Shells, grenades, weapons and militaria.

ELECTRONIC ENIGMA-E, 2009

Paul Reuvers and Marc Simons in the Netherlands decided to make this machine in 2001, after much research and overcoming many problems it was launched as a kit in 2003, it is much smaller than the real thing and is built around an original 4-rotor type machine. It does exactly what the original electro mechanical version did but using modern electronic components and software created by them. Two or more machine can encrypt and decode messages in the same way as the original. It has replaced the normal coding wheels with a led display and the patch board (Steckerbrett) on the front with normal links as in the original but with different plugs. Changing the days code would be done by up and down buttons above and below the LED display. The message to be decoded is entered on the keypad and the result of each key pressed is displayed momentarily on the illuminated panel above as in the original. A technical explanation of how the original machine worked together with all the variants that were produced. The idea was conceived in 1918 by German engineer Arthur Scherbius and Patented under the name Enigma in 1923 they were produced up to World War Two and used until the 1950's. In 1944 an addition was added known as the 'UHR' a 40 position switch which connected into the plug board. An electronic kit is also available for this unit.

Donated by Valerie Croft

A1682

RACAL SPIKE ANTENNA, circa 1980

Ground spike for ten section aerial complete with lead and carrying case. Using the spike to create a ground connection transmission would be improved. By varying the length of the number of section of the aerial it can be matched during transmitting for 30 to 76 MHz. More sections are available out of the ten supplied for other frequency's.

A1667

SIGNAL LAMP/TORCH

Possibly naval, because of the colour of the paint, at the end is a broad arrow, indicating that it was made for the war department, or government property. The lens is red but this can be removed to reveal a further clear glass lens inside to provide normal torch use. At the rear of the unit is a key that can be retracted for protection, providing a Morse signalling application. Underneath at the rear, is a bracket to provide stability when the key is in use. See Item A1601.

A1602

LEADS COUNTERPOISE No2 Mk2, 1950's

No. 2 Mk II Counter-Poise for the Wireless Set No. 19 antenna, and similar. The Counter-Poise has four wire segments which are laid like a cross underneath the radiating antenna. The four wires terminate to a central location at the radios earth terminal to provide an artificial ground plane. Each wire segment is 340 Cm Long.

Donated by Mr T Angove

A1518

HEADSET No10 PACKED, 1952

Headset No10 for the Wireless Set No19 in original packing, this item literally fell of the back of a lorry in 1952, and is dated April 52. for a view of the headset see Item No A0095

Donated by Mr T Angove

A1515

HEADSET No10 FOR WS19, 1950's

One type of Headset and microphone used for the Wireless Set No19. Item A0088 and A0871, and WS62 Item A1405.

A0095

WWII TYPE F FANY HEADSET, 1940's

Headset used by The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry F.A.N.Y. as part of the S.O.E. Special Operations Executive. The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry was created in 1907 by Lord Kitchener, as a link organisation between front line fighting units and field hospitals.
Early recruits were drawn from mainly upper middle classes. During WW1 the FANY ran field hospitals, drove ambulances and set up soup kitchens and troop canteens.
In 1938 they became part of Auxiliary Territorial Services (ATS). In 1940 Hugh Dalton, Minister of Economic Warfare, established the Special Operations Executive (SOE). Contact was made with the Commandant of FANY and arranged for her to provide personnel for the SOE.
At first they were used to produce passports, ration books, and other forged documents for use in occupied Europe. Also to decode, encode and transmit messages to and from the field.
In April 1942 Churchill gave his permission to send women in the SOE into Europe.
Since the war the FANY has been known mainly for it's work in the field of military and civil communications.

A0488

HAND PEDAL GENERATOR Mk810A, 1950's

The Mk810A generator also known as 'Generating set AC 45W 110V, hand or pedal driven, No1 Mk1' was intended for powering AC powered equipment such as receiver Mk122 or Mk123. The unit can be pedal or hand operated, and is supplied with all the suitable accessories, on the top of the main unit is a meter indicating up to 150V with two red marks between which the needle should be held whilst turning the pedals. The base plate comes with a chain so it can be attached to a tree trunk or other similar object, also supplied are two clamps for table mounting. The whole unit and parts pack into the box supplied.

This item can be demonstrated.

A1461

WW11 CARRIER PIGEON MESSAGE TUBE

Attached to the pigeons leg and containing a small rolled paper message, sometimes as thin as a human hair.

Carrier pigeon message tubes were used during WW1 and WW11, during WW1 wireless communication was still in its infancy, and telephones in the theatre of war could only be used over limited distances.

Even microfilm could be transported by this means.

Carrier Pigeon Service (CPS)

The history of the use of carrier pigeons in warfare is indeed a varied and interesting one, with a long and illustrious history. It is believed that the use of carrier pigeons as a messenger service had it origins in antiquity - over three thousand years ago by the Egyptians, Persians and Romans; in 1150 A.D., the Sultan of Baghdad strapped capsules filled with papyrus sheets to the leg or back feathers of pigeons, and used them as messengers. They were used as recently as 1990, by the Iraqi Army during the First Gulf War.
Pigeons played a vital part in World War One as they proved to be an extremely reliable way of sending messages. Such was the importance of pigeons that over 100,000 were used in the war with an astonishing success rate of 95% getting through to their destination with their message. The British Army had a unit called the Carrier Pigeon Service (CPS) which was led by Lt. Col. A.H. Osman. Carrier pigeons were used by the British during the Second Battle of Ypres in May of 1915. The Carrier Pigeon Service was only used when telegraph and telephone communications failed and was soon overtaken by the development of Wireless Telegraphy (i.e. Radio), further limiting their usage; hence, they were only used for emergency or espionage purposes. The avian unit saw further success at the Battle of the Somme and at Verdun, often against screens of poisonous gas and heavy shelling from the opposition.
In October 1918, as the war neared its end, 194 American soldiers found themselves trapped by German soldiers. They were cut off from other Allied soldiers and had no working radios. The only chance they had of alerting anybody about their desperate situation was to send a pigeon with their co-ordinates attacked to its leg. The pigeon's name was Cher Ami. When released it flew 25 miles from behind German lines to the Americans headquarters. Cher Ami covered the 25 miles in just 25 minutes. The pigeon was, in fact, shot through the chest by the Germans but continued to fly home. With the "Lost Battalion's" co-ordinates, the Americans launched a rescue and the 194 men were saved. Cher Ami was awarded the Croix de Guerre with Palm for its astonishing flight. As with other pigeons, it would not have known where the American's nearest headquarters was - its natural homing instincts took over.

A1295

WWII FANY MORSE KEYS

Silent Keys used by The First Aid Nursing Yeomanry F.A.N.Y. as part of the S.O.E. Special Operations Executive.

A0485

WWII SG BROWN HEAD SET

War Department issue DLR headphones of WW2 made by S.G.Brown.

A0752

WWII ADMIRALTY SIGNAL LAMP, 1944

Admiralty Pattern 378A signalling Heather type. Previously
owned by Renfrew Electric and Refrigeration Co Ltd.

Donated by Arnold Davey

A1110

WWII MORSE TRAINING SET

Morse Training set for War Department Wireless Operators

A1098

WWII US SIGNAL CORPS MORSE KEY, 1943

Morse key from WW2 in original box.

A1102

WWII BC221-M WAVEMETER

Used for Calibrating wireless transceivers. 125KHz to 20MHz heterodyne frequency meter with individual calibration book and internal Xtal calibrator.
Basic accuracy better than 0.034% over temperature range. HS-30 type headset or similar required for operation.
Supplied with one spare set of vacuum tubes inside unit, some units in 1942 were supplied with two spare sets.
Manufactured by Bendix Radio Corporation. Suffix M

A0102

CALIBRATOR CRYSTAL No10 , 1950's

The Calibrator, Crystal, No. 10, was designed for the purpose of setting- up a Wireless Set No. 62 accurately on a required spot frequency. The calibrator functions as a C.W. wave meter with continuous coverage over a frequency band of 1.5 Mc/s to 10 Mc/s.

A1474

PANEL POWER DISTRIBUTION CHARGING UNIT, 1960's

Panel Power Distribution N-8.
The unit was supplied with item A1090 to the Civil Defence depot at New Malden. Model ZA46174

A1090

CIVIL DEFENCE CORPS GENERATOR, 1960's

Petrol 4 X stroke generator 24 Volts 300Watts.
The unit was supplied to the Civil Defence depot at New Malden. Model CH1-353-5

Donated by Mr & Mrs Appleton

A1091

BRITISH ARMY MURPHY A41 No2, 1960's

The Murphy A41 No 2 was replaced by the Number 3 and then the Racal R351 Manpack.

Donated by the R.E.M.E. Museum

A0863

MARCONI R1475 RECEIVER, 1951

The Receiver Type R1475 consists of the Receiver Type 88 and the Power Unit Type 360 ( Not in the Museum ).
It is a general purpose ground station Receiver covering a nominal Frequency Band from 2-20 Mc/s in four ranges.

Donated by J D Knowles

A1011

RACAL RA17L RECEIVER, 1954

The RA17 series of communication receivers,were high Quality, valve sets,first produced by Racal,in the the 1950s,they were originally designed for supply to the British Navy.The design proved successful, and they were ultimately used by all the services and were to become the main receiver of the British radio surveillance organisation,known as G.C.H.Q.
This is the unit that put Racal 'on the map', utilising the famous Wadley Loop circuit. The Racal Factory was closed in 2000 bought by an American Company, the factory was in 2006 a derelict site

A1404

WWII MILITARY RECEIVER RCA AR88

The AR88 is a general purpose communications receiver manufactured by RCA in the U.S.A between 1941 and 1945.
They were made in large numbers for service use. Most were sent to the U.K. and Russia for the war effort.
They came in 2 versions, the AR88D and the AR88LF (low frequency version). The R.A.F. designation was R1556A and R1556B for the LF version.

They evolved into the CR88 in 1946 with crystal phasing, and the CR88A with an S meter. Later models CR91 and CR91A have the same coverage as the AR88LF.
Model SC-88 is like the CR88 but shows only the band in use.
CR88B is the last version in 1951 and has a crystal calibrator. D89 is a triple diversity version.

A0907

WIRELESS SET WS62 Mk2, 1945

Wireless Set No. 62 (WS62) was a general purpose, low-power, semitropical, vehicle station transmitter & receiver designed for short-range use in the high-frequency (HF) radio bands by the British Army during the Second World War. The frequency range covered was 1.6 to 10.0 MHz in two switched bands. It remained in service until the late 1960;s It was used in the Second World War by British Army infantry, the Parachute Regiment and the Special Air Service (SAS) The equipment was also used in Auster and Beaver aeroplanes and the Skeeter helicopter. It was first trialled early in 1944, postwar military production resuming in the early 1950s, and production for commercial applications continuing until 1966. See pyetelecomhistory.org The Wireless set No 62 incorporated its own Power unit and Variometer, unlike its predecessor the WS 22 which incorporated its own Variometer only, the WS 19 incorporated neither, both were additional units.

A1405

WWII PYE No 19 MK 3 WIRELESS SET WS19, 1941

Made in Britain PYE LTD.
This is the transceiver only, without the 'B' portion.Each WS19 radio unit contains three separate systems. The A set was a High Frequency (HF)
radio transmitter-receiver for communications up to 50 miles.

The B set was Very High Frequency (VHF) transmitter-receiver for short-range line-of-sight communications up to 1 mile.

A separate audio amplifier was provided for intercommunications between members of the crew.

Donated by the R.E.M.E. Museum

A0871

WWII MARCONI CR 100 RECEIVER (B28)

A general purpose communications receiver during World War 2 The Marconi CR100 B28 is a self contained Communications Receiver of super heterodyne type with AVC for use on CW or Phone reception.

As with other versatile equipment of the Forties, the CR100 was subject to a number of variations, most of them minor in specification, to suit particular Service needs.

A0860

ERICSSON FIELD TELEPHONE, 1920's

Early Trench Phone.
Normally with a leather case, but this is missing. Ericsson patented this type of phone in 1895. Type used from the Boer War to World War One.

A0026

WW1 MARTINS LTD TRENCH PHONE

Just one example of many Trench Phones used during WW1 type Telephone Set D Mark III. This one made by Martins Ltd of Birmingham.

A1001

WW1 ERICSSON FIELD TELEPHONE, 1908

Used in WW1 as trench phone D Mk 1 Ericsson patented this type of phone in 1895

A0028

WW1 TELEPHONE No 110 OR TRENCH PHONE

Used by the British Army along with many other designs during WW1.
Made by British Post Office Telephones.

A0034

WW1 GERMAN TRENCH PHONE of 1905

German field telephone completely self contained needing only a power source.

A0072

WWII BRITISH ARMY WIRELESS REMOTE CONTROL UNIT TYPE E

Remote Control Unit 'E' Mk2.
Used in conjunction with the Wireless Set No19
See Item A0088 and A0871

A0870

WD ACCUMULATOR 6 VOLT, 1951

Military battery box providing 6volts,with recharging capability.

A0801

WWII US ARMY FIELD TELEPHONE (SWITCHBOARD) EXCHANGE BD72

Made in the USA in 1943 and shipped to Russia .
Returned to America in the 1950's for refurbishment, and shipped back to Russia.
Stored there until the year 2000, and then sold to a dealer.
In new unused condition.

A0057

WWII THROAT MICROPHONE No2 MK2

Ideal in noisy situations such as aircraft.
Can be a little distorted but still audible.

A0320

WWII THROAT MICROPHONE T-30-R

Throat microphones are usually worn in noisy environments such as aircraft, and although slightly distorted, can still be intelligible.

A0321

WW1 CRYSTAL RECEIVER MODEL Tb, 1917

Crystal Receiver used in aircraft during World War One.
Mounting was a wooden box, with the unit suspended on two rubber bands.
Morse only was received on this unit.
Used during the same period as Item A0137 the Sterling Spark Transmitter.

A0772

WW1 STERLING SPARK TRANSMITTER

Transmitter used by aircraft for 'spotting' the fall of artillery shells, the operator could tell the gunners if they were on target.
The transmitter and Morse key were totally enclosed lest a spark ignite petrol vapour in the cockpit.
The transmitters were developed by the Royal Naval Air Service and the makers were The Sterling Telephone Company. On the top of the unit should be an ammeter, unfortunately this item is missing, the museum is currently searching for this item.

A0137

WWII BC 453 B SIGNAL CORPS RECEIVER

Part of a group of equipment known as 'Command' fitted in aircraft for general crew use.
Although the radio operator and pilot could use the communication equipment on board, the general crew could not, but they were allowed to to use 'Command' Equipment.
This particular portion of the system ( SCR1305A ) , was a beacon receiver for tracking a fixed course by following a beam from a distant transmitter, (similar to 'get you home' beams).
Other equipment of similar size and weight would be Transmitters and Receivers for R/T communication ( voice ) . The aircraft's normal Transceiver would be CW ( Morse ). Frequency 190kcs to 550 kcs

A0174

WWII SIGNAL CORPS BALLOON AERIAL, 1943

Second World War Aerial Balloon in tin container. Once opened by a Sardine key, the balloon was filled with Hydrogen and the aerial wire attached.

A0725

WWII ROC (ROYAL OBSERVER CORPS) OBSERVATION TELEPHONE

Used by searchlight crews and observation posts during WW2.
The ROC from 1925 were organised by the RAF with trained professional officers and civilian volunteers for the purpose of observing incoming enemy aircraft.
The Corps closed in 1996.

A0040

BC611C HANDIE TALKIE TRANSCEIVER, 1952

Operating on A.M. 3885khz, Range 100ft to 1 mile using 5 valves. Known as the 'Handy Talkie' This small hand held radio was used for communications at very close range, with a max range of about one mile in ideal conditions.
It is often incorrectly named the walkie-talkie.
The French army used a post-war produced version almost identical to the WWII model.
A special webbing padded case was made for this item.

