British Ordnance Collectors Network
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Random Museum Ordnance Photos
- Thread starter US-Subs
- Start date
It was grouped in with a conglomeration of improvised Vietnamese ordnance. My guess is one of a series of designs of over-caliber projectiles, made from salvaged US components. Seems like there was a similar piece I posted in the last week or two, just not quite as crude.
I also knew those VC items as B-50's. There were a number of them made, but I have yet to figure out what launched them. But the pictures Subs has been posting is the best ones I have yet to see. The pubs says they are shoulder fired, but the size makes it doubtful. The org B 50 looked like a PG2 on steroids with a long wooden stabilizer tube. The end of it lookslike something similar to a PG2 propellant charge could be screwed on. 
B 50 pictured . The only similar thing a\between the B 50 (as I know it) and the ones Subs is posting is that wooden tube.
B 50 pictured . The only similar thing a\between the B 50 (as I know it) and the ones Subs is posting is that wooden tube.
I did find this picture of a B-50 model (bottom item) and possible launcher -top. Item in middle is unknown to me. But the launcher goes not appear to be a shoulder fired weapon, and in fact looks pretty heavy. Again the similar feature is the long wood tube
In reference to the VC RPG or rocket like item Subs posted. I was wrong on on point, not all of the improvised ones are variants of the B 50, rather they improvised launched munitions with short range and not so good accuracy. Think of them as the VC IRAM - here is a French references I found on them
The improvised VC winged items Subs posted are considered as recoilless rifle rounds, I have only found one example of launcher that I posted (one that looks like it is set up at an angle in the dirt). The other launcher I post (bad pic) appears to be the launcher used. As best I can determine, through research into the NVA/VC weapons, these appeared to have been used in the delta region more so then the rest of the country. And mostly go back to the Viet Minh, their life appears to have ended some where around 1965 66 time frame.
let me see if the site will work this time for me, Subs 91669 and 91670 in his last post are VN tile rod fuzes for AT mine. I also found out all the NVA/VC items he posted that looked like improvised rockets or RPGs - are actually recoiless projectiles. Found a good reference to them, the wooden tails are all 50mm and were propelled from improvised launchers with about 1Kg of propellant (black powder). These items go back to the Viet Minh days when they used a number of 50mm items. Based on the french 50mm mortar (it was used sometimes also) improvised 50mm mortars were used for improvised cast grenades. for a while Japanese grenades and some other items. I am gathering all my references together and preparing a paper on these items, will uploaded it to the site when done
