at the anachronism on the corrugated jacket gun as currently displayed... Let's see if there are any purists present who will point it out...
These particular guns are dummies made by Sarco. As such, they have thicker-than-original sideplates, and do not have the recoil plates installed. The reason for the thicker sideplates is so that the recoil plates *cannot* be installed, making it much harder to rework the guns into a shootable condition. They are also minutely longer than the original receivers, so that the locks will not come far enough forward to actually strip a round from the belt. The Vickers/Maxim locks (Vickers on the left, Maxim on the right in the linked picture) are fully capable of firing a cartridge without the cartridge being in the chamber. The firing pins on the locks have been nipped, so that they won't protrude through the lock - but since the locks can be removed, idiots and the ignorant could still get themselves in real trouble.
Another artifact of this particular ATF-approved design is that the maker didn't want to do to the extra effort to drill and tap holes for the "check lever," which is a prominent component of the Vickers gun. It served to help regulate the firing speed of the gun and to prevent the charging handle from moving too far when the gun starts to wear. Simply put, they didn't come with the guns. The guns were also missing the tripod stop (which was a Brit variation not present on the Turk guns). While all the other bits and pieces were present, some weren't in the best of shape, so I spent the day cleaning and repairing and doing some arranging in the display. I'm going to build some stepped shelves to put the gunners kits and platoon parts chest, etc, on.
So, I went digging into the bits and pieces I've been collecting for 11 years now (I started after SWWBO gave me the early version of the gun for Christmas before we got married) and spent a lazy afternoon epoxying on the check levers (after some judicious grinding off of two bosses that would have fit into the sideplate), cleaning up some rust that was starting to show through the paint, replacing water plugs that didn't have the heat resistant scales on them with ones that did. And more stuff like that. I'll behead some screws to put in the screw holes on the check lever mounting plates - because I'm too lazy to drill and tap, too.
I then swapped the WWII gun so that it faces the wall, and a visitor can see the dial sight and clinometer of the indirect fire configuration (as well as the gunner's end of the gun) and the WWI gun is facing the viewer, to give them access to that view. I then arranged a good chunk of the bits and pieces around (there's more, believe me) to add visual appeal and provide props when I drone on about the guns to unsuspecting visitors. Still plenty of work to do, but I thought I'd share a window into the slow progress on the Arms Room of Argghhh!
If you'd like a little closer a view, click here.
Oh, and if you'd like to own a shootable Vickers - there is one available right now. Aside from not being legal in Kansas (and because it's a sideplate gun, possibly not in Missouri, either - though an original would be), the price is one reason why I don't own any shooters.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �July 12, 2007
Now that is one fine piece...
...of Brit- or Canadian-built pulchritude.
Yes, of course I mean that Bren Mark 1 sitting on the table. Geez, remember where you are, people! The home of the Armorer!
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �May 21, 2007
Hee!
A couple of weeks ago, I was at the Dole Institute at Kansas University, where GEN (R) Myers, past Chairman of the Joint Chiefs, delivered the Dole Leadership Lecture. Follow the link if you're interested in that, this is just stage-setting.
While we sat in the lecture hall waiting for the crowd to arrive and settle in, as is my wont I was listening to the conversations around me. The students who come to these things are usually pretty political and motivated, so you can hear interesting stuff - to include civil conversations between liberal and conservative students.
A conversation behind me turned to the subject of firearms, with the usual earnestness associated therein.
So of course I had to interject myself. Mark, the very nice and polite student arguing for the Gun Banners, got my attention when he told his conversational adversary "We're just a few elections away from being able to confiscate all those handguns and rifles. We've already gotten the machineguns, we're going to get everything else, soon. Except maybe hunting guns."
I turned around at that point and asked - "Are you going to compensate me for them? Or just take them and tell me I should be happy I'm not in jail?" That startled him - mostly that someone else was listening, methinks. He stammered "Well, uh, yes, I guess we should have some form of compensation, er, um... " Clearly, he'd thought his nefarious plan through. I let that drop.
I countered with, "Why do you think you've 'gotten the machineguns'?" He responded, "It's illegal to own a machinegun in this country."
"No, it isn't. It's illegal in Kansas, to be sure, as the result of a law passed in 1934 because of something that happened in Missouri, between gangsters and Federal agents, two groups *unaffected* by the law, but it's not illegal federally to own a machinegun. In Missouri it's illegal to own a machinegun that is less than 50 years old or not on the NFA Curio and Relic list, but it's patently legal otherwise. In fact, come to think of it, in Kansas, it's technically legal to own a federally-recognized machinegun, too - just not one that is functional. However, registered DEWATs are legal, specifically exempted in the law. I assure you, sir - as a collector, I keep up with the law on the subject."
