Category: Well I thought it was neat!
The Attack on Convoy BN 7 (20–21 October 1940) was a naval engagement in the Red Sea during the Second World War between a British force defending convoyed merchant ships and a flotilla of Italian destroyers. The Italian attack failed, with only one merchant ship being slightly damaged. After a chase, the British destroyer HMS Kimberley torpedoed the Italian destroyer Francesco Nullo which was beached on Harmil Island. Kimberley was hit, disabled by Italian shore batteries on the island and towed to safety by the cruiser HMS Leander.
Manoeuvring in two groups to increase the chance of intercepting the convoy had succeeded for the Italians but sacrificed the benefits of concentration against the escorts and a destroyer was lost for no result. The British command at Aden criticised the escorts (excepting Kimberley) for a lack of aggression but leaving the convoy defenceless to chase ships at night and in misty weather was risky. The Italians made another fruitless sortie on 3 December, cancelled one in January 1941 after the destroyer Daniele Manin was damaged by a bomb and conducted an abortive sortie on 24 January.
Background
Red Sea
The Red Sea is an area of high temperatures and humidity, its coasts vary from desert to high mountain ranges and navigation is fraught with danger from offshore reefs and false horizons caused by atmospheric refraction.[1] From May to June 1939, French and British military officials met at Aden to devise a common strategy to retain control of the waters around Italian East Africa if Italy declared war. It was expected that Italy could close the Mediterranean to Allied traffic and that supplies to the Middle East would have to be transported via the Red Sea. Control of the Gulf of Aden, the Red Sea and the Gulf of Suez at the northern terminus and the maintenance of the bases at Aden and French Somaliland (Djibouti) was equally important but a withdrawal from French and British Somaliland had also be contemplated.[2]
The British-controlled Port Sudan, lay on the west coast of the Red Sea, about half way [600 nmi (690 mi; 1,100 km)] between Suez and the Bab-el-Mandeb Strait (باب المندب, Gate of Tears). The Italian port of Massawa in Eritrea was about 350 nmi (400 mi; 650 km) north and Aden about 100 nmi (120 mi; 190 km) east of the Bab-el-Mandeb.[2] The ports along the coast of Italian Somaliland and the entrance to the Red Sea were to be blockaded (Operation Begum) to prevent the Italians from receiving supplies and reinforcements. Allied merchant ships in the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea were to proceed in escorted convoys. Naval ships were to sweep mines, patrol the Gulf of Aden and the Bab-el-Mandeb to isolate the Italian Red Sea Flotilla and protect Aden from sorties by Italian ships; the Italian naval bases in Eritrea were to be attacked.[3]
Red Sea Force
Topographic map of the Red Sea
In April 1940 the Royal Navy established the Red Sea Force with the light cruisers HMS Liverpool and HMAS Hobart (Senior Naval Officer Red Sea, Rear-Admiral Murray); HMS Leander (New Zealand Division) replaced Liverpool on 26 May. By September the Force comprised the cruisers Hobart, Leander, Caledon and the anti-aircraft cruiser Carlisle; the destroyers HMS Kimberley, Kingston and Kandahar; the sloops HMS Flamingo, Auckland, Shoreham and Grimsby; HMIS Clive, Indus and Hindustan; and HMAS Parramatta. Aden was the base for two minesweepers, two small Armed Merchant Cruisers and two armed trawlers. Ships attached temporarily included the light cruisers HMS Ceres and Colombo, the 8-inch cruisers HMS Dorsetshire and Shropshire.[3]
Red Sea Flotilla
The Italian naval and air bases in East Africa were convenient for attacks on shipping in the Red Sea and the Indian Ocean. Massawa was the home port of the Red Sea Flotilla (Flottiglia del mar rosso) commanded by Rear-Admiral [Contrammiraglio] Mario Bonetti, from December 1940 to April 1941. Massawa had been fortified and lay behind numerous islands and reefs with mined approaches; there was a smaller base at Assab.[3] The scout cruisers (esploratori, also Leone-class destroyers) Pantera and Leone (Commander Paolo Aloisi) had an unusually powerful armament of eight 4.7 in (120 mm) guns, in four turrets on the centre line. Only two turrets could aim fore and aft but the eight-gun broadside was unique for destroyers.[4]
