The first mentions of the use of handicraft armored vehicles date 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 homemade armored vehicles to military equipment of regular armies, which was gradually transplanted from horses. Often, tractors became the basis for such ersatz machines, already then turning into the main agricultural and construction equipment.
So, in revolutionary Russia, the first to use homemade armored vehicles were the White Guards. Professional officers of tsarist Russia in battles against the peasants and the proletariat were losing because of the insufficient technical staffing of their troops. They tried to compensate for this with home-made and machines. One of the most striking examples of handicraft equipment of that time was the “Prayerless Colonel” armored vehicle. Built on the basis of the Clayton tractor by the Don Army in 1918, the armored vehicle accommodated 11 crew members, sheathed with thick metal sheets, and also armed with a 76.2 mm field gun in the rear 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. The ordinary horse moved the guns and implements of the time much faster.
The interwar period was the brightest in the development of the construction of armored vehicles. 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 it 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 pushed enthusiasts to hastily create heavy military equipment, which this time was supposed to withstand aviation and tanks of professional armies. So, for example, in the USSR was created the tank NI-1 ("Fear"), an improvised armored vehicle, built in 1941 in Odessa for the defense of the city. A light cannon or machine gun on a rotating turret was installed on the roof of the NI-1. These tanks took part 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 technology, such ersatz tanks, armored vehicles and other surrogate heavy equipment were manufactured in many cities with developed industry. However, again, it would not be entirely correct to call such production handicraft.
But tiznaos, widely used during the Spanish Civil War, were a real example of "home production". About tiznaos due to the fact that any general characteristics this collective concept does not have, not much is known. Many of these vehicles were quite formidable equipment in urban environments: machine guns, turrets and light cannons mounted on their roofs were a serious force in the fight against government forces.
Post-war history was also rich in various examples of such technology. Wherever the battles of the regular army took place against scattered rebel associations, starting with Vietnam, Afghanistan, the Middle East, and then the Balkans and the post-Soviet countries, unique examples of the fantasies of local designers were found.
Speaking of homemade equipment, one cannot but recall the armored bulldozer by Marvin Hemeyer. The brainchild of the last American hero participated in just one single battle, but deserves attention for some kind of technical excellence. Armored with thick metal sheets, the Komatsu D355A-3 was not armed, but had special embrasures for firing from the inside, cameras for navigation hidden in bulletproof plastic cases, an engine cooling system and ventilation of a sealed cabin. 200 bullet hits and several explosions of grenades 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 chassis of an unknown vehicle, armor thickness - 2.5 centimeters. Cannot withstand a direct hit from a grenade launcher or tank gun. The dimensions of the improvised BMP are 4 x 2 meters. An easel 7.62 mm machine gun is installed on the roof. The crew includes two people - a driver and a gunner. Navigation is carried out at the expense of five video cameras built into the body of the equipment, the shooter controls the machine gun using a gamepad. The car is on alert not far from the city of Aleppo. There is no official evidence of the participation of Sham-2 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 serve as 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 handicraft 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 garbage truck. The trailer is equipped with nine guide tubes for launching Qassam missiles, which, incidentally, are the pride of the Palestinian artisanal production. Such a rocket is made from a hollow tube from 70 to 230 centimeters in length, filled with explosives, and the accelerator is a usual mixture of sugar and potassium nitrate, which is commonly used as fertilizer. Burning up, this mixture releases a large amount of gas that can send a rocket at a distance of 3-18 kilometers. However, the quality of aimed fire on such installations leaves much to be desired.
Plus such a MLRS - in excellent disguise. Driving up to city facilities without hindrance, such a garbage truck can be quickly put on alert.
Homemade armored vehicles of drug cartels
The 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 other equipment - armored transport vehicles. The 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 becomes, as a rule, weak point from improvised armored personnel carriers. If the rubber is punctured, movement on such a machine, given the weight of the armor, becomes almost impossible.
Armored vehicles of the Syrian Kurds
The photographs of these "wunderwaffe" were allegedly taken in Syria and have been circulating through various information portals since the spring of 2014. There is no official information about home-made armored vehicles, the ownership of the equipment can be determined by the drawings on the armor - such a logo is the official symbol of the Syrian People's Defense Force, the fighting wing of the Kurdish Supreme Committee involved 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 Soviet NAR units, SZO, anti-aircraft guns and various pickups.
Homemade equipment of security forces and militias of Ukraine
Photos of homemade 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 booking Russian KamAZ trucks and remodeling old Soviet equipment.
Confirming the participation of most of these exhibits in battles is difficult enough. However, for example, the armored KamAZ "Zhelezyaka" of the "Azov" battalion took part in the battles near Mariupol and even became a news hero.
Recently, photos of armored cars, cannons, rocket launchers and other military machinery created by the forces, skills and talents of enthusiasts and amateur designers have appeared more and more on the Internet, in the media. Most of these miracles of technology are born, as they say, out of poverty, due to the lack or complete absence of real military equipment. According to their characteristics and fighting qualities, homemade products or, in other words, gantrucks (gun truck - an armed truck - improvised combat vehicles which American soldiers built in Vietnam) are significantly inferior to industrial designs, however, in capable hands, even they have every chance to turn the tide of the battle and serve the cause of victory.