"No, no - I'm sure you're wrong. We banned [note the us of "we"] machineguns back in the 80's!"
Heh. "No, the law President Reagan signed in 1984 banned the manufacture of new weapons for sale to anyone other than governmental entities, or private security operations operating under a government mandate. It also "closed" the NFA registry to new additions. For example, the sub-machinegun Uncle Bill brought back from Korea but was never entered into the NFA registry. There was a two year 'amnesty' period where those weapons could be made legal, but after 1986 all you can do if you find one is call law enforcement and have them come pick it up, or make arrangements for an accredited museum to accept it. But it's still perfectly legal to own 'em. In fact, I can't remember Colorado's laws, but machineguns are legal in Missouri, Oklahoma, Arkansas and Nebraska, to name a few states around here. Been a lot of machineguns used in crime around here, too, huh?
Unable to argue from a position of knowledge, he essentially let the subject drop - though I'm sure he still had doubts. So, I open up email this morning and I find this, from JTG, which inspired this post:
Just the Thing for those Annoying Golfers.Hi there!
See this: http://www.ccfa.com/MK19.htm
Snork.
All the best, Tregonsee [Aka, JTG].
Okay, I admit it. I want one. But not that badly. Danged expensive to feed, that monster.
In fact, those guys have *several* items of interest at the moment.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �January 15, 2007
The Whatziss of a different color, answered.
If the title of this post makes no sense - start here.
You guys did pretty well. Chief Shaffer correctly id'd the Whatziss as a Colt M1895 "Potato-Digger" machine gun. He provided this link, too.
Sanger came in and offered up the Czech Legion, again correct. While he offered up a pay train - he was close, if obliquely. This was one of the trains that held some of the Russian gold reserves the Czechs found themselves in possession of... Good work, fellas.
The Czech Legion is an interesting story that I didn't know that much about. Rather than regurgitate it all here, I'll just give you this link to the Wikipedia entry and this link to The Czech Legion Project, which has a lot of photos.
Another thing I found interesting about the picture was the fact that all of the Maxim guns are Russian M1905's with the smooth waterjacket, vice the M1910's which had a corrugated jacket (and is the type of Maxim in the Castle Armory). But where I can tell, they are all on the later, type II style Sokolov wheeled mounts with shields, which were made without the extra legs seen in the photo below.
The M1905 is the gun in the rear. The legs of the Sokolov mount are extended. The M1910 is in front, with the legs folded for movement.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �January 1, 2007
Some Armorer Zen...
061203-N-3560G-052 Fort Hunter Liggett, Calif. (Dec. 3, 2006) - Construction Mechanic 2nd Class Albert Guerrero of Naval Mobile Construction Battalion Four (NMCB-4) mans the M2 .50-caliber machine gun during field exercise Operation Bearing Duel. NMCB-4 is homeported at Naval Base Ventura County, Port Hueneme, Calif. U.S. Navy photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Ronald Gutridge (RELEASED)
Ah, night sights and a blank adaptor... kewl look on what may be the longest-serving machine gun design - the M2 traces back to 1918, when we took the German T-gewehr 13mm anti-tank round and made it into the 12.7mm round better known to most of us as the .50 cal. Sergeant B will be drooling over this pic.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �November 21, 2006
The Sunday Whatzis, revealed.
Confused? Click here.
That's a bullet for the Nordenfeldt 1-inch anti-torpedo boat gun. The Nordenfeldt guns were an early type of machine-gun. Like the Gatling gun, they used multiple barrels and mechanical power to operate. Unlike the Gatling, the didn't last very long in the grand scheme of things, much less enjoy a renaissance when someone realized what electricity might accomplish when applied to the concept.
Here's a group of Brit tars training with one (though no feed hopper has been loaded).
The Nordenfeldt guns were developed between 1873 and 1878 and were very popular in Europe, especially amongst the sailors. They generally had four barrels in line horizontally and were fed by gravity-feed hoppers. You can see them with 5 barrels or as few as two. One advantage the Nordenfeldts had over the Gatling was that the mechanism was much easier to get to for the purpose of clearing jams. Plus, if the jam was too complex and the situation dire, you could simply disconnect the barrel and keep firing with the remaining barrels. Unlike the Gatling, which used a rotating crank to cycle the gun, the Nordenfeldts used a lever that was moved back and forth. I've seen both a lever in the vertical plane, on the left side of the gun, or a handle that moved in the horizontal plane, on the right side of the gun. The sailor on the left right (sigh, I suppose, in the future, I'll just submit all posts to CAPT H for editing before publishing) in the picture has his hand on the lever for this particular gun. The cyclic rate of fire was about 350 rounds per minute.
Here we can see some more sailors getting it on for the camera. This gun has its feed-hopper mounted.
All that flailing about did affect accuracy a bit, but heck, they weren't used as sniper weapons.
