Facebook: Friends of the Tank Museum

[Orcs]

Trying to sleep ?.......Forget it.

Cheers - Phil.

Try sleeping during the day, I have been on nights this week.  Still its ben dull and rainy this weekend so a bit better.

[fsn]

We generally think of the A7V as the first German tank, but that title probably goes to this vehicle, the "Marienwagen I mit Panzeraufbau".  The Marienwagen had been developed as an unarmoured cross country vehicle based on a Daimler 4-ton truck.  Only the rear tracks were driven, while the front ones were used for steering.  The German Army was originally interested in it as an artillery tractor or a carrier for anti-aircraft . Anti-balloon guns, but with the appearance of the first British tanks in 1916, they decided to create an armoured vehicle of their own by dropping an armoured body onto the Marienwagen chassis.  It was an APC rather than a tank, as it had no weapons of its own, relying on those carried by the infantry aboard.  It was also mechanically complex, had limited cross country and trench crossing potential compared to its British equivalent and its high centre of gravity made it prone to toppling.  10 conversions were ordered, but failed to impress.  Indeed, their poor performance is one of the reasons why the German command was resistant to putting resources into development of other tanks, leaving the field to the British and French

[DecemDave]

Probably not worth asking Leon to put it on the wishlist.
Already available in 1:144 on shapeways so I assume it could be resized

[fsn]

Size of flag flown on a Spanish ship during the Battle of Trafalgar, 1805.
This flag was flown on the San Ildefonso.  The ship carried 80 cannons and howitzers. It was captured by the British Royal Navy during the battle.

Is that about 40' tall?

[Steve J]

Bloomin heck that's huge!!!

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

Sure it's an ensign and not a sail ?

[Techno II]

Well...I make it well over 50 feet wide, assuming all those bods at the top are no more than 5 feet tall...so 40 feet tall sounds about right !!

Cheers - Phil

[Big Insect]

I expect the Spaniards will now be wanting it back ... as is the modern way of things 

[Lord Kermit of Birkenhead]

Looks to fragile to travel

[Westmarcher]

Well...I make it well over 50 feet wide, assuming all those bods at the top are no more than 5 feet tall...so 40 feet tall sounds about right !!

Cheers - Phil

They're probably taller than 5 feet, Phil. Nevertheless, it is huge and will take a long time to iron. 

The Star Spangled Banner which flew over Fort McHenry in 1814 (in the so-called 'War of 1812') and now on display in the Smithsonian in Washington DC was originally 30 x 42* feet so can't be much more than that.

* apparently not much larger than modern U.S. garrison flags.

[fsn]

Wiki says the ensign is 1,560sq ft. Which puts it in the 40' mark!

https://www.napoleon.org/en/history-of-the-two-empires/articles/rare-view-of-massive-spanish-ships-flag-captured-at-the-battle-of-trafalgar
Says 10 x 14.5m (32' x 47')

[Steve J]

That would pretty much cover our back garden!

[fsn]

Both sides made extensive use of minefields during WW2, and the allies in particular experimented with multiple methods of clearing them rapidly. The Sherman T10 mine exploder was a remote controlled Sherman tank, fitted with thickened underbody armour and a tricycle set of heavy steel wheels – the idea was that they would detonate any mines, and be rugged enough to survive the resulting explosion so the vehicle could continue to clear the minefield. It had the advantage of being faster than the flail-based British systems, but its great weight meant it still only worked at about 3 mph cross country, and was difficult to deploy, so it never entered production.



Monster truck Sherman?

[Westmarcher]

... what happens when you cross an Airfix Sherman tank kit with a Tonka truck. 

[fsn]

Major Paul Triquet leaves Buckingham Palace after having received his Victoria Cross (VC) from His Majesty, King George VI.
His VC citation reads: "On 14 December 1943 during the attack on Casa Berardi, Italy, when all the other officers and half the men of his company had been killed or wounded, Captain Triquet dashed forward and, with the remaining men, broke through the enemy resistance. He then forced his way on with his small force – now reduced to two sergeants and 15 men – into a position on the outskirts of Casa Berardi. They held out against attacks from overwhelming numbers until the remainder of the battalion relieved them, the next day. Throughout the action Captain Triquet's utter disregard for danger and his cheerful encouragement were an inspiration to his men."


You wouldn't look at him in the street and think 'there's a VC winner'.

[Duke Speedy of Leighton]

That's because VC winners never do.

[fsn]

You see, I think this chap looks like a VC winner.

Even if he isn't.

Sardar Hardit Singh Malik was born in November 1894 in West Punjab. Sent to England aged 14, he attended Eastbourne College, before studying history at Oxford,

After WW1 broke out, Hardit applied to join the British Army as a commissioned officer, but attitudes of the time precluded black officers commanding white soldiers. Hardit successfully applied to join the French air force but his outraged Oxford tutor, wrote to the commander
of the Royal Flying Corps demanding he be allowed to join. Hardit was interviewed and given an "honorary" commission on April 5, 1917.

Hardit became the first Indian in any flying service, wearing a specially designed flying helmet over his turban, he earned the affectionate nickname 'Flying Hobgoblin'. In October 1917 Hardit and his comrades were surprised by German aircraft. Shot in the leg before shooting down his assailant, Hardit flew 40 miles to land, bleeding and exhausted. His plane had been hit by 450 bullets.

Post-war Hardit joined the Indian civil service, from 1938 was trade commissioner to Canada and the U.S., and in 1944 became Prime Minister of the city of Patiala. After Indian independence he became the first Indian High Commissioner to Canada, and later ambassador to France. He died aged 90 in 1985.

[steve_holmes_11]

Both sides made extensive use of minefields during WW2, and the allies in particular experimented with multiple methods of clearing them rapidly. The Sherman T10 mine exploder was a remote controlled Sherman tank, fitted with thickened underbody armour and a tricycle set of heavy steel wheels – the idea was that they would detonate any mines, and be rugged enough to survive the resulting explosion so the vehicle could continue to clear the minefield. It had the advantage of being faster than the flail-based British systems, but its great weight meant it still only worked at about 3 mph cross country, and was difficult to deploy, so it never entered production.



Monster truck Sherman?

I say Aggers, Virat's called for the heavy roller.

[Steve J]

I say Aggers, Virat's called for the heavy roller.

[Techno II]

Stop it, Aggers !

Cheers - Johnners......(That still makes me cry with laughter, every time I hear it !!)