The first mention of the use of handicraft armored vehicles dates back to the First World War. Scattered detachments of partisans, rebels, militias, faced with the need to build defensive and offensive positions, were forced to oppose home-made armored vehicles to military equipment of regular armies, which were gradually transplanted from horses. Often, tractors became the basis for such ersatz machines, which even then turned into the main agricultural and construction equipment.
So, in revolutionary Russia, the first to use home-made armored vehicles were the White Guards. The professional officers of tsarist Russia were losing in battles against the peasants and the proletariat due to the insufficient technical staffing of their troops. They tried to compensate for this with home-made and cars. One of the most striking examples of handicraft equipment of that time was the Colonel the Silent armored vehicle. Built on the basis of the Clayton tractor by the Don Army in 1918, the armored car could accommodate 11 crew members, was sheathed with thick metal sheets, and was also armed with a 76.2 mm field gun in the stern and six 7.62 mm Maxim machine guns of the 1910 model. of the year. However, in battle, the vehicle turned out to be extremely inconvenient due to its bulkiness and dimensions. An ordinary horse moved the cannons and guns of that time much faster.
The interwar period was the most striking in the development of the construction of armored tractors. In Russia and Europe, many copies of such equipment were created, often in a single copy. However, it would not be entirely correct to call this handicraft production, since tractors were sheathed with armor in the factory, under the supervision of engineers and designers, and, as a rule, they did not participate in real battles.
The Second World War also prompted enthusiasts to hastily create heavy military equipment, which this time was supposed to withstand the aviation and tanks of professional armies. So, for example, in the USSR, the NI-1 tank (“For Fright”) was created, an improvised armored tractor built in 1941 in Odessa for the defense of the city. A light cannon or a machine gun on a rotating turret was mounted on the roof of the NI-1. These tanks participated in many battles in the early years of the war, and some of them have survived to this day.
There are a lot of examples of this kind of equipment, similar ersatz tanks, armored cars and other surrogate heavy equipment were made in many cities with developed industry. However, again, to call such production artisanal would not be entirely correct.
But tiznaos, widely used during the Spanish Civil War, were a real example of "home production". Due to the fact that this collective concept does not have any common characteristics, not much is known about tyznaos. Many of these vehicles were quite formidable vehicles in urban environments: machine guns, turrets and light cannons mounted on their roofs were a serious force in the fight against government troops.
Post-war history was also rich in various instances of such equipment. Everywhere where the battles of the regular army against scattered rebel groups took place, starting from Vietnam, Afghanistan, the Middle East, and then the Balkans and the countries of the post-Soviet space, unique examples of the fantasies of local designers were found.
Speaking of home-made equipment, one cannot help but recall Marvin Heemeyer's armored bulldozer. The brainchild of the last American hero participated in only one single battle, but it deserves attention for some kind of technical perfection. Armored with thick metal sheets, the Komatsu D355A-3 was not armed, but had special loopholes for firing from the inside, navigation cameras hidden in bulletproof plastic trunks, an engine cooling system and airtight cabin ventilation. 200 bullet hits and several grenade explosions did not cause any damage to the bulldozer, and only the collapsed roof of the building could stop it.
Sham-2 and Syrian artillery
Actually, Sham-2 itself. Country of origin - Syria. Built on the basis of the chassis of an unknown car, the thickness of the armor is 2.5 centimeters. Unable to withstand a direct hit from a grenade launcher or tank gun. The dimensions of the improvised infantry fighting vehicle are 4 x 2 meters. A mounted 7.62 mm machine gun was mounted on the roof. The crew includes two people - the driver and the gunner. Navigation is carried out by five video cameras built into the body of the equipment, the shooter controls the machine gun using a gamepad. The vehicle is on combat duty near the city of Aleppo. There is no official evidence of Sham-2 participation in the battles, however, given the harsh economic conditions in which the Syrian rebels are forced to exist, it is safe to say that the vehicle was not built for entertainment and can perform the functions of an infantry fighting vehicle, providing fire support to local militants in urban and field conditions.
