Sardaukar Posted December 4, 2002 Share Posted December 4, 2002 Anyone know how much ammunition and what kind of blast value/range/ROF they have in game ? Mine seem to fire quite frequently, but usually not that effectively. Cheers, M.S. [ December 04, 2002, 10:40 AM: Message edited by: Sardaukar ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Madmatt Posted December 4, 2002 Share Posted December 4, 2002 They have *roughly* the same blast value as a hand-grenade. I do not think the ammo is tracked for them as such but there are limitations built into the system to limit how often they will fire. Madmatt Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Sardaukar Posted December 4, 2002 Author Share Posted December 4, 2002 Thanks ! I was curious if game tracked their ammo somehow. It's very useful weapon especially for StuG IIIG that either gets immobilized or (usually) runs out of HE and MG ammunition. Cheers, M.S. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Måkjager Posted December 5, 2002 Share Posted December 5, 2002 Being a sometimes Groggy Nosey Parker i donned my Sherlock Holmes deer stalker hat and began to rummage through my books for info ( besides this question has bugged me in the past ) Just so as to make sure there is no misunderstanding i also dug out info on the “smoke projectors” also sometimes used by the Germans on their tanks and armoured cars. Right..first up is the “smoke candle projectors” that appeared on the early Tiger I , early Panther D , Pz IIIs / IVs(?) , Stugs , Puma AC , and others. These usually appeared in the form of 2 triple 90 mm projectors mounted either side of the turrets , or the forward upper fighting compartment in the case of the Stugs. The 90 mm Schnellenbelkerze 39 (NbSK 39 ) were electrically fired from within the vehicle. Once fired they would quickly cover an area in protective smoke , allowing vehicles to withdraw from enemy fire. The candles had a once off use.....requiring reloading by a crew member if brave enough in the middle of a fire fight. Specifications. Calibre 90 mm Shell length 145 mm Total weight 2 kg Smoke compound 1.8kg Smoke compound - Technical benzene hexachloride mixed with powdered zinc. Smoke emission time - 100-200 seconds ( no wind ??? ) Ignition - N4 detonator with fuze igniter 29 or 39 Propulsion charge - NdK Wlg 1 These smoke candle projectors were discontinued from the early Tiger Is after turret s/n 286 due to several reports that some crew members had died from suffocation. The Tiger I - Mid series - early model carried five S-Mine throwers located around its four hull superstructure corners and in the mid section of the left hull..... the opposite side which contained the radio aerial mount. These S-Mine launchers each fired a single dreaded Springmine 35 anti personnel mine which was 100 mm wide x 150 mm long. Better known to the Allies as the “Bouncing Betty” these lethal AP mines would literally “jump” up from the earth when triggered by a soldier to a height of 3 feet and spray the area with 360 ball bearings. When used as conventional AP mines these S-Mines had a lethal range of 25-30m. When used on the Tiger I the S-Mines had a higher detonation height due to being mounted on the near 6 ft height hull....leading to horrendous injuries and deaths to any foolhardy or brave enemy tank hunter teams in the area. Likewise these were electrically triggered from within the vehicle. Now to that Nahverteidigungswaffe ( Close Quarters Defence Weapon ) which has bugged me these past few days. This system was to provide the crew with the ability to fire smoke , signal and defensive ordnance. The first mention of such i weapon that i can find is in Speilbergers Tiger and Kingtiger tanks book. A letter dated 11th June 1943 from a turbine manufacture called Unna/Westphalen in which a diagram for a traversable under armour smoke projector is submitted for consideration. An investigation was to be carried out to see if it could be fitted to the Tiger I..but it was to be standard equipment for the Kingtiger. The actual “launcher” was a short tube mounted within the turret of tanks and jagdpanzers etc. The unit could rotate 360 degrees , the launcher being set back at a 50 degree angle. The launcher itself has been described as being like a oversized flare gun. Now comes to the bit that until now had confused me. The launcher could fire the NbSK 39 smoke candle ( 90 mm) , an unspecified type of mortar grenade , the Rauchsichtzeichen orange 350 - Airforce ID signal , Leuchtgeschoos R parachute illumination shell and a 26 mm HE grenade!!!!! That is the bit that got me going round the twist....as most of my info states that the device fired a 26 mm shell..yet looking at pictures and scale plans i could clearly see that the opening was much bigger than 26 mm and i could not for the life of me figure out why there was such a big difference...that is until i read the Tankpower Panther Vol. #4. Seemingly the calibre of the device is 90mm......that allows it to fire the Nb SK39 smoke round. The 26 mm HE rounds are fired through the open breech of the Nahverteidigungswaffe via a standard 26 mm flare gun!!!! All became clear in an instant...( well after some frantic Brain Cell chasing ) The 2.6cm Sprenggranatpatrone mit Zeitzünder ( 26 mm HE grenade with time fuze ) was fired by the flare gun through the locked open firing block of the projector. The 26 mm HE grenade had a range of 10m when fired at the 50 degree angle , exploding after a flight time of 1 second......it burst anywhere between .5m to 2m in height. The fragments could cause injury up to 100m. As to ammunition load outs.......the Jagdpanzer IVs seemed to have carried about 16 rounds of 26 mm ammunition. As to the load out..i don't have that info. For the late Panther As and Gs.....a total of 56 rounds of 26 mm ordnance seems to have been standard broken down as follows. 26 mm Smoke - 12 rounds 26 mm HE - 20 rounds 26 mm Smoke markers/ flares -24 rounds For the Tiger I ( late ) and the Kingtiger.......in the Speilberger book it says 3 HE rounds. i am not sure if he is referring to the 26 mm rounds of the “unknown” HE round listed above. I would imagine that the Tigers would carry a similar load to the Panther though in regards to the 26 mm rounds. These Nahverteidigungswaffe were in short supply...the Tiger I did not start to be fitted with it until March 1944 - same with the late Panther A . The Stugs had serious shortfalls up till October 1944..with many vehicles not being fitted with them. Regards Måkjager Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Terrapin Posted December 5, 2002 Share Posted December 5, 2002 I'm confused over what this is. Is this that close support weapon that the Jagdpanthers can fire at troops nearby? It was like a grenade that came out and then did an airburst at maybe 8 feet over the troops heads. Freaked me OUT! It prevented them from doing an assault-follow vehicle move. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Thin Red Line Posted December 5, 2002 Share Posted December 5, 2002 I've seen Panthers in cmbb routing several squads with this weapon. The effect on infantry is really devastating. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tarquelne Posted December 5, 2002 Share Posted December 5, 2002 Somewhere on the forum there's pictures, or links to pictures, I don't remember which. Or where. The curious can search the 414,448 CM posts to find 'em... Make that 414, 449. [ December 05, 2002, 12:58 PM: Message edited by: Tarqulene ] Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Måkjager Posted December 5, 2002 Share Posted December 5, 2002 Terrapin..correct The Nahverteidigungswaffe ( Close Quarters Defence Weapon ) is the device i was describing. It allows the crew to fire those 26mm HE grenades that explode in the air. Regards Måkjager Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Captain Pies Posted December 6, 2002 Share Posted December 6, 2002 Go Here For some info Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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