Flare Guns: the Unsung Tools of 20th Century Warfare
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- Опубликовано: 5 авг 2024
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Transformation into Ian McCollum, 75% complete!
In this episode, we examine the largely-forgotten role played by flare guns in 20th Century warfare - on land, at sea, and in the air - and explore the design and function of nine WWII-era examples - including an exceedingly rare model of which only around 100 survive to this day!
-Webley & Scott No.1 Mk.V
-Webley & Scott No.3 Mk. I (2x)
-M2 Flare Pistol (2x)
-AN-M8 Flare Pistol
-Leuchtpistole 34
-Leuchtpistole 42
-SLD (Signal und Leucht Doppelschussmodel)
SOURCES:
michaelhiske.de/Allierte/USA/O...
www.prc68.com/I/AN-M8FlarePis...
www.cafmn.org/news/an-m8-flar...
www.bergflak.com/LPindex.html
The British Army was still using the 1 inch pistol in the 1970s.
An interesting feature of the ammunition was serrations on the rim that differed depending on the colour of the flare, so one could identify colours in the dark, by feel.
Loved the reference to forgotten weapons and Ian.
Huzzah for Gun Jesus! (Srsly, I like Ian and his channel.)
@@AppliedCryogenics😮
I didn't
@@telesniper2 why?
My late friend was a destroyer captain in the USN. Sometime around 1970, they were sailing in a battle group formation in extremely heavy weather, under radio silence. And the ship off his starboard quarter was advancing too closely, and ignoring light signals to maintain distance.
He ordered a 5" white starshell, an artillery flare, to be fired over the other ship's bow.
Sure got their attention fast.
I've seen parachute flares hang for quite a while. On a cold day, the hot air rises up to the chute and like a hot air balloon, it'd just float in the air till the flare burns out.
That happened to me also. I have a German WW2 LP34 flare pistol made in 1942, fired it 3 times on new year's ewe. It was cold outside, around -20 Celsius. One of the shots was a "hanger", like you describe. It was beatiful to look at.
He dresses with flare.
@willyberg123calm down Aristotle, it’s just a great joke 😂
Flair? Dressing with a flare would be..... painful.
@willyberg123i guess this generation isnt as “bright” as i thought.
@willyberg123of all the things to predict societal collapse on, this is the stupidest.
The flare launcher can be used not only to shoot a normal rope, but also a long ribbon of thermite, which burns through the barbed wire in your path. The soldier described the barbed wires as looking "like they had been cut with big scissors." Btw. silk flare parachutes were such a valuable gift for a girl that soldiers risked crawling into no man's land to obtain one. As for the use of flare in the aviation industry, my friend told me how he had to shoot a warning flare when the plane made an incorrect maneuver over an improvised landing field and it threatened disaster.
This is still the case on military airfields in the UK.
No way a thin ribbon of thermite would burn threw barb wire. Did they really work or was it an experiment shell that didn't work?
@@christianterrill3503 As far as I read, it worked, but you know, these were the soldier's memories, so I don't know if he correctly described the structure and operation of this ammunition.
It could have been a hollow core rope with a thermite core, similar to the construction of detcord. That could put enough thermite in a reliable line.
@@christianterrill3503A big boy version of this is still used to this day for clearing paths in minefields in combat conditions. They fire a long rope of explosives to just blow up the mines in their way
We used a double barrel 27mm in the German Navy in the 80's ...
The last one in this video.
They were also used on "Schnelle Minensucher" not only U-boats.
I fired this thing OFTEN with "Schall Mess" ammo.
"Schall Mess" was used for messuring the density of the air.
(Made a explosion)
Was used to calculate the mach speed in actual air.
The line gun usually was used to throw a lightweight messenger line, which would be attached to the actual hauling line and used to haul it ashore, or to the other boat.
Newfoundland dogs were often sent overboard, from a foundering ship, to swim the messenger line to a shore rescue party. The (pre-USCG) rescue services in New Jersey and the Northeast also kept the dogs for rescue work. Which they still perform in parts of Europe.
A kid in my High School brought a double barreled flare pistol to show around. I remember it being Chrome or Nickel plated. This would have been’58-‘61. Thanks for going to the trouble of finding, sorting and presenting all the information you do.
That sounds like a Walther SLD. Which was a double barrel flare pistol from WW2. I believe the variant issued to the Kreismarine was made of stainless steel and nickle plated to resist corrosion. The Germans experimented with making a lot of rather avant-garde weapons during the war, though a double barreled flare pistol does actually seem potentially practical.
(edit: I didn't realize he actually shows on at the end)
Great video, thank you. I always wondered where breeches buoys got their name.
Regarding flares a long time ago my Mum's neighbour, Frank owned a fishing boat on the north east coast (UK). We celebrate Guy Fawkes night every 5th of November and at the time large display fireworks were unobtainable to the public in the UK so Frank used to bring a couple of boxes of coloured flares from his boat to fire off. You could see the flares for miles!
Same in Esbjerg. Denmark.
Emergency flares for boats have only limited lifetime so on new year many send up the expired emergency flares here in Norway. They go really high and stay lit for a long time slowly descending in a parachute.
31:45 8cm is quite a significant amount, do you mean 8mm? 8cm is enough to go through the side armour of almost all allied tanks, and even the front in favourable circumstances.
Penetration power of 8cm (80mm) RHA was more than enough for almost anything Allies had fielded. However it was probably highly inaccurate for any sensible firing distance.
Glad I found this channel.
I remember having to practice loading a flare gun back in the mid 80's when my father owned a 31' Tartan sailboat. Having to read and navigate by charts and LORAN. Now GPS. And having to learn how to use maritime radio channels and emergency channels.
And micro bursts... A scourge to the sailors of the seas and the air.