A0157

WWII NATIONAL COMPANY R106 HRO RECEIVER, 1934

National HRO receiver, circa 1938.
The HRO receiver was first announced in QST magazine in October 1934 and shipped in March 1935, incorporating many design features requested by the fledgling airline industry that were also attractive to the amateur radio community.
The HRO found widespread use during World War II as the preferred receiver of various Allied monitoring services, including Y-Service stations associated with the code-breaking group at Bletchley Park (Station X) in England. An estimated 1,000 standard HROs were initially purchased by Great Britain, and approximately 10,000 total saw use by the British in intercept operation, diplomatic communications, aboard ships and at shore stations as well as for clandestine use.

A1030

WWII HRO RECEIVER RACK MOUNTING VERSION

The title HRO is said to have originated as a result of the initial title HOR standing for 'Ham Operators Radio' this was said to be not acceptable due to it's other interpretations, so the letters were changed to HRO.
Another story relates to the fact that it was required to be designed and developed in a very short time, and was given the nickname 'Hell of a rush' again HOR presented the same problem.
Which story is true is debatable. However the set itself with its interchangeable tuning coil sets and its superb tuning mechanism made it one of the most sort after sets by radio amateurs after the war.

A0172

WWII US SIGNAL CORPS LOUD SPEAKER LS3

Speaker used with military communication equipment. Currently plugged into a HRO receiver in the Museum. However the HRO receivers we have require a 7000 ohm impedance unit.

A0529

B2 SPY SET. OWNED BY MAJOR JOHN BROWN.

The B2 or Type 3 Mk2 spy set was developed by Major John Brown (then Captain) in 1942 and replaced an earlier version, the A Mk 3.

With at least 60ft. of Aerial and a good earth a range of 1000 miles was achievable. One of the features was the power supply, which could operate from 120 or 240 volt mains or a 6 volt car battery. It could be dropped by air in watertight cases (often concealed in rivers or lakes) or worn as a backpack.

This is John Brown's most famous radio set; our example was owned by John Brown himself.

A0154

WWII PARACHUTE BOXES FOR TYPE 3 Mk 2 B2 SPY SET

Parachute boxes for the Spy Transceiver Type 3 Mk2 or B2 Item A0154.
The sets were dropped from aircraft in these boxes, they are completely waterproof and could be sunk in rivers for retrieval later.

A0732

WWII SIGNAL CORPS AERIAL WIRE

Aerial wire for use with portable Transceivers.
See The John Brown Spy Set Item A0154

A0565

WWII BRITISH WIRELESS SET 88, 1946

Designed as a tropicalised man pack set for short range communications for the infantry. Range 1 to 2 miles using standard 4ft rod 38 to 42 Mghz using FM only. Wireless Set No. 88 was a man pack VHF-FM transceiver developed in about 1947 as a replacement for the No. 38 Set. It was the first British developed tactical VHF-FM man pack set.
The No. 88 Set could work to Wireless Set No. 31 and four channels marked A to D on its tuning dial correspond with those on Wireless Set No. 88 Type A. It was principally used for short range infantry communications.
The No. 88 set was carried in a pouch similar to a Bren gun ammunition pouch, which made carrying and operation inconspicuous. The battery is carried separately in a similar pouch.
Two versions were made of this set: Type A for infantry Company-Platoon use and Type B for infantry Mortar-Platoon use. Apart from the difference in frequencies and indication plate, they are distinguishable by their colours. Type A has an olive drab top panel and case, whilst Type B has a black top.
Wireless Set No. 88 AFV was developed for fitting in tanks and other vehicles along with Wireless Set No. 19 for the purpose of communicating with infantry personnel equipped with Wireless Sets No. 88 Type A.
The set comprised a slightly modified standard No. 88 Set Type A, powered from 12V DC by a separate Power Supply And LF Amplifier Unit No. 2. The latter also incorporated AF amplifiers raising the AF output of the No. 88 Set and vehicle harness microphones to a suitable level.

Frequency range 38.01-42.15MHz
Four crystal controlled channels
Two versions: Type A and Type B, differing in frequency
RF output 0.25W
FM R/T only
Range up to 2 miles
HT and LT is obtained from a combined dry battery
Set is lightweight and self contained
Case is tropicalised and immersion proof

A0155

WWII TANNOY MICROPHONE

Tannoy is a registered trade mark and is a Syllabic abbreviation of Tantulum Alloy, used in a form of Electrolytic rectifiers developed by the company, which when formed in London was called in 1926 'Tulsemere Manufacturing Company.'
This product has not been made since just after WW2 and was used in Public Address systems as well as military communications.
Being extremely robust it will continue to work after much abuse, making it ideal for the Army or Navy in rough conditions.

A0316

WWII No 3 HAND MICROPHONE

Microphone for use with a variety of Transceivers during and after World War Two.

A0315

WWII ALDIS SIGNAL LAMP ADMIRALTY PATTERN

Used as a lamp signal source for Morse code by the Navy during WW2.
This one was last used in 1997.
Also used by Airport Control Towers using colour signals for stop and clearance.

A0388

WWII MANCE MILITARY HELIOGRAPH 5INCH MK 5

Sir Henry Christopher Mance (1840-1926), of British Army Signal Corps, developed the first apparatus while stationed at Karachi, Bombay.
Used for signalling by reflecting the suns ray's, a second mirror is supplied for when the sun is behind the sender. This model has not changed since before the Boer War. The whole unit can be packed into the leather case with the legs strapped to the side. A Heliograph (from the Greek Helios meaning "sun"), is a wireless solar telegraph that signals using Morse code flashes of sunlight reflected by a mirror.
The flashes are produced by momentarily pivoting the mirror, or by interrupting the beam with a shutter. The Heliograph was a simple but highly effective instrument for instantaneous optical communication over 50 km or more in the late 19th and early 20th century.
Its major uses were military, survey and forest protection work. Heliograph's were standard issue in the British and Australian armies until the 1960s, and were used by the Pakistani army as late as 1975.

This item can be demonstrated.

• Detail view
  

A0195

WW1 SIGNAL LAMP LONG RANGE AND HELIOS TRIPOD

Signal Lamp used by the Military for Daylight or Night Morse communications. It is supplied complete with Tripod (Normally used with Heliograph Item A0195) Single spike if not used with tripod Night Variable aperture disc and colour filters. The Morse key is stowed inside the lid and has two settings, one via a resistance for new batteries to preserve the bulb, a box of spare bulbs and accessories is also provided.

• Detailed View
  

A1450

WWII SIGNAL LAMP

Morse signalling lamp with a very narrow beam and a Morse key unit which can be mounted on a Helios tripod, like Item A1450, or staked in the ground.
For night time use filters are provided, also an aperture plate to reduce the light output.
The first time this model was produced was during the fist World War designed by George Lucas.

A0373

WW1 SPARE LAMPS FOR LAMP SIGNALLING, 1918

Spare lamps for War Department Lamp Signalling, see item NoA0373.

A0329

WWII US FIELD TELEPHONE TYPE EE-8-A

Type EE-8-A with canvas cover used by the American Army during WW2. Calling is by Magneto hand cranked Generator and the unit can be used with switchboard BD72 Item A0057.

A0029

WW1 FULLERPHONE MK3 FIELD TELEPHONE

Captain Fuller later Colonel, Invented this form of military field telephone. Because of the internal buzzer unit (chopper) it could transmit Morse simultaneously with speech, the Morse being virtually unnoticed, or undetectable making the system more secure, encryption would have improved this further. There was an Mk1 and Mk2 version also used during WW1, this unit is dated 1920. Eventually Algernon Clement Fuller 1885-1970 became a Major General.

A0070

WWII FIELD TELEPHONE SET D MKV

Used during WW2 and based on Colonel Fullers designs for field telephones.
Later to be replaced by many more similar styles up to type 'F' 'S' & 'W'. For a description on the Fullerphone system see item A0070 above. These sets were made by manufacturers officially approved by the General Post Office (GPO), and are not always marked by the maker.

A0004

SIEMENS SIZE 'S' BATTERY, 1930's

Small dry cell 1.5 volts Used in WD equipment such as Item A0004 during WW2

A0269

WWII FIELD TELEPHONE TYPE 'F' Mk2

Bakelite version of field telephone type 'F' in wooden box. Made by the Telephone Manufacturing Company. For a description on the Fullerphone system see item A0070 above. These sets were made by manufacturers officially approved by the General Post Office (GPO), and are not always marked by the maker.

A0051

FIELD TELEPHONE TYPE 'F' HIGH POWER, 1944

Amplified version of Field Telephone Type 'F' using a valve stage to amplify the strength of the signal. In the second picture can be seen the amplifier at the rear, with one part missing, suspected to be the relay. We are currently searching for the missing section. For a description on the Fullerphone system see item A0070 above. These sets were made by manufacturers officially approved by the General Post Office (GPO), and are not always marked by the maker.

• High Power Amplifier
  

A1097

WWII FULLERPHONE MK 4 FIELD TELEPHONE, 1943

The improved version of the Mk3 although no speech was possible, Morse was heard only via the headset. For a description on the Fullerphone system see item A0070 above These sets were made by manufacturers officially approved by the General Post Office (GPO), and are not always marked by the maker.

A0071

WWII MILITARY FIELD TELEPHONE TYPE "J"

One of a range of field telephones made during the Second World War and used by the Army. Similar to type 'L' see item A1681. An extra earpiece facility is provided with connection to two terminals on the left. A pull switch marked 'KEY' in the front of the battery compartment is for calling using a Central battery. A GPO Magneto when turned using the handle on the right sends an AC voltage to the receiving station and rings the bell.Two terminals on the right are marked 'L1 and 'L2' which are connected to the line to the other unit, if L2 is connected to the ground then only one wire is needed for the line These sets were made by manufacturers officially approved by the General Post Office (GPO), and are not always marked by the maker.

A0850

FIELD TELEPHONE SET 'L' Mk1, 1950's

Introduced in 1941 and developed for a Linesman hence the designation 'L' or maintenance crew. The internal battery is isolated from the line by an internal transformer so that 'CB' or Central Battery may be used. A pull switch in front of the battery compartment is used to facilitate this. The whole unit is housed in a robust steel box, with a Magneto handle on the side which is used to ring the distant bell on the receivers set. The internal batteries, only power the microphone on this unit not the line. The type 'J' is similar see Item A0850, which does not have the 'CB' switch, a 'KEY' switch is fitted instead and a provision for an extra earpiece. These sets were made in Britain by many manufacturers officially approved by the General Post Office (GPO), and are not always marked by the maker.

A1681

WWII CANADIAN WIRELESS No 58*, 1944

Made by the Canadians to replace the W.S. 18 but not officially adopted by the British.
The Mk 1 Star, replaced the earlier Mk1 with minor differences, the main one, being it had round corners instead of square.
Some changes were also made to the control panel.

A0085

WWII GERMAN FIELD TELEPHONE, 1941

Common German field telephone of WW2

A0005

WWII WIRELESS SET No.17 Mk1

A small portable ground station for communication between searchlight section headquarters and anti-aircraft batteries. It replaced signal lamps. It was designed by Stanley Lewer in 1939 for Searchlight Territorial units during the war.

This unit is original apart from the repainted front panel which was badly corroded, but the colour is the same. Serial No. 4617 one of the first series.

A0894

WWII WIRELESS SET No 17 MK 2, 1939

Mk2 Version of item A0894 .
A small portable ground station for communication between searchlight section headquarters and 'AA' batteries.
It replaced signal lamps. Designed by Stanley Lewer in 1939 for Searchlight Territorial units during the war.
It was not fully adopted by the War Office.

A0980

WWII WIRELESS SET No18. Mk 3, 1940's

A man pack portable set for short range communications, carried by one man and operated by a second. First produced in 1940 by Pye Telecommunications Ltd.

Range with 11 foot rod aerial was over 5 miles using speech; 10 miles using CW (Morse).

The front panels are normally grey, black panels were usually for special operations use.

A0791

WWII WIRELESS SET NO.19

This model was made in the USA by the ZENITH Corp. and has Russian and English markings on the face plate. These sets were sent to Russia under the 'lend Lease' Program of WW2. As a result many have turned up in surplus stores since then.

A0088, A0089, A0090

WWII SPARE VALVE KITS FOR WIRELESS SET 19

Valve kits for Item A0088.

A0092

WWII HYDROMETER SECONDARY CELL PORTABLE No 1 FOR WIRELESS SET No 19, 1940's

Hydrometers are used for the measurement of specific gravity.The unit can also approximate the charge of a secondary cell (chargeable type) that has a liquid electrolyte by, in this case, the floating or sinking of the plastic balls in the barrel of the tube, (the liquid is sucked up from the battery by depressing the bulb and releasing).
If all balls float the battery is fully charged.

If the white ball sinks three quarter charge.
Green ball sinks half charge.
Red ball sinks quarter charge or less.

A0322

WWII WIRELESS SET No 38 MK2, 1941

Using a separate battery pack this radio could be carried by one man. Not the first true man pack; the WS No13 man pack in 1937 pre-dated it but was not so successful. It was designed by Murphy Radio.

Range is half a mile with a 4 foot rod aerial, 2 miles using a 12 foot rod. It was supplied with headset and throat microphone.

• Detailed view of the Radio
  

A0156

WWII WIRELESS SET No 46, 1941

This wireless set was developed for Combined Operation Command to provide radio communication under difficult conditions, such as sea landing operations. Manufactured by E.K.COLE (ECKO) and used during D-DAY. This set was advanced for its time.

Range 8 miles, batteries are carried in a separate pack.

A0794

WWII R1116A RECEIVER

Used in the Fairy Swordfish Aircraft, they were also fitted in the Sunderland Flying Boat and other aircraft between the two world wars. Its companion was the T1115 transmitter.

A1029

WWII 1155 RECEIVER, 1155

Made for aircraft such as the Lancaster bomber, also used in other aircraft and also as a ground station. The R1155 is an English LF and HF super heterodyne receiver covering from 75kHz to 18.5mHz in 5 bands, with D/F (Direction Finding) and homing functions.
This receiver started development in 1939 by the Marconi Wireless Telegraph Co and was called the AD.87B/8882B to replace the pre-war T1083 and R1082.
The R.A.F. designation was the R1155 and the corresponding transmitter was the T1154, the first units being installed in June 1940. These were still used into the 1950s. Several companies manufactured them, including Marconi, Ekco, Plessey, Philips, and the Gramophone Co. (EMI).
They were fitted to many aircraft like the Avro Lancaster and the deHavilland Mosquito. They were imported into Australia after the War to be used in Lincoln bombers. Although they were used mainly in aircraft, later in the war they were fitted to small boats (N suffix), and also to vehicles (115, 115B, 130, 131).
The receiver has 10 valves of which 3 are for the D/F and one is a Tuning Indicator (magic eye).
There are 6 used for the super heterodyne receiver. The receiver has an RF stage, a mixer/oscillator, two IF stages, an AVC and BFO stage, a detector, an audio amplifier, and a magic eye tuning indicator. The D/F circuitry has two valves as aerial switching and multi vibrator, and a meter switch.
It can have 3 aerials, a fixed wire type, a trailing aerial, and a D/F loop. It has 11 controls of which 5 are for D/F only.

A0165

WWII 1154N TRANSMITTER

Similar to sets used in the Avro Lancaster and other large aircraft during WW2.
The variant 'N' was originally designed for RAF Coastal Command) for general-purpose airborne use, and the R1154N (steel) for all other general use, except in bomber aircraft.

