Anti Tank Vespa • Hacker News Board

Re: Anti Tank Vespa

#71

Post by sillywalk » Wed, Nov 22, 2023, 5:24 PM UTC

golergka wrote: post #24

RecycledEle wrote: post #7

Yes, we want you to take a motorcycle up against a tank. It's cheaper, you're expendable, and we will win with the budget we have. You joined the Legion to die, and we are sending you where you can do that. No, we do not cover you with life insurance.

> a tank Imprecise terminology often causes bad thinking. A “tank” could be a MBT, or it could be an armored personel carrier with very limited offensive capabilities.

I thought:

A APC isn't a tank, it's an APC.

If it's got say an autocannon, and/or ATGM it would be called an Infantry Fighting Vehicle (IFV)

Both those and tanks would all be considered Armoured Fighting Vehicles (AFV).

Re: Anti Tank Vespa

#72

Post by RecycledEle » Wed, Nov 22, 2023, 6:11 PM UTC

RecycledEle wrote: post #7

Yes, we want you to take a motorcycle up against a tank. It's cheaper, you're expendable, and we will win with the budget we have. You joined the Legion to die, and we are sending you where you can do that. No, we do not cover you with life insurance.

There are too many replies for me to answer them all one at a time, so I will answer them here.

I was trying to be funny.

Of course infantry anti-armor weapons have their place.

Of course motorcycles can be effective means of transport.

I just found the mental image of the fear, uncertainty, and doubt (FUD) a teenage kid would experience when he is given a motorcycle with an anti-tank weapon on it...I foud that funny.

Re: Anti Tank Vespa

#73

Post by meheleventyone » Wed, Nov 22, 2023, 8:29 PM UTC

sillywalk wrote: post #70

meheleventyone wrote: post #67

Earlier quoted context omitted.

And even things like the RPG-7 use a recoilless design to launch the projectile before the rocket ignites and you don’t see the user being impacted much at all by the rocket exhaust.

Backblast is still a problem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backblast_area

Err, yeah that comes out of the back of the recoilless rifle so only an issue for the people behind you not the person firing it unless they are too close to a wall or similar. With something like the RPG-7 the backblast is from the recoilless stage not the rocket.

Re: Anti Tank Vespa

#74

Post by sillywalk » Thu, Nov 23, 2023, 12:50 AM UTC

meheleventyone wrote: post #73

sillywalk wrote: post #70

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Backblast is still a problem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Backblast_area

Err, yeah that comes out of the back of the recoilless rifle so only an issue for the people behind you not the person firing it unless they are too close to a wall or similar. With something like the RPG-7 the backblast is from the recoilless stage not the rocket.

> Backblast is still a problem

Correction, I should have wrote:

I wonder if backblast could be a problem? I suck at physics. Does Randall Monroe read hacker news?

> Err, yeah that comes out of the back of the recoilless rifle so only an issue for the people behind you not the person firing it unless they are too close to a wall or similar. With something like the RPG-7 the backblast is from the recoilless stage not the rocket.

(Read on for needlessly aggressive semi-amusing rest of the reply)

While I have only personally fired one M72 rocket, and one round from a Carl Gustaf recoilless rifle, neither of which was in combat nor on a vehicle, I am still vaguely familiar with the concept of 'backblast'.

I was concerned that the effects of said backblast against things like the terrain, and possibly things on the terrain, might negatively effect the continued ability of the Vespa and it's occupant to conduct a last ditch suicide attack towards an enemy tank at high speed.

Re: Anti Tank Vespa

#75

Post by meheleventyone » Thu, Nov 23, 2023, 7:54 AM UTC

sillywalk wrote: post #74

meheleventyone wrote: post #73

Earlier quoted context omitted.

Err, yeah that comes out of the back of the recoilless rifle so only an issue for the people behind you not the person firing it unless they are too close to a wall or similar. With something like the RPG-7 the backblast is from the recoilless stage not the rocket.

> Backblast is still a problem Correction, I should have wrote: I wonder if backblast could be a problem? I suck at physics. Does Randall Monroe read hacker news? > Err, yeah that comes out of the back of the recoilless rifle so only an issue for the people behind you not the person firing it unless they are too close to a wall or similar. With something like the RPG-7 the backblast is from the recoilless stage not t…

When aiming from the Vespa it’s probably more prudent to rely on the backblast as the weapon of choice before commencing scratching the tanks paintwork. :D

Another comedy invention had the counter-mass of recoilless designs come from a second projectile that would fire out backwards which was abandoned for obvious reasons!