It is worth noting that in general, modern Syrians are leaders in the production of homemade weapons. The Internet is filled with examples of homemade grenades, artillery fire systems, flamethrowers and other equipment.
Unnamed multiple launch rocket system
This system was discovered by the Israeli military in 2010 in the Gaza Strip. MLRS is installed on the basis of a dump truck. The trailer is equipped with nine guide tubes for launching Qassam missiles, which, by the way, are the pride of the handicraft production of the Palestinians. Such a rocket is made from a hollow tube from 70 to 230 centimeters in length, stuffed with explosives, and the accelerator is the usual mixture of sugar and potassium nitrate, which is used everywhere as fertilizer. When burned, this mixture releases a large amount of gas capable of sending a rocket to a distance of 3-18 kilometers. However, the quality of aimed shooting on such installations leaves much to be desired.
The advantage of such a MLRS is in excellent disguise. By approaching urban facilities without hindrance, such a garbage truck can be quickly put on alert.
Homemade armored vehicles of drug cartels
Criminal elements involved in the production and sale of drugs are distinguished by their special imagination. For example, we previously wrote about how Colombian drug lords build real submarines to transport cocaine. And their colleagues from Mexico prefer a different technique - armored transport vehicles. Guns on such armored personnel carriers are not installed, however, the crew can conduct aimed fire through special loopholes. However, the Mexicans do not pay attention to the wheels, focusing on the speed of movement of such equipment, which, as a rule, becomes a weak point for improvised armored personnel carriers. If you break through the rubber, moving on such a machine, given the weight of the armor, becomes almost impossible.
Armored vehicles of the Syrian Kurds
Photos of these "wunderwaffes" were allegedly taken on the territory of Syria and have been circulating on various information portals since the spring of 2014. There is no official information about improvised armored vehicles, the belonging of the equipment can be determined by the drawings on the armor - such a logo is the official symbol of the Syrian People's Self-Defense Detachment, the combat wing of the Kurdish Supreme Committee participating in the Syrian armed conflict.
Homemade equipment of the Libyan rebels
The favorite weapon of the Libyan rebels, the so-called “technical” vehicles, are a homemade symbiosis of the Soviet blocks of NAR, SZO, anti-aircraft guns and various pickups.
Home-made equipment of security forces and militias of Ukraine
Photos of home-made equipment of various forces fighting on the territory of Ukraine have also been circulating on the Internet since the summer. With limited funding, Ukrainian security forces and militias are armoring Russian KamAZ trucks and converting old Soviet vehicles.
It is rather difficult to confirm the participation of most of these exhibits in battles. However, for example, the armored KamAZ "Zhelezyaka" of the "Azov" battalion participated in the battles near Mariupol and even became the hero of the news.
Serega80 11-03-2008 02:21
moved from weapon history
A couple of photos of homemade armored cars that were used in Transnistria. Dear forum users, does anyone else have photos or information on similar alterations?
big mustache 11-03-2008 08:19
Only Pridnestrovian interests?
landing 11-03-2008 10:37
there are no photos, but alterations from MAZ and KAMAZ dump trucks were widely used. sheets were welded to the body and when it was lowered, the cabin closed completely. (used in Tajikistan, Nagorno-Karabakh)
ipse 11-03-2008 14:47
The Angolans on the basis of KrAZs had ZU-23s.
Indians based on tractors.
Croats also have tractors and Tatras
Serega80 11-03-2008 18:45
quote: Originally posted by Big mustache:
Only Pridnestrovian interests?
Interested in any artisanal alterations of civilian equipment into armored vehicles.
Serega80 11-03-2008 19:14
Gorgeous car!
big mustache 11-03-2008 19:16
There is also a photo from the tank museum from Kubinka. Armored tractor with turret. If interested, I can try to scan.
ipse 11-03-2008 19:19
Are you talking about Odessa NI or Kharkov?
big mustache 11-03-2008 19:21
In Kubinka stands alone the one and only and without inscriptions.
ipse 11-03-2008 19:23
I will try to find a photo of the Kharkov armored tractor (with a turret from BT-5) and the Odessa NI (the turret looks like a machine gun from the T-26 or something like that)
landing 12-03-2008 13:53
emden 23-03-2008 03:35
quote: Originally posted by Wut:
What is it, UN mechanics moonlighted by assembling armored vehicles?
no, the plant just took an order for the UN to make capital armored personnel carriers
"Uruta" has almost been completed, and for Nigeria "AML-90" they also made capital the day before yesterday BTR-60 was brought in, they have already begun to pick,
one engine has already been removed.