A0164

WWII RAF CARBON TYPE DESK MICROPHONE TYPE 3

Desk Microphone made from the Post Office pillar phone.
By WW2 the old Candlestick (Pillar Phone) was becoming obsolete being replaced by the 200 series Pyramid type, to help the War effort the British Post Office were able to find many of the old phones for conversion.
The Desk microphone was used with the 1154 Transmitter when operating as a ground station. See Item A0164. Its designation by the RAF is Type 3. It is stamped on the base 10A/9597 and on the microphone No22PX/1.

A0742

WWII MORSE KEY FOR TRANSMITTER, 1154

Morse Key as used with the 1154 Transmitter. See Item No A0164
Sometimes called a ''Bathtub'' key.

A0311

MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS LAND ROVER 90 (internal view), 1987

The vehicle is fitted with four Wireless sets plus one Manpack. The combination is to show a variety of systems that could have been used in the Land Rover range of vehicles, not all at the same time of course. The sets are -

C12 - (middle left on table) Made by PYE (forerunner to the Larkspur Range). Basically similar to the WS19 but does not include the B set, it has the same case, weight and dimensions but a wider frequency range, covering 1.6 MHz to 10 MHz AM, voice or CW (Morse). 5 Watts voice 8 Watts CW. (A1630)

C45 - (middle right on table) Developed around 1955 working VHF Frequencies, FM from 23 MHz to 38 MHz, identical to the C42 which worked 60 MHz to 36 MHz also FM, only 15 Watts. (A1631)

R351 - (middle front) Made by Racal and introduced around 1985. The R351 can be mounted in vehicle bracket ( top left ) or used as a man-pack. Some of these units are still in use today (2005). Frequency range 30 to 70 MHz FM only, power 4 watts, or 20 watts using clip on amplifier 352 as shown. (A1629)

R353 - (far left) Made by Marconi or Racal, Vehicle unit same frequencies and modes of operation as the R351 but power up to 50 watts from the vehicle antennae, the large boxes on the wings are aerial tuning units for Racal FM sets. (A1633)

R320 - (top left) Made by Plessey. A man-pack unit mounted in a vehicle frame this set was designed to communicate with base stations or each other using AM, CW or upper side-band modes rather than FM. Frequency range 2 to 30 MHz. (A1632)

A1629 A1630 A1631 A1632 A1633

WILLYS JEEP TYPE M38A1, 1961

The 'NEKAF' Jeep was a Willys model that was assembled in the Netherlands, initially at Nekaf in Rotterdam. Used by the Royal Netherlands Army till the 1990's. A total of 7500 were built. The military designation is M38A1, which originated from the 1952 model by Willy's Overland. In 1962 the Nekaf Jeep was replaced by the DKW Munga, which wore out too quickly so that the Nekaf Jeeps in storage had to be resurrected and were again in service from 1970. This model was taken out of service in 1996.

A1669

DAIMLER FERRET MK2, 1954

Daimler Ferret Mk2 1954. Armoured Car or Scout Car of 1949 started service in 1952 until 1991. A total of 4,409 were made between 1952 and 1971 when production ceased. According to the US Military 20 National Armies were using the Ferret in 1996. The Mk2 with the addition of a revolving turret contained a Browning machine gun type M1919, heavy armour protected the two occupants from light invasion, and the vehicle was powered by a Daimler 4250cc engine and four-wheel drive. Inside the vehicle is fitted a C42 Wireless set with a full compliment of cable harness and headsets. See item A1631, also a similar type is fitted inside the Land Rover item A1634. A Browning machine gun barrel is mounted in the turret but the bulk of the gun is missing. Inside are Grenade storage boxes first aid kit and spare periscope.

A1671

MILITARY COMMUNICATIONS LAND ROVER 90 (external view), 1987

In service mainly in Northern Ireland during the 1980's, fitted with a Racal Clansman UK/VRC-353, 320 and 351 Man-pack VHF Radios also Pye C12 and the Murphy Larkspur C45 Transceiver.

Military reg. number 53KG58, yellow flag indicates disabled vehicle.
For wireless sets see Milcomms section

A1634

STEYR MANNLICHER RIFLE OF 1886, 1888

Steyr Mannlicher bolt-action rifle of 1886. Although not the first bolt-action rifle, this model was the first straight pull back action rifle to be adopted by any nation. Production started in 1886 and finished in 1888 as a result of the Lebel 1886 rifle using the popular 8mm smokeless cartridge. It replaced the obsolete Werndl Holub (see item A1120). The rifle was designed by Ferdinand Ritter von Mannlicher and used an 11mm cartridge, in 1888 re-barreled for the 8mm type cartridge, although many of the original 11mm type still survive. 100,000 units were produced at the Steyr Mannlicher AG factory in Austria known as the Austrian Arms Manufacturing Company or OEWG (Osterreichische Waffenfebriksgesellchaft). Rifles with Austrian acceptance marks are very rare, and most of the original rifles went to South America, and some turned up in Spain during the Spanish civil war. The first bolt action rifle was produced in 1824 by Johan Nikolaus Dreyse, Von Dreyse would perfect his Nadelgewehr (needle rifle) by 1836 and it was adopted by the Prussian army in 1841

A1594

WW1 SNIPER RIFLE WITH WINCHESTER A5 TYPE 'B' SCOPE 1916, 1916

It is not likely that this is original however the rifle is dated 1916 and the scope is certainly of that era, it is clearly marked with the Winchester Logo but does not have any British inspection marks. Hundreds of these scopes were purchased by the WD for use on British rifles during WW1 although it is not clear whether these were type 'A' or type 'B' or both. It never the less represents an example of a type of sniper rifle used during WW1.

A1585

BROWN BESS MUSKET BY KETLAND, 1790

The Brown Bess Flint Lock Musket was in use by the British Army from 1730 to 1835 when it was replaced for percussion models, starting with the Enfield 3 band pattern.
Four models were produced varying in length from 39 inches to 41 inch barrels. It was a favourite in-spite of competition from rifled models like the Baker in 1803. Most Brown Bess's were made in various workshops and Proofed by the Tower of London, this model made by William Ketland who also made high quality guns for George 111.

• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  

A0539 A0540

HUNTING FLINT LOCK GUN, 1800's

Hunting or sporting Flint Lock made by Terry.
The presence of a wooden ramrod means it was probably made before 1770.The barrel is good enough to fire a ball or shot.

A0545

DOUBLE BARREL HUNTING PERCUSSION SHOT GUN, 1830's

Sporting or hunting Shot gun made by Westley Richards.
Using a Percussion cap, these were invented by Frederick Forsyth in 1809.
Made during the Reign of William 1V during the 1830's

A0546

BAKER RIFLE/MUSKET AND BAYONET, 1803

In February 1800 the Baker Rifle won a competition organised by the army's board of ordnance and became the first rifle officially adopted by the British army. Superseded in 1838, the patch box in the butt is used for storing the patches that prevent the ball in the barrel from falling out
Previously, rifles had been issued on a limited basis and consisted of parts made to no precise pattern, often brought in from Germany. The war against Revolutionary France had resulted in the employment of new tactics, and the British Army responded, albeit with some delay. Prior to the formation of an Experimental Rifle Corps in 1800, a trial was held at Woolwich by the British Board of Ordnance on 22 February 1800 in order to select a standard rifle pattern; the rifle designed by Ezekiel Baker was chosen. This is remarkable because he is not known to have produced military rifles before, being involved only in the repair and production of muskets. Indeed, it is not known how much of the rifle now commonly named after him was actually the result of his own work. Numerous parts used in the pattern existed before the rifle was submitted for trial.
The rifle is referred to almost exclusively as the "Baker Rifle", but it was produced by a variety of manufacturers and sub-contractors from 1800 to 1837. Most of the rifles produced between 1800 and 1815 were not made by Ezekiel Baker, but under the Tower of London system, and he sub-contracted the manufacture of parts of the rifle to over twenty British gunsmiths. It was reported that many rifles that sent to the British Army inspectors were not complete, to the extent of even having no barrel, since the rifle was sent on to another contractor for finishing. Baker's production during the period 1805-1815 was a mere 712 rifles, not even enough to be in the "top ten".
Our example is a replica made for the TV series Sharp and is a good example of one of the many variants that were made, even down to a Tower mark and GR on the lock plate.

Also shown, the correct bayonet. The drill term at the time was fix swords not fix bayonets.
IT became the first rifle officially adopted by the British Army. Whilst still only a flintlock Musket, it was used by Rifle brigades while the bulk of the army used the Brown Bess (item A0539).

• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  

A1104, A1104b

BRUNSWICK "JAEGER" RIFLED MUSKET, 1770's

The Brunswick ‘‘Jaeger’’ (“Jäger”) rifle was used in America by the Hesse-Freicorps or Chasseurs as they were commonly called in America, who originated from Germany or were of German decent and employed by the British in the American war of Independence. Having a flintlock action and a 0.69 inch grooved barrel, in this case of just two grooves, a special ball with a single band around it fitted into the round shape of the groves. The barrel itself is round not Hexagonal. Also a bar on the front of the barrel is fitted for the mounting of a sword bayonet. This example has no maker’s marks other than GO stamped inset on the barrel the forend is damaged and the sling swivel missing, also the lock plate does not match the impression in the woodwork. We think the lock plate came from somewhere else, at least the Barrel does match the stock. See item A1035. A later version of this rifle.

A1603

BRITISH BRUNSWICK TWO GROOVE RIFLE/MUSKET, 1830's

This weapon, adopted in 1837, replaced the Baker Rifle (see item A1104). it was found to be too heavy and was replaced by the 1853 Enfield rifle. Having only two grooves in the barrel and using a percussion cap type lock, it remained in service for nearly half a century. This version has Asian markings, and is a variant on the British model.

Also shown, the correct bayonet.

The drill term, at the time, was fix swords not fix bayonets.

A1035 A1035b

SHARPS FALLING BLOCK CARBINE RIFLE , 1859

1848, the first models of Sharps Sporting Rifles were being made in Mill Creek, Pennsylvania by the firm of A. S. Nippes and it was in this year that the first Sharps Rifle was patented on September 12th, 1848
1850 saw manufacturing moved to Robin & Co.of Lawrence.
The Model 1851 was replaced in production by the Model 1853 which was surpassed by the Model 1859. All civil war Sharps arms were percussion cap arms, using a combustible cartridge of paper or glazed linen. The basic principle of toggle-linking guard lever and vertical sliding breech block all date from the 1848 patent. By releasing a catch a soldier could pull down the trigger guard, which dropped the breech and allowed him to insert a cartridge. Returning the trigger guard closed the breech. In the front of the breech block was set a plate, having a slight motion from front to back under the influence of gas pressure. The top edge, on closing the breech, sheared off the end of the cartridge to expose the powder. Mechanically the 1859-63 lock plates, also had the Sharps pellet primer installed, patented by Sharps on October 5th 1852 and modified by R.S. Lawrence's pellet feed shut-off, (to conserve the pellet primers). These pellet primers or 'sharps primes' as they were called were valuable but a labour to load, but when used when a fast rate of fire was required, enabled the rifle to fulfil the claim of firing 10 to 12 shots per minute, at all other times top hat caps were used and the primes kept in reserve. During the late winter of 1863 the new model was developed . Differing in only minor manufacturing changes, the biggest of these being the removal of the sharps pellet primer and the omission of the patch box in the stock.

• Detailed View
  

A1451

AUGUSTIN TUBE OR PILL LOCK RIFLE/MUSKET, 1844

Pill Lock muskets used a tube placed under the hammer and held by a cover, when the hammer came down the tube fractured and two components mixed causing a spark, thus firing the weapon.
Charges were loaded via the muzzle.

• Detailed view of the mechanism
  

A1133, A1133b

ENFIELD 3 BAND RIFLE/MUSKET, 1853

This is a Musket type rifle, made in 1858, 2nd Pattern,Tower marked (made by contractors) with a P53 bayonet, made in time for the American Civil War. Mass production at Enfield started in 1857, Birmingham Small Arms started in 1861.

The British Army was in the midst of a significant weapons transformation from smooth bore muskets to rifled muskets. While a number of regiments had been supplied with the pattern 1851, the majority of the army still carried the 1842 pattern smooth bore musket.
By the end of 1853, the Enfield Rifled musket, as approved by the War Department for the army and was put into production. The Enfield saw extensive action in the Crimean War which lasted from 1854-1856

This rifle replaced the Brunswick A1035 and Baker A1104 also the Victorian 'Minie' of 1851.

• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  

A1105 A1105b

SNIDER ENFIELD RIFLE DATED, 1864

Made by The London Armoury Company (LACO)
The British .577 Snider-Enfield is a type of breech loading rifle. It was one of the most widely used of the Snider varieties, (the action invented by the American Jacob Snider).
It was adopted by Britain as a conversion system for its ubiquitous Enfield 1853 rifled musket muzzle loading arms. In trials, the Snider Pattern 1853 conversions proved both more accurate than original Pattern 1853s and much faster firing as well.
From 1866 on the rifles were converted in large numbers at the Royal Small Arms Factory (RSAF) Enfield beginning with the initial pattern, the Mark I.

New rifles started as Pattern 1853s, but received a new breech block/receiver assembly. Converted rifles retained the original iron barrel, furniture, locks and hammer. The Mark III rifles were newly made, with steel barrels which were so marked, flat nosed hammers, feature a latch-locking breech block. The Snider was the subject of substantial imitation, approved and questionable, including the near exact copy of the Nepalese Snider, the Dutch Snider, Danish Naval Snider, and the "unauthorised" adaptations of the French Tabatiere and Russian Krnka. It served throughout the British Empire, including the Cape Colony, India, Australia, New Zealand and Canada, until its gradual phase out by the Martini-Henry, beginning in 1874 but still being used by volunteer and militia forces until the late 1880s.
This Rifle was owned by a sportsman who won several Medals in competition.

• Detailed view of the mechanism
  
• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  

A0548, A0556

WERNDL/HOLUB BREACH LOADING RIFLE, 1865

Marked OE WG872 Ser NO 65432
Joseph Werndl 1831-1889 manufactured these rifles in 1868 from a design developed by inventor Karel Holub. Werndl worked with Ferdinand Von Manlicher who helped to set up a factory at Steyr in Austria.
This weapon was very successful and was adopted for use with the Infantry Imperial Royal Army. It won a competition held with the Remington Rolling Block rifle, and helped Austria win over other countries still using Muzle Loaders. Firing 11mm Bottle neck rounds, which were inserted by pulling back the Hammer, rotating the block clockwise, inserting the cartridge, closing the block and firing, spent shells were pulled out manually.
This weapon was still being used in the First world War.

• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  

A1120

REMMINGTON ROLLING BLOCK RIFLE, 1870's

The Remington Rolling Block rifle produced by E. Remington and Sons (later Remington Arms Company) was one of two rifles probably used more than any other by the buffalo hunters who hunted the American bison herds in the 1870s and 1880s. The other rifle was the Sharps Rifle. This series of rifles was made in quantities and exported to other countries. They are also in a variety of calibres some of the more common was .45-70 or 11mm, or the later model such as the Remington model 6 which was in .22 calibre. Many were used by Argentina before being replaced in 1891 by the new 7.65mm Mausers.
The rolling block is one of the strongest actions ever designed. Due to 19th century techniques, as with most vintage firearms produced for black powder cartridges, rifles and pistols manufactured using this action during the 19th and early 20th centuries may not be suitable for modern, high powered ammunition. Rolling block rifles were made for smokeless powder cartridges. A rolling block is a form of firearm action where the sealing of the breech is done with a specially shaped breech block able to rotate on a pin. The breech block is shaped like a section of a circle. The breech block is locked into place by the hammer, thus preventing the cartridge from moving backwards at the moment of firing. By cocking the hammer, the breech block can be rotated freely to reload the weapon.