1. Odessa tanks "NI-1"
During the heroic defense of Odessa from the Nazi troops and their allies (summer-autumn 1941), the city was under siege. It was impossible to replenish the fleet of armored vehicles and this despite the fact that the losses of combat vehicles were constantly growing. It was then that inventive residents of Odessa tried to at least to some extent solve this problem and organize the production of their own armored vehicles.
A group of civilian and military specialists headed by the chief engineer of the Odessa machine-building plant named after V.I. January Uprising by P.K. Romanov. They proposed to sheathe the tractors, tractors and other tracked vehicles at the disposal of the city with armor and install light weapons on them.
The purely civilian enterprises of the city were not adapted to the production of military equipment, there were no corresponding materials (in particular, armor steel), so the designers had to show wonders of ingenuity and engineering ingenuity. So the armor protection on Odessa tanks (armored tractors) began to be made three-layer. Between the outer and inner layers of 8-10 mm ship steel, either a 10 mm layer of rubber or a 20 mm layer of boards was laid. Of course, such armor did not protect from being hit by a projectile, but it held bullets and fragments very tolerably. For the manufacture of towers, a carousel machine from tram workshops was used, and sometimes towers from damaged and unrecoverable T-26 tanks were installed on improvised combat vehicles.
The armament of the Odessa tanks was the most diverse, both in caliber and in quantity, they put what was available. However, the most common option was: one large-caliber DShK machine gun in the turret and a DT machine gun in the front.
Odessa armored tractors received their name NI-1 after the night battle that took place on September 20, 1941. That night, 20 armored tractors with headlights and sirens turned on moved into the trenches of the Romanian troops (allies of Nazi Germany). The frightening effect was complemented by the terrible clang and rumble that the cars made as they moved. The Romanian troops could not withstand such a psychological onslaught and fled from the battlefield in panic. From that moment on, homemade products began to be called NI-1, which, when deciphered, means "Fear". Odessans tried their best to maintain the formidable image of their tanks. For this, the barrels of small-caliber turret guns were built up, and very solid dummies of guns were installed on vehicles without cannon armament.
In total, about 70 such tanks were produced during the defense of Odessa. Due to the fact that the base for these combat vehicles served different models tractors and tractors, as well as the fact that several factories were engaged in production at once, NI-1 sometimes differed significantly in their appearance.
2. Fighting vehicles PMR
During the 1992 military conflict in Transnistria, when the Russian-speaking population rose to defend the young Transnistrian Moldavian Republic (PMR) from the pro-Romanian forces supported by the Moldovan government, homemade military equipment was again in demand. The militias had to create it in order to resist the Moldovan armored personnel carriers, infantry fighting vehicles and tanks. For this, both purely civilian vehicles and military engineering and auxiliary equipment were re-equipped.
The BAT-M trackers who had Pridnestrovians also began to book. The result was a kind of powerful battering rams, which soon had to work gloriously in a real battle. During the intensification of hostilities, the Moldovan armed formations tried to attack the barracks of the PMR guardsmen on two BTR-70s, they even managed to knock out the Transnistrian MTLB. In response to the attack, the defenders deployed their armored track pads. The appearance of outlandish vehicles on a tank chassis, the roar of powerful engines and the clatter of tracks completely demoralized the police. While they were pondering what to do and what to do, BATs rammed armored personnel carriers, one of which was even turned over. Having abandoned their cars, the Moldovans fled in disgrace, and their armored personnel carriers passed into the possession of the PMR militia.
On all kinds of chassis available to the PMR, local craftsmen installed helicopter units for launching unguided aircraft missiles (NAR). According to the recollections of the participants in those events, the use of such improvised MLRS produced not only a combat, but also a rather strong frightening effect.
