Willyslancs Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 (edited) just had this thought tonight , why arent there many pics of twin 50s yet there are hundreds of jeep pics with the single one. Were they not liked ? impractical? useless? .............just a thought http://www.flickr.com/photos/62607536@N06/sets/72157631165024950/ Edited August 20, 2012 by Willyslancs Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RattlesnakeBob Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 would love to fire a real 'live' .50cal.......especially a twin .....or even better :cool2:....a quad mount!!!!!! ...the firepower, especially when used on a ground target must have been absolutely devastating.... :-) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trustmeimamechanic Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 A single .50 fired from a jeep is not the most accurate of weapons , the recoil tends to push the jeep over on its springs so doubling the affect of the recoil that makes most machine guns creep upwards when fired. Some pics of early jeeps so a kind of prop fitted to the side of the jeep to lessen this affect. My jeep ( M38A1 ) was fitted with a .50 in Dutch service ... speaking to cloggies that used them they all said that after much use the floors on the jeeps would crack from the affects of the recoil and also it was only realy good for keeping enemy heads down as the jeep rocked about so much when the .50 was fired. The affect on the centre of gravity is noticable with one .50 when driving the jeep Imagine all the above doubled with twin .50s ...... perhaps a good set up for bling or "mines bigger than yours" but not realy an advantage in service , even today Wimiks and Hummers still only tend to have a single .50 mounted Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RattlesnakeBob Posted August 20, 2012 Share Posted August 20, 2012 good point....not thought of the recoil effect :-\... I know a .50 or .30 cal is a popular addition to the Jeeps about the rallies today but being honest..:-\ ..were that many Jeeps actually fitted up like this during WW2?....I've not seen all that many real wartime photos of Jeeps thus fitted 'in action'...I wouldn't have thought you'd really wanna be stood up in the back of a Jeep hammering away with one when in contact with the enemy and besides the Jeep wasn't really designed nor intended for 'frontline combat' was it?.....a very useful recce and communications vehicle but surely not ever intended for actually getting 'stuck in' at the front ?that was more a job for halftracks and tanks and maybe armoured cars?.....I know the LRDG and the SAS used them like that but they were a bit unique weren't they??....not 'the norm' I would have thought?... .......I've often thought something the same when you see some Jeeps absolutely loaded out at rallies with half a ton of paraphernalia hanging off them such as spades and picks and satchels and Thompsons in racks and water bottles etc etc etc... ....quite nice to look at on a rally field but....again, being honest...if they rolled off the landing craft with all that kit hanging on them, just how long would it have lasted once the Jeep was tearing through the hedges and lanes of Normandy or Italy or bumping and banging about in the jungles of a Pacific Island?. I reckon at least half of the kit would have fell off in the first 10 minutes and the other half would have been nicked by every passing soldier short of water or ammo or with perhaps the stock smashed on his weapon or whatever .....:-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Garrison Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 The LRDG palyed around with many different configurations on their jeeps and trucks and SAS seemed to follow whatever worked for the LRDG. .30's were the most common along with Brens, believe it or not. .50s were, as previously mentioned, not the best addition due to recoil etc.. not to mention feeding the dam things. With twin .50's where do you put the ammo :wow:... Firing Quad mount .50's is the most amazing experience i think i have ever had. It was an Anti Aircraft config on the back of an American Half Track.... ear plugs are a MUST with at least grade 5 earmuffs over the top... oh and the brass gets a little warm so do your buttons up Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RattlesnakeBob Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 ......... ear plugs are a MUST with at least grade 5 earmuffs over the top... oh and the brass gets a little warm so do your buttons up heheh modern Health and Safety :cool2:.....I wonder how many poor old fellas came home deaf as a post from combat in WW2? you very rarely ever see a soldier / ack ack gunner / waist gunner on a B17 etc wearing proper H&S ear defenders and ordinary flying helmets such as worn in Lancs etc can't have held much of the noise back ... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Garrison Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 heheh modern Health and Safety :cool2:.....I wonder how many poor old fellas came home deaf as a post from combat in WW2? you very rarely ever see a soldier / ack ack gunner / waist gunner on a B17 etc wearing proper H&S ear defenders and ordinary flying helmets such as worn in Lancs etc can't have held much of the noise back ... Used to know a Lanc rear gunner.. and of the few times he actually spoke about the war he did confirm it was noisey and hot. Had a lot of respect for that man. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RattlesnakeBob Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 It must have been......I've fired a few rifles and pistols and what always astounds me is the noise... and I've never ever seem a combat infantryman in WW2 wearing any manner of ear defenders ...( I don't guess they would have been very practical anyway in combat ?)... ..the noise in a fire fight must have been absolutely deafening with all your mates around you firing off like billyo and your own weapon banging away and grenades and mortars landing around you...frightening..:-| ..when I lived in the US for a while I did some shooting and hanguns in particular I found to be appallingly loud and I'm a musician well used to things being 'loud' ! .....I used them out in the open so what one must be like when fired in an enclosed room or building must be shattering..... Just out of interest..do our modern troops both Brit and US in Afghanistan use any manner of ear defender nowadays ? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mash Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 Yes, they are now issued with personal ones molded to their own ears, also a general issue pair that have double end, onside is green for combat/rifles and the other yellow for workshops etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony B Posted August 21, 2012 Share Posted August 21, 2012 would love to fire a real 'live' .50cal.......especially a twin .....or even better :cool2:....a quad mount!!!!!! ...the firepower, especially when used on a ground target must have been absolutely devastating.... :-) Yes, devestating about £1.50 a bang! :-D Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
deadline Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 I doubt the M31C mount could take the beating of twin 50's for long on a jeep. The dash mount definitely would rip out. The MGs along would be close to 200lbs... not counting whatever you had to weld up to support them. Feeding them from left/right is not an issue.. they change over easily enough, but ejecting belts and links would be a bit problematic. Also the sheer weight of BMG ammo would quickly add up. You can fit 250 rounds into a .30 cal can... but a 50BMG can only holds 100 rounds linked. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pzkpfw-e Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 http://youtu.be/m225CyqeEAs Looks fun to me! I remember a programme on The History Channel (?), showing a quad 50cal night-firing at a model aircraft target. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RattlesnakeBob Posted August 23, 2012 Share Posted August 23, 2012 http://youtu.be/m225CyqeEAs Looks fun to me! ...ooooooohhhhh yes sir indeed.....:-D ...and if someone else was paying I'd never give a thought as to how much each shell cost to be honest.....:cool2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Garrison Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Here's how we do things down in New Zealand guys... P-40 at an airshow with 6x fully functional .50cals.. ANd yes we did load them with functional blanks.... was fun clearing them all up after the passes.... :cool2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Pzkpfw-e Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Easy clean-up. "Hello children, off you go, you can keep any cartridge cases you find" The field would be stripped bare within 5 minutes! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Garrison Posted August 24, 2012 Share Posted August 24, 2012 Agreed, but sadly on the wrong side of the crowd line.. More shells and beltlink for us :cool2: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.