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A1452

MARTINI HENRY RIFLE Mk 2, 1870's

Made by Thomas Turner, Undated.
The Martini-Henry (also known as the Peabody-Martini-Henry) was a breech-loading lever-actuated rifle adopted by the British, combining an action worked on by Friedrich von Martini (based on the Peabody rifle developed by Henry Peabody), with the rifled barrel designed by Scotsman Alexander Henry. It first entered service in 1871 replacing the Snider-Enfield, and variants were used throughout the British Empire for 30 years. It was the first British service rifle that was a true breech-loading rifle using metallic cartridges.
During the Martini-Henry period in service, the British army were involved in a large number of colonial wars, most notably the Anglo-Zulu War in 1879. The rifle was used by the company of the 2nd Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot present at Rorke's Drift. During the battle, approximately 150 British soldiers successfully defended themselves against several thousand Zulus. The weapon was not completely phased out until 1904.

The weapon is partly blamed for the defeat of British troops at Isandlwana prior to Rorke's Drift (in addition to poor tactics and numerical inferiority) while the Martini-Henry was state of the art, in the African climate the action tended to overheat and foul after heavy use. It would eventually become difficult to move the breech block and reload the rifle.
After investigating the matter, the British Army Ordnance Department determined the fragile construction of the rolled brass cartridge and fouling due to the black powder propellant were the main causes of this problem.
To correct this, the cartridge was switched from weak rolled brass to stronger drawn brass, and a longer loading lever was incorporated to apply greater torque to operate the mechanism when fouled.
These later variants were highly reliable in battle.

• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  

A0549, A0555

AMERICAN SPRINGFIELD CADET ROD BAYONET RIFLE, 1878

Undated.
Trapdoor Springfield Rifle .45/.70 calibre dated 1891. Known as the Cadet Rod/Bayonet Rifle. Picture shows the Trapdoor up. The bayonet is retracted. When adopted June 19, 1903, Springfield Armoury's rifle had a rod bayonet, and fired a new rimless .30 calibre cartridge also designated Model 1903.
On January 11, 1905, one week after Teddy Roosevelt's letter to the Secretary of War, production on the "Rod Bayonet" Model 1903 Springfield was halted. Only 74,000 rifles had been made at Springfield at that point, and while 1600 sets of parts had been completed at Rock Island Arsenal but probably no rifles assembled.

On May 5, 1905 a new knife bayonet was adopted, similar to that previously used on the Krags. The new bayonet had a 16 inch blade, slightly less than six inches longer than the Krag bayonet. The Model 1903 rifle was about six inches shorter than the Krag rifle, so both had roughly equivalent "reach" for bayonet fighting.

In July or August 1905, new sights were adopted and work began to convert rifles to the newly approved configuration.

Accuracy problems at long range resulted in replacement of the 220 grain round nosed bullet with a 150 grain pointed bullet. This needed a shorter case neck, and the resulting "jump" before engaging the rifling caused accuracy problems. It was decided to alter M1903 Springfield barrels to better fit the new cartridge, designated "Cartridge, Calibre .30 Model of 1906." But known to shooters today simply as the .30-06.

The massive alteration program begun a few months earlier had to start anew, and it was not until about 1908 that production of the Model 1903 rifle with alterations of 1905 for knife bayonet, and chambered for the .30-06 cartridge became routine. By 1910 nearly all of the "rod bayonet' and 1905 conversions had been retrieved and updated. Those that escaped are very valuable collectors items, and many rifles have been restored to the "Rod bayonet" configuration to meet demand from collectors.
(1903.over-blog.com)

• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  
• Detailed view of the Mechanism
  

A1005

SWISS SCHMIDT RUBIN RIFLE, 1889

Swiss production military rifle. Using the new Rubin Cartridge of 1882. The Schmidt-Rubin rifles were a series of Swiss Army service rifles in use between 1889 and 1953. They are distinguished by the straight-pull bolt action invented by Rudolf Schmidt and used Eduard Rubin's 7.5x55mm rifle cartridge.
The first in the series of Schmidt-Rubin rifles which served Switzerland from 1889-1953. Rifle Schmidt-Rubin 1889 gets its name from the creator of the rifle's action, Col. Schmidt and the creator of the ammunition the rifle used, Col. Rubin. The rifle designated as the Swiss repeater rifle model 1889 started production in 1891, and was one of the first straight pull bolt-action rifles.
The straight pull bolt-action of the Schmidt-Rubin allows the user to pull straight back, unlocking the bolt and ejecting the cartridge, with one motion. The action will then allow the user to push forward with one motion to chamber the next round, lock the bolt and cock the weapon for firing. The Weapon is roughly musket length with a free floating barrel, 12 round magazine and wood stock that extended almost to the tip of the barrel. The Schmidt-Rubin 1889 was one of the most revolutionary rifles of its day. The Schmidt-Rubin 1889 was one of the first to use 7.5 mm copper jacketed rounds of ammunition similar to those used today. The 7.5 x 53.5mm round designed by Col.
Rubin was revolutionary in that most of the bullets used in Europe at the time were around .50 inches as opposed to .308 inches of the Schmidt-Rubin ammunition. Strangely enough the round was "paper patched" meaning the actual bullet was surrounded by a piece of paper, much like cotton patches were placed around the bullet of a musket. Paper patching the round was suppose to aid in the lubrication of the bullet. In 1923 long after the discontinuation of the Model 1889, the 7.5x53.5mm round was produced without the paper patching. The model 1889 was eventually replaced by its many successor models such as: model 1896, model 96/11, model 1911, 1911 carbine and the famous k-31.

A1088

WW1 LEE ENFIELD MK 1 CARBINE, 1899

The Lee Enfield Mk1 with Enfield rifling, followed the Lee Metford range of rifles with Metford rifling. Yes we know it has been modified.
See Item A1109.

A0909

WW1 BRITISH LEE METFORD RIFLE MK 1*, 1899

The first magazine Rifle to be adopted by the British Army .
The barrel is bored using the Metford type of Rifling. It used the new .303 Cartridge adopted in 1888. Dated 1889, originally a Mk1. This one has been converted to a Mk1 star. Complete with Bayonet Item A1146.

A1109 A1146

LONG LEE Mk1* (LONG LEE), 1901

The Lee-Enfield Mk1 was the first Lee Enfield Magazine Rifle to be Officially adopted by the British Army in 1895. The Mk1 Star version was made in 1899 with minor variations. The weapon became known as the 'Long Lee'. Originally purchased from the Northumberland Fusiliers Museum 20 years ago and held in a personal collection until sold to the Museum of Technology. Shown with 5 X Round from 1909 and WW1 Clip

A1409

WW1 ENFIELD P14 RIFLE AND BAYONET, 1914

The P14 was based on an earlier P13, which used a .276inch round, it was an attempt to improve on the Enfield Mk3. The P13 had undesirable elements that were ironed out in the new weapon, its barrel being good enough to be used for Sniping and some were fitted with scope attachments.

Not adopted by the British Army ( the Enfield Mk3 was considered better than had been realised), all stocks of the weapon were sent to America where production continued by several different manufacturers to prop up production of their Springfield 1903 rifle and used by American troops during WW1, as they did not have time to prepare for more Springfield's as they entered the War in Europe.

During WW2 some were purchased for the Local Defence Volunteers (Home Guard) after being reconditioned, taking off the Dial sights and the rear aperture sight before release (Weedon repair standard). The P13 used the .276 round and the P14 the .303inch round The P17 also supplied used the 30-06 not the standard .303 round currently in use, these rifles were marked with a red band.

The P14 is charger loading only i,e, the magazine is integral and cannot be removed, rounds are inserted straight from the clip into the top of the rifle. This weapon is the American issue with all its original sights intact, and made by Remington in the USA. Complete with Bayonet Item A0395 .

A0394 A0395

GERMAN MAUSER KAR 98A RIFLE, 1917

Carbine version ( K) of the standard German army rifle of WW1 The 'A' version replaced the KAR98 model in 1908. The original Karabiner 98k was a controlled-feed bolt-action rifle. It could be loaded with five rounds of 7.92x57mm IS ammunition from a stripper clip, loaded into an internal magazine. It was derived from earlier rifles, namely the Karabiner 98b, which in turn had been developed from the Mauser Model 1898. The Gewehr 98 or Model 1898 took its principles from the Lebel Model 1886 rifle with the improvement of a metallic magazine of five cartridges. Since the rifle was shorter than the earlier Karabiner 98b from which it was derived (the 98b was a carbine in name only, being identical in length to the Gewehr 98 long rifle), it was given the designation Karabiner 98 Kurz, meaning "Carbine 98 Short". Just like its predecessor, the rifle was noted for its reliability, good accuracy and an effective range of up to 500 meters (547 yards) with iron sights.
Design details
The standard Karabiner 98k iron sights could be regulated for ranges from 100 m up to 2000 m in 100 m increments. The 98k rifle was designed to be used with an S84/98 III bayonet and to fire rifle grenades. Most rifles had laminated stocks , the result of trials that had stretched through the 1930s. Plywood laminates resisted warping better than the conventional one-piece patterns, did not require lengthy maturing and were less wasteful. Starting in late 1944, 98k production began transition to the "Kriegsmodell" ("war model") variant. This version was simplified to meet wartime production demands, removing the bayonet lug, cleaning rod, stock disk, and other features deemed to be unnecessary.

The 98k had the same disadvantages as all other turn-of-the-century military rifles in that it was comparatively bulky and heavy, and the rate of fire was limited by how fast the bolt could be operated. Its magazine had only half the capacity of Great Britain's Lee-Enfield series rifles, but being internal, it made the weapon more comfortable to carry. A trench magazine was also produced that could be attached to the bottom of the internal magazine by removing the floor plate, increasing capacity to 20 rounds, though it still required loading with 5 round stripper clips. While the Allies (both Soviet and Anglo-American) developed and moved towards standardization of semi-automatic rifles, the Germans maintained these bolt-action rifles due to their tactical doctrine of basing a squad's fire power on the unit's light machine gun and possibly their problems of mass producing semi-automatic rifles.

In close combat, however, sub machine guns were often preferred, especially for urban combat where the rifle's range and low rate of fire were not very useful. Towards the end of the war, the Kar98k was being phased out in favour of the StG44 assault rifle, which fired a rifle round that was more powerful than the pistol cartridges of sub machine guns, but that could be used like a sub machine gun in close-quarters and urban fighting. Production of the StG44 was never sufficient to meet demand, being a late war weapon, and because of this the Mauser Kar98k rifle was still produced and used as the standard infantry rifle by the German forces until the German surrender in May 1945.

A0911

WW1 LEE ENFIELD No1 MK 3* RIFLE, 1918

British No.1 Mk III* Lee-Enfield Rifle, SMLE (Short Magazine Lee Enfield) or short rifle with magazine.
Adopted by the British Military on January 26, 1907.
Adapted from an original design by James Paris Lee and the Royal Arms Factory at Enfield, England.
Mk III refers to the third incarnation of the No.1 rifle. The number 1 apparently not used until 1926.
This rifle was also manufactured in England, Australia and India. The Mk III was used in both WWI and WW2.
Probably one of the fastest cycling bolt action rifles made for military use. The rifle pictured was manufactured at Enfield in 1918, in England

A0550

RUSSIAN MOSIN NAGANT RIFLE, 1938

Carbine version of rifle used by the Russian Army during WW2 Dated 1944 During the Russo-Turkish War, Russian troops armed with mostly Berdan single-shot rifles engaged Turks with Winchester repeating rifles resulting in alarmingly disproportionate casualties. This emphasised to commanders a need to modernize the Imperial army. The Russian Main Artillery Administration undertook the task of producing a magazine-fed, multi-round weapon in 1882. After failing to adequately modify the Berdan system to meet the requirements, a "Special Commission for the testing of Magazine[-fed] Rifles" was formed to test new designs.

Sergei Ivanovich Mosin, a young captain in the Imperial army, submitted his "3-line" calibre (.30 cal, 7.62 mm) rifle in 1889 alongside a 3.5-line design by Leon Nagant (a Belgian). When trials concluded in 1891, all units which tested the rifles indicated a preference for Nagant's design and the Commission voted 14 to 10 to approve it. However, more influential officers pushed for the domestic design, resulting in a compromise: Mosin's rifle was used with a Nagant-designed feed mechanism. Thus the 3-line rifle, Model 1891 (its official designation at the time) came into being.

Production began in 1892 at the ordnance factories of Tula Arsenal, Izhevsk Arsenal, and Sestroryetsk Arsenal. Due to the limited capacities of these facilities and the newly formed Franco-Russian Alliance, an order of 500,000 rifles was placed with the French arms factory, Manufacture Nationale d'Armes de Chetellerault.

By the time of the Russo-Japanese War in 1904, approximately 3.8 million rifles had been delivered to the army. Initial reactions by units equipped with the rifle were mixed, but this was likely due to poor maintenance by under-trained infantrymen used to Berdans.

Between adoption of the final design in 1891 and 1910, several variants and modifications to existing rifles were made.

A1039

WWII LEE ENFIELD No 4 Mk2 RIFLE, 1945

The No4 Enfield rifle originally the No1 Mk6 renamed the No4, replaced the SMLE No1 Mk3 during WW11.
As a standard-issue infantry rifle, it remained in British service well into the early 1960s and is still found in service in the armed forces of some Commonwealth Nations.

The Lee-Enfield was chambered for the .303 British cartridge, and featured a ten-round box magazine which was loaded manually from the top, either one round at a time, or by means of five-round chargers. The Lee-Enfield series superseded the earlier Martini-Henry, Martini-Enfield, and Lee-Metford rifles, and although officially replaced in the UK with the L1A1 SLR in 1957, it continues to see official service in a number of British Commonwealth nations to the present day,notably with the Indian Police,and is the longest-serving military bolt-action rifle still in official service.
The rifle shown is a No4 Mk2 April 1950 made at Fazakerley Liverpool.

A0551

ENFIELD No 4T SNIPER RIFLE, 1943

Originally Trialled in Enfield in 1940 with selected N0 4 Rifle being converted to Sniper status. In 1942 Holland 7 Holland were contracted to convert No4's. The Scope is a HBM&Co No32 Mk1 with broad arrow. This model was made at B.S.A. Shirley which is now a retail park.

A1560

BRITISH ARMY RIFLE FN L1A1, 1960's

The origin of this weapon relates to the FN FAL rifle. During the 1950's the British tested the FAL and adopted it with various modifications naming it the L1A1.
It entered service in the late 1950's and replaced the Lee Enfield No4 Rifle then in use. Later the wooden stocks started to crack and were replaced with reinforced plastic. For the Trilux sights see Item A1145 in the Optics section.

A1117

CZECHOSLOVAKIAN VERSION OF TELLERMINE PT-Mi-K (practice)

Czech version of German Tellermine. Date unknown. Originally thought to be Russian and kindly identified by Steve Diablo. See Comment.

A1445

BLENDKORPER 2H SMOKE GRENADE

Blendkorper 2 H Used by the Germans as a smoke screen before attaching mines to oncoming Tank tracks among other uses.
The grenade consists of a pear-shaped, glass outer flask, resembling a large electric light bulb, almost filled with a brown liquid. Inside is a long tube filled with a clear liquid; both are capped with a sulphur and plaster of Paris cement. The total weight is slightly over seven ounces.

The outer flask is a pear-shaped glass bulb, 2-1/2 inches in diameter at the widest point, 3-15/16 inches in height to the neck, where it flares out 1/8 inch and forms a collar approximately 1 inch in height and 1-1/2 inch in diameter. This flask contains 8.75 ounces of titanium tetrachloride.

