Heavy Metal: When Irregulars Go Armored

November 2nd, 2013 by zen

During the Russian civil war (1917-1922), armored trains complete with heavy machine guns and artillery were used by both Bolshevik and White armies across the vast expanse of the Eurasian steppe and the armored train subsequently made spotty appearances in civil wars in China and Spain before fading away. This less likely to happen with homemade armor which is smaller and infinitely more mobile and can be created in a sufficiently large garage with time, elbow grease and a supply of scrap metal.

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Posted in 21st century, 3 gen gangs, 4GW, creativity, criminals, innovation, insurgency, Mexico, military, Militia, narcoterror, non-state actors, state failure, Tactics, tech, terrorism, war, warriors | 2 comments

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  1. James Bennett:

    November 4th, 2013 at 12:34 am

    IAFVs appear to have been built and used widely in the Spanish Civil War.  The circumstances there, of many partisan militias, scarce regular military equipment, and wide access to civilian vehicles and adequate workshops, probably accounts for this.  The following image search turned up many examples:  https://www.google.com/search?q=guerra+civil+espanola+blindados&client=gmail&rls=gm&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=tOl2UqbtLMHCywGpsIDYCg&ved=0CH8QsAQ&biw=970&bih=625

  2. Lynn C. Rees:

    November 4th, 2013 at 5:15 am

    Seems to have been picked up by regulars as well. The Rhino tank is one precursor of up armoring vehicles, especially since Shermans had the armor protection of a VW bug.