Canada War Museum, Adegem, Belgium
 

This museum is home to not one, but two carriers!

http://www.canadamuseum.be/museum/museumh_big.jpg

http://www.canadamuseum.be/

Good Looking Site
 

Hanno,

Thanks for the heads up - it looks like a good collection.

Those 2 Carriers certainly look like they are up to the job of the liberation. I bet the driver of the Carrier with the 20-mm cannon wants to have his fingers in his ears when that gun is going off!:eek:


Stewart

Re: Canada War Museum, Adegem, Belgium
 

And a Polsten.

R.

Re: Re: Canada War Museum, Adegem, Belgium
 

Ah yes, but not with the 30rd box mag, eh? ;)

Incidentally, the site mentions this is a "Brenn-carrier waps-flamethrower"...

http://www.canadamuseum.be/museum/museuma_big.jpg

Re: Re: Re: Canada War Museum, Adegem, Belgium
 

Noooo.
I don't think we'll ever see one although two are reputedly donated to a Dutch museum IIRC.

Ballards together have made a very passable imitation using a wooden carved "box" mated to the mouth assembly taken from one of the very common 60 round drum mags.

Also since DB has now obtained a complete de-milled Polsten we have been able to study the training manuals et al to better understand its operation.

I have to say the design is admirable in its simplicity but an improvement over the parent Hispano. I would like to meet the Polsten designer(s), lateral thinking at its best. I believe the weapon itself was a good one but let down by the shortcomings of its various mounting arrangements.

It is little more than a 20mm Sten gun(!), in that it fires from an open bolt and the round is only retained in the breech momentarily by the kinetic energy of the bolt and external slide, hence the necessarily shortish barrel like the Sten to allow chamber pressure to fall to a safe level before extraction; but it has two novel and simple features.

Firstly there is a simple mechanism that retains the gun cocked after the last round and secondly a feature that alleviates any possibility of double-loading or trying to auto ram another round up the chuff of the previous one that didn't extract/eject.

The Hispano chambers air after the last round and has to be manually re-cocked with some difficulty, it can also ram another round in after a bad extraction and this can be catastrophic if that's an explosive shell.

Not only does the bullet charge explode on meeting the stuck case head, but the violence of the movement reversal on the breech block probably causes the firing pin to project against its weakish spring and fire the round itself.

This happened to our nearby friend whilst flying Hispano armed Shackeltons, the whole rear end and the bolt group was exploded rearwards from the gun, narrowly missing the air-gunners family jewels and causing some damage to the aircraft.

Do be careful when plinking with your Hispano.

R.

I toured there when I had the good fortune to reoresent B.C on a youth leaders tour for the Legion.
The Museam owner is very hospitable and opened up the Museam to say thank you to the Canadians during the War that liberated that part of the country.
He told us that on opening day a n American General flew in by Helecopter to donate some Memorabila to the Museam ,He kindly told the General that this was a Canadian Museam,and that the Americans did not Liberate that part of the Country.
The Gent Built the Museam with his own Money and paid for most of the collection with his own Money.
He had a Vickers Machine Gun donated By an Elderly Gent who toured the Museam and then asked to be accompanied to his car were he presented him with a Vickers that had been left in his yard as the soldiers moved through. The gent had placed it in his attic and then donated it 50 yrs later.
A most inspirationable person
Regards Jeff

Re: Re: Re: Re: Canada War Museum, Adegem, Belgium
 

Now that it's operation is understood, it apparently is surplus to requirements and is offered for sale on MilWeb:
You are not telling me Dave is answering e-mails all by himself, eh?!? :eek:

H.