The inner glass tube is 3 7/8 inches long and 7/8 inch in diameter, resembling a test tube with the upper end sealed off; the weight is a little under an ounce. The upper end has a slight shoulder which rests on a rubber-like plastic washer; this washer in turn rests on the inside shoulder of the collar of the outer flask; thus, when the cementing material was poured, the inner tube was firmly sealed within the neck of the outer flask. The inner tube contains about 1.2 ounce of a 27 per cent solution of calcium chloride.

The smoke is produced by hydrolysis of titanium tetrachloride. The purpose of the inner tube of calcium chloride solution is to provide water to react with the titanium tetrachloride and produce an instantaneous smoke cloud in the desert or in cold areas, where the low humidity would cause a slow reaction. The calcium chloride is probably added to keep the water from freezing.

A1442

WWII GERMAN SECTIONALISED 37MM ROUND AZ39, 1938

German WW2 round with impact fuze and cut away to show workings. The round is dated 1938 and was cut in half in 1984, probably for training purposes.

A0472

WW1 BRITISH BATTYE BOMB, 1915

In late 1914 and early 1915 Captain B C Battye of the Royal Engineers designed and put in to production through the Bethune Ironworks his 'Battye' or 'Bethune' bomb.
The Battye Bomb, consisted of a cast iron mug shaped container diced for fragmentation filled with 40 grammes of high explosive. The top of the container was sealed with a wood stopper and wax with a Bickford fuze . A Nobel safety device was used to light the fuze but, as a safety measure, this was only inserted at the time of use.
William Bickford invented the safety fuse for igniting gunpowder, an invention that saved many lives. There were many miners killed by misuse of gunpowder. Early fuses were often tubes of reeds filled with powder and were unreliable. Either they exploded too early not giving miners time to get away, or took too long to ignite and killed miners who assumed the fuse had gone out. William Bickford was born in Ashburton, Devon in January 1774. He moved to Truro as a currier, preparing leather. He then moved on to Tuckingmill near Camborne in the Cornwall mining area.

A0961

WW1 CITRON FOUG or LEMON GRENADE, 1915

The fuze body was made of wood, holding a striker, creep spring, primer and safety fuze with a detonator. The fuze was covered by a safety cap that Has several shapes, this is missing.
Before throwing, the cap was removed and the striker was to be hit on a hard surface.
Similar in operation to the Mills Bomb, Which is safer is debatable. At least if the french model was dropped without hitting the striker it would not explode, not so with the mills once the pin had been removed.
The fuze assembly has been reconstructed using information kindly supplied by, westernfront.nl. The Western Front Museum

A0962

WWII PROXIMITY FUZE (FUSE)

During the raids of WW2 a gunner issued complaints against our methods of defence, it was said, that shooting down an aircraft at night was "like shooting a fly in a darkened room with a pea shooter''. The Marconi Osram Valve Company amongst others, were given the task of solving the problem. Guided Missile technology was not an option at this time (the Germans astounded the world, later in the war with their V1 & V2). It was decided that a shell fuze, which triggered when an object was in the proximity of the shell (such as an aircraft), was the solution. The biggest problem was how to protect the amplifier section of the fuze from the blast of the gun. Special valves were developed to solve the problem; these can be seen in the 2nd section of the display. On leaving the gun at 20,000g and spinning at 3,000 rpm together with the vibration of the barrel, the success of these fuzes was no mean feat. Tests fired the fuze 8 miles into the sky vertically. On returning to the ground it had to be dug from under 8 feet of Salisbury Plain, amazingly it was still working. The amplifier is in the base, this was connected to the battery which was made of ring shaped plates around an ampoule of acid, upon firing of the gun the ampoule shattered and soaked the plates turning them into a charged battery. The top is a pointed cone and a plate embedded in plastic, this formed a capacitor which oscillated at 100mghz, if an object came close to this (up to 30ft) the oscillation was disturbed and the final valve triggered the detonator. The valves are oscillator, amplifier and trigger valve. Although the final product was produced and tested (over the channel so if it failed to explode it could not fall in to enemy hands), it needed to be produced in vast numbers; our manufacturing capability was saturated with weapons and planes at the time so the project was passed to the Americans. At the same time Radar was now becoming a reality and this unit was scrapped in favour of a device that used the new technology. Many of these and the new version were instrumental in bringing down the V1 ''Doodlebugs'' during the war.

A0478

WWII PROXIMITY FUZE (FUSE)

Developed by the British, production was taken over by the U.S. during WW2. They produced many of these fuses that worked by exploding only when they came into the proximity of another object. The method of detection used the new Radar method, possibly without Ranging developed during the war, although the original British design worked on another principal, (see Item No A0478). The advantages of these shells helped bring down many of the V1 rockets that were difficult to hit with conventional weapons. For a possible Valve see Item A1425.

A0430

WW1 FRENCH EXPERIMENTAL GRENADE

Sold to the museum as an experimental French grenade. It measures 66mm diameter and 75mm high. No more is known about its origin, it may not be French and it may not be experimental, as during WW1 soldiers on the front line were coming up with all manner of ideas for new explosive devices.

A0445

WW1 MILLS No. 5 GRENADE WITH No. 23 BASE AND LAUNCHING BRACKET

The bracket was fitted to the end of a Short Magazine Lee Enfield rifle and held a No23 Grenade which was fitted with a rod screwed into the base plate.
The No 3 Grenade Launcher was adopted to enable the launching of a No 23, or a similar bomb from a Lee Enfield Rifle, its base had a threaded hole into which a rod could be screwed, this was fed down the barrel of the gun after the launching bracket had been mounted. The former was then fired using a blank cartridge.

No5 Grenades had no hole in the base plate, but a No 23 base would fit a No 5 Grenade.
So it follows that many No 5 units can be found with No 23 bases.
The launchers intention was to hold the safety lever in place, after the pin had been removed, until the unit was fired.

For more information see Item A1141

A0448

WW1 No.5 MILLS GRENADE

Designed by William Mills - a golf club designer from Sunderland - he patented, developed and manufactured the 'Mills bomb' at the Mills Munitions Factory in Birmingham, England in 1915.

The Mills bomb was adopted by the British Army as its standard hand grenade in 1915, and designated as the No. 5. It was also used by the Irish Republican Army.

The Mills bomb underwent numerous modifications. The No. 23 was a variant of the No. 5 with a rodded base plug which allowed it to be fired from a rifle. This concept further evolved with the No. 36, a variant with a detachable base plate to allow for use with a rifle discharger cup. The final variation of the Mills bomb was the No. 36M which was specially designed and waterproofed with shellac for use in the hot climate of Mesopotamia in 1917.

By 1918 the No. 5 and No. 23 were declared obsolete and the No. 36 continued in use until 1972.

A1141

WW1 No. 5 BRITISH MILLS GRENADE

1916 1st COW (Coventry Ordnance Works). 75 Million Hand grenades were produced during WW1

A0869

WWII CUT AWAY MILLS No 36 TRAINING HAND GRENADE

Training aid for the Mills no 36 hand Grenade dated 1940. Inside can be seen the coil spring that is released when the pin is pulled out, this fires the percussion cap (not present) which ignites the fuze, this burns for the time required normally around 5 seconds, which then fires the detonator on the end, firing the main charge. 75 Million hand grenades of of the Mills type were produced during WW1. For more information see Item A1141

A0447

WW1 GRENADE LAUNCHER No1 Mk1 of 1917

Mentioned first in 1917 for use with a No23 type grenade, fitted with a gas check plate and designated the No36 Grenade See Item A0809. The plate is required to contain the gases from the blank cartridge in the rifle, thus pushing it out of the cup releasing the grenades clip (the pin having been removed).

A0778

BRITISH No69 BAKELITE HAND GRENADE, 1941

Manufactured from 1940 to 1944 by De La Rue Plastics out of Bakelite moulding with a No 247 All-ways fuze.

A1561

WW11 No. 36 GRENADE

This No 36 Grenade is fitted with a flat gas check plate on the bottom, and is a modification to the No23 grenade. The plate is required to contain the gases from the blank cartridge in the rifle, thus pushing it out of the cup releasing the grenades clip (the pin having been removed). The unit is fired from a discharger cup or launcher Item A0778. The No36 left service in 1972

A0809

AMERICAN PINEAPPLE GRENADE WITH TRIP FUZE(FUSE), 1960's

Mk 2 Grenade replaced by the M67 with smooth outer used in Vietnam.

A0981

WWII BRITISH STICKY BOMB No74

Not adopted by the Army, this Bomb eventually found it's way to the Home Guard, with some sad stories of accidents. The first pin pulled would remove the covers exposing the sticky ball, the second pin pulled would arm the device requiring only that the bomb be let go.
Releasing the clip on the handle fired the fuze which would leave only seconds for the soldier to retire, after planting the bomb on it's target,thats when the accidents would happen. Packed with one and a half pounds of Nytro-Glycerine, the covering is Bird Lime over a glass flask.

A0896

WW1 TOFFEE APPLE BOMB

Launched by a charge from a tube, this bomb could reach 500 to 600 Yards with devastating effect.
The Germans hated it so much that if a trench was stormed and evidence of this weapon was found , no mercy was given.

A0895

WW1 EGG GRENADES

Egg Grenades were carried in bags on the shoulders of the German Infantry during WW1, being light, many could be carried by one man, a slight advantage over the British Mills Grenade, but less effective because of their small size.

A0451

WW1 VIVIEN BRESSIERE FRENCH RIFLE GRENADE, 1915

The "Vivien Bressiere" rifle grenade. Placed in a cup-holder attached to the end of the rifle and fired using a ball charge to propel the grenade and initiate the timed fuse, this clever design was imitated by the German rifle grenade of 1917. This particular example is in very good condition and complete with the top lead plug, bottom brass plug and detonator holder.

A0823

GERMAN RIFLE GRENADE, 1913

Using a blank cartridge in the rifle the rod was put down the barrel and fired. The problem with this is that the grenade is primed and the fuse ignited as the projectile leaves the barrel, therefore if the grenade does not eject itself correctley it will still go off!. This problem was solved by the Hales grenade see Item A0444. On the end of this grenade is a plate used to slow down the travel of the devise, as usually the enemy trench was no more than a few yards away.

A0443

WW1 HALES No 3 MK 1 SHORT RIFLE GRENADE

The Hales Grenade was the solution to the problem of the unit exploding in front of the rifleman, if the grenade flopped out of the gun in front of you instead of being launched towards the enemy once it had been primed there was nothing you could do to stop it from exploding. Frederick Marten Hale, in 1915 designed a fuse that could not explode until it was in the air at speed, it worked by a wind vane that once turned it would prime the grenade and trigger the fuze, which had an impact graze type, if it fell out of the rifle without travelling at speed through the air it could not explode. The manufacture of these grenades was difficult and expensive at the time, but for the safety and confidence it gave the user, it was worth it.

A0444

Mk1 No35 RIFLE GRENADE, 1918

Rifle Grenade used during WW1 A Hales Grenade produced towards the end of the War. It is similar to a No24 Mk2 type. Range with 15 inch rod 350-380 yards with 11 inch rod 220-240 yards.

A1541

WW1 GERMAN POPPENBERG JAM POT OR STICK GRENADE, 1915

Known as a Jam Pot or Potato Masher because of its shape this Grenade lasted until 1917 with later versions used in the Second War. This is the original 1915 design with a lever to ignite the fuze, this was held in with a safety pin, once removed the unit was thrown. It also had a belt clip on the side of the body. This sample is badly corroded, and the wooden handle is not original.

It was used for only a short time due to its unreliable fuse, there is another type with the same handle but it has a kugal (see item A0822) instead of the can, thus the can version being an offensive item and the Ball ( Kugalkopft ) being the defensive version.

A0449

WW1 KUGEL HAND GRENADE, 1915

The Kugel grenade Model 1913 (' Kugelhandgranate ') 2nd Model. 1915.
Having an external squaring to help the fragmentation in 70 to 80 pieces, this steel sphere was equipped with a pulling bronze detonator, giving a 7 seconds delay (models with 5 seconds delay were available).
The German troops began the 1914 campaign with large quantities of this grenade. Weight 1 kg, 45 g.

A0822

WW1 DISC OR OYSTER SHELL GRENADE

The German Discus or Oyster Grenade worked by a tube held in by the safety pin, once removed fell out when being thrown like a Discus, once the tube was out it enabled four plungers on springs to become free, these had pins on the end hovering over four detonators, when the unit landed the pins were thrown into the detonator(s) and the device exploded. The explosive is held between two sheets of moulded steel clamped together round the edges.

A0453

WW1 FRENCH BALL or BRACELET GRENADE, 1914

Used during the early part of WW1 when supplies of grenades were scarce, this style dated back over 100 years, based on a hollow ball filled with black powder and a flamable fuze, on this version the fuze and charge was slightly more sophisticated.

A0450

WW1 STOKES MORTAR, 1917

Having a grenade type clip and fuze at one end and a shotgun cartridge at the other, this bomb was dropped down a tube with a pin at the bottom, on hitting the pin the bomb was ejected by the cartridge the clip flying off after leaving the tube, the bomb would explode after the fuze time.

A0905

APDS ARMOUR PIERCING DISCARDING SABOT (CUT AWAY), 1970's

Armour-piercing, discarding-sabot (APDS)
APDS was developed by engineers working for the French Edgar Brandt company, and was fielded in two calibers (75 mm/57 mm for the Mle1897/33 75 mm anti-tank cannon, 37 mm/25 mm for several 37 mm gun types) just before the French-German armistice of 1940. The Edgar Brandt engineers, having been evacuated to the United Kingdom, joined ongoing APDS development efforts there, culminating in significant improvements to the concept and its realization. British APDS ordnance for their QF 6 pdr and 17 pdr anti-tank guns was fielded in March 1944.

A0833

WW1 FRENCH F1 GRENADE, 1915

The French F1 was similar in appearance to the failed US grenade. It has a hollow cast iron body, heavily grooved in a familiar quilted "pineapple" pattern to enhance fragmentation. Although initially deployed to French forces in 1915 with a match primer it was soon replaced with a weather proof strike primer. This system required the soldier to strike a blow to the cap of the grenade after removing a safety cover to initiate the burn time fuse. Better than a match lit fuze, it still had to be thrown once the striker has been activated. The quest for a better fuze continued so that by 1917 there were a dozen or so contraptions developed as fuses for the French F1 Defensive Grenade. They included tumblers, pins, strikers, slow burn matches, each inventor claiming superiority.

A0821

WWII GERMAN GLASS MINE 43

Information about these mines is scarce as not very many were made, in fact it is possible that the glass portion of this unit is reproduction, however the fuze and plate are genuine probably the only surviving parts of the original. Being made of glass and used as an anti personal device it would be difficult to detect by normal mine detection equipment, it worked by breaking the glass cover when trod upon. Inside this unit is a dummy charge made to look like the original explosive. The Round Coloured glass disc sat on top of the thin sheet of glass over the trip to weigh it down. Known as the Glasmine43.

A0431

(POST) WWII BAKELITE TELLERMINE , 1950's

This model is made entirely of Bakelite to evade Mine Detectors, and was produced after the War. No other information is known.

Other models like the Tellermine 35 (T.Mi.35) was a German metal cased anti-tank mine used extensively during the Second World War. The mines case was made of sheet steel, and has a slightly convex pressure plate on the top surface with a central fuse well. Two secondary fuse wells are located on the side and bottom of the mine for anti-handling devices.

For use on beaches and underwater, the mine could be deployed inside a specially designed earthenware or concrete pot, which acted as a waterproof jacket for the mine.

A later variant of the mine, the T.Mi.35 (S) was produced with a ribbed case and a fuse cover. The ribbed case stopped sand from blowing off the top of the mine when it was used in a desert or sandy environment.