The class also carried two 40 mm pom-pom anti-aircraft guns, four 20 mm machine-guns, four 21.0 in (533 mm) torpedo tubes and 60 mines. The Sauro-class destroyers had an armament of four 4.7 in (120 mm) guns, two 40 mm pom-poms, two 13.2 mm machine-guns, six 53.3 cm (21.0 in) torpedo tubes and 52 mines.[4] Once war was declared, the fuel stored for the Italian ships based at Massawa could only diminish under the British blockade.[5] The accumulation of mechanical faults, fuel depletion and the enervating effect of the climate exercised severe constraints on the operations of the Red Sea Flotilla.[6]
Prelude
Red Sea convoys
Gulf of Aden
In June four of the eight Italian submarines based at Massawa were lost. The Regia Aeronautica (Italian Royal Air Force) commenced operations over the Red Sea and on 11 June a Savoia-Marchetti SM.81 flew a reconnaissance sortie.[7] On 16 June, the Italian submarine Galileo Galilei sank the Norwegian tanker James Stove (8,215 Gross register tonnage [GRT]), sailing independently about 12 nmi (14 mi; 22 km) south of Aden.[8] On 19 June, Hobart sent its Supermarine Walrus amphibian to bomb an Italian wireless station on Centre Peak Island between Massawa and the Arabian coast.[9] On 2 July, Convoy BN 1, comprising six tankers and three freighters, assembled in the Gulf of Aden.[8] On 8 July, an SM.81 of 10° Squadriglia flew a long range reconnaissance sortie over southern Sudan and the Red Sea and was attacked by a Vickers Wellesley. The SM.81 was damaged hit an island trying to force land, bounced into the air and flew on at wave top height, with the Wellesley flying above and to one side for its gunners to keep firing. After ten minutes the Italian aircraft hit the sea and shed its wings.[10][a]
Photograph of SM.81 Pipistrello bomber-transport aircraft
From 26 to 31 July, Guglielmotti failed to find two Greek merchantmen and a sortie by the torpedo boats Cesare Battisti and Francesco Nullo came to nothing. Guglielmotti sortied from 21 to 25 August, Galileo Ferraris (25–31 August), Francesco Nullo and Sauro from 24 to 25 August and the destroyers Pantera and Tigre (28–29 August) failing to find ships, despite agent reports and sightings by air reconnaissance.[11] On 4 September, Italian bombers attacked SS Velko, inflicted serious damage on it and on the next day, five SM.79s attacked Convoy BS 3A. A Blenheim IVF fighter, on convoy patrol, attacked the bombers but was damaged. On 6 September the convoy was attacked again by a SM.79.[12] Convoy BN 4 was spotted by air reconnaissance and on the night of 5/6 September, Cesare Battisti, Daniele Manin and Sauro sailed. The destroyers Leone and Tigre followed on 6/7 September but the destroyers found nothing.[13]
The submarines Galileo Ferraris and Guglielmotti patrolling further to the north, also failed to find BN 4 but Guglielmotti torpedoed the Greek tanker Atlas (4,008 GRT) straggling behind the convoy south of the Farasan Islands. Air reconnaissance also found Convoy BN 5 of 23 ships but Leone, Pantera, Cesare Battisti and Daniele Manin, with the submarines Archimede and Gugliemotti failed to find the convoy. MV Bhima (5,280 GRT) was damaged in an Italian air attack, one man was killed; the ship was towed to Aden and beached for repairs.[13] On 19 September five SM.79s attacked a convoy and outpaced two Gloster Gladiator fighters which tried to intercept them. On the next day, Italian bombers were driven off by Blenheim fighters. On 15 October, three SM.79 bombers were prevented from attacking another convoy by two Gladiator fighters and a Blenheim. Five days later, individual SM.79s attacked Convoy BN 7.[14]
Convoy BN 7
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Australian sloop HMAS Yarra
