Ex-Soviet T34/72s sold to Cuba after the war found their way eventually to a couple of African post-colonial conflicts in the late '70s and early '80s where the Cubans were providing "assistance" (big crates marked "combine harvester"?) and sometimes can still be glimpsed today, when the news sevices remember those nations exist LOL places like Mozambique and Angola. The Bren and its rebarrelled derivatives IS long gone from British service - whcih means SOMEONE has them, because the British Government always sells its ex-service and surplus weapons out internationally through Interarm in Birmingham...and does a better job of keeping track of them than most countries do. I've read anecdotal tales elsewhere of WWII Stens being rounded up prior to 1980 in Rhodesia, mixed in with Chinese copies from after the war - and Thompsons too, which the Amercian government supplied to nearly ever anti-Axis guerrilla force during the war. Some turned up in Vietnam many years after they were supplied to Ho Chih Minh's forces during the war!
Amercian forces in Afghanistan turned up a couple of WWI Rernault FT-17 tanks, very rusty but got one running locally; they however coudlnt; turn up any word on when the last time they'd been running and in service before that was! And tucked away in a fort they found the carefullydismantled remains of two WWI Bristol Fighters that had been sold to the Afghans after 1918! I think these are now back in the UK being assessed for possible restoration to airworthyness of at least one of them!
Am I right in remembering that the .50cal was actually phased out of the U.S. Army as an infantry weapon, but the Marines kept it alive for it to be phased back in a few years later?
WWII Weapons And Equipment Still In Use
The US Army has not yet phased out the M2 .50 cal heavy machinegun, and it is still in use. I do believe there is a replacement weapon on the horizon.phylo_roadking wrote: Am I right in remembering that the .50cal was actually phased out of the U.S. Army as an infantry weapon, but the Marines kept it alive for it to be phased back in a few years later?
Penn44
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Cdt.Hawkins
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- Location: Anglesea,Victoria,Australia
Well, its not exactly on topic but there were some vietcong captured with a 1916 lewis gun.
At the end of ww2 Russia captured large stocks of k98s,kept them in storage and then during the Vietnam conflict they were given to the vietcong as soviet aid.
A few k98s have turned up in Iraq and Afghanistan, probbaly from the soviet stocks.
I did a psph on the news in Iraq once.
I beleive there are a few bofors guns still in use.
And occasoinaly there is a dc-3 that flys over my place.
At the end of ww2 Russia captured large stocks of k98s,kept them in storage and then during the Vietnam conflict they were given to the vietcong as soviet aid.
A few k98s have turned up in Iraq and Afghanistan, probbaly from the soviet stocks.
I did a psph on the news in Iraq once.
I beleive there are a few bofors guns still in use.
And occasoinaly there is a dc-3 that flys over my place.
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Cdt.Hawkins
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- Posts: 19
- Joined: 11 Aug 2007, 03:54
- Location: Anglesea,Victoria,Australia
WEAPONS IN USE IN THE BALKANS
Several years ago I was working with the United Nations Civil Police Mission in the Balkans.
We had numerous occasions to sieze weapons from the participants, and also got some on turn ins.
Being a militaria collector for years I was always anxious to see what turned up, in particular if there were any WWII German items.
Some days we'd get 1 or 2 items, and others a small truck full.
We encountered K98s, MP40s, P38s, MG34 & 42s, 8cm mortars, some egg grenades, and mines.
Naturally I wanted to take home as many as possible but ALL weaponry was strictly controlled.We supervised the destruction of the vast majority which was accomplished at some sites by driving over the pile in an armored vehicle, and then torching the pieces as needed. The remnants were buried in bulldozed holes at what we HOPED were secret locations.
Many of the items in question were in remarkably good,some near mint condition. I assume these were captured from the Germans at wars end and stored.
I hoped we might find some German helmets but none other then ground dug relics turned up.The warring factions at the time generally wore soft hats or none at all.
If there is any interest I'll try to locate my photos of some of the items.
regards,
Bob Frey
We had numerous occasions to sieze weapons from the participants, and also got some on turn ins.
Being a militaria collector for years I was always anxious to see what turned up, in particular if there were any WWII German items.
Some days we'd get 1 or 2 items, and others a small truck full.
We encountered K98s, MP40s, P38s, MG34 & 42s, 8cm mortars, some egg grenades, and mines.
Naturally I wanted to take home as many as possible but ALL weaponry was strictly controlled.We supervised the destruction of the vast majority which was accomplished at some sites by driving over the pile in an armored vehicle, and then torching the pieces as needed. The remnants were buried in bulldozed holes at what we HOPED were secret locations.
