Weapons of WW11

With millions of daggers produced in the 30’s and 40’s for use by the SA, or Storm Troopers (Sturmabteilung), also known as "Brown shirts" the SA Dagger became the mostly commonly used dagger in Germany. Due to it large production there was over 200 manufacturers and distributors of this dagger.   Making for a large number of stamps on dagger made...

The Hardware – Aircraft Although the Supermarine Spitfire is often portrayed as the fighter plane that “won” the Battle of Britain, it was in fact Sidney Camm’s robust and durable Hurricane that destroyed more German aircraft than the rest of the British planes combined. Well into 1941, the Hurricane was the RAF’s most numerous fighter. Designed as a monoplane version of the earlier Fury, the Hurricane was not as technically advanced as the Spitfire and had an unstressed, largely fabric, covering. The prototype first flew in November 1935, and the Hurricane Mk I entered service late in 1937 as the RAF’s first monoplane fighter. Early Hurricane aircraft were fitted with a two-blade, fixed-pitch propeller that later gave way to a three-blade, constant-speed unit. Some 19 squadrons operated with Mk I Hurricanes on the outbreak of World War II in September 1939 and some 32 squadrons were equipped by August 1940. The production total was about 3,650 aircraft. Some 7,500 of the improved Mk II fighter-bomber Hurricanes, with an uprated powerplant, heavier armament, and enhancements such a metal-skinned wings, three-blade propeller and better armor protection, were deliver from September 1940 onward, in various configurations. Many aircraft were tropicalized for North African and Far Eastern service with a special chin air filter. The Mk IV Hurricane was the final British production model and was fitted with uprated engine, additional armor, and provisions for underwing stores, including antitank guns. The Sea Hurricane was a naval version of the plane. Continue reading →

The Hardware – Small Arms – Revolvers By the end of the 19th century, the revolver had reached its definitive form and its highest possible effectiveness as a military weapon. Indeed, from the 1880s through World War II, British officers carried such revolvers as the Webley. However, by the 1940s the revolver was totally outdated, but remained in service in some armies until the 1990s. During WWI, the British found that their No 1 revolver was too heavy for battlefield use (though the weapon was very accurate). What was needed, the British decided, was a lighter pistol. This resulted in a new pistol that entered service in 1932 as the Pistol, Revolver, No 2 Mk I. it replaced the huge 0.455in Webley revolver that had entered service with the British Army in 1887 after being designed as a powerful “man stopper” for use in colonial warfare. The final version of this series was introduced in 1915, and became the Pistol, Revolver, .455 No 1 Mk VI. By the start of World War II, there was large numbers of the 0.455in revolver still in service. Continue reading →

Medium tanks were an excellent combination of firepower, range, and armor protection. Some of the most decisive tanks of the war were in the medium class, such as the German Panzer IV, the Soviet T-34 and the U.S M4 Sherman. Vickers Medium Tank Designation: Vickers Medium MK IIA Type: Medium Tank Length: 17.6 ft (5.36 m) Width: 9.1 ft (2.77...

During World War I, the German Army had decided that it’s standard Rifle, the Gewehr 98, was too long for effective use. By 1924, Mausers had developed a shorter rifle, but it did not enter full production until 1935 as the Karabiner 98k. Millions of these weapons in several variants were made before Germany’s defeat in 1945. KARABINER 98K Type...