Convoy BN 7 was northbound through the Red Sea and consisted of 32 British, Norwegian, French, Greek and Turkish merchant ships. The escort consisted of the light cruiser HMS Leander (Commander James Rivett-Carnac), the destroyer Kimberley (Commander J. S. M. Richardson), the Egret-class sloop Auckland, the Grimsby-class sloops HMAS Yarra and Indus and the Hunt-class minesweepers HMS Derby and Huntley.[6][b] Convoy BN 7 was nearing Perim, a volcanic island off the south-west coast of Yemen in the Bab-el-Mandeb, on the afternoon of 19 October, when an aircraft dropped four bombs close astern of one of the merchantmen. Leander and Auckland opened fire on the aircraft as it flew off to the west; shortly before dark, an undercarriage wheel of an Italian aircraft was picked up 15 nmi (17 mi; 28 km) south of the island. Next morning, Italian aircraft dropped four bombs, two of which fell ahead of the convoy and two bombs harmlessly astern of the French liner Felix Roussel, carrying New Zealand troops to Suez. At dusk Leander took station on the port beam of the convoy between it and the Italian base at Massawa, which flanked the line of advance; the convoy zig-zagged through the night.[16]
Battle
Italian sortie
Italian destroyer Pantera
The Italian flotilla sailed on 20 October, the destroyers operating in pairs, Section I, comprised the faster Sauro (Commander Moretti degli Adimari) and Francesco Nullo (Lieutenant Commander Costantino Borsini). Section II, the slower, more heavily armed Pantera and Leone were to divert the convoy escort and then attack the convoy with torpedoes. At 21:15 the two sections separated and at 23:21, Pantera sighted smoke from the convoy.[17] Pantera signalled Sauro and moved ahead of the convoy to intercept, with Leone following 875 yd (800 m) behind.[17] The convoy was about 35 nmi (40 mi; 65 km) north-north-west of Jabal al-Tair Island at 02:19 on 21 October, when Leander sighted two patches of smoke bearing north.[17]
Auckland reported two destroyers 4 nmi (4.6 mi; 7.4 km) off and Leander altered course to intercept, the captain assuming that they would run for home through the South Massawa Channel. After a challenge from Auckland, Pantera fired over Yarra at the convoy, inflicting some splinter damage to a lifeboat on the convoy commodore’s ship. Auckland opened fire and the Italian ships separated and turned away at full speed, west-south-west, towards Massawa, firing their aft guns. The destroyers were broad on the port bow of Yarra when Pantera fired two torpedoes at 23:31 and another pair at 23:34.[17] Yarra avoided two torpedoes by turning towards them and combing their tracks.[16] Observers in Yarra thought that the leading enemy vessel was hit by their fourth or fifth salvo.[18]
Sauro and Nullo had been manoeuvring to a more favourable position after receiving the sighting report from Pantera, turned towards the convoy and spotted Leander at 01:48 (21 October). Sauro fired a torpedo at Leander which missed and Leander opened fire but lost sight of Sauro after two minutes. Sauro made another torpedo attack at 02:07 and turned away towards Massawa. (Nullo was not able to attack after its rudder jammed for several minutes and it went round in circles, losing contact with Sauro.)[17] Borsini ordered Nullo towards the Italian batteries on Harmil Island off Massawa. When the gunfire ceased, Leander altered course to north-west to intercept the ships at the South Massawa Channel (the Harmil Island Passage) and at 02:45, opened fire with 6-inch HE and star shells on a ship that was firing red and green tracer. The range was increasing and the ship was lost to sight after the first salvoes.[19]
Leander altered course westwards to bring all guns to bear if the ships were making for the South Massawa Channel. At 02:20 Leander spotted Nullo by searchlight and exchanged fire for about ten minutes at about 4,600 yd (2.3 nmi; 4.2 km), Leander scoring several hits which damaged Nullo‘s gyrocompass and gunnery director. At 02:51, Leander lost contact in the haze and ceased fire (having fired a hundred and twenty-nine 6-inch rounds).[20] Nullo headed toward Harmil Island with Leander in pursuit and at 03:00, Leander challenged a destroyer which turned out to be Kimberley, also in pursuit. After five minutes, the cruiser altered course east to rejoin the convoy, since the Italian ship was drawing away at the rate of 7 kn (8.1 mph; 13 km/h) and the convoy would still be vulnerable to attack during a pursuit.[21]