Pressure of 400 pounds (180 kg) on the centre of the mine or 200 pounds (90 kg) on the edge of the mine deforms the pressure plate compressing a spring, and shearing a retaining pin holding the striker. Once the striker is released it is driven into a percussion cap which ignites the detonator followed by the booster charge and main charge.
During 'D' Day the Germans mounted Tellermines on poles just below the waves on the beaches to stop the landing crafts that were expected in the event of an invasion.

A0830

WWII 3.7cm RODDED ANTI-TANK BOMB

Designed during WW2 as a stopgap for an improved anti-tank weapon that would fit the 3.7cm PAK (panzerabwehrkanone) 36 anti-tank gun, which was already in service, this weapon was not effective against the Russian T-34 Tanks. It was better to developed a new projectile than a whole new gun, it was known as the 3.7cm Stielgranate 41 or the 3.7cm Aufstek Geschoss (Attached projectile). This is a hollow charge weapon designed to penetrate thick armour by exploding just above the surface of the target, and melting a hole by using a shaped charge. Fitting into the barrel of the PAK36 gun and fired using a blank charge inserted in the breach. Weighing 8.6kg (19lb) with an effective range of 300m (328yds) it could penetrate 180mm (7inch) of armour plate.

A0832

WW1 CLARK 'D' GAS BOTTLE

A German Gas Bottle which contained toxic gas to be used in the chemical Warfare during 1917. This green glass bottle contained a fluid with a colour varying from eggwhite to brown/yellow and a smell similar to shoe polish, it was known to the Germans under the code name 'Clark' which stood for DA-gas, a Vomiting agent. The product was meant specifically to penetrate through safety measures such as gasmasks, especially treated cloths and even the anti gas ointment Item A0819. It was only loaded into projectiles of the 7.7cm model 1896 and the model 1915. These could be identified by a blue cross on the body. When the shell exploded, the glass was shattered and the fluid vaporised. Tens of these formed a vast cloud of toxic gas. This was a very rare item as it was only to be removed when opening a gas shell, something that no reasonable human being dared to do. In 2002 during earthworks in the village of Houthulst (Belgium) near to the site of the Bomb Disposal Base of the Belgium Army, a dump of inner parts of all sorts of German Shells and grenades was discovered. Research has shown that in 1919 German prisoners of war had been put to work emptying these dangerous beasts to salvage steel. The parts not wanted were simply thrown into shell holes. Only around 300 are known to have survived from that source.

A0828

WWII INCENDIARY BOMB

Incendiary bombs, also known as firebombs, were used as an effective bombing weapon in World War II. The large bomb casing was filled with small sticks of incendiaries (bomblets), and designed to open at altitude, scattering the bomblets in order to cover a wide area. An explosive charge would then ignite the incendiary material, often starting a raging fire. The fire would burn at extreme temperatures that could destroy most buildings made of wood or other combustible materials (buildings constructed of stone tend to resist incendiary destruction unless they are first blown open by high explosives). Originally, incendiaries were developed in order to destroy the many small, decentralized war industries located (often intentionally) throughout vast tracts of city land in an effort to escape destruction by conventionally-aimed high-explosive bombs. Nevertheless, the civilian destruction caused by such weapons quickly earned them a reputation as terror weapons (e.g., German Terrorflieger) with the targeted populations, and more than a few shot-down aircrews were summarily executed by angry civilians upon capture.The Nazi regime began the campaign of incendiary bombings with the bombing of London in 1940/41, and reprisal was exacted by the Allies in the strategic bombing campaign. In the Pacific War, during the last seven months of strategic bombing by B-29 Superfortresses in the airwar against Japan, a change to firebombing tactics resulted in some 500,000 Japanese deaths and 5 million more made homeless. 67 of Japan's largest cities lost significant areas to incendiary attacks. The most deadly single bombing raid in all history was Operation Meetinghouse, an incendiary attack that killed some 100,000 Tokyo residents in one night.

A0808

BOFORS 40mm PRACTICE ROUND, 1951

Practice round for a 40mm Bofors Gun 1951.

A0473

WWI WICKER SHELL CARRIER (BASKET)

A Shell Carrier used during WW1 for the transportation of large shells (15cm), horses were used to carry these, sometimes as many as four on either side of it.

A0349

WW1 HOWITZER 4.5 PROJECTILE WITH No101 FUZE (FUSE)

Probably picked up from the original battlefield and repainted. Yellow Denotes a filling of High Explosive (HE), in this case Amatol . It is fitted with a No101 MK2 percussion (impact) fuse, has no safety shutter and no 'Graze' facility i,e, it only explodes when hitting an object, not if it grazes it. The only safety feature are pins that must be removed before loading into the breach. See Item A0867 for a description of the No101E fuse.

A0467

WW1 HOWITZER 4.5inch PROJECTILE WITH No83 Mk2 FUZE (FUSE)

Shell probably picked up from the original battlefield and restored. Repainted in black denotes a Shrapnell shell with various explosive fillings. It is fitted with a No 83 Mk2 timed and percussion fuse. This fuse operates as follows:- A ball is released by centrifugal force on leaving the gun, this arms the percussion portion of the fuze. The timed portion set by the adjustable ring before loading into the breach ignites on leaving the gun, if the timed portion should fail to trigger the detonator, the percussion element will trigger the charge on impact or 'Graze' (skimming an object or surface). A safety pin is removed before loading the round into the breach. The No83 Fuze is similar to a No81 Fuze. See Items A0360 and A0361

A0466

WW1 18 POUND HIGH EXPLOSIVE ROUND WITH No100 FUZE (FUSE)

High explosive 18 pound round with No 100 impact fuze of 1915. The No100 fuze was replaced by the No101 type which had improved safety features. for more information see Item A0467.

A0471

WW1 18 POUND SHRAPNEL ROUND

Shrapnel shell with timed fuze unmarked. Designed to explode in the air above infantry, the charge inside, after the fuze timed out, was detonated at the base of the projectile, pushing the contents (Iron Balls) out at a high velocity and blowing off the fuze, as the projectile is now upside down (falling from the sky) these are projected toward the enemy.

A1542

WW1 SHRAPNEL 13 POUNDER INSIDE EXPOSED

Shrapnel shell with timed fuze unmarked. Designed to explode in the air above the infantry, the charge inside (after the fuze timed out), was detonated at the base of the projectile, pushing the contents (Iron Balls) out at a high velocity and blowing off the fuze, as the projectile is now upside down (falling from the sky) these are projected toward the enemy. Fired from a 9cwt artillery Gun.

A0470

WW11 KEY FOR OPENING AMMUNITION BOXES.

This tool was used for opening ammunition boxes or powder cases, this was originally thought to be a fuze setting tool. Thanks to the commenter's who corrected this error .

A1443

WW1 KEY FOR OPENING AMMUNITION BOXES.

This tool was used for opening ammunition boxes or powder cases, this was originally thought to be a fuze setting tool. Thanks to the commenter's who corrected this error .

A0900

WWII S.O.E.TIME PENCILS IN BOX

Special Operations Executive

Time pencils were fuzes timed by acid corroding a thin wire , when the wire broke a spring foced a pin onto a percussion cap exploding a small charge.
Timing could be erratic in different temperatures, a colour code denoted the time period of each fuze. Used mainley by resistance movements in various Countries.
The items shown are colour time code Green.

A0982

WW1 HALES No 2 Mk 1 HAND or MEXICAN GRENADE

A variation on the Hales Patent Grenade patented by Martin Hale who worked for the Cotton Powder Co at Faversham Kent, it is a simple percussion type with internal graze fuze. It was filled with 'Tonite', an explosive made of Gun cotton and Barium Nitrate. In 1907 the Cotton Powder Co tried to sell there design to the British Army but were rejected during trials of the No1 Type. The company sold it to the Mexican Government with a 7mm rod for firing from their rifles. During WW1 shortages of the No1 grenade, the British purchased supplies from Mexico. The design was modified removing the rod and fitted a handle and tape for throwing, this was the NO2 Mk1. The Detonator is inserted, the streamer unfolded and the safety pin removed, (not shown) thrown high into the air to allow the tail to point the unit head first when hitting the ground. The No2 was introduced in Feb 1915 and declared obsolete in 1920, about 130,00 were manufactured.

A1292

WW1 RACQUET GRENADE WITH BATTYE BOMB

The French magazine L'ILLUSTRATION 22 May 1915 shows a picture of a soldier in a trench throwing one of these and the title refers to it as a 'Racquet' bomb.

Units like these were hobbled together near the front line by the French and English alike. As new armaments became scarce during the early years of the war, men at the front improvised. Using a casing from a Battye Bomb that was usually thrown on its own, and attaching it to a handle improved the distance it could be thrown, containing Black Powder and lit by a simple fuse such devises could be quite affective.

A0454

WW1 BRITISH No12 Mk1 (HAIRBRUSH) GRENADE

This No12 Mk1 commonly known as a Hairbrush grenade is almost certainly a reproduction not original.

In use the small lever is straightened from the safety position and the pin is pulled. This releases a plunger held back by a spring which fires a percussion cap igniting the delay fuse, at this point the unit is thrown.

A1036

WW1 FRENCH ERSATZ HAIR BRUSH GRENADE

Home made Grenade, made from a metal pipe and a piece of wood, common when stocks of manufactured grenade were scarce.
Just light the fuse and throw. (Ersatz means substitute or replacement).

A1000

WWII GERMAN MODEL 24 'STIELHANDGRANATE'

Hand grenade known as the 'Jam Pot' or 'Potato Masher'. Used by the German army form the end of WW1 through WW2.[Reproduction]

Marked VORGEBRAUGH SPRENGKAPSEL EINSETZEN

A1100

WWII PRACTICE SMOKE HAND GRENADE, GERMAN

German practice smoke hand grenade, this grenade would be used to develop throwing techniques. [Reproduction]

A1101

WWII BUTTERFLY BOMB, Sprengbombe Dickwandig 2kg or SD2A

Stored in containers within an aircraft carrying up to 108 bombs folded, when released from the container the wings opened and rotated the shaft out of the bomb thus arming it, also as the bomb fell the wings stabilized its fall and gave the appearance of a butterfly, hence the name.

Fitted with the 41 fuse, which could be delayed or detonated on impact.

Other types of Fuzes are:-

The 67 fuze was time delayed between 5 and 30 minutes.

The 70 fuze which detonated if the bomb was moved.

If a bomb was found intact it was not disarmed but destroyed on the spot as (if fitted with a 70 fuze) any movement would trigger the device.
The U.S. copied the bomb and it was used in Korea and Vietnam, designated the M83.

A0987

WWII GERMAN BUTTERFLY BOMB

There is a hole in the bottom of the unit, where the explosive ware removed, the drouges (wings) were never actually used on this version. It seems to have been made up from odds, as the cylinder is a screw type.
The fuse fitting was a Bayonet type, designated as a SD2B.
See Item A0987 above.

Also see the comments for this object.

A0365

WWII BRITISH SHELL FUZE (FUSE) COVER

Shell covers were used to protect the fuze during transit, and in the early days of the war were kept and reused. This cover is marked as a souvenir possibly for the Fusiliers, Royal Artillery, or Royal Engineers.
The Germans used Bakelite covers.

A0435

WW1 BRITISH IMPACT FUZE (FUSE) No 13 Mk 5 AND COLLAR or PLUG

Impact Fuse No13 Mk5 and collar or plug for unknown projectile, it is not certain if the two objects go together. The No13 Fuze was a direct action impact type in use in 1915. Used with heavy common Lyddite shells. The charge will only detonate on impact, and there is no safety feature other than pins removed before installing into the breach.

A0437

WW1 GERMAN FUZE (FUSE) FOR 17cm MINENWERFER (TRENCH MORTAR )

Timed and Percussion fuze for the German 17cm Trench Mortar, the time delay is set with an adjustable ring that could be changed according to the calculations. It worked by igniting a ring of a slow burning compound underneath the calibration ring, the time it burnt before detonation was determined by the position of the ring. If the timing should fail then the percussion or impact part would take over.

A0436

WW1 DOPP 92 SP 15 GERMAN TIMED FUZE (FUSE)

Double effect fuse, this model was an evolution of the Dopp Z 91, based on the same principles, therefore having a classic percussion system in the tail and a rotating discs time system in the upper cone. The lower disc mobile was engraved with graduations from 1 to 29 seconds, and a Roman cross for the pure impact percussion function.
Entirely made of brass, it had a security pin blocking the concutor of the time system. The same specific arming system of the percussion device (with a powder grain in spite of the classical German stem system). It is not clear whether this is triggered by impact or firing.
German version of a timed and percussion fuze, it is sometimes important that a shell explodes beneath the ground, impact fuzes did not achieve this, also if a shell hits a brick wall exploding on the surface would create less damage than if it past through the wall and exploded on the inside, exploding underground may be useful for collapsing enemy tunnels. Many fuses were developed during WW1.
The time delay is set with an adjustable ring that could be changed according to the calculations by the gun observer . It worked by igniting a ring of a slow burning compound underneath the calibration ring, the time it burnt before detonation was determined by the position of the ring.

A0434

WW1 No. 100 BRITISH FUZE (FUSE) WITH CUT AWAY

Impact fuze used during WW1. This version has been cut away to show the workings, and was used for training. It is similar to the Fuze No101, has no safety shutter or bolt, the only protection from premature ignition were the pins removed before loading into the breach.
After firing from the gun, it will only explode if it directly hits an object. For a description see item A0467. For the complete version see Item No A0876.

A0433

WW1 No 106 Mk 2 IMPACT FUZE (FUSE)

Impact fuze for Howitzer 4.5'' Projectile, The original fuze did not have a safety shutter, but the 106E type did. The shutter armed the fuze by revolving at speed. At the front is a plunger to trigger the device, which is further protected by a collar and weight, which is spun off in flight.
Its main use was in early Shrapnel shells when used for cutting barbed wire, but this was abandoned in favour of high explosive shells which were more effective, as the wire attached to pickets just bounced off. This fuse was in use in many variations almost up to the Second World War. Its most important feature was its speed of triggering (essential for wire breaking), but as more safety features were added this speed was lost and the fuze rendered obsolete.

A0469

WW1 4.5 INCH HOWITZER CARTRIDGE CASE

Cartridge case for Howitzer Gun, the projectile portion was fed into the Breach of the gun first, followed by the charge rapped in cloth, then on top of that the cartridge casing containing the percussion cap was fitted over the charge and pushed up to the rim.
The door of the breach was closed and the gun fired, all that was left was the casing, which was removed ready for the next projectile.

A0361

HOTCHKISS 47mm 2.5lb REVOLVER ROUNDS, 1900's

Supplied to the Japanese Navy for their Revolver ship mounted guns.

A0878

WW1 BRITISH 100/101E FUZE (FUSE)

No101 MK2 impact or percussion fuze is fitted with a safety shutter which only opens when spinning at speed, it can also be fitted with a 'Gain' which has three more possibilities, not only does it have an additional shutter mechanism but can also be timed after impact. It also has a 'Graze' facility, which means it will still ignite if it skims a surface; the last feature is an extra charge for explosives than require more heat for ignition.
Used with high explosive shells for collapsing enemy tunnels or breaking through walls before exploding. See Item A0360 and A0361 and No101 fuze A0467

A0876

WWII S.O.E ITEMS IN FRAME

Special Operations Executive S.O.E. items such as Time pencils. Time pencils were fuzes timed by acid corroding a thin wire , when the wire broke a spring forced a pin onto a percussion cap exploding a small charge.
Timing could be erratic in different temperatures, a colour code denoted the time period of each fuze. Used mainly by resistance movements in various Countries.
The items shown are colour time code Green. Trip wire Detonators and Trip Wire a small compass Nicknamed 'Button' because of its size, but not actually a button as in Item A1121. A Safety Fuse, and a Rail Detonator for positioning on a train line.
Rail Detonators are still used today for warning purposes.