Robin Gad 27-03-2008 01:57
Stands in front of the Danish Resistance Museum in Copenhagen. They collected it somewhere quietly, used it only once, at 45m, during the liberation of the city. The armor, however, is slightly chipped with bullets
AllBiBek 27-03-2008 11:47
Emily is missing. With a balalaika and a pike trap. And the grip on the roof. For extra ambience.
EOD 30-03-2008 01:47
Vot iso Pridnestrovskie, stayali tak na voruzene v 2003r.
U nih nazvane ided "BTR-G" i after etogo indeks togo iz tsego peredelali. "G" as "gusenitsnyi".
U nih kutsa takogo musora na voruzene.
“The tanker sat down and covered his head with his hands - he thought, that’s it, we’re shooting”
Last fall, the metropolitan police checked the pawnshop on Nikolskaya Street - and, to their surprise,. Who thought of handing over military equipment there in pursuit of a long ruble is a mystery. And just recently - in early spring - Muscovites were surprised by an armored personnel carrier driving among ordinary cars along Rokossovsky Boulevard. We found out why private traders buy armored vehicles.
So, the secret of the described incidents is simple: in Moscow there are many ordinary people who are not related to the army, but who own military equipment, on which they can safely go even to the market for potatoes. What difficulties do the owners of such cars face in Moscow? And how do they get them?
Not far from the Yugo-Zapadnaya metro station, there is an unremarkable covered garage in which dozens of cars are parked. One of the parking spaces is occupied by "something" covered with a tarpaulin - either a truck or a gigantic SUV. But you can't fool local drivers: they are well aware that next to their hatchbacks and sedans is hidden ... a real BTR-40, a light Soviet armored personnel carrier from the 50s of the last century.
My car is rare, - says the owner of the BTR-40, Muscovite Alexei Morozov. - I dreamed about buying it for many years - and as soon as the opportunity arose, I realized my dream, bought an armored personnel carrier and restored it on my own from virtually one rusty body.
Morozov's "armored car" is not an empty model: the owner of a formidable car can at any moment get into it and go about his business. For example, to the store, as the hero of the famous miniature by Mikhail Zhvanetsky. According to the law, he has every right to do this: vehicles with a width of no more than 2.5 meters can drive on the roads of the capital, and the BTR-40 falls into these dimensions. The older "brothers" of the armored personnel carrier - armored personnel carriers of the 60s, 70s, 80s and 90s - are already much wider: according to the rules in the city, they can only move along pre-agreed routes with escort vehicles, and you can no longer ride them freely . The same, by the way, applies to tanks, which, in addition to everything else, also spoil the asphalt.
There are only 30-40 people like me throughout the metropolitan region, - says Morozov, - most of them are in the armored department of the GAZ-69 special club. All of them have “overall” equipment: either armored personnel carriers, like mine, or armored reconnaissance and patrol vehicles (BRDM) of the 1st and 2nd series. From the point of view of the law, combat vehicles in private hands are equated to tractors - and all "tractor" restrictions are imposed on us. Simply put, we are not allowed to drive on highways and those places in the city where the signs “Motorway” or “Tractors are prohibited” are installed. Therefore, the way to the Moscow Ring Road is closed to us.
Inside Morozov's "armored car" is a bit cramped - in order to get into the side hatch of the car, you have to bend down and show miracles of dexterity; while the view from the BTR cab resembles a view from a truck. This is not surprising - according to the rules, the crew commander should help the driver to control the BTR-40. However, the owner of the car claims: you can adapt. Moreover, other drivers try not to cuddle up to the armored personnel carrier - the formidable technique involuntarily inspires them with respect.