Action off Harmil Island
Harmil Island in the Dahlak Archipelago off Massawa
In the early hours of 21 October, Kimberley continued to sail at maximum speed and at 03:50 sighted smoke ahead, apparently from two ships retiring at high speed. At 05:40, off Harmil Island, lookouts on Kimberley and Nullo spotted each other at 7 nmi (8.1 mi; 13 km) range. Borsini assumed that the ship was Sauro and when Kimberley opened fire at 05:53, Nullo was taken by surprise, not returning fire for four minutes. Kimberley closed the range to 5,000 yd (2.5 nmi; 4.6 km) and at 06:20, Nullo scraped a reef, which damaged a propeller and sprung a leak. As Nullo rounded Harmil Island at about 06:25, it was hit once in the forward engine room and once in the aft engine room.[22]
Nullo lost all power; Borsini gave the order to abandon ship and steered towards Harmil Island. The upper works were hit by shell splinters and the crew abandoned ship, while Borsini tried to run Nullo aground on the island. Nullo was then hit by the second of two torpedoes at 06:35, which broke it in two.[22] (Borsini and his assistant declined to leave the ship and were drowned.)[5][c] At 06:15 the four 120 mm guns on Harmil Island engaged Kimberley and hit the engine-room, wounding three men and holing the steam pipes. While adrift 10,000 yd (4.9 nmi; 9.1 km) from the shore battery, Kimberley silenced two of the guns and wounding four gunners with 45 HE shells from No. 3 mount.[23]
HMS Kimberley (photographed in 1942)
Kimberley managed to get under way, its speed reduced to 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) and the shore battery ceased fire when Kimberley was 19,000 yd (9.4 nmi; 17 km) away. Kimberley had fired 596 rounds of Semi-Armour Piercing and 97 High Explosive shells. Leander left the convoy and at 06:54 increased speed to 26 kn (30 mph; 48 km/h). By 07:34, Leander was making 28.7 kn (33.0 mph; 53.2 km/h) and soon after, Kimberley reported that it was steaming east at 15 kn (17 mph; 28 km/h) on one engine.[23] At 08:25, Leander was 16 nmi (18 mi; 30 km) east by north of the Harmil South beacon and slowed to 10 kn (12 mph; 19 km/h). Leander circled near Kimberley to keep freedom of manoeuvre, in case Italian bombers appeared. Kimberley had lost water in its boilers and Leander sent a boat with three shipwrights and an engine-room artificer; a wounded rating was transferred to the cruiser for medical attention. At about 10:00, Leander took Kimberley in tow.[24]
Aftermath
Analysis
In August the British had run four BN convoys and four BS convoys, five in September and seven in October, the BN convoys comprising 86 ships and the BS (southbound) convoys 72 ships. Despite agent reports and sightings by the Regia Aeronautica, Italian submarines and ships had frequently failed to make contact with the convoys, only six air attacks was achieved in October and none after 4 November.[25] During the Attack on Convoy BN 7, the British found that they were at a disadvantage in night fighting as they were temporarily blinded by the flash of their guns, while the Italian ships used flashless cordite and had good tracer ammunition.[18] The British convoy escorts were blamed for a lack of aggression, except for Kimberley, despite the danger of abandoning the convoy at night and in poor visibility. The Italians had managed to make two torpedo attacks as planned but the division of the destroyers into two sections, after previous sorties had failed to find any ships, meant that neither section had the firepower to face the British escorts.[26]
Casualties
Of the 120 crew of Nullo, Borsini declined to abandon ship and when his assistant Seaman Vincenzo Ciaravolo realised, jumped from his lifeboat to accompany his captain and both were drowned. Of the ship’s company 12 men were killed and 106 were rescued by sailors of the Harmil Island battery.[27] Kimberley was out of action until 31 October, then returned to service capable of a reduced maximum speed, until fully repaired in the spring of 1941.[28]
Subsequent operations