A0810

WWII ANTI PERSONAL MINE FUZE (FUSE)

Not clear how this worked, as the prongs are fixed and the pin will not enable operation as aperture below is blocked.

More information about this item would be appreciated.

A0983

1871-1900 MARTINI HENRY ROUNDS, 1900's

Originally all Martini rounds were hand made out of brass foil with a steel base holding the cap, problems were common because of the fragile casing jamming in the breach. The problem was overcome on June the 9th 1885 with the adoption of the new drawn brass case.
The Martini Henry fired originally a .450� soft lead bullet (12 parts lead 1 part tin) weighing 480 grains. Adopted as the Mark III on 16 Aug 1873.

A0439

SNIDER BOXER CARTIDGE AND PELLET, 1800

Boxer cartridge showing the internal pellet that expands the projectile when fired into the rifled barrel.

In 1867 the British war office adopted the Eley-Boxer metallic central-fire cartridge case in the Enfield rifles, which were converted to breech-loaders on the Snider principle. This consisted of a block opening on a hinge, thus forming a false breech against which the cartridge rested.
The detonating cap was in the base of the cartridge, and was exploded by a striker passing through the breech block. Other European powers adopted breech-loading military rifles from 1866 to 1868, with paper instead of metallic cartridge cases.
The original Eley-Boxer cartridge case was made of thin coiled brass - occasionally these cartridges could break apart and jam the breech with the unwound remains of the casing upon firing. Later the solid-drawn, central-fire cartridge case, made of one entire solid piece of tough hard metal, an alloy of copper, with a solid head of thicker metal, has been generally substituted. The principal on which Colonel Edward,M, Boxer, based his new idea was to solve the problem of getting the new breach loading rounds to fit snugly into the rifle barrel, but still allow easy loading of the round into the breach, if the principal of rifling was to work the projectile had to fit the barrel tightly, meaning that the round would have to be pushed hard into the breach, loading therefore could be difficult.
The problem was solved by fitting a slug of clay into the cartridge prior to the lead bullet (projectile), this slug was tapered and almost fitted into a cavity in the bullet, when the round was fired the slug was forced into the bullet expanding the rear end, thus allowing the bullet to fit loosely into the barrel until fired whereupon the end expanded fitting the rifling perfectly.

A0543

WALKING STICK SWORD 19th CENTURY

Maker unknown. With a bone handle and wooden stick, inside an etched pattern blade of 355mm length, possible 19th century. No more is known about this item.

Kindly donated by Jonathan Jones

A1606

FAIRBAIRN SYKES FIGHTING KNIFE 2nd PATTERN, circa 1941

The Fairbairn Sykes knives were produced in various patterns this being the second version. William Ewart Fairbairn and Eric Anthony Sykes developed the original pattern from there experiences in the Shanghai police before World War 2. Its design was modified to make manufacturing simpler with the 2nd pattern and various styles became available, mainly the change in the grip pattern. During the 2nd World War the knife was used by the Commando units, the SAS, (Special Air Services) and also The S.O.E. (Special Operations Executive). Fairbairn helped train all of these at training camps and produced a famous manual called 'All In Fighting'. Many times copied. 38000 FS knives were ordered during the war.

A1605

FRENCH WALKING STICK PIN FIRE GUN, circa 1870

An ordinary walking stick in all appearances, but concealed at the back is a locking pin which when lifted reveals a sliding bolt enabling the insertion of the Pin Fire bullet into the chamber once locked back into place the hammer can be prized up with a finger nail which also produces the trigger below. Removal of the wooden pommel at the tip of the stick makes it into a gun. It takes a 10mm pin fire round (see item A0505) with a smooth barrel. Marked St Etienne with a proof mark and the name J B Rousson on the handle. Known as a ''Gentleman's Poaching Weapon''

Pin-fire became obsolete once reliable rim-fire and centerfire cartridges became available because the were quicker to load. They were also safer because they had no protruding pin which could cause accidental ignition during rough handling, particularly with loose ammunition.

A1595

MASDEN LIGHT MACHINE GUN OF 1902 , 1950

The Madsen was a light machine gun developed by Julius A. Rasmussen and Theodor Schoubue and proposed for adoption by Captain Vilhelm Herman Oluf Madsen, the Danish Minister of War and adopted by the Danish Army in 1902. It was one of the first true light machine guns produced in quantity and sold to over 34 different countries worldwide, seeing extensive combat use in various conflicts around the globe for over 80 years The Madsen was produced by Compagnie Madsen A/S (later operating as Dansk Rekyl Riffel Syndikat A/S and then Dansk Industri Syndikat A/S). The Madsen continued to be used by the Military Police of Rio de Janeiro State, Brazil, with 7.62 calibre. Although some of the Brazilian guns were captured from drug traffickers and pressed into service (mostly old weapons originating from the Argentine Army as well as some stolen from museums, the majority of Madsens used by the Brazilian police were donated by the Brazilian Army. Those guns were .30 cal weapons converted to fit 7.62 mm calibre. Official sources state that the Brazilian army retired the Madsen machine gun in 1996. The Brazilian police guns are, from 2008, being substituted by more modern guns with faster rates of fire. It was reported that the last Madsen guns were finally retired in April 2008. However, photos taken during clashes between Brazilian police and drug traffickers on October 19, 2009 clearly show the Madsen gun still in use by the Brazilian police This one is marked with Portuguese Crest and RP.

• Detailed View
  

A1453

WW1 BAYONET, 1907

Standard British Bayonet for the SMLE rifle during WW1.

Known as the 1907 Pattern.

See Item A0994

• Seen as part of a WW1 uniform
  
• Bayonet seen on a WW1 Tommy
  

A0397

FABRIQUE NATIONALE BAYONET of 1924

Similar to 1907 British Bayonet, although with a metal scabbard, marked on pommel 3898. Made by the Fabrique Nationale factory in Belgium for the F.N.Mauser rifle supplied to Greece in 1924. The pommel has a Mauser pattern bar attachment groove, but unlike the German bayonets is also equipped with a muzzle ring. It has a highly polished blade instead of the normal Parkerised finish.

A1482

GERMAN WW2 SHORT DRESS BAYONET KS98, 1939

A 1939 pattern KS98 Short Dress Bayonet with a 10inch blade, not normally used on a rifle as these bayonets are for show only, in fact some do not have the catch to retain them on the gun.

The blade is Nickel Plated Silver and the scabbard is painted black. Marked Solingen E.U.F.Horster

A0496

WW1 CEREMONIAL OFFICERS SWORD AND SCABBARD

An officers ceremonial etched sword in it's scabbard from WW1.This item belongs with A0501.

A0502

WW1 LEWIS AUTOMATIC MACHINE RIFLE (LEWIS GUN), 1916

Designed in 1911 by U.S. Army Colonel Isaac Newton Lewis, on initial work carried out by Samuel Maclean. The Americans did not adopt the rifle and Lewis had to go to the Belgium's for help, it was manufactured here before the 1st World War but as Belgium was invaded in 1914, production was moved to B.S.A. in England, having been already adopted by the British Army before the war.
It uses the standard British .303 round and fires 550rpm.
The weapon was eventually made by the Savage Arms Company USA in 1917, known as the M1917 being 0.300 inch calibre.
Although being lighter than the Vickers gun it still requires two men to handle it, one to carry the magazines and one the weapon. The weapon was withdrawn from service in 1946.

A0385

WW1 LEWIS LMG BREAKDOWN SHEET

Sheet used in workshops showing all the parts of a Mk1 Lewis Machine Gun from WW1.

A0393

WW1 WEBLEY MK6 REVOLVER AND SAM BROWNE BELT, 1917

An Officers Webley Mk6 in it's original Sam Browne Belt from WW1. This item belongs with A0502.

A0501

WW1 K 98 MAUSER BAYONET SCABARD AND FROG

Bayonet for the KAR98 Carbine used by German infantry during WW1 See Item A0991

A0452

WWII THOMPSON MACHINE GUN M1928A, 1928

The M1928A1 was the military version of the ''Tommy Gun'' also known as ''Chopper'' ''Chicago Typewriter'' and ''Chicago Piano''.
General John. T. Thompson designed the first model in 1916 and started with the help of a financier, formed the 'Auto Ordinance Company', where the phrase ''Sub Machine Gun'' was first used.
The first weapon he produced was called ''The Annihilator'', too late for the Fist World War, the gun was renamed the ''Thomson Machine Gun'' and subsequently went into production in 1921.
In the days of American ''Prohibition'' it became popular with gangsters and grew to fame in the Hollywood movies. In 1938 the pattern was adopted by the U.S. Army with the M1928A1 entering into production just before the attack on Pearl Harbour. It has a 50 round magazine, although this had a rattle and the 20 or 30 round magazine was preferred. Early models tended to rise on firing so the 'Cutts'' compensator was fitted to the barrel to compensate for this. It fires .45inch ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol) rounds at a rate of fire of 800rpm.
The military version used the stick magazine and the forward pistol grip was changed for a barrel grip.

A0383

WWII STEN GUN MK 2, 1941

Sten Mk2 Sub Machine Gun of 1941 (Major R.V.Shepherd & Harold John Turpin) & EN for Enfield form the name STEN.
Fired the 9mm Parabellum round at 500rpm. The gun was very cheap to produce but was disliked because of its ability to fire if dropped (when cocked), however it became used throughout the world during WW2 and after.
It was useful to resistance and terror organisations because it was light and could easily be dismantled and hidden.
It was finally withdrawn from service in the 1960's and replaced by the Sterling SMG. Shown with Bayonet.

A0389

WEBLEY JUNIOR PELLET PISTOL, 1930's

Webley and Scott made airguns from 1924 to 1999 this is the Webley Junior probably pre war by the serial No.
However it has metal grips and most guns were wood or plastic.

A0750

WWII WEBLEY FLARE PISTOL No 4 MK 1* SIGNAL PISTOL

Webley signal pistol designed to be mounted onto a bracket fixed to the walls of an aircraft or other surface ( mounting bracket missing ) the One & half inch round had to be inserted first, after firing, the gun was removed from the bracket and reloaded. The pistols fired coloured flares, Either when in distress or for identification purposes. An aircraft fired on would fire the "colours of the day" a combination of two or more colours,
changed daily - to prove that they were friendly. There is some evidence that RAF bomber crews were told the German colours of the day,
information presumably obtained via the code-breakers at Bletchley Park.

A1124

WWII BREN GUN MK1M

In 1930 the British set out to replace the Lewis Gun, the result was based on a Czech design made by Brno the Zb26 resulting in the Bren, being the first letter of Brno and two letters from Enfield where the Royal Small Arms Factory was located.
The first gun was assembled in 1937 and Enfield maintained sole British production of the Bren. In 1940 Inglis of Canada began producing the gun as well, and by 1943 some 60% of Bren production was eventually carried out in Canada. Lithgow in Australia also built Bren Guns during the Second World War, it had a 30 round magazine, usually only holding 28 to save the spring, and fired 500 rounds per minute. Underneath the weapon is shown the Canvas Case Catcher Item No A1002. This weapon is fitted with a Mk2 barrel.

A0379

WWII BREN GUN CASE CATCHER, 1940's

Attaches to the bottom of a Bren gun to catch spent shell cases.
Used in an Anti-Aircraft role, (to prevent hot cases hitting the firer), or Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFV's) See Item No A0379 The Bren Gun.

A1002

VICKERS HEAVY MACHINE GUN AND TRIPOD, 1918

Vickers made the weapon under license from Maxim as it is basically the same. With some changes notably the Fuzzee cover and spring is upside down and the gun is also lighter. Firing up to 600 to 700 rounds per minute it was very reliable and remained in service after the second world war.
Originally Vickers charged the government £175 per weapon but after much criticism dropped the this to £80. The first design was made in 1912.
Originally called a Medium gun now referred to as heavy.

A0337

WWII MAUSER CLEANING KIT

Standard item for soldiers during WW2 for cleaning the Mauser Rifle Barrel. Brushes or a cloth could be pulled through to keep the barrel clean and lubricated, always under constant inspection by non commissioned officers.

A0489

STERLING L2A3 MACHINE GUN Mk4, 1950's

Designed by George Patchet in 1942 this was the last model of its type. firing 9 X 19 mm Parabellum rounds. Originally used by Airborne troops towards the end of the War,It replaced the earlier Sten gun.
In 1944 the British General Staff issued a specification which any new sub machine gun should conform to.
It stated that the weapon should not weigh more than six pounds, should fire 9x19mm Parabellum calibre ammunition, have a rate of fire of no more than 500 rounds per minute and be sufficiently accurate to allow five single shots to be fired into a one foot square target at 100 yards.
The Mk4 remained with the British Army from 1953 until 1988, when it was phased out with the introduction of the L85A1 assault rifle.

A0955

WWII VICKERS DIAL SIGHTS

Dial sight for the Vickers Heavy Machine Gun

A0338

POWDER MEASURE WITH BONE HANDLE, 1700's

Device for measuring gun powder for muskets, the bottom of the container can be varied in depth and is calibrated 2.5 2.75 3 & 3.25 in Drams.

A0544

MUSKET SHOT BOTTLE WITH MEASURE, 1700's

A measure for the correct amount of shot to load a weapon, achieved by a simple valve that when pressed blocked one end of a tube whilst opening the other releasing the stored shot between the two flaps.
The leather pouch is very well preserved.

A0557

FLINT LOCK PISTOL, 1800's

Land pattern Flintlock Pistol with no markings.
Guns like these were made by local blacksmiths to increase their trade.
The Land pattern style had a fixed Ramrod on a swivel attached to the barrel.

A0542

WWII BULOVER GUN SIGHT M70G, 1943

Gun sight made during WW2 for unknown weapon.

A0384

WW1 VICKERS MACHINE GUN OIL BOTTLE

Part of the accessory kit for the Vickers Machine gun of WW1 & 2,
See Item A0337.

A0817

WW1 DWM P08 GERMAN LUGER, 1915

Automatic hand gun first developed in 1908, manufactured by Deutsche Waffen-und Munitionsfabriken (DWM). Marked with the DWM monogram, and 'g' for Gewehr under the serial Number indicates it was made for a Rifle Company, it is also stamped with the Kiasers Mark.

The Parabellum-Pistole (Pistol Parabellum), popularly (but incorrectly)known as the Luger, is a toggle locked, recoil operated, semi-automatic pistol. The design was patented by George Luger in 1898 and produced by German arms manufacturer Deutsche Waffen-und Munitionsfabriken (DWM) starting in 1900; it was an evolution of the 1898 Hugo Borchardt designed C-93.

The Luger was made popular by its use by Germany during World War I and World War II. Though the Luger pistol was first introduced in 7.65x22mm Parabellum, it is notable for being the pistol for which the 9x19mm Parabellum cartridge was developed.

In World War I, as sub-machine guns were found to be effective in trench warfare, experiments with converting various types of pistols to machine pistols (Reihenfeuerpistolen, literally "row-fire pistols" or "consecutive fire pistols") were conducted. Among those the Luger pistol (German Army designation Pistole 08) was examined; however, unlike the Mauser C96, which was converted in great numbers to Reihenfeuerpistole, the Luger proved to have an excessive rate of fire in full-automatic mode.

The Luger pistol was manufactured to exacting standards and has a long service life. Bill Ruger praised the Luger's 55 degree grip angle and duplicated it in his .22 LR pistol.