MLRS from NAR launchers (the old name - NURS) were made not only by the defenders of Transnistria, this was done both before them and after them, and is being done at the present time. In some publications, I happened to find dismissive, one might even say mocking assessments of this weapon. They say that the efficiency is low, it is almost impossible to cover the target, just noise and nothing else. I want to say that only amateurs can reason like this. Self-made MLRS from launching blocks of unguided aircraft missiles at distances of up to a kilometer have quite decent density and accuracy of fire, which can inflict very significant damage on the enemy. Proof of this is the use of such self-made systems in wars and armed conflicts around the world, even such far from recent armies as the American and Israeli did not hesitate to install NAR blocks on their military equipment. And here are the recollections of a scout of the 668th separate detachment of special forces of the GRU, who in Afghanistan at one of the checkpoints saw a similar homemade multiple launch rocket system:
“The installation with NURS was adapted instead of the BRDM tower (we did not have time to find out the history of the loss of the tower, since our group quickly withdrew and left). The electric trigger button was displayed on the commander's instrument panel instead of the KPVT firing safety button. This BRDM was in a caponier with radially marked walls. The area was targeted at these marks. The soldiers from the post said that the carrier of the BRDM can direct the installation so precisely that it is as easy to hit the mujahid with a rocket in the ear as to eat a can of minced sausage. "
Another illustrative example of the effective use of a mobile MLRS from the NAR unit is the Broom-2 installation, created by Airborne Forces Major Alexander Mikhailovich Metla. The history of its creation is as follows. Arriving in Afghanistan, Major Metla drew attention to the fact that most often the battalions of his brigade suffered losses in the same place. The shelling of the columns of the "spirits", as a rule, was conducted from the bed of a dried-up river. It stopped as suddenly as it began, after which the spooks quickly left only by paths known to them. The flat machine-gun fire of the paratroopers did not cause much harm to the attackers. A quick hinged mortar fire was needed here. But there was simply not enough time to deploy the mortar during the shelling of the column. And the "spirits" would not just sit and wait for a fire strike. It was then that Major Broom had the idea to place a rapid-fire 82-mm mortar 2B9 "Vasilek" on the frame of an anti-aircraft gun and to place a firing point in the back of the onboard "Ural".
The installation received its baptism of fire at the first escort of the column. As soon as the shelling began, the mortar crew entered the battle. The paratroopers fired over 100 mines. The position of the "spirits" disappeared in fiery explosions and clouds of dust. More on that dangerous section of the road the spooks did not appear, the lesson they had been taught was too memorable. A soldier's rumor quickly dubbed the mobile mortar "Broom".
After a while, the installation of Alexander Metla came under fire from a grenade launcher. Almost the entire crew was injured. After this incident, the major created a fundamentally new combat vehicle. "Broom-2" not only destroyed the enemy, but also protected its crew from bullets and shrapnel. A cut-out middle part of the BRDM armored hull was installed in the body of the Ural-4320, together with a machine-gun turret, on top of which a UB-32-57 helicopter unit was piled up for firing 57-mm C-5 aircraft unguided missiles. The effect of the volleys of the improvised Katyusha was simply overwhelming. It is no coincidence that the "spirits" arranged a real hunt for such attitudes.
And here are other examples of ground use of NAR (or NURS) aviation units:
4. Armored train "Kraina Express"
The conversation about armored trains, perhaps, should start with a reminder that at the beginning of the 20th century, this type of military equipment was the most powerful weapon of ground forces. In fact, armored trains were land dreadnoughts or mobile fortresses, which were incredibly difficult to resist. Why this is so, we will analyze the points:
1. An armored train can consist of 3-10 cars, each of which is equipped with artillery pieces of different calibers and numerous machine guns. This is a real flurry of fire around the 360 perimeter, preventing the enemy from getting close to a direct shot distance.
2. The carrying capacity of the railway platforms is tens of tons, which makes it possible to protect the crew with armor that tanks never dreamed of.
3. Thanks to the same carrying capacity, the armored train has the ability to take on board tons of ammunition and not save them in battle.
4. The hit of a shell in one of the cars of the armored train practically does not affect the combat capabilities of other cars and most often does not lead to a decrease in the mobility of the entire train (except for the case of damage to the locomotive).
5. High speed of movement allows you to quickly leave the area of artillery fire.
Undoubtedly, the main disadvantage of armored trains, which, in fact, led to the termination of their construction, is the attachment to the railway tracks. Moving only on rails incredibly narrows the possibilities of their combat use, and undermining the tracks makes the fulfillment of a combat mission completely impossible.
However, in some areas with an extensive rail network, armored trains can be very useful. An example of this is the Krajina Express armored train, created by Serbian railroad workers during the war in Yugoslavia.
The armored train was assembled in 1991 in the city of Knin. Initially, it consisted of a General Motors locomotive and 2 wagons attached in front of it, protected by sandbags. At that time, the Croats opposing the Serbs were just beginning to receive heavy weapons from abroad, so their main weapons were machine guns, rifles and machine guns. Based on this, the creators of the armored train came to the conclusion that the protection from the bags is quite enough.
The battles near Stikarne, where the armored train was opposed mainly by the Croatian infantry, showed the need to improve protection. Therefore, in Strmica, steel plates with a thickness of 25 mm were installed on the cars. At that time, only two cars were specifically combat ones. In front of one of them was installed a twin 20 mm M38 SPAAG, captured by the partisans during the Second World War. The second carriage was equipped with launchers anti-tank missiles "Baby" and the British 40 mm M12 SPAAG. In addition, the armored train was armed with M53 machine guns (copies of the famous German MG-42).
After some time, the armored train was supplemented with another combat car, placed between the two already available. The new car was equipped with a triple anti-aircraft gun of 20 mm caliber. (produced in Yugoslavia under a Spanish license), a single-barreled ZSU M75 of the same caliber and two American M2HB machine guns of 12.7 mm caliber. To protect the locomotive, two M84 machine guns (copies of the Soviet PC) were installed. The armoring of the wagons was reinforced again. Now, in the event of artillery or mortar shelling, the crew could take cover inside them or inside a wagon with equipment. Also, a camouflage paint was applied to the armored train.
