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Where are the german range wrecks?


eddy8men

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hi fella's

after reading the thread about the sherman that was scrapped on a range somewhere in the netherlands i was just wondering about what happened to all the armour that was sitting on the british range areas in germany,is it still there?i doubt the germans would be as interested in the wrecks as we are(don't mention the war).i've been on the excellent www.hartziel.de website and it looks like a real gold mine if you could get over there and get permission to visit the range areas you'd have a field day,maybe we could even save a few,then in a few years time we wouldn't be saying what a shame it is that all the armour got scrapped,because we might be driving around in a few off them.

what do you think? is anybody else interested in getting something together with regard to going over for a look ,let me know.

 

all the best

eddy

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My understanding is that when we handed Hohne Ranges over, we did a sweep to remove everything nasty and the German Greens (believe me, German Green make our Greens look like a bunch of Nancy-boys) were actually disappointed that we didn't leave all sorts of nasties for them to protest about.

 

I am sure there is a thread from last year on the ARRSE RAC forum about it somewhere.

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Never mind the German ranges..... Former USSR ranges (did they follow the 'range' idea?) must have had a hell of a lot of WW2 German AFVs shot up on them, considering how many 1,000s were captured. Has anyone ever done a search?

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i thought that a trip to germany was ambitious but a trip to russia would be pushing it a bit even by my standards, but hey if someone else can organise it i'd be up for it, if an invite was on the cards,however having said that i plan on going to poland to look for a sunken tank from the war in september so it could be a busy year.although i've a feeling that the russian stuff would have been smelted down long ago and only what was left deep in the forrests may have survived this long,i find the www.warrelics.eu forum very good for stuff from the east.

i'll see if i can get anything from google earth from the old training areas

 

eddy

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Ajmac

Former USSR ranges (did they follow the 'range' idea?) must have had a hell of a lot of WW2 German AFVs shot up on them, considering how many 1,000s were captured. Has anyone ever done a search?

 

 

Of course the Russians have artillery ranges, there is an example elsewhere in HMVF forums showing Tigers on a range at Smolenks, at least one of which is now in a nearbye museum along with a battered Sherman which looks as though it suffered as a hesh target (so much for British secrecy). Quite a few other notable tanks exhibits at kubinka were taken and shot up on ranges (shades of Bovington) including many German afvs and possibly historic Soviet vehicles such as SU14 203mm Spg.

 

Additionally one group of enthusiasts posted a Utube video of there attempt to find a tiger (its always is a tiger) on solvak gunnery ranges, all that showed up was T34/85 -well all that showed up on the vid.

 

As to getting onto Russian ranges -unlikely but anyway much of historic value will have been flitched by rich russians and like Poland updated Soviet era laws on anything of either military or historic value will prohibit its export. There are however groups in both Russia and Ukraine who are happy to work with westerners in historic field research on former battlefield sites.

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There are a number of Flickr style sites showing the T34s on Panderborne, note the two wrecks with M48 turrets, T34 and M42 Spag. possibly the T34 may still offer up some wheels and track plates, The turreted t34 photographed is probably ex czech or polish post war manufacture.

 

Steve

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steve

they must have had a turret from a wreck probably blown off it's original hull and then placed on the bridge layer to make it look like a tank ,reminds me of the crocodile on salisbury with the giant tractor tyre for a turret.

just another pic of the priest ,you can just make out the top of the engine ,would make a nice restoration project.

 

eddy

http://static.panoramio.com/photos/original/8047512.jpg

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  • 1 month later...

Davies373

Used to be based in Nienburg north of Hannover. The local training area had 2 Lee/Grants wrecks parked in a siding. (1995) When I went to a millitary fair in Fallingbostel and they also had one parked on the camp.

 

 

Are you sure of these designations? possible the Lee/Grants were M7B2 priest SPH. The Fallingbostel Grant, I am fairly sure is the M4A1 75mm -ex MADP rebuild from the Netherlands, of course I am quite happy to be prooved wrong;).

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Photos firstly a very blured photo of the M3 at Smith Barracks Baumholder- photo via museum

staff taken with a polaroid hence the poor resolution, as far as I am aware it was the only M3 in Germany in the 1990s

 

The second photo is the M4A1 mentioned previously at Fallingbostel in the early 1990s special thanks to dave? the photographer - no doubt in breach of MOD PR department.

 

 

Steve

M4A1..jpg

M3 ironsides mus
.jpg

Edited by steveo578
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thanks for sharing the pics steve,adrian mentioned a comet earlier was this the one that was shown in w&t ,can't remember which issue, i just remember seeing it outside a reme wksp.

it does my nut in to think that for years i was driving on the training areas in germany and never gave any of these wrecks a second glance, now i'd give my right arm for one !

 

eddy

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eddy8men

.....adrian mentioned a comet earlier was this the one that was shown in w&t ,can't remember which issue, i just remember seeing it outside a reme wksp.

it does my nut in to think that for years i was driving on the training areas in germany and never gave any of these wrecks a second glance, now i'd give my right arm for one

 

Hi Eddy

 

The article on the Munster comet restoration is in Tracklink the bovington friends newsletter-I dig it out so you can view it sometime (got to remember which file box (dump) its in). The "Comet Team" also did one in Finland and restored cosmetically another Comet for display in the Desden Museum.

 

I think every-one has recollections of range wrecks and vehicles in depots awaiting destruction that they ignored- but often there is very little that can be done, most of the time it's a case of "Hoi you leave that ****** piece of **** alone and get on with it."

 

Steve

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just had a look thru wheels and tracks and the article is on page 3 issue 38,it shows two comets outside a workshop in munsterlager,incidentally the pics and article came from dave whitehouse,i served with sgt dave whitehouse at 29 regt rlc lad in 96 , i wonder if it's the same guy.

 

eddy

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