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This is interesting...

Definitely interesting films.

If you filter out the chest thumping propaganda in some of the films (understandable considering what was happening in the world at the time) it is truly amazing how, around the world, the military and science/technology was so drastically changed in just a few years.

As an example, in the 1930's during the depression, some U.S. Army units trained and conducted field exercises using broom sticks for rifles and pieces of stove pipes for machineguns. Participating soldiers had to pretend to shoot their imaginary weapons.

Then by the early 1940's there was a flood of new technology around the world. Including the VT fuze with its amazing (for the time) electronics and power supply and how this technology drastically changed/enhanced the use of ordnance and artillery.

No micro chip technology back then!
 
Definitely interesting films.

If you filter out the chest thumping propaganda in some of the films (understandable considering what was happening in the world at the time) it is truly amazing how, around the world, the military and science/technology was so drastically changed in just a few years.

As an example, in the 1930's during the depression, some U.S. Army units trained and conducted field exercises using broom sticks for rifles and pieces of stove pipes for machineguns. Participating soldiers had to pretend to shoot their imaginary weapons.

Then by the early 1940's there was a flood of new technology around the world. Including the VT fuze with its amazing (for the time) electronics and power supply and how this technology drastically changed/enhanced the use of ordnance and artillery.

No micro chip technology back then!



That is exactly how I felt watching these clips. No micro chips back then but they managed to make the fuzes so small that it just fascinates me.
 
Hallo,
thank you so much for those links. I had not seen these films before. Especially interesting I find the views of the factory workplaces with a view of the parts and the assembly and testing equipment of 1944 vintage. The size of the battery of the T5 (nearly as big as a whole normal fuze) and you can read the makers name, Raytheon, on it. at the time a manufacturer of hearing aids, today one of the worlds largest electronic defence equipment companies. VT got them started. These first VT fuzes were still RC and tube circuit based. (I'd love to have one) The also shown T 90 Ring Type and the T 51 Bar Type I considered to belong in the timeframe between 1950 and 1960 and already using more modern parts. Is that right ? Regarding another fuze discussion here, I have been researching on the subject of Turbo Generators, which I did not know before. I never had a fuze with these in my hands. Today I read US Patent 2804824 from 1957. There it is mentioned that Turbine Generators were being used in fuzes since some time already .
Does anybody of you know when and in which fuze a Turbine Generator was first used to supply the fuze with electric energy. As mentioned above, the T 5 VT fuze of 1944 vintage used a very large battery.
Regards,
Bellifortis.
 
Hallo Brian,
yes, that is the type of literature that I need. Around 480 pages, there is a lot of reading to be done over christmas. I just had a fast look into the book. It is mentioned that development of the Turbo Generator started because of unhappiness with the unwieldy batterie of the T5. The date when this happened is not mentioned. Thank you for this good literature tip.
Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year to you,
Bellifortis.
Bellifortis,

One possible information source is Radio Proximity Fuzes For Fin Stabilized Missiles, 1946, http://www.dtic.mil/dtic/tr/fulltext/u2/221588.pdf

Brian
 
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