In this configuration, the armored train actively fought until the spring of 1992. It was at this time that the crew of the Krajina Express, taking advantage of the lull in hostilities, significantly strengthened the armament of their mobile fortress. On the front fighting car, the captured German anti-aircraft gun was replaced by the Soviet ZIS-3 76.2 mm gun. sample 1942. Behind the gun, two NAR launchers were installed for 57-mm unguided aircraft missiles. A 120mm mortar was placed in one of the freight cars.
In the summer of 1993, "Kraina Express" underwent modernization again. The ZIS-3 was replaced with the American M18 self-propelled gun. Such self-propelled guns were supplied to Yugoslavia in the 50s. Both the newly installed self-propelled gun and the entire armored train were equipped with anti-cumulative protection.
The armored train took part in active hostilities for almost five years. On his account, there are many military operations and glorious victories. All this time, he remained on the move and quickly healed the wounds received. The enemies did not manage to destroy the legendary armored train, it was done by its crew. On August 4, 1995, the Croatian army launched Operation Tempest. In its course, "Kraina Express" was surrounded by a floor. To prevent the armored train from getting to the enemy, the Serbian crew derailed it, after which it left for the territory of the Republika Srpska.
The example of the Kraina Express armored train clearly proves that even in modern warfare, the skillful and competent use of armored trains can be very effective.
The collapse of the USSR turned another page of history. The era of general political instability, mutual territorial claims and local wars began. A new term has appeared in political slang - "hot spot". And with these points the planet in the shortest possible time was covered all over, like a teenager with acne. Yesterday we went there to have a rest or to visit relatives, and today on TV they already show how people in camouflage in short dashes move among the ruins against the background of a painfully familiar landscape.
The abundance of local wars gives rise to exactly the same abundance of improvised armored vehicles. As if following some incomprehensible law of nature, while some are busy shooting at each other, others lock themselves in garages and workshops, drive the first vehicles that come across there and create combat vehicles of the most inconceivable type and dubious functionality. And then they go to fight on them, because there is still nothing else. And we can only admire their creations, amazed at how much the need is sometimes cunning for inventions. The site observer Alexei Baikov continues to collect information about the most interesting examples of martial folk art.
In the Dniester floodplains
One of the first in the post-Soviet space was Transnistria. In the spring of 1992, after the shooting of a car with Dubossary militiamen and an attack by a special detachment of the Ministry of Internal Affairs of Moldova on a regiment of the Russian 14th Army stationed in the area of the village of Kociery, it became clear to everyone that war could no longer be avoided. By that time, Transnistria was already flooded with volunteers from Russia and other CIS countries, and the Moldavian army was on alert.
If the Moldovan side had some stocks of weapons from Soviet military warehouses and supplies from Romania, then the PMR guardsmen and volunteer units had to fight with whatever they had to. Of course, this story was not without home-grown welding masters and a file. Most often KrAZ trucks were subjected to brutal violence on their part.
You look - and the famous fairy tale about Emelya and his self-propelled stove immediately comes to mind. The armored car was made by workers of the Selkhoztekhnika repair plant in Dubossary. According to information from persons more or less involved in the process, sand was poured into the voids between the armor plates and the hull of such vehicles as a means of additional booking.
And this armored car, very similar to the already familiar Spanish "tiznaos", is remarkable not so much in itself as in its crew. Members of the organization of Ukrainian nationalists UNA-UNSO, banned in Russia, are standing around the combat vehicle. They fought, paradoxically, on the side of the PMR, proceeding from the logic that Transnistria is an original Ukrainian territory, so let it be better if it becomes independent, but Moldova will not get it.
But machine guns in turrets and automatic fire through the embrasures are not serious. It was in the post-Soviet space that they first figured out how to qualitatively enhance the armament of improvised armored vehicles - they began to install NURS missile units removed from damaged or damaged helicopters. Pridnestrovie and Abkhazia are still challenging the primacy in this matter, although neither one nor the other is right.
The first to make such "Katyushas" were Soviet troops in Afghanistan. Local insurgents got the hang of attacking supply convoys - so the logistics teams urgently needed gantrucks. As a rule, the spooks attacked either directly from under their feet - from a dry river bed lying near the road, or from steep mountain slopes, and the armored personnel carriers and infantry fighting vehicles used to guard the armored personnel carriers could only conduct flat fire and frankly could not cope. To combat such ambushes, something was required that could quickly cover the target along a rather steep hinged trajectory, that is, a mortar. The problem was that deploying a mortar in position takes time, and if the crew tried to do this in a mountain ambush, then with a 99 percent probability they would be instantly killed by snipers.
