Tuesday, November 26, 2013

Tanker's Tuesday: T28




The T28 super heavy tank (also called 105 mm Gun Motor Carriage T95) was a prototype heavily armored tank destroyer designed for the United States Army during World War II. It was originally designed to be used to break through German defenses at the Siegfried Line, and was later considered as a possible participant in an invasion of the Japanese mainland. Sometimes referred to as a super-heavy tank, the T28 was re-designated as the 105 mm Gun Motor Carriage T95 in 1945 and then renamed a super heavy tank in 1946

http://www.naritafamily.com/Scalemodel/reference/patton/T28/page_01.htm



Saturday, November 16, 2013

M56 Scorpion Self Propelled Anti-Tank Gun

M56 Scorpion Self Propelled Anti-Tank Gun was a American self-propelled anti-tank gun, which featured a 90mm M54 gun with a simple blast shield, and unprotected crew compartment. It was meant to be transported by helicopter or by air drop.


I got these from  militarymodelguy on ebay, not bad!












Tuesday, November 12, 2013

Tanker's Tuesday:MBT70

The MBT-70 (German: KPz 70) was a 1960s German-U.S. joint project to develop a new main battle tank, which was to be equipped with a number of advanced features. It utilized a newly developed hydropneumatic "kneeling" suspension and housed the entire crew in the large turret. The MBT-70 was armed with a 152 mm XM-150 gun/launcher, which could use conventional ammunition and the Shillelagh missile for long range combat.


In 1969 the project was well over budget and the Germans withdrew from the effort, developing a new main battle tank on their own instead (the Leopard 2). In the US the development continued for a short time, until in 1971 when Congress cancelled the program. The MBT-70 is the "grandfather" of the Leopard 2 and the M1 Abrams, the current main battle tanks of both countries.

http://www.fprado.com/armorsite/mbt_70.htm


Monday, November 11, 2013

Veterans/Remembrance Day



The Eleventh Hour,The  Eleventh Day, The Eleventh Month,
known here in the States as Veterans, Day and as Remembrance
Day to the rest of the English speaking world. Most young
Americans have no idea that this day was ment to comemorate
the end of the Great War, or as it's commonly known The First
World War. To all those who served in the past and to those
who serve today, we extend or heart felt gratitude.

************************************************
 Tribute To My Grandfather

Heinz Muller
My grandfather was my maternal grandmother's second husband, and therefore
of no blood relation to me however, I knew no other grandfather growing up. Both
my biological grandfathers lived until I reached adulthood but, I saw them not often
because of the distance of where they lived.
********************************
Papa Henni, as I knew him had one of the most interesting of lives, born in Germany
and growing up there after WWI in a small farm village in East Prussia, it was easier
to get to his uncle's fields by cutting through Poland! it even resulted in him getting
shot at by Polish boarder guards a few times. Because of where and when he grew
up he developed a great facility for language, he grew up speaking German, Polish,
Russian, Slovak, and later learned English and Japanese.He in early teens was an
ardent anti-nazi, he told me of putting sand down the gas tanks of army trucks! He
then would put it like this; "I was asked to politely leave at the business end of a
Kar98!" Not surprising given another of his stories where he tells of his village where
half the houses are flying the flag of the Weimar Republic the other half the nazi flag,
his house had the old Imperial battle flag because his uncle Willy was convinced that
the Kaiser would return! So perhaps it was no shock that My grandfather would go
against the authorities...
********************************
In 1936 he came to the states with his father and later followed by his uncle Willy,
He became an American citizen in 1940 and after Pearl Harbor joined the US Army
and went to Training in Mississippi, where he also taught German to Officers
heading to Europe. He as A German was sent to the Pacific theater. His first stop
was for several months in Schofield BKS Hi, where he stayed in the same building
that I was assigned to many years later, I Quad. His tails of training there came
home to me many times as I marched over the same ground that he did many
years before me
.
********************************
He went on to the Pacific theater where in one story he was watching a PBY being
worked on and a naval officer asked him "Sergeant do you like what you see, my
Grandfather replied as he said (like an idiot) Yes Sir" He was then asked could he
fire a 50 cal Machine -gun he replied "Yes sir , on the ground" the officer said it
shouldn't mater...The next thing he knew he was in the right bubble manning the
50 cal flying out over the islands in a PBY. He didn't go too much into detail about
that other than saying he gunned allot of tomato gardens, later learned that was
slang for any Japanese installation.The next stories he told me involved running into
various islanders that were fluent in German! In the first story he is walking along
this recently occupied island and hears someone singing "Watch On The Rhine"
a very patriotic German song being done in flawless German, he walks up and
finds this little old man cutting vegetables who as it turned out used to work in the
German governors mansion. In the next story he and another German American
GI are at this elaborate ceremony
where the chief is in the full black top hat and
tails but spats and no shoes. My grandfather speaking in German to his friend
said you think they could have got him some shoes...Then thinking nothing about
it is approached by the same Chief who proceeds in perfect German to apologias
for his lack of proper attire etc...My grandfather said he felt about 2 inches tall at
that point, lol.
********************************
The next things he really went into were how he learned Japanese from a Buddhist
monk while on occupation duty in Japan. I guess the reason I thought of all these
things was I turn 53 tomorrow 11 Jan, and was going back over the many things I
learned from this very interesting man, and how it was really him that caused me
to make a career in the army.Sadly Papa Henni passed away just before Germany
was reunified and didn't live to see that, I'm sure he would had allot of interesting
things to say. The other reason that brought all this to mind was my friend Tim was
showing some of his Japanese aircraft models and my mind sort of went back to
these thoughts. There are so many other stories that I half remember now and so
many other life lessons he taught me, that of all the people I've met in my life he I
miss the most.....

Tuesday, November 5, 2013

Tanker's Tuesday:M46 Patton


The M46 was an American main battle tank designed
to replace the M26 Pershing and M4 Sherman. It was
one of the U.S Army's principal tanks of the early
Cold War, with models in service from 1949 to the
mid-1950s.It was not widely used by U.S. Cold War
allies, being exported only to Belgium, and only in
small numbers to train crews on the upcoming M47.

The M46 was the first tank to be named after
General George S. Patton Jr.,commander of the
U.S. Third Army during World War II and one
of the earliest American advocates for the use
of tanks in battle.



http://www.militaryfactory.com/armor/detail.asp?armor_id=31

Saturday, November 2, 2013

Starting Off The Month Right!

A few items acquired through barter etc.