• DWM Monogram
  

A0510

BOX LOCK PERCUSSION PISTOL, 1800's

A very small box lock percussion pistol, probably used by a lady and was hidden in her muff when riding in a stage coach and used as protection.
Note:- Box lock means the hammer is internal to the body of the gun and not on the outside.

A0504

WWII MAUSER C96 WITH STOCK AND LEATHER HOLSTER

The C96 is a semi-automatic pistol that was manufactured from 1896 to 1936 in Germany. It was one of the first semi-automatic pistols to see widespread use. It was also manufactured in direct or modified form in Spain and China in the first half of the 20th Century.

The main characteristics that distinguish the C96 are the integral box magazine in front of the trigger, the long barrel, the wooden shoulder stock which can double as a holster or carrying case, and a grip shaped like the end of a broom's handle (which earned it the nickname "Broom handle" in the English-speaking world). The Mauser C96 can be considered one of the first personal defence weapons (PDWs), as its long barrel and powerful cartridge gave it superior range and better penetration capabilities than most other standard pistols. There were many variants of the C96, notably the so-called "Bolo" version with a shorter barrel and smaller grips (which was manufactured after German handgun manufacturers were required to conform to Versailles restrictions on pistol barrel length). The Bolo earned that name due to the fact that the Bolshevik government of the Soviet Union in 1920s placed large orders for that model. There were versions with detachable magazines varying in size from 6 to 40 rounds (instead of the integral magazine seen on most pre-1930s versions), and models such as the M712 Schnellfeuer ("rapid fire") machine pistol from 1932 that was capable of fully automatic fire. All versions were made to use detachable shoulder stocks that doubled as holsters. A small number of carbine models with wooden stocks, wooden fore grips and much longer barrels were also manufactured.

During World War I the Imperial German Army contracted with Mauser for 150,000 C96 pistols chambered for the 9 mm Parabellum. This variant was named the "Red 9" after a large number "9" burned and painted in red into the grip panels, to prevent the pistols' users from loading them with 7.63 mm ammunition by mistake. Of the 150,000 pistols commissioned, approximately 135,000 were delivered before the war ended. This was the only time in which the C96 was ever used officially by the German army. The Mauser C96 was sold commercially worldwide; Winston Churchill favoured it, and used one at the Battle of Omdurman and during the Second Boer War. The pistols saw service in various colonial wars, World War I, the Spanish Civil War, the Chaco War, and World War II, among other places.

A0777

WWII GERMAN MP 40 MACHINE GUN, 1942

The MP40 is descended from its predecessor, the MP38. The MP36, a prototype made of machined steel, was developed independently by Erma's Berthold Geipel with funding from the German army. It took design elements from Heinrich Vollmer's VPM 1930 and EMP.
Vollmer then worked on Berthold Geipel's MP36 and in 1938 submitted a prototype to answer a request from the German Armament services for a new sub machine gun, which was adopted as MP38. The MP38 was a simplification of the MP36, as the MP40 was a further simplification of the MP38, with certain cost-saving alterations, notably in the use of more pressed rather than machined parts.

Other changes resulted from experiences with the several thousand MP38s in service since 1939, used during the invasion of Poland. The changes were incorporated into an intermediate version, the MP38/40, and then used in the initial MP40 production version. Just over 1 million would be made of all versions in the course of the war.

The MP40 was often called the "Schmeisser" by the Allies, after weapons designer Hugo Schmeisser. Hugo Schmeisser himself did not design the MP40 but held a patent on the magazine. He designed the MP41, which was a MP40 with a wooden rifle stock and a selector, identical to those found on the earlier MP28 sub machine gun. The MP41 was not introduced as a service weapon with the German Army, but saw limited use with some SS and police units. They were also exported to Germany's ally, Romania. The MP41's production run was brief, as Erma filed a successful patent infringement lawsuit against Schmeisser's employer, Haenel.
This made at Steyr-Daimler-Puch AG, Steyr, Austria

A0874

LADIES PIN FIRE REVOLVER, circa 1850

A very small hand pistol with a lock for firing Pin Fire Cartridges.

This gun is so small that ladies in the 1800's would be able to conceal it in their hand muffs. Pin fire Cartridges have a small pin protruding outward from the circumference of the blunt end, when the hammer of the weapon is released it forces the pin inwards, this creates the spark necessary to fire the charge. Calibre 7mm.

Pin-fire became obsolete once reliable rim-fire and centerfire cartridges became available

• Cartridge for the Revolver
  

A0505

WWII MG 34 LIGHT MACHINE GUN GERMAN, 1938

MG-34 was designed in the early 1930s by the team lead by Louis Stange at Rheinmetall, leading German arms manufacturer at that time. Final design, adopted for service in 1934, incorporated numerous features from experimental prototypes built by Rheinmetall, Mauser-werke, and others. As was requested by German army, it was a truly universal machine gun, capable of different roles. It was put into production circa 1935, and remained an official MG of the Wehrmacht until 1942, when it was officially replaced my more reliable and cheap MG-42. But, despite this, MG-34 continued to serve until the end of WW2, mostly as a tank gun, because it was better suited for this role than the MG-42.
In general, MG-34 was an outstanding weapon, with very fine finish and made to tight tolerances, but this become also its biggest drawback - being too expensive and too slow to manufacture, MG-34 was less than suitable for mass wartime production. It also was somewhat sensitive to dirt and fouling, a standard attribute of the western front battles. But the most major advantage of the MG-34 was its versatility, and it set the trend for numerous latter designs.
This one made at Otto Goessel u. Co., Glashuette in Sachsen. South of Dresden.

References WWW.ModernFirearms.net

A0406

MAXIM HEAVY MACHINE GUN OF 1910 ON WWII SOKOLOV MOUNT, 1944

Used by the Russian Army during WW1 and also the Red Army during WW2, it was imported to many countries including China, in Russian the Pulemyot Maxima na stanke Sokolova or the Pulemyot Maxima PM1910 'Maxim Machine Gun' was adopted in 1910, and was replaced by the Gorunov SG-43 in 1943, although manufacturing did not cease until the end of the second world war.
This one is dated 1944 it has a calibre of 7.62X54mm and can fire 600 rpm, the design was based on Maxims original.On the top of the barrel cooling jacket is an opening for inserting snow or water for cooling.

A0346

WWII MG 34 'LAFETTE' GUN MOUNT, 1945

For the MG34 Machine Gun
See Item A0496

A0988

WWII RUSSIAN PPSH 41 MACHINE GUN, 1942

Dated 1943 first adopted in 1942 designed by Georgii Shapagin. in Russia, many were sold to Germany whilst they were still allies, then used against them later.Calibre 7.62mm. with round magazine.
The impetus for the development of the PPSH came partly from the Winter War against Finland, where it was found that sub machine guns were a highly effective tool for close-quarter fighting in forests or built-up urban areas. The weapon was developed in mid-1941 and was produced in a network of factories in Moscow, with high-level local Party members made directly responsible for production targets being met.

A few hundred weapons were produced in November 1941 and another 155,000 were produced over the next five months. By spring 1942, the PPSH factories were producing roughly 3,000 units a day. The PPSH-41 was a classic example of a design adapted for mass production (other examples of such wartime design were the M3 Grease Gun, MP40 and the Sten). Its parts (excluding the barrel) could be produced by a relatively unskilled workforce with simple equipment available in an auto repair garage or tin shop, freeing up more skilled workers to other tasks. The PPSH-41 used 87 components compared to 95 for the PPD-40 and the PPSH could be manufactured with 7.3 machining hours compared with 13.7 hours for the PPD.

On the field, the PPSH was a durable, low-maintenance weapon that could fire 900 rpm. The weapon had a crude compensator to lessen muzzle climb and a hinged receiver which facilitated field-stripping and cleaning the bore in battle conditions.

Over 6 million of these weapons were produced by the end of the war. The Soviets would often equip whole regiments and even entire divisions with the weapon, giving them unmatched short-range fire power. Though 35-round curved box magazines were available from 1942, the average infantryman would keep a higher-capacity drum magazine as the initial load.The PPSH-41 drum magazine was a copy of the Finnish M31 Suomi magazine which held 71 rounds but in practice misfeeding of the spring was likely to occur with more than 65 or so. The standard load was probably one drum and a number of box magazines, when box magazines were available.

A0986

WWII STERLING LANCHESTER MK1*

This weapon was a copy of the German MP28. The British version was made by George Lanchester of the Sterling Armaments Company. Intended for the Royal Air force and Navy, most went to the latter. Firing 9mm ammunition, it saw little service after the War.
In 1940, with the Dunkirk evacuation completed, the Royal Air Force decided to adopt some form of sub machine gun for airfield defence. With no time to spare for the development of a new weapon it was decided to adopt a direct copy of the German MP28, captured examples of which were at hand for examination. The period was so desperate that the British Admiralty decided to join with the RAF in adopting the new weapon, and played a key role in its design. By a series of convoluted events, the Admiralty alone actually adopted the Lanchester into service.

The British MP28 copy was given the general designation of Lanchester after George Lanchester who was charged with producing the weapon at the Sterling Armament Company, the same company that went on to produce the Sterling sub machine gun that is presently the standard sub machine gun of many nations.

The Lanchester was envisioned as a weapon that could be used for guarding prisoners and accompanying naval landing and assault parties. It was a very solid, extremely heavy sub machine gun, in many ways the complete opposite of its direct contemporary, the Sten.
The Lanchester had a heavy wooden butt and stock, a machined steel action and breech block, and a magazine housing made from a favourite naval construction material, solid brass. A few details typical for the era were added, such as a mounting on the muzzle for use of a long bladed British bayonet. The rifling differed from the German original in details to accommodate various lots of 9 mm ammunition then being acquired for service use. The Lanchester also used furniture from the Lee-Enfield SMLE.

A0931

WWII MG 42 GERMAN LIGHT MACHINE GUN, 1942

The MG 42 (shortened from German: Maschinengewehr 42, or "machine gun 42") is a 7.92mm universal machine gun that was developed in Nazi Germany and entered service with the Wehrmacht in 1942.
It supplanted and in some instances, replaced the MG 34 general purpose machine gun in all branches of the German Armed Forces, though both weapons were manufactured and used until the end of the war.
This one possibly made at Zeitzer Eisengiesserei u. Maschinenbau-Aktien-Ges., Zeitz.


The MG 42 has a proven record of reliability, durability, simplicity, and ease of operation, but is most notable for being able to produce a stunning volume of suppressive fire. The MG 42 has one of the highest average rates of fire of any single-barrelled man-portable machine gun, between 1,200 and 1,500 rpm, resulting in a distinctive muzzle report.
There were other automatic weapon designs with similar fire power, such as the Hungarian-Gebauer single-barrelled tank MGs, the Russian 7.62mm GShak aircraft gun and the British Vickers K machine gun.
However, the MG 42's belt-feed and quick-change barrel system allowed for more prolonged firing in comparison to these weapons.

The MG 42's lineage continued past Nazi Germany's defeat, forming the basis for the nearly identical MG1 (MG 42/59), and subsequently evolved into the MG1A3, which was in turn followed by the MG 3. It also spawned the Swiss MG 51, SIG MG 710-3, Austrian MG 74, and the Spanish 5.56mm Ameli light machine gun, and lent many design elements to the American M60 and Belgian MAG. The MG 3 served with many armies during the Cold War and remains in use to this day.

A1289

WWII CRUCIFORM SPIKE BAYONET No 4 MK 1

The original spike bayonet for the No 4 rifle, the cruciform shape was banned by the Geneva Convention and the Mk2 was introduced in 1940 with a plain round spike. Made by Singer Manufacturing 'SM'. Complete with Scabbard.
Only 7500 units were made. Adopted 1939

A0553

No4 Mk2 SPIKE BAYONET, 1940's

The No4 Mk2 spike bayonet replaced the No4 Mk1 Cruciform type (see Item A0553) in 1940, being of simpler construction and cheaper to produce. Like its predecessor it fitted the No4 series of rifle.

A1480

No4 Mk2 BAYONET DESERT , 1940's

No4 Mk2 Spike Bayonet in cylindrical scabbard with square end and painted in desert colours. Marked N 67 for Singer Manufacturing Co.

A1481

ENFIELD No9 Mk1 BAYONET & SCABBARD, 1960

Bayonet No9 Mk1 for the Lee Enfield No4 rifle. Made in Pakistan in 1960, towards the end of manufacture for this weapon. Production started 1947 before it was approved and ended in 1966. Indian production at the Pakistan Ordinance factory 1953 to 1966

A1525

No 9 ENFIELD BAYONET (KNIFE), 1960's

The No9 Bayonet. Towards the end of the World War 2, Adopted 1948, the British Authorities decided to develop a knife bayonet. The blade on this weapon is not fluted as normal because it is made in South Africa after 1960 for a subsidiary of Armscor. It has a 6.5 inch blade not the normal 8inch. Similar to the Israel blade for the UZI MG. The Scabbard is apparently not for this weapon, see comment.

A0552

WWI BAYONET WITH QUILLON FOR THE LEE ENFIELD MK 3, 1907

Reproduction of the original 1907 bayonet, in 1913 all the Quillon's (hooked piece above the blade) were removed.
Made by Lithgow Small arms factory in Australia in 1919.
The Lee Enfield Mk3 rifle uses this Bayonet.
Marked ER under a crown 7'19

A0554

WWII RUSSIAN DEGTYREV PAKHOTNY LIGHT MACHINE GUN, 1926

Made in limited production in 1926 adopted by the Russian army 2 years later.
Uses a 50 round magazine 7.62 calibre Dated 1945

A1123

WW1 MG 08/15 MASCHINEN GEWEHR

The MG 08/15 is a lighter version of the MG 08 made probably as a result of the British using the Lewis Gun (the Germans had no light machine gun at the outbreak of WW1). It is identical in operation to the MG 08 and still has water cooling, unlike the Lewis, the French Chauchat and the Hotchkiss which were air cooled.

Adopted in 1915, 300,000 were produced during the war at the Spandau Arsenal, very few of the original units remain.

This example was found in a dugout in Belgium and has been restored. Dated 1917 it almost certainly saw active service during WW1. Also shown is an original drum magazine, a more common form of feeding the gun was via a 50 round belt.

A1278

WW1 MG 08 MASCHINEN GEWEHR

The MG 08 was the standard heavy machine gun used by the German Army during the First World War, the 08 refers to its year of adoption and was a further development of the MG 01. It was similar to Hiram S Maxims 1884 model, and
remained in use until 1942, being replaced by the MG 34 (1934).

The sled mount was the more common form of mounting during WW1, other countries who adopted the weapon used tripods and wheeled mountings.

A water jacket was used to cool the barrel during its operation, steam from this chamber is fed into a receptacle and recycled by pouring the condensed water back into the jacket. The method of operation is by the recoil created by the fired bullets.

Before and during the war these guns were produced at the Government Arsenal at Spandau.
This example was captured in the Middle East by the South Staffordshire Regiment during WW1 and was given to the museum in 2005 by the South Staffordshire Regimental Museum, and has Turkish markings on the cover.

A0875

WWII PIAT ANTI-TANK WEAPON (Projector Infantry Anti-tank)

Effective Range 109 yds (98 mtrs). Metal Piercing Power 3.9 inch (100 mm).

When a projectile was fired a small charge fitted in the hollow tube within the bomb ignited; this re-cocked the weapon ready for the next bomb. Not only was the projectile unreliable in its effect but often the unit did not re-engage ready for the next bomb.

Consequently this weapon was not popular with the troops who used it. When it failed it was difficult to re-load as the operator had to stand on the shoulder piece and pull to compress a large spring until the trigger engaged.

Adopted by the British in 1943 and taken out of service in 1950. This unit is probably post war as it has not seen active service and is in new condition.

• Piat Projectile
  

A0827