At 10:00 on 21 October, Leander opened fire on three aircraft at 13,000 ft (4,000 m), which bombed about 200 yd (180 m) ahead of the ship, two more bombs turning out to be duds. No damage was done and Leander and Kimberley re-joined Convoy BN 7 just after noon. (As they passed Felix Roussel they were cheered by hundreds of New Zealand soldiers.) In the afternoon, Leander transferred the tow to Kingston which left the convoy with Kimberley next morning, for Port Sudan. The southbound convoy BS 7 with 20 ships, was met by the convoy escorts in the afternoon of 23 October and after an uneventful passage, dispersed east of Aden on 28 October.[29] Later on 21 October, three Blenheim bombers of 45 Squadron found and bombed the wreck of Francesco Nullo.[25] The Italians made another fruitless sortie on 3 December, cancelled one in January 1941 after Daniele Manin was damaged by a bomb and on 24 January, sortied again with no result.[26]
Attack on Convoy BN 14
On the night of 2/3 February 1941, the Italian destroyers Pantera, Tigre and Sauro sailed from Massawa, to intercept a convoy known to be in the area. BN 14 consisted of 39 merchant ships escorted by the cruiser Caledon, the destroyer Kingston and the sloops Indus and Shoreham. Sauro sighted the convoy and fired three torpedoes, then fired again at a ship seen in a cloud of smoke, before turning away at high speed. The two other ships did not receive the sighting report from Sauro but ten minutes later Pantera saw the ships and fired torpedoes, hearing explosions and claiming probables on two merchantmen; Tigre failed to find the convoy. Close to the Massawa in the South Channel, Sauro ran into Kingston but had run out of torpedoes. Fearful that the British were trying to spring ambush, the other Italian ships converged on Sauro and called by wireless for air cover at dawn, reaching port unharmed. Local Italian press reports claimed that two ships had been hit but this report was mistaken.
My favorite sixth-grader found the new Daisy Buck 105 to his liking.
I pursue firearms like a weasel stalks a hot dog. The hunt imbues me with a certain singularity of purpose. I meticulously plan my conquest and then pursue it like a hellhound until I’ve made it mine. However, during a recent trek through Walmart I experienced some serendipitous spontaneity.
With the horsepower of 11,484 stores, Walmart has the clout to keep prices low. It was this more than anything that first caught my eye. There nestled amongst the stove fuel, life jackets, archery supplies, and deer lure was a bare-bones Daisy BB gun for a mere $17.96. Just glancing at it brought back remarkable visceral memories.
In The Beginning
I grew up in the Mississippi Delta, the son of a college football star and a beauty queen, and we were well acquainted with the outdoors. Weekends were spent in a modest travel trailer kept parked on the river side of the levee. Hunting, fishing and scampering about terrorizing the countryside were my standard weekend fare.
At age seven, I formally announced I wished to buy a gun. There was a lever-action Daisy repeater on the wall at the local Otasco for $7 calling my name. I held out little hope for success.
Much to my amazement, my folks acquiesced. Mom seemed reticent, but dad was forever the bad influence. He even offered to pay half, but $3.50 was a veritable king’s ransom back then.
I gutted my piggybank and tore the house apart, searching for loose change. At the terminus of my quest, I beheld exactly $3.50, mostly in pennies. I secured my fortune in a brown paper sack, planning to strike out for Otasco the following day with my dad.
We arose early and got to the hardware store when it opened. In my exuberance, however, I lost my footing somewhere near the power tools and fumbled my paper sack. The bag exploded and pennies rolled everywhere from Clarksdale, Miss., to Budapest, Hungary. My dreams dashed, I descended into a fit of less-than-manly sobs.
Ah, dads. It was just one of those priceless moments. He hefted me to my feet with his granite-like grip and smiled.
“Find what you can,” he said. “I’ll take care of the rest.”
At that moment, I learned a great deal about the fine art of parenting well.
What started out as a 5-shot 12-meter group eventually became a 50-shot
12-meter group. It’s tough to show restraint when ammo costs $3 for 1,500 rounds.
