Interesting set up

[MHillyard]

Just found these while browsing. Mounted on a vehicle of some kind.

 

http://www.histomil.com/viewtopic.php?f=338&t=3918&start=160

 

[g0ozs]

The photo names translate as "Russian Quad Mount on LKW" and the date is 1941 Oct/Nov - I guess the remaining question is what kind of truck the LKW was - LKW is I think an abbreviation for "Lastkraftwagen" which translates as a motor truck with rigid frame. The sight looks like it was intended for AA use - the Germans also used the term "Vierling" for their quad 20mm AA mount.

[Tony B]

They look like Vickers guns, possibly captured after Dunkirk or supplied to Russia?

[g0ozs]

Tony

 

The Russian 7.62 x 54mm Maxim - usually on the Solokov wheeled carriage - remained in use and production until the end of WW2 - see Wikipedia article for "PM M1910" - the PM M1910 shares the fluted pressed steel water jacket with the Vickers, probably because it was introduced lafter the British converted to that design. The ones pictured are early, consistent with the 1941 picture date - after production resumed for WW2 the water jacket gained a filler cap on the top. The mount is not unique - there is at least one in a museum (I found it in an advert infested Imageshack page for which you can google at your own risk!)

 

Regards

 

Iain

[Tony B]

Thanks for info. Axis where into using captured kit as they never had enough of thier own. Is there evidence that Russian firearms were used by Axis? A lot of artillery pices were. Four guns like that would get your attention regardless of who made them.

[Chris Hall]

The Germans loved using everyones guns, they pretty much gave designations to all foreign guns, even if they didn't capture them in large numbers. It appears they were fond of the SVT 40

[43rdrecce]

And the PPSh-41 was very popular too. The Germans had a programme to convert these to fire 9mm Parabellum and used the code MP717® for the converted weapon. They also did this with the later PPS-43 which was designated MP719 ® by the German Army. Handbooks were issued for both weapons.

 

Cheers

 

Paul

[mcspool]

I guess the remaining question is what kind of truck the LKW was - LKW is I think an abbreviation for "Lastkraftwagen" which translates as a motor truck with rigid frame.

 

LKW is indeed Lastkraftwagen which stands for "cargo engine driven vehicle" - in other words: a cargo truck

[Tony B]

In my home patch of the Atlantic Wall, there were Britsh trucks, and commondered civillian vehicles, Chezc anti tank guns, French , German and Russian heavy artillery. French tank turrets, and modified French tanks. The biggest guns at Mirus were Ex Russian Batleship guns. The thing is most of the big artillery only had a barrel life of a hundered or so rounds.

[super6]

There are few pictures of one of these mounted in the back of a restored GAZ-MM at a Russian re-enactment of The Battle of Stalingrad, as seen in Military Machines International July 2013 edition.

They must have been a pig to load/reload

[Tony B]

At the amount of lead those things would lay down, you put up with the inconvnience.