The Best and the Worst Equipment YOUR nation made.

[Desiree Clary]

Originally Posted by Half Pint John

US 155mm Long Tom



Here with a British crew

The oldest model in my father's model display case is an old Revell Long Tom along with its prime mover and crew of three, a diorama he made back in the 60s. It's not an award winner, but it has soul.

[Half Pint John]

Originally Posted by Desiree Clary

The oldest model in my father's model display case is an old Revell Long Tom along with its prime mover and crew of three. model he made back in the 60s. It's not an award winner, but it has soul.

IIRC I did that very same model sometime in the early 60s as well.

[Desiree Clary]

THIS IS NOT MY FATHER"S MODEL

[Blair Maynard]

Worst: I dont know about the Mark 14 Torpedo, but the early Mark 13 was a total disaster and many a U.S. naval aviator lost his life, and many a IJN sailor was spared (well until the bombers arrived) because of this disaster of a weapon:

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_WWII.htm

If you think about the comparison of a Mark 14 to a Mark 13, you may realize how much more danger was involved in an iar launched platform than for a sub surface launching platform -- U.S. Naval Aviators were up against the cream of the crop IJN aviators defending their fleets early in the war, whereas submarines were usually preying on unarmed Japanese merchant ships (Nautilus Excepted). So having to slow down to stalling speed to launch was not a very good option for an aircraft, and submarines could care less. A torp traveling 38 mph wouldnt usually matter much to the unseen submarine, since the element of surprise was usually there for the sub. Not so for the slow Devestator crew, so possessing the velecity of a Yugo with a bad misfire made it easy to avoid and almost useless. I am sure more bad things could be said about the early models.

Best: I will stick with the Naval theme here and choose the Yorktown Class carriers: Yorktown, Enterprise, Hornet.

[clackers]

Originally Posted by Blair Maynard

Enterprise.

The 'Big E' is my favourite WW2 ship, Blair!

[johnbryan]

Originally Posted by clackers

The 'Big E' is my favourite WW2 ship, Blair!

Agreed there too! The 'Big E' should have been preserved as a museum ship after all she went through during WWII.

[clackers]

Originally Posted by johnbryan

Agreed there too! The 'Big E' should have been preserved as a museum ship after all she went through during WWII.

Yep, JB, the guys sent to scrap her should have been told, "Sorry, put the blowtorches down, you can't do that to a National Monument."

[Blair Maynard]

Originally Posted by clackers

The 'Big E' is my favourite WW2 ship, Blair!

A fine ship and they should string up the person responsible for its scrapping in what 1958?

I am partial to the Yorktown.

[johnbryan]

Originally Posted by clackers

Yep, JB, the guys sent to scrap her should have been told, "Sorry, put the blowtorches down, you can't do that to a National Monument."

Admiral Halsey tried to raise enough money through a nation wide appeal to save her, but alas, fell short.

[Reaper90]

Originally Posted by 17thfabn

One U.S. weapon that I've read was very undependable Hispano-Suiza 20mm aircraft cannon. From what I've read this was a dependable weapon for other nations. And the U.S. Navy widely used a 20mm anti-aircraft gun designed by Oerlikon. For some reason the Hispano-Suiza guns of U.S. manufacture where not very reliable.

The US application of the Hispano-Suiza 20mm was the cause of the problem, not the gun itself... the F4U-1C Corsair that was fitted with the HS 20mm had the guns installed laying on their sides, in order to better fit within the wing... which led to jamming.

The P-38 Lightning was fitted with a single HS 20mm in addition to its 4 0.50 cal Brownings, and I've never read anything that would indicate its use their gave near the issue as its fitment to the F4U-1C....