This Guy’s First Gat
The gun was all cold blue steel with a plastic woodgrain stock. In point of fact, the weapon was actually painted blue. It ultimately launched untold thousands of BBs. Along the way, I enjoyed some extraordinary feats of marksmanship. You do something long enough and amazing things inevitably happen. That’s the inimitable power of random.
I once killed a bumblebee in flight. I also dropped a sparrow on the wing with a single shot from the hip. We’ll not discuss how many times I attempted those things and failed. I used the little gun to launch a few venomous snakes to their eternal damnation and ventilated enough disused beverage cans to populate a proper WWII-era scrap drive. I shot the gun until it just wouldn’t shoot anymore and then retired it to its place of honor on the wall. The little blue Daisy BB gun sparked a career that has led all the way up to this very moment.
The modern Daisy Buck 105 on top is the obvious heir apparent to the storied
original Will bought for $7 back in 1973. Adjusted for inflation the current version
is half the cost of the ’70s-era gun.
Today’s Generation
The modern iteration is delightfully accurate. The trajectory it describes becomes parabolic out beyond about 30 meters, but that’s half the fun. My chronograph averaged 273 fps. Shooting off the back porch, I can arc BBs into stumps out in the lake all day long once I get the elevation right. Bracketing distant targets is more akin to adjusting artillery than basic rifle marksmanship.
I have dumped some obscene amounts of money on guns that required special papers or were wielded in places most remarkable. I have also dropped a 20-spot, taking my kids out for burgers. Trust me, even as a graduate-level gun nerd $18 at Walmart for the ultimate backyard plinking machine is money quite well spent.
In the throes of World War II, a weapon emerged from Germany’s war machine, earning a fearsome reputation from the American and Soviet soldiers alike. The Panzerfaust, a crude yet deadly anti-tank weapon, transformed the battlefield with its potent ability to penetrate armor. This article unravels the story of this humble device that armed even the least experienced German soldier with the power to destroy the mightiest tanks.
The old vet was decades out from war. He had since enjoyed a successful career in business, raised a family, and just generally made the world a much better place. Asking him to relate his experiences in Europe during World War II clearly took him back to a very different place.
His mind remained as sharp today as it had been in 1944 when he arrived in Europe. He rendered a reasoned opinion about the effectiveness of American small arms. He respected the M1 Carbine for its modest weight and maneuverability and revered the M1 rifle. They all revered the M1 rifle.
There really was only one M1. We call it the Garand, but they generally didn’t. The M1 Carbine was the carbine and the M1A1 Thompson was the Thompson, but the .30-06 semi-automatic battle rifle designed by John Cantius Garand was the only M1. What was surprising, however, was his take on the enemy weapons he faced.
We are enamored with the StG44 and MG42 for their groundbreaking design, and rightfully so. The terrifying ripping sound that the MG42 made as it cycled at 1,200 rounds per minute got this man’s attention as well. However, the one German weapon he held in highest esteem was the Panzerfaust.
It’s tough to imagine how junky modern war is. Industrial nations pour themselves into war production and simply blanket the battlefield with weapons, ammunition, and gear. In this case this man said his unit captured German Panzerfaust antitank weapons by the unopened crate. He made a point to keep a handful of these handy little monsters in his jeep at all times.
By 1945 Axis tanks were not the omnipresent scourge they had previously been, and Allied tanks, tank destroyers and fighter bombers were forever on the prowl for the big German cats. However, the Panzerfaust was just the ticket for making an unannounced entry into an occupied building. If your mission is to seize a defended structure from a determined enemy the last thing you want is to knock on the front door. This old vet said that captured Panzerfausts would reliably blow a hole through stucco or plaster that was adequate to admit grenades or even assault troops. He said they burned through dozens of the things and loved them.