Major Alexander Metla found a way out of this situation by installing an 82-mm automatic mortar 2B9 "Vasilek" on an anti-aircraft machine in the back of an ordinary KAMAZ truck. In the very first ambush, the mortar crew slightly turned the barrel and instantly covered the position of the "spirits", firing at it about a hundred mines. The attacks on the convoys in this square have ceased once and for all. And in the army, such gantrucks began to be called "brooms".
After a while, Major Broom rolled out the Broom-2 command to the court. A cut-out middle part of the BRDM armored hull was installed in the body of the KAMAZ, along with a machine-gun turret, on top of which a block of C8 helicopter NURSs was piled up. A photograph of this car has survived.
Even then, it was noticed that a salvo of unguided missiles, even if it does not always fall down aimed, it still has a huge moral impact on the enemy. Simply put, after shelling from such an impromptu Katyusha, the Mujahideen, as a rule, fled.
Alexander Metla, having received his "Red Star", a medal "For Military Merit" and a concussion, left Afghanistan, and other soldiers-internationalists looked at his gantrucks and shook his mustache. And when, having already returned home, they took part in local wars at their place of residence - the idea of installing NURSs on armored homemade products "went to the people." And from the post-Soviet space, it has already spread throughout the world.
We have before us an illustrative example, so to speak, of a double "reverse" conversion. In a photograph taken in 1990 near the village of Todon in Nagorno-Karabakh, a multiple launch rocket launcher, converted from a KAMAZ dump truck, is firing, in the back of which purely peaceful anti-hail Alazan missiles are installed. As a warhead, ordinary 82-mm mines were screwed onto them, which were completely unsuitable for aerodynamics, so the accuracy of fire, to put it mildly, left much to be desired.
"Vovchiks" against "Yurchiks"
From the Dniester floodplains we will be transported to Tajikistan, where in 1992 local Islamists began to sort out their difficult relations with the Popular Front. As usual - with shooting.
This unit was photographed in Nurek in 1992. Redesigned from an ATT tractor, armament - a cannon from an BMP-2, located, which is typical, in the rear of the hull, as on armored cars of the First World War.
According to some versions, this apparatus belonged to the Islamists, that is, the "vovchiks", and was made more to intimidate opponents than to conduct real hostilities. And after in October 1993, the units of the 201st division in Tajikistan ceased to observe neutrality and real tanks were used, such handicrafts of local craftsmen began to look very faded.
Once the militants tried to block something similar to the road on the Chormagzak pass in front of the Russian convoy, but after the first shot from the cannon of the head T-72 they disappeared along with their "peaceful tractor".
Well, before leaving the blazing expanses of the former USSR, let's take a look at a really funny specimen standing at the military cemetery of the "Sardarapat" memorial in Armenia.
Particularly cute looks like a grenade launcher welded to the back of the armature, reminiscent of the fruit from the extramarital affair of the RPG-7 with the fascist faustpatron. Well, a tower for a gnome with a cannon from a water pipe. In such cases, they say: "The artist sees this."
This unit was made already in the 2000s, in all likelihood, on the basis of the AT-T tractor, did not take part in hostilities, and it hardly ever drove on its own. It's just that Armenia is still a very poor country and it does not have extra tanks to put on pedestals.
Balkans on fire
Homemade armored vehicles of the Yugoslav war are literally inexhaustible - there is everything for every taste. This surge of folk art was perhaps the third in history after the Spanish Civil War and the British Home Guard. Army tractors, trucks, buses, tractors, museum exhibits from the Second World War - in a word, any equipment that could be sheathed with armor were used.
Croatian homemade armored car near the Bosnian Tomislavgrad, 1993. Its appearance alone is amazing and terrifying. The chassis is unknown, but most likely it is KAMAZ or its local analogue - TAM.
Wheeled armored vehicle made in the style of "anti-artistic minimalism".
But among these freaks there were also genuine masterpieces. Captain Micel Ostojic was responsible for the emergence of the most original series of Serbian homemade armored vehicles. All his cars looked extremely futuristic and vaguely resembled Darth Vader's helmet. This was done, of course, not for beauty, but for the sake of the most optimal angles of inclination of the armor. It is a pity that almost all of them have survived only in the form of photographs - directors of science fiction films would have bought such props in the bud.
A self-propelled anti-aircraft missile system, booked according to the Ostozhich project, based on a commercial truck FAP 13. The armament consisted of two K-13 aircraft missiles, apparently removed from some MiG-21.
Ostozhich also assembled a wheeled self-propelled gun on the FAP-13 chassis, armed with a 76-mm M-48 "Tito" mountain cannon. The gun, by the way, is again placed in the rear of the hull. The concept will be incomplete without showing the front view.
And an indispensable gantruck, converted from a PAP 13C truck and armed with an ancient 40-mm Bofors anti-aircraft gun (see left photo).
And on the chassis of the TAM-110 truck is installed a 20-mm M55A3 anti-aircraft gun, popularly known as "Trocevats" - a three-barreled gun (see the right photo). Armor thickness - 8 mm.