Half my kingdom for an old armored car
Would you like to buy military equipment? Hold your pocket wider! The cost of the cheapest (and therefore popular) "armored car" - BRDM-2 - is more than half a million rubles. Moreover, for such a price, it will inevitably have to be brought to mind, which will also require considerable costs. Cooler cars - for example, the relatively new BTR-80 - can cost up to 10 million rubles. True, there is no particular point in buying it: due to its large dimensions, it simply will not work to move on public roads. But where to turn if the money is still there? A tank or an armored personnel carrier will not be sold to you directly at the Ministry of Defense - at first, the military raffle auctions and transfer equipment to intermediary companies, legal entities. Before that, all vehicles undergo a demilitarization procedure: all weapons are removed from them.
So if you want to buy military equipment, you need to contact either intermediary companies or individuals who already own all kinds of “armored cars”. The first option will inevitably result in overpayments - therefore, it is much easier to look for offers to sell on free classifieds sites (there are unexpectedly full of them there). Experienced owners of combat vehicles say: you should not take equipment with design changes. Many strive to shove air conditioners, leather sofas into "armored cars" or cut out windows there - and then it is very difficult to sell such cars that have lost their army flavor.
Since formally "civilian" armored vehicles are equated to tractors and the rights to it are needed, like a tractor, they are obtained at the Gostekhnadzor (in Moscow this department is part of the Association of Administrative and Technical Inspections, OATI). However, you can buy an armored personnel carrier or a tank without them, but you won’t be able to drive it. In general, the scheme for buying an “armored car” is similar to an automobile one - first the seller removes it from the register with the Gostekhnadzor, then a contract of sale is concluded. At the same time, it is imperative to check the body, frame and chassis numbers of the car with those that are registered in the passport of the self-propelled vehicle (PSM). Then it's up to the buyer: he will have to go to Gostekhnadzor, register the car there and arrange insurance for it (which, by the way, is cheaper than car insurance).
It would seem that everything is simple: but a combat vehicle is far from a civilian vehicle. For example, it can easily lack side mirrors or turn signals - and the happy owner of the “armored car” will have to install them on their own: without this, the Gostekhnadzor simply will not issue a car.
"Ship" on wheels
Military equipment is a real blow to the family budget. Not only does the car itself cost a lot, but also its maintenance requires a lot of money. An example of this is gasoline. The engine of the most common armored car, the BRDM-2, was originally designed to run on low-octane gasoline, which is now banned for environmental reasons. The owners of military vehicles are finalizing it - and transferring it to the 92nd gasoline. The BRDM-2 has 2 tanks of 140 liters each; it is easy to calculate that its full refueling with 92nd gasoline will cost “only” ... 10 thousand rubles! At the same time, the fuel consumption of a heavy (weighing from 5.5 to 7.5 tons, depending on the configuration) BRDM-2 is huge: 30 liters per 100 kilometers.
But there are no problems with washing the car, - says Alexei Morozov, starting his BTR-40 (I am sitting next to him in the commander's seat), - in terms of dimensions, my car is like a truck, and it is allowed to go to a regular car wash calmly.
The guard opens the garage doors - and our "armored car" sets off on a journey through the streets of Moscow. The cabin is surprisingly quiet: the powerful armor of the BTR-40 absorbs sound - and the feeling is as if you are driving in an ordinary truck. The armored personnel carrier rides smoothly and softly on the asphalt - it “floats” like a road ship. True, it soon becomes hot in the cabin: in the car of the post-war years, of course, there is no air conditioning at all - but there is a stove. In winter, the inside of the BTR-40 is warm and comfortable, but in summer it turns into a "bathhouse" on wheels.
The lifetime of military equipment in combat is no more than 15 minutes, - the driver explains, - therefore, the designers never really cared about the comfort for the crew. It is not intended for everyday driving at all - that's why I never complained about my car, and I only drive it on weekends. So, something we have dispersed ...