Details on the Tank Fist
Panzerfaust literally translates to “tank fist,” and it was one of several desperation weapons fielded by the Germans in the closing months of World War II to blunt the Soviet juggernaut and the increasing threats on the Western Front. First developed in 1942, as Germany’s fortunes waned, the combination of low cost and ease of training made the Panzerfaust a mainstay of the final defense of the Reich in 1943 and beyond. In Normandy, the Panzerfaust accounted for 6% of the Allied tanks knocked out in combat. By war’s end, when the battlefield was dense with poorly trained Volkssturm units, that number climbed to 34%
The prototype Panzerfaust was code-named Gretchen (“Little Greta”). The technical appellation was faustpatrone or “fist cartridge.” The casual observer could be forgiven for presuming the Panzerfaust was a rocket launcher. However, it was really more of a recoilless gun firing a projectile from a disposable tube. The design was a study in simplicity.
The warhead contained a shaped charge comprised of a 50/50 mix of TNT and trihexogen explosives. Fitted to the warhead was a wooden dowel adorned with folding sheet steel fins that deployed when fired. The round was shipped attached to a simple steel tube. Propellant was otherwise unremarkable blackpowder. The Panzerfaust came in four different sizes. Each variant was designated by its expected effective range.
The first model, the Panzerfaust 30, weighed 11.5 lbs. and burned 3.5 oz. of blackpowder propellant. The warhead moved at 30 meters per second and had an effective range of, you guessed it, 30 meters. The Panzerfaust 30 would burn through 200mm of steel armor, or just shy of 8”. The Panzerfaust 60 weighed 13 lbs., burned about 4.5 oz. of black powder, and traveled at 45 meters per second. The Panzerfaust 100 weighed 15 lbs., burned 7 oz. of powder, and traveled at 60 meters per second.
The Panzerfaust 150 sported a redesigned warhead that could accept a fragmentation sleeve to improve its anti-personnel effects when it would explode. Though 100,000 copies were produced, none were known to have been used in combat.
A prototype Panzerfaust 250 developed at the end of the war used a reloadable launch tube with a pistol grip but never went beyond the design stage. It is believed it could penetrate thicker armor in addition to other upgrades. This weapon served as the inspiration for the Combloc RPG-2 that was subsequently widely exported.
Firing the Panzerfaust
The Panzerfaust did not have a trigger in the classical sense. In its place was a lever just behind the warhead that was squeezed to detonate the boost charge. When the operator was ready to ignite the boost charge, he cradled the weapon underneath the armpit and used the simple pressed steel sight to align the warhead.
The Panzerfaust 100 had holes punched into the folding sight marked 30, 60, 80 and 150 meters along with luminescent paint to make the launcher easier to use at night. Most launcher tubes had the words “Achtung. Feuerstrahl.” printed on the side which translated to “Beware. Fire jet.” The backblast that came out of the rear end of the tube was considered dangerous out to about two meters.
Though I’ve never had the pleasure, I’ve read that firing the Panzerfaust in combat was a serious gut check. The thing was fairly imprecise on a good day, and the huge plume of white smoke produced by the propellant charge invariably attracted a crowd. It took some proper stones to get within 30 meters of an enemy tank screened by infantry and touch one of these puppies off. However, the warhead was undeniably effective when it did connect.
Despite the crudeness of the design, the beyond-armor effects of the Panzerfaust, particularly in its later versions, was undeniably impressive. Where the American 2.75” bazooka typically punched a roughly half-inch hole in armor plate, that of the later Panzerfausts was about five times that diameter. Subsequent spalling and incendiary effects were distressingly horrible. I once met an old vet in the VA who had lost a Sherman to a Panzerfaust. He had great respect for them.
Panzerfaust Legacy
The Panzerfaust was the classic desperation weapon. Churned out in vast quantities in a vain effort to slow the inexorable Allied tide toward the end of World War II, the Panzerfaust was not important so much for what it was as for what it became. Yes, it did stop many a Soviet tank and caused more than a little concern for Allied tank crews. The German antitank weapon caused many crews to improvise supplemental tank armor in the field: from sandbags to welded iron and steel additions.
The technology spawned by the German infantry weapon inspired the M72 LAW, the AT4, and the infamous RPG-7 AT weapons developed after the Second World War. In so doing, the Panzerfaust changed the face of modern war.