But not Ostozhich, as they say, united. For example, there is a completely monstrous armored coffin made somewhere in Croatia back in 1991.
The Croatian school of building armored homemade products was distinguished by the extreme and even deliberate brutality of external forms. Some of them have survived to this day and today they can be seen in the Museum of the Yugoslav War in Karlovac Castle.
A series of such machines was manufactured back in 1991 in the third largest city of the self-proclaimed Croatia - Rijeka. In addition to complete absence there was also a shortage of normal military equipment and trucks suitable for conversion. But there were plenty of GTR 75A front-end loaders, produced under an Italian license at the local Torpedo plant. There they were also armored using the "sandwich" method (ship steel with a "pillow" made of cement). The loading dump was retained to break down the barricades.
The whole structure was named HIAV - "Croatian Engineering Counter-Terrorism Vehicle". They were originally planned to be armed with 20-mm M75 automatic cannons, but in the process it turned out that "there is always not enough sweet gingerbread for everyone," so most of these machines received the most ordinary machine gun, and some of them were not even large-caliber. Inside there was a troop compartment for six soldiers. In total, about 16 copies were made.
An armored car on the chassis of a Unimog S404 mini-truck (an approximate analogue of our "Sable"), armed with a DShK machine gun. A small series of such machines was manufactured by engineers and workers of JANAF - "Yadransky Oil Pipeline".
And finally - one funny car from Bosnia and Herzegovina, made from parts of a completely military origin. On the chassis of the Soviet T-55A tank, a turret from the American anti-tank self-propelled gun from the Second World M18 Hellcat was installed, and everything was collectively called the So-76. It was built in a single copy.
Palestinian "peaceful" miracle
It's time to return to the Holy Land and take a look at the most unusual home-made "Katyusha" in the history of the construction of such machines. Israeli troops and military police have long hunted her throughout the Gaza Strip.
It looked like a completely ordinary garbage truck. This one drives into an ordinary Palestinian courtyard, collects the contents from the tanks and bags, and then turns around and fires nine Qassam rockets towards the nearest Jewish settlement. Especially touches the inscription on the door: "In case of violation of the rules road traffic please contact the Palestinian Authority. "
Yankee doodle
The American land, of course, also did not run out of talent. Of course, in such an article it is impossible not to mention the already legendary and talk of the town "Killdozer" - Marvin Himeyer, who staged a small apocalypse in the separately taken city of Granby, Colorado.
And here next car was created already for purely peaceful purposes.
Transport of tornado hunters, designed to approach the tornado at a minimum distance. Looks - even now, shoot a movie.
Syrian and Kurdish monsters of our day
Nowadays, the Middle East is blazing again, in connection with which there is a clear excitement among the local Kulibins. The abundance of suitable chassis also contributes to the flourishing of their creative imagination - leaving Iraq, the American troops abandoned there the equipment that, in their opinion, would be too expensive to export. As a result, all local insurgents, from the Kurdish self-defense forces of the Peshmerga to the ISIS banned in Russia, got trucks and Hummers without counting. How not to take up welding and a soldering iron is absolutely impossible.
This treasure is literally inexhaustible.
Kurdish armored vehicle based on KRAZ, in the back of which a cut piece of the BTR-80 hull is installed along with a machine-gun turret.
Again the Kurds. Photographed near Kobani this year.
The top of engineering, and at the same time a malicious mockery of the American Humvee, and in combination - that unique case when the mortal remains of one improvised armored vehicle are used to make another.
Judging by the location of the windows and doors, a huge tower with a barrel from a Soviet anti-aircraft gun ZU-2-23 was taken from some previously deceased gantruck.
And again, something Kurdish, created with a clear nostalgia for the tanks of the First World War.
In the East, they know that a warrior's weapon and his war horse must look beautiful. And if a self-made armored car cannot be decorated with pearls and tassels with gold embroidery, then it can at least be painted.
With the outbreak of hostilities in eastern Ukraine, various volunteer battalions came to the aid of the Ukrainian army. We will not touch on the political aspects of this sensitive topic, but instead look at the unusual home-made armored vehicles that took part in the hostilities.
Many of them are based on the most different cars Soviet and Russian production... The photo below shows the classic GAZ-21 Volga converted into a pickup truck.
Compact armored car based on UAZ-469. The front part and part of the roof received protection.
It was once an ordinary KamAZ-55111 dump truck, until it was converted into an armored monster. It is very reminiscent of home-made armored vehicles of terrorists, and the tasks are similar: to break through an armed obstacle.
The KrAZ-255 all-wheel drive truck is widely used in the Ukrainian army. This copy received protection for the cab and the side compartment, as well as powerful bumpers in front of the front wheels.
And this is KrAZ-256, which was also turned into a fortress on wheels. The cockpit is protected only from the side, but the wheels are covered with special armored shields. The radiator is also covered with an armor plate. I wonder how the cooling system was implemented?
