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Bouncing howitzer smoke shells


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I was actually just watching some documentary footage on the Military Channel a week or two ago that clearly showed smoke rounds fired from a tank bouncing off the ground after impact. Bounces were quite low, though -- more of a tumble along the ground than a high trajectory into the air.

Now, how common this should be, and whether a smoke round would bounce off something like a roof, I have no idea...

I assume (but don't know for sure) that only base-ejecting type smoke shells could possibly bounce -- my understanding is that this type of shell is designed to stay more or less intact after impact and emit smoke. As I understand it, white phosphorus shells usually have a small explosive charge that detonates on impact, designed to scatter the white phosphorous and create a rapidly forming smoke cloud via reaction with the oxygen in the air.

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Hah, that's funny! Did you follow if they landed anywhere on map and if they emitted smoke there?

FWIW bouncing shells as such is nothing special - with a shallow impact angle, slow fuse and hard ground it's possible that the shell bounces off before detonating. Not quite like that, though!

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I want to see a round bounce from one roof to another, and then bounce off that one. :)

New contest to get a double bank shot into an open Priest.

I dare anyone try to set this up in the editor and try. If they succeed they should be treated to a free Commonwealth module by BFC. Apart from eternal internet (or at least CMBN-nuts) fame.

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Hah, that's funny! Did you follow if they landed anywhere on map and if they emitted smoke there?

FWIW bouncing shells as such is nothing special - with a shallow impact angle, slow fuse and hard ground it's possible that the shell bounces off before detonating. Not quite like that, though!

Yep, the two other shells (not in video) both did this. After landing, they emitted smoke as they should. Not like the shell broke on impact :eek:

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I too have wondered about just how far the bullets richochet. My intuition about how much penetration a bullet has was completely wrong, so maybe my intuitaion about how far a bullet ricochets is completely wrong too!

We had a security distance of 5-6kms for 7.62mm, approx 3kms for 5.56mm and 1-2kms for 9mm pistols for direct fire - so ricochets would be a bit shorter, but probably still on the casual CMBN map :-)

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