Whether shelling out a stack of Benjamins or running your plastic card through the scanner as many of us have done over the years, it begs to ask this question. Are we actually buying, renting or leasing this latest addition to our battery? The question was brought home recently during my latest acquisition.
Sneaky Shooters
Anymore, I have no idea what my next gun will be, or when I’ll be taking possession of it. It just happens. You know how it goes. We’re just minding our own business when out of the blue — BAM! It hits us between the eyes! Our hearts start palpitating while our salivary glands go into overdrive when the very gun we never knew existed a few minutes ago makes us feel like we can’t live another moment without it.
Just one of the racks in Bobby Tyler’s walk-in vault.
Taken In Texas
It happens that fast. Let me tell you about my latest affliction. I was down in Friona, Texas visiting with Bobby Tyler of Tyler Gun Works. I was on assignment, gathering photos and information to share a story with you all about his successful business. Most of you have heard of him, as he’s made quite the name for himself, and rightfully so. My plan was to get the inside scoop on Bobby and his family, showing you how hard work and dedication is the key to their success.
Bobby sweetened the visit by inviting me down during the coinciding antelope opener. He told me not to worry about flying with any guns, as he had plenty there to do the job. I should have taken that statement as a clue. The trip was sounding more interesting by the minute.
Arriving Thursday afternoon, Bobby met me at the Amarillo airport. After a nice Mexican meal with his family, I checked into my room. Friday morning, it was breakfast at the Tyler household and off to his large shop for a tour. He then left me in his walk-in vault to look over his expansive inventory while he worked. I spent hours in the vault, looking, pawing, fingering, holding guns spanning from over a hundred-plus years to recent vintage.
Bobby has it all! Lever guns, single shots, bolt guns, semi-autos, revolvers, pistols, muzzle loaders and any other gun. I photographed several hang tags on the guns piquing my interest, but I would later find out it was all for naught.
Some History
Initially, Bobby had the idea I would use a special gun for the hunt chambered in .45-70. It was from John Purcell’s estate — a man Bobby and I knew well. He was a fellow shootist, retired Arkansas State Trooper, and master storyteller. Most stories started with “These ol’ boys…” leading into a great story as a trooper.
His Wranglers were always ironed with knife-edge creases, as well as his pearl snap western shirts he always wore and telltale cowboy boots. You know the look. Lean, he looked like a model for any western catalog with his ever-present Stetson cowboy hat.
The gun in question was John’s vintage 1905 Model 1886 .45-70, with Williams peep sight mounted on it. Bobby had a sack of handloads from fellow shootist Jeff Quinn’s estate from a few years back. They were loaded by a commercial outfit and consisted of 405 grain soft points over 55.5 grains of 2230 powder ignited by a large Winchester rifle primer. Velocity was just under 2,000 FPS.
At the range, the ammo grouped well and hit point of aim out to 150 yards. I figured they would, knowing my old friend’s rifle would be ready and raring to go, given his excruciating attention to details. The hunt was a splendid success with the old rifle and I’ll write about it in another article. Besides Bobby, Jason Cloessner and his son Evan were there too. We all had the pleasure of watching Evan whack a beautiful goat earlier.
Tank holding “his” rifle, if only temporarily, after the deal has been made.
Confession Time
Already drooling after handling the 1886, now I really wanted it, after “blooding it.” Bobby said he was going to keep it for his collection. Anguishing for a few days, I was trying to figure out how to about approach Bobby about him selling me the gun without offending him. When I finally did ask, Bobby was very gracious when I asked him if he’d consider selling it. What he said was the basis for this article. He said, “Tank, sure I would. I figure I’ll be getting it back in 20-30 years and it will mean even more to me, then.”
Laughing, we both knew this is exactly how it will play out. We’ve both lost several mutual friends of late, and it just reinforced his statement. This leads us to the original question, do we buy, rent or lease our guns when we exchange our hard-earned money for them? None of us are getting out of here alive. We are merely keepers of our treasures until they are passed on to the next.
But this is all well and good. Look at the fun we’ll have when they’re in our possession. And to a lesser degree, knowing part of our spirit will live on as the next caretaker talks about “our old gun” and the stories passed along with it.