Many of the items in question were in remarkably good,some near mint condition. I assume these were captured from the Germans at wars end and stored.
I hoped we might find some German helmets but none other then ground dug relics turned up.The warring factions at the time generally wore soft hats or none at all.
If there is any interest I'll try to locate my photos of some of the items.
regards,
Bob Frey
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phylo_roadking
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- Location: Belfast
Re: WEAPONS IN USE IN THE BALKANS
That's sad to hear. To destroy such valuable collector's items is a crime in itself. They couldn't have seen much use in the Bosnian or Kosovo wars, considering that they were 50 years past their prime and certainly in the case of the rifles, obsolete.RTFREY wrote:Several years ago I was working with the United Nations Civil Police Mission in the Balkans.
We had numerous occasions to sieze weapons from the participants, and also got some on turn ins.
Being a militaria collector for years I was always anxious to see what turned up, in particular if there were any WWII German items.
Some days we'd get 1 or 2 items, and others a small truck full.
We encountered K98s, MP40s, P38s, MG34 & 42s, 8cm mortars, some egg grenades, and mines.
Naturally I wanted to take home as many as possible but ALL weaponry was strictly controlled.We supervised the destruction of the vast majority which was accomplished at some sites by driving over the pile in an armored vehicle, and then torching the pieces as needed. The remnants were buried in bulldozed holes at what we HOPED were secret locations.
Many of the items in question were in remarkably good,some near mint condition. I assume these were captured from the Germans at wars end and stored.
I hoped we might find some German helmets but none other then ground dug relics turned up.The warring factions at the time generally wore soft hats or none at all.
If there is any interest I'll try to locate my photos of some of the items.
regards,
Bob Frey
They may have been obsolete but were certainly in use. In particular, the scope mounted Mausers were employed by some snipers with devastating results.
Snipers seemed to enjoy shooting men, women, and childern from the OTHER side. This applied to ALL the parties involved, and there were numerous photos from the period showing these victims.
Often we had to move people by the side of an armored vehicle to shelter those who wanted to cross a street.
Another good reason for me not to venture to far out in the open wearing a bright blue beret or helmet while looking for collectibles. But I tried!
Snipers seemed to enjoy shooting men, women, and childern from the OTHER side. This applied to ALL the parties involved, and there were numerous photos from the period showing these victims.
Often we had to move people by the side of an armored vehicle to shelter those who wanted to cross a street.
Another good reason for me not to venture to far out in the open wearing a bright blue beret or helmet while looking for collectibles. But I tried!
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phylo_roadking
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- Joined: 01 May 2006, 00:31
- Location: Belfast
Collectable yes - but there are plenty in the public arena already. For example, some film studios and props rental companies retain armouries of WWII era weapons big enough to equip some smaller nations in the world 
And I've seen worse crimes against history committed. I worked for a year in the local Forensic Science laboratory here in Northern Ireland, and in that time got to see everything that came into the lab for analysis. ALL recovered weapons etc. had to be brought there, certified as to what they were - then crushed or kept as case evidence. That was a time of considerable housing redevelopment in Belfast, and a lot of terraced houses were knocked down. Out of some of these were recovered old Steyrs and Martini-Henrys from the 1914 gunrunning, laid up behind false cupboard backs and behind baths - then forgotten about til the crushing ball tumbled them out of their cubbyholes. The Martini-Henrys in particular were of interest, once I found out where they were from....
The rifles used against the Zulus were sold on the open arms market when the Lee-Metford came into use; some were bought by the Boers....and again these were turned in and resold after they were turned in at the end of the Boer War. Then bought and smuggled to Ulster with the intention of being used against the British Army again....and these were crushed....
And I've seen worse crimes against history committed. I worked for a year in the local Forensic Science laboratory here in Northern Ireland, and in that time got to see everything that came into the lab for analysis. ALL recovered weapons etc. had to be brought there, certified as to what they were - then crushed or kept as case evidence. That was a time of considerable housing redevelopment in Belfast, and a lot of terraced houses were knocked down. Out of some of these were recovered old Steyrs and Martini-Henrys from the 1914 gunrunning, laid up behind false cupboard backs and behind baths - then forgotten about til the crushing ball tumbled them out of their cubbyholes. The Martini-Henrys in particular were of interest, once I found out where they were from....
The rifles used against the Zulus were sold on the open arms market when the Lee-Metford came into use; some were bought by the Boers....and again these were turned in and resold after they were turned in at the end of the Boer War. Then bought and smuggled to Ulster with the intention of being used against the British Army again....and these were crushed....