The Brit National Maritime Museum has a wonderful copyright protected (way too expensive to buy permission to use) photo of a 1-inch Nordenfeldt anti-torpedo boat gun right here.
The Ordnance Museum at Aberdeen Proving Grounds has a nice little four-barrel Nordenfeldt - which shows the lever nicely, too.
November 15, 2006
Random thought from yesterday.
Fuzzybear Lioness linked to this breathlessly reported threat to public safety yesterday: Bullet Found In Doorway!
Bullet found in doorway By David Williams LETHAL: The .22 calibre bullet found in Walthamstow High Street on a market day morning (D6W1001) LIVE ammunition has been found lying in the doorway of a busy high street shop.The .22 calibre short round bullet was found at the entrance of the 99p Stores in Walthamstow High Street on Wednesday morning, November 1.
Haroon Khan, who has a firearms licence and is a member of a local gun club, was alarmed to discover live ammunition in a Walthamstow doorway.
The bullet, of Swiss origin, was still in its brass casing, complete with enough gunpowder for it to fire itself.
Heh. Thrice-damned Swiss! Leaving their ammunition laying around like that.
What struck me as funny was the breathless nature of the reportage. Parking your old junker on a hillside and forgetting to set the parking brake is quite possibly more dangerous - but wouldn't get reported that way. Of course, in England, with their gun laws, something like that is cause for alarm to their budding police state, but that's a different post. I was just struck by (Have I mentioned this?) how, well, breathless the reportage was, to my ear at least.
To put that in context, yesterday morning I got out of bed at 5AM to put the dogs out, feed the cats, make coffee and then come here to feed you guys. I stepped on a bullet. A nice, shiny, 1944 dated .303 round. One of four I found on the floor. I picked 'em up, and took 'em to the living room, where they belong, with the others (okay, I just said that for effect - the Castle Vickers, which went junketing this past weekend needs to be staged back into the Arsenal, and is in it's assembly (actually disassembly) area. No, we don't entertain much.
Anyway, the day before yesterday, the nice man delivered a package to the house, containing a 1944-dated Vickers belt (where the ammo on the floor came from), and a 1950's era disintegrating-link Vickers belt (visible in the post below), and some other artifact ammunition. And night before last was spent watching television with SWWBO while I re-belted the WWII ammo (those dang belts were dang hard to load, but once loaded, they get all loose and this one dropped a boat-load of rounds, and it takes a while to hand-load a 250 round belt of ammo. Besides, I needed to inspect 'em all to make sure they were in decent shape, right? You mean it isn't like this in every home?
Regardless, I just found it amusing to be reading that story in the morning after stepping on loose rounds in the bedroom the morning after having spent the evening before belting machinegun ammo for the Vickers...
I also had a bunch of loose rounds, which found their way into the Turkish aluminum Vickers belt - though, s'truth, they should be 8mm rounds, that being the caliber the Turks used in their guns. But Doesn't the mix of steel, brass, copper, and aluminum make for a pretty picture?
I'll hafta keep an eye on 'em for signs of dissimilar metal corrosion. The aluminum links are actually pretty fragile - one reason you don't see a lot of them around any more.
September 18, 2006
This one is for John of Oldguns...
...regarding his answer to question # 10549 - Carbine Double Size Trainer (located on this page, 3rd question down)...
How do you know it's a lazy Sunday at Castle Argghhh!!! and that SWWBO must be on the road?
Because this is on the deck, being cleaned (with all the kittty litter 'round here, *everything* gets dusty)
The Arsenal's double-sized, aluminum, M1919 cut-away trainer. Which was made for the Navy, btw.
Now if John could just find me the bullets and belt that go *with* this... he *claims* to be a full service source for collectors... 8^)
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �June 16, 2006
Another Arsenal Artifact. The RPD.
Not everything in the Arsenal is a relic, or antique.
Meet the Castle RPD, this one a Bulgarian example. Note to the aghast: Legal Where I Live, may not be where you live. Which is *your* problem. Not mine. And I'm not your problem, either. So put the phone down.
Basic stats:
Caliber 7,62x39 mm
Weigth 16 pounds empty, on integral bipod
Length 41"
Length of barrel 20.47"
Feed: 100 round belt loose or in drum
Rate of fire 650 rounds per minute
Muzzle velocity 735 m/s
The RPD (Ruchnoy Pulemet Degtyarova - Degtyarev Light MG) was one of the first weapons designed to fire the then-new intermediate 7.62x39mm cartridge, the same one fired by the SKS and AK-47. Development started in 1944 and the RPD became the standard squad automatic weapon (a BAR equivalent with a lot more firepower, being belt-fed) of Warsaw Pact armies in the early 50's through the 60's when it was supplanted by the RPK. The RPK, being based on the AK action, is, in my humble opinion, not as effective in the role as the RPD was due to controllability and accuracy (I've fired both weapons) and magazine changes. You can still see them around - the Jihadis and Somalian Warlords like them, for example - and the Chinese have their own version, the Type 56.