Morozov slows down - judging by the speedometer, it has already exceeded 60 km / h. Moreover, according to the sensations, our road “ship” was traveling no more than 40 km / h. This is a feature of all "armored cars": they move easily and imperceptibly along the tracks - structurally, cars can accelerate to 100 km / h. But high speeds are not the element of combat vehicles: it is extremely difficult to stop it at high speed. Therefore, the “captain” of the BTR-40 tries to keep an impressive distance of 10–15 meters from other vehicles and enters turns along increased radii.
Drivers keep their distance smarter and don’t drive up close to me,” says Morozov, “but there are those who, at the sight of my “armored car”, fall into euphoria, start shouting something, take pictures, and sometimes even overtake and try to slow down an armored personnel carrier, which is very dangerously. But, fortunately, I have never had an accident.
APC driver, pull over to the side of the road and stop! - the hum of a megaphone is heard from behind. Less than 10 minutes after the check-out, the traffic police officers became interested in us.
Armored "surprise" for traffic cops
Submit your documents! - commanded by a traffic police officer when Alexei Morozov opens the hatch. The owner of the "armored car" calmly holds out papers to the guard - and he glances through them. It is immediately clear that the traffic policeman is much more interested in the car itself than in checking it.
Well, how is the car? Vomit? - the inspector is interested.
And how! Alexei answers with a smile.
In fact, in the capital's traffic police, all owners of military equipment are known almost by name - such vehicles are too rare on city streets. It is difficult for traffic police to find fault with their owners: all "armored cars" are in safe hands, technically sound and maintained in perfect condition. Their drivers behave very carefully on the road and never violate traffic rules - which is not surprising: driving into the “oncoming lane” of an armored personnel carrier will result in a serious accident, because the mass of the car is very large. But traffic police inspectors still like to stop such exotic for Moscow "aggregates" - rather not for verification, but out of simple curiosity.
A couple of weeks ago, for 20 minutes of driving in my BRDM (armored reconnaissance and patrol vehicle), traffic police officers stopped me three times, - says 31-year-old Muscovite Mikhail Bukar, meeting us at the garage (like Alexei Morozov, he is a member of the GAZ- 69" and the owner of his own "armored car"). At the same time, the documents were never checked - they were just interested. And what should I check? I have a license plate on my car, at the first violation I will immediately get into the lenses of traffic cameras - but this has never happened before. Although law enforcement officers are still interested in me: in the village where I keep my car, vigilant citizens called the police, and traffic cops came to check on me, although no one had ever seen them there ...
Bukar dreamed of his own “armored car” since childhood: not far from his dacha near Noginsk, the Vtorchermet plant was located, where military equipment was taken for recycling. As a teenager, together with his friends, he climbed there - and looked at the stacks lying on top of each other and waiting for the destruction of the machine. It was then that he had a desire to save at least one of them - and get his own war machine. Years passed - and the dream came true: however, in order to acquire a military "unit", Bukar, together with his wife, had to go almost on bread and water ... By the way, it was Mikhail's wife who encouraged him to buy: they say, you dream all the time - so buy already!
When I finally bought my BRDM, I was insanely happy, - the owner of the car recalls, - I put a model of the Vladimirov heavy machine gun (KPVT) on it. In my car, when I turn off the engine, the mufflers "shoot" - and this sound is like gunshots. Once, with a friend, we stopped at a gas station - and he was sitting in the tower and deployed it, along with a model of a machine gun, towards the pavilion. I turned off the engine, and the mufflers “fired back” - and the tanker was just coming out of the glass doors towards me. So he sat down and covered his head with his hands - he thought, that's it, we're shooting.
However, another owner of the combat vehicle, who wished to remain anonymous, told an equally amusing story:
On one of the very first days after buying an armored personnel carrier, I decided to drive it to a village store. And there we have a cult gathering place where young people gather all the time. And when I drove up - everyone rushed to their heels through the back door of the store: apparently, they decided that the war had begun. (Laughs.)