Another KrAZ-255 with a powerful V-shaped front bumper. He probably has to push aside fortifications and other vehicles in his path. The body housed an armored capsule, although the cabin itself has no protection.
How long have you seen Katyushas in action? Several similar cars were photographed in Ukraine at once, and some of them have armor protection for the hood and front fenders.
It is difficult to say with certainty on the chassis of which truck this fortress on wheels was built. Most likely, the same KrAZ-256 was the basis.
One of the most unusual projects is a modified truck tractor KrAZ-6444 with a massive front bumper topped with spiers and a pair of gas masks.
Did you recognize the MAZ-537 military tow truck with an 8x8 wheel arrangement? His cockpit and engine compartment were protected with welded sheets from the corners, which should change the trajectory of the bullet.
The KamAZ-5320 flatbed truck has become an armored van. The sheets above the windshields can be folded back to protect the crew from frontal fire.
An expensive and rare one was confiscated from Yanukovych's garage american pickup International MXT, which also received homemade cockpit armor and took part in the fighting.
His appearance the amphibious ambulance with a very stylish design, which was created on the basis of the Soviet armored personnel carrier BTR-60, is surprising.
Another option for the revision of the UAZ-3151. He began to somewhat resemble three-door Land versions Rover Defender.
And this is a VAZ-2121 "Niva" with flimsy (and probably completely useless) side window protection and a rotating machine-gun seat in the roof.
All-wheel drive KamAZ-4326 with unusual frontal protection made of thick steel and side windows from some kind of SUV.
Agree, it looks very frightening. The Ural-4320 truck has been transformed into a fortress on wheels with powerful protection by virtue of the dobrobat masters. engine compartment, cabins and bodies.
Even the old Soviet cars Moskvich-2140 go into business. This copy received an unusual styling in the style of the Mad Max films.
Another Ural-4320 with rather strange protection of the radiator and cockpit. The cargo compartment is covered with steel sheets: not very nice, but functional.
The creators of this truck decided to protect the tires from shots with steel plates attached directly to the wheel. Pay attention to the fairing on the cockpit, which serves to repel bullets, not aerodynamics at all.
Here's what you can do with a regular Loaf. This is a real mobile artillery post for repelling air attacks.
Biaxial KrAZ is a rather rare occurrence in itself. And then there is also a military coloration, and with some protection.
No windows, no doors, the upper room is full of people. In this case, it is about an armored KamAZ with a powerful front bumper and headlights on the roof.
Once it was a KaVZ bus, but now it is a command bus on an all-wheel drive chassis. Please note that the wings from the GAZ-3307 are attached to the old plumage from the GAZ-53A. Looks insanely weird.
And again onboard KamAZ covered with armor from head to toe. Its task is to transport militants to dangerous areas.
It is impossible to identify the car in this photo due to the armor that covers almost the entire body; only the hood and doors remain intact.
Dump truck KamAZ-55111 now does not carry bulk cargo. In its back you can find only a couple of dozen armed guys.
Another approach to booking: using not sheet steel, but corners and cuttings. Naturally, such protection only adds weight, but is unlikely to help the crew.
GAZelle turned into an anti-aircraft gun of air defense. Instead of the body, a row of seats turned upside-down and an anti-aircraft gun were installed.
Dump truck KrAZ-250 with anti-aircraft installation in a dump body.
VAZ-2121 "Niva" with full body armor with external panels. It turned out completely ugly, but no one spoke about beauty. There is an icon behind the windshield.
At the heart of this wheeled tank is some kind of Japanese or American pickup truck. It is not possible to find out him now.
Even the sight of this truck is scary. Its V-shaped front section should push away any obstacles in the way, and the protection of the windows with metal rods may save some of the bullets.
Another KrAZ-256, made quite neatly.
Who would have known that an armored car with a machine gun on the roof can be made on the chassis of a conventional UAZ. You can see how hard it is for the standard rear suspension.
Sometimes the body is made from scratch. Taking the ZIL-131 chassis as a basis, the welders made a body from rusty metal sheets. Only the front fenders give out the original truck.
Did you recognize the old man ZIL-130 in the sad look? Now he looks like a poor donkey loaded with bales.
Quite a good armored car based on the GAZ-66, on the front facing of which the inscription "Zhmerynka" flaunts.
"Loaf" with homemade protection from steel corners. The creators even tried to add a bit of front end design.
Guess what kind of car is hidden under solid body armor. It is likely that this is something like a MAZ dump truck.
Didn't expect to see Range rover in camouflage and body armor? Yes, there are such specimens in Ukraine.
KrAZ-255 with body armor and radiator. Looks powerful!
Our dear "Loaf" is in the process of being converted into an armored car. Please note that no one paints the metal protection, and it rusts instantly.
The most unusual armored car of this collection can be considered this KamAZ-5320 with a completely closed front part. The driver looks out onto the road through a tiny hinged window at the front.
"Made us remember other examples of heavy military equipment, created almost at home. It is worth noting that there are quite a few masters who skillfully create replicas of tanks from tractors that decorate the backyard, or even a scene in a film about the Second World War, and their works are not of interest to us. We will tell you about the developments that have become participants in real battles.