The RPD is an extension of Degtyarev machine guns, tracing its ancestry to DP-1927 LMG. The RPD is a gas operated, full auto only weapon. It uses a long stroke piston and a gas regulator, located under the barrel, the regulator is the round thing under the barrel, and it can be "tuned" as the weapon fouls or wears, using a combo tool contained in the gunner's tool kit, which is stored in the butt, along with an oil bottle.
It uses a simple and robust bolt locking system common to other Degtyarev designs (much like this DP-28 bolt), which uses two locking flaps that are pushed out of the bolt body into recesses in the receiver walls to lock the bolt. The flaps are pushed out by the bolt carrier to lock and are withdrawn from recesses to unlock the bolt by specially shaped cams on the carrier. The RPD uses a belt feed, generally feeding from a detachable drum magazine that clips to the receiver. The drum can hold a 100-round non-disintegrating metal belt. In a sustained fire role, such as in the defense or from a support by fire position belt feed is used and the belt in the magazine is left there, available for use immediately when the situation requires picking up and moving. Each drum has its own carrying handle, but usually drums were carried in special canvas pouches. Unlike earlier Degtyarev guns, the return spring is located inside the butt, vice under the barrel, where in the DP series of guns they were adversely affected by heat. The heavy barrel cannot be replaced quickly, which reduces the sustained fire rate, but the RPD provides a significant firepower to the fight at ranges up to 800 meters. The rear sights are ajustable for range and drift, and a folding integral bipod is located under the barrel. All RPDs were issued with carrying slings and could be fired from the hip, using the sling to hang the gun on the shoulder.
Bill didn't like these.
Just because I knew you wanted to know.
March 14, 2006
Infantry Pr0n
Today, Infantry Pr0n. Tomorrow, Armor Pr0n. Thursday, Artillery Pr0n. Friday? How about reader-submitted Military Pr0n? Not limited to US, either. In fact, Allies are encouraged. And that includes Afghanistan-only Allies, too. Only caveat - gotta be in-theater.
U.S. Army Pfc. Derick Fullmor from the 1st Armored Division, conducts a combat patrol in the city of Tal Afar, Iraq on 20 Feb. 2006. (U.S. Air Force photo By Staff Sgt. Aaron Allmon)(Released)Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �
September 9, 2005
Since Boquisucio needs help..
...with his Rangefinder ID, here is the Castle's Barr and Stroud Rangefinder that is part of our Vickers kit. Also in the pic are a Carl Gustav 84mm recoilless rifle and a PIAT. The Gustav and PIAT are for use against people who drive tanks or hide in bunkers. People like that, well, they suck. Of course, the sorry jerks who gave the PIAT to the Brit soldier in WWII suck too. But that's a different story.
Next up is a sample of the Castle Argghhh! LRS, Looter Repellent System. Rabbit ears (German made, ex-Argentine) for target acquisition, sniper loop w/rifle for retail responses, Max the Maxim should a more robust response be needed.
The minefield sign doesn't hurt, either.
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �August 30, 2005
The way to the Armorer's Good Graces...
...is via firepower.
Something SWWBO knows well, having bought me this for Christmas before we got married, and *this* after, and not being annoyed by this or this or this.
Now comes AFSis, fresh from New York. (Happy Anniversary, kiddo!)
And she sends this, a 24 pounder in Castle Clinton... who could ask for more?
Heh. Mebbe cannon with a Cute Chick? Like this?
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �June 21, 2005
Dayton, Ohio, Day 1
Got here yesterday, spent the afternoon at the Air Force Museum (I'm with Mythilt, the new name is pretty pretentious, all things considered - even if it might be true...) Mythilt is also correct in that can't do it justice in one afternoon - or day, really. Heck, I filled up a one-gig memory card in the camera and didn't get all the pictures I'd have liked. And that doesn't count all the little film presentations scattered around. I did see the IMAX movie "Fighter Pilot," which was well worth the price of admission.
I also got to meet AFSis! My first official Denizen meeting besides SWWBO. A good time was had by both of us, and we shamelessly gossiped about all of you, and about, oh, have the crowd that hangs at ALa's! (And no, ALa, she didn't wheedle pics out of me, either...)
Wandering through the museum, there was plenty of Armorer-fodder...
Bombs!
Machine Guns!
Planes! When I saw this Boeing P26 Peashooter - I immediately thought of Neffi - this just looks like the kind of pimped-out ride you could see him in, scarf flying.
More later - I need to go learn how to lead!
Reporting As Ordered, Sir! �