Buy - and drown
An armored personnel carrier is essentially an armored truck with a cannon. Its main purpose is to carry infantry, and it is arranged quite simply. However, the most popular military equipment in the capital region, which is in private hands, is armored reconnaissance and patrol vehicles (BRDM). Against the background of armored personnel carriers, these are real spaceships with a bunch of sophisticated equipment: additional retractable wheels for overcoming ditches and trenches, water cannons for moving in water, night vision devices, as well as infrared headlights and searchlights. Even the cameras of the BRDM are special: they do not deflate, having received up to seven holes from bullets. Buying such a complex machine, as it turned out, is not a problem - but how do you learn how to handle it?
By profession, I am an engineer of multi-purpose wheeled and tracked amphibious vehicles, I graduated from MADI, - says 29-year-old Evgeny Gain, owner of the BRDM-2. - It took me a long time to master my car. On the one hand, military equipment is designed for conscript soldiers, so that they can repair it. On the other hand, you can't figure it out without instructions. Fortunately, they can be found: in Samara there is a special archive where, having paid the state duty, you can officially get all the technical information of interest on military vehicles. Not for everyone, of course - but on my BRDM-2, fortunately, it was in the public domain.
True, Guyn did not immediately study all the instructions - and the young man was very tempted to test his patrol car in action. Still would! Not only can the BRDM-2 easily drive on half a meter thick snow, it is also an amphibian capable of swimming in water. Therefore, to set sail for the car of Guyn was, as they say, written in the family. The impatient driver drove his "armored car" into a shallow reservoir not far from the dacha - and then Evgeny's car began to quickly draw water into the hull! It turned out that the BRDM-2 had one of the rubber gaskets worn out and torn from time to time, which caused a leak in the hold of the car. In general, in this case, the patrol car has an electric bilge pump with a mechanical pump - it would cope with one leak. But Evgeny, in addition to everything else, forgot to close special valves - kingstons, before diving, and the powerful BRDM pump turned out to be powerless in front of the flow of water beating through them.
I drowned my car in the evening, and got it out in the morning, ”recalls Guyn,“ at first they brought a tractor - he didn’t cope. Then a jeep came to help him. Only after that, the BRDM-2 was pulled out of the water - and I immediately began to drain water from it in the field and change the technical fluids. Only after that the car started up - and was able to get to the garage.
Looking for military parts
It is no secret that military equipment is much more reliable than civilian equipment, but even it sometimes fails. It is clear that you cannot drive an “armored car” into a regular car service - a completely different approach is needed here. And if the instructions can still be studied, having the skills to repair an ordinary car, then where can I get spare parts for an armored personnel carrier or BRDM?
Owners of military equipment face this problem almost immediately after the purchase, - says Alexey Morozov, - here's the thing: the military transfers equipment to intermediary companies from conservation, which could have been in open storage areas for 25-30 years. And in the same "canned" form, it then goes to ordinary buyers - individuals. Starting such a machine right away means “putting down” its engine: first, you need to prepare it for launch - replace the lubricant, oil seals, rubber gaskets and seals ... In a word, carry out its maintenance.
In words, everything looks simple - but in reality it is much more complicated: for such a “cosmetic” repair, a huge car needs to be almost completely disassembled and then put back together. Even with serious engineering skills, this is very difficult to do. As for replacement parts, some of them are suitable for civilian vehicles, for example, GAZ-66 or GAZ-63 trucks. But there are also such elements with which difficulties arise: for example, some parts were originally designed as aviation ones. And where do you get these?
Sometimes we take design documentation from the archives and manufacture custom-made parts according to it at different enterprises, - says Alexey Morozov. - And there is also such an organization - the Moscow Off-Road Club, which is engaged in servicing a wide variety of equipment. The club's specialists can even modernize military vehicles - and we often turn to them.
In parting, I again asked the owners of "armored cars" - why do they need all this? A dream is wonderful, but such a technique is also time, money, effort ... Is it really worth it?
I participated in the parade in honor of the 75th anniversary of the Victory in Pushkino near Moscow, - says Yevgeny Gain, - I was driving a BRDM-2, and my wife was sitting next to me as a crew commander. And you know, when she gave a military greeting to the parade commander, and he answered her, this delight and emotional upsurge - these are all incomparable sensations. So yes, it's worth it.