Combat DIY equipment in history
The first mentions of the use of handicraft armored vehicles date 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 homemade armored vehicles to military equipment of regular armies, which was gradually transplanted from horses. Often, tractors became the basis for such ersatz machines, already then turning into the main agricultural and construction equipment.
So, in revolutionary Russia, the first to use homemade armored vehicles were the White Guards. Professional officers of tsarist Russia in battles against the peasants and the proletariat were losing because of the insufficient technical staffing of their troops. They tried to compensate for this with homemade weapons and machines. One of the most striking examples of handicraft equipment of that time was the “Prayerless Colonel” armored vehicle. Built on the basis of the Clayton tractor by the Don Army in 1918, the armored vehicle accommodated 11 crew members, sheathed with thick metal sheets, and also armed with a 76.2 mm field gun in the rear 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. The ordinary horse moved the guns and implements of the time much faster.
The interwar period was the brightest in the development of the construction of armored vehicles. 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 it 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 pushed enthusiasts to rush to create heavy military equipment, which this time had to withstand the aviation and tanks of professional armies. So, for example, in the USSR, the NI-1 tank was created ("In fright » ), an impromptu armored vehicle built in 1941 in Odessa for the defense of the city. A light cannon or machine gun on a rotating turret was installed on the roof of the NI-1. These tanks took part 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 technology, such ersatz tanks, armored vehicles and other surrogate heavy equipment were manufactured in many cities with developed industry. However, again, it would not be entirely correct to call such production handicraft.
But tiznaos, widely used during the Spanish Civil War, were a real example of "home production ». Not much is known about tiznaos due to the fact that this collective concept does not have any general characteristics. Many of these vehicles were quite formidable equipment in urban environments: machine guns, turrets and light cannons mounted on their roofs were a serious force in the fight against government forces.
Post-war history was also rich in various examples of such technology. Wherever the battles of the regular army took place against scattered rebel associations, starting with Vietnam, Afghanistan, the Middle East, and then the Balkans and the post-Soviet countries, unique examples of the fantasies of local designers were found.
Speaking of homemade equipment, one cannot but recall the armored bulldozer by Marvin Hemeyer. The brainchild of the last American hero participated in just one single battle, but deserves attention for some kind of technical excellence. Armored with thick metal sheets, the Komatsu D355A-3 was not armed, but had special embrasures for firing from the inside, cameras for navigation hidden in bulletproof plastic cases, an engine cooling system and ventilation of a sealed cabin. 200 bullet hits and several explosions of grenades 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 chassis of an unknown vehicle, armor thickness - 2.5 centimeters. Cannot withstand a direct hit from a grenade launcher or tank gun. The dimensions of the improvised BMP are 4 x 2 meters. An easel 7.62 mm machine gun is installed on the roof. The crew includes two people - a driver and a gunner. Navigation is carried out at the expense of five video cameras built into the body of the equipment, the shooter controls the machine gun using a gamepad. The car is on alert not far from the city of Aleppo. There is no official evidence of the participation of Sham-2 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 serve as 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 handicraft 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 garbage truck. The trailer is equipped with nine guide tubes for launching Qassam missiles, which, incidentally, are the pride of the Palestinian artisanal production. Such a rocket is made from a hollow tube from 70 to 230 centimeters in length, filled with explosives, and the accelerator is a usual mixture of sugar and potassium nitrate, which is commonly used as fertilizer. Burning up, this mixture releases a large amount of gas that can send a rocket at a distance of 3-18 kilometers. However, the quality of aimed fire on such installations leaves much to be desired.
Plus such a MLRS - in excellent disguise. Driving up to city facilities without hindrance, such a garbage truck can be quickly put on alert.
Homemade armored vehicles of drug cartels
The criminal elements involved in the production and sale of drugs are distinguished by their special imagination. So, for example, we previously wrote about how to transport cocaine. And their colleagues from Mexico prefer other equipment - armored transport vehicles. The 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 in improvised armored personnel carriers. If the rubber is punctured, movement on such a machine, given the weight of the armor, becomes almost impossible.
Armored vehicles of the Syrian Kurds
The photographs of these wunderwaffe were allegedly taken in Syria and have been circulating through various information portals since the spring of 2014. There is no official information about home-made armored vehicles, the ownership of the equipment can be determined by the drawings on the armor - such a logo is the official symbol of the Syrian People's Defense Force, the fighting wing of the Kurdish Supreme Committee involved 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 Soviet NAR units, SZO, anti-aircraft guns and various pickups.
Homemade equipment of security forces and militias of Ukraine
Photos of homemade 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 booking Russian KamAZ trucks and remodeling old Soviet equipment.
Confirming the participation of most of these exhibits in battles is difficult enough. However, for example, the armored KamAZ "Zhelezyaka" of the "Azov" battalion took part in the battles near Mariupol and even became a news hero.