[slick24]

Originally Posted by Blair Maynard

Worst: I dont know about the Mark 14 Torpedo, but the early Mark 13 was a total disaster and many a U.S. naval aviator lost his life, and many a IJN sailor was spared (well until the bombers arrived) because of this disaster of a weapon:

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_WWII.htm

If you think about the comparison of a Mark 14 to a Mark 13, you may realize how much more danger was involved in an iar launched platform than for a sub surface launching platform -- U.S. Naval Aviators were up against the cream of the crop IJN aviators defending their fleets early in the war, whereas submarines were usually preying on unarmed Japanese merchant ships (Nautilus Excepted). So having to slow down to stalling speed to launch was not a very good option for an aircraft, and submarines could care less. A torp traveling 38 mph wouldnt usually matter much to the unseen submarine, since the element of surprise was usually there for the sub. Not so for the slow Devestator crew, so possessing the velecity of a Yugo with a bad misfire made it easy to avoid and almost useless. I am sure more bad things could be said about the early models.

Best: I will stick with the Naval theme here and choose the Yorktown Class carriers: Yorktown, Enterprise, Hornet.

Not to take anything away from the aviators and the risks they took to deliver the torps, but it was bad for the subs too. Imagine spending weeks to get to your patrol area then find a convoy and successfully manuever to get a shot only to hear the loud thump when the torpedo hit but no explosion. Then to have to suffer through hours of depth charge attacks with the air growing foul and the 100+ degree wet heat. Then after surviving the depth charging going through the whole process again the next time you fire a torpedo. Meanwhile the Ordnance bureau was saying that it was the subs that were at fault not the torpedoes\exploders. Thank god we had an officer like Lockwood that listened to his sub skippers and believed them or no telling how long we would have had crappy torpedoes\exploders.

The fly fly boys had crappy planes too (at least at the beginning of the war) but at least if they survived they could go back to a comfortable (relatively speaking) base.

[Desiree Clary]

Originally Posted by slick24

Not to take anything away from the aviators and the risks they took to deliver the torps, but it was bad for the subs too. Imagine spending weeks to get to your patrol area then find a convoy and successfully manuever to get a shot only to hear the loud thump when the torpedo hit but no explosion. Then to have to suffer through hours of depth charge attacks with the air growing foul and the 100+ degree wet heat. Then after surviving the depth charging going through the whole process again the next time you fire a torpedo. Meanwhile the Ordnance bureau was saying that it was the subs that were at fault not the torpedoes\exploders. Thank god we had an officer like Lockwood that listened to his sub skippers and believed them or no telling how long we would have had crappy torpedoes\exploders.

The fly fly boys had crappy planes too (at least at the beginning of the war) but at least if they survived they could go back to a comfortable (relatively speaking) base.

Admiral Robert English, according to Clay Blair, Jr. (Silent Victory) was a major roadblock in the way of the resolution of this problem, how ever much we may regret his untimely death.

[17thfabn]

Originally Posted by Half Pint John

West Point??? Get serious. Give us a run down of all the West Point grads that led us through WWII starting with Marshall and Ike. Without them we would have lost the war.

The U.S. Military Academy aka West Point provided some fine leaders for the U.S. military. Men such as Generals Eisenhower, Bradley, Patton and MacArthur. (Okay the last one is debatable depending on your views)

General George Marshall was a Virginia Military Institute grad, class of 1901!

U.S. Army Chief of Staff during World War II

The U.S. had no Joint Chief of Staff at that time, but General Marshall was said to be President Roosevelt's most trusted military ad-visor.

The vast majority of the platoon and company commanders where not West Point grads. Their quality varied from poor to excellent. Excellent would be men such as Charles MacDonald and Richard Winters.

[marktwain]

Originally Posted by Long Lance

Oh I agree!!

How's about

Colossus - (the best)
That serge(?) battledress. Imagine a green blotter. My mate wore it and cursed it everytime it rained. (The worst)

Probably 'worse than' was the 'tropical weight WOO'L ' Canadian uniform Briefly issued for troops leaving for Jamaica duty in 1941..

[broderickwells]

Originally Posted by marktwain

Probably 'worse than' was the 'tropical weight WOO'L ' Canadian uniform Briefly issued for troops leaving for Jamaica duty in 1941..

What's wrong with serge trousers on a hot tropical day?

Some people would moan if their bums were on fire...