Wasn't until my grandfather caught his kilt on the throttle of the diesel engine on our sailboat that we found out we were only using 1/8th throttle for 10 years. Then that 31' Tartan took off.
Sadly the Tartan isn't in the family anymore. I'd love to teach my nephews the joy of being out in the sea sails full of wind and the compass bringing us home.
just picturing the kilt throttle scene is making me crease
Ian with Forgotten weapons will always be my go-to expert on this kind of stuff...but that's not to say this channel isn't also top notch. Keep doing what you're doing, the subs will come in time
I could 100% see this channel collaborating with Ian from forgotten weapons down the line
A tragic example of the lack of standardization would be the Titanic. The crew of the stricken vessel could actually see the Carpathia and they attempted to signal with flares. While the crew of the Carpathia could see the flares but they failed to comprehend what they were seeing.
Eeeeh, im not sure i buy the not comprehending explanation. They had plenty of opportunity to check via radio, but still decided to quietly sail away.
You are thinking of SS Californian who didn't get the radio message and the Titanic used the wrong color flares. Carpathia did get the message and was able to home in on the flares.
Thanks so much for doing ALL these videos. I'm binging on all of them. You sir are Modern Marvels and History guy all rolled up into one.
I, also, love your reference to Ian and Forgotten Weapons. 👍
Very interesting video. I learned that what I knew about flare launchers was a lot less than I thought.
Ian is great! So much knowledge
I recently became the owner of a Czech VZ44, which is an improved copy of the Russian SpSH. Wonderful piece of outdoors kit, I take it on long hikes and camping.
The work you are putting into these videos doesn't go unnoticed. Keep up the good work!
I have been interested in ww1/2 history all my life and been fascinated by flare guns for a while so this channel is fantastic!
Very neat, thanks for sharing!
This video was amazing and packed with valuable information that I will definitely use to expand my collection. Thank you!
oh man, this is what forgotten weapons used to be. earned my sub!
The American M8 looks really goofy but having that large breach release lever means you can just hook it on your uniform with one hand while the other is still flying a plane, stick it between your knees, exchange the shells and close it also with the solid hook on top and fire another round, all one hand. love the practicality.
You need to do a follow up to show what the flare pistols of old have morphed into. Mid '70's the US Navy was using a signaling device that looked like a "zip" gun. The body was about 6 inches in length and around 1/2 inch in diameter. The cartridge screwed into the body and the barrel was part of the cartridge. Total length of the cartridge, including the threaded portion, was about 3-3.5 inches. Firing body was made of blued steel while cartridge bodies were aluminum. I don't remember the type number... I was an FTM who became a duty "Gunner's Mate" on duty days in port. Cartridges came in 3 colors, red, green, and white. White being an illumination round. Short term illumination of about 6 seconds. These were kept in a locker about the size of a large cooler up by the port side bridge wing. They were counted daily by the duty Gunner's Mate.
Actually, one would probably not shoot the actual line that would need to be used under stress to the ship but a light hauling line. This small (=light) line would then be attached to the real line / rope to be used for towing or transporting people etc. This technique of throwing a light line and then attaching that to a bigger line is still in use today.
Can feel/hear the heft and ridiculous trigger pull forces. Excellent sound-work!
Yes! I love flare pistols. Those are some of my favorite Forgotten Weapons episodes, and I'm glad to have stumbled upon this video.
In patrol squadron 40 vietnam era we used them in case radio comm was bad. Green meant "we are ready to accept and retrieve you". Red meant "we are not quite ready"
Wow spectacular job Brother thank you for sharing your knowledge and expertise and for taking us on your adventures through time and history
Very good information!! Thanks!!!!!
Very informative! I have a modest collection of WWII flare guns and it was nice to learn more about them and their use!
Where do you find yours? What are you favorites?
@@AldoSchmedack I’ve got mine from a mixture of gunbroker, invaluable, and IMA. My favorite would have to be my Webley & Scott No. 1 Mk. III. It’s 1943 dated, Australian produced, and the first one I ever got. The brass is absolutely beautiful, and the flared barrel gives it a wonderfully classy look. Despite her age, she still works like a charm, and I tend to bring her out on the 4th of July to fire a flare or two.
@@damikel4738your lucky fireworks are illegal in my state I gotta go to Pa to get em if the state sniffed a flare gun it would be confiscated probably end up in some cops safe
Another very interesting video, thank you.
Excellent vid.
Very interesting video. I just bought a WW2 German LP34 flare pistol, it's made in 1942 by Berlin-Lübecker (duv).
The bosuns used line launchers all the time in the RCN for initiating RAS. It was long ago but it seemed they used the Bridger style which was (?) a 45/70 propellant charge for a brass weight with an eye the heaving line spool was attached to. I believe the device was built on an eight gauge break action single shot shotgun action. The barrel was about 14" or something like that, and smoothbore.The recoil would have been stomping, because the brass weight (messenger?) was .45 calibre and was about 4" long.
Wonderful!...how do you keep up such an information packed commentary?....(teleprompter?)......it sounds completely spontaneous!
Great video, I've always found flare projectors rater interesting. Several years ago i got the opportunity to fire a S&W 37mm flare gun, thst was an cool piece.
Nicely done video. I'm glad to see that while handguns may not be allowed in Canada, the knowledge is alive and well.
I'm a US Army infantryman, and I can tell you get we still use flares as signal. They're used for all sort of purposes, mission and unit dependant, but they are still used to this day. However, the modern ones don't require pistols and can be used by slamming against a rock or something.
During my conscription in the Finnish military back in the early 90:s we had flare pistols very much like the one at 16:58. Don't remember if they were exactly the same but very similar. The equipment of the Finnish defence forces used to be a bevildering mix of western, soviet (some bought, some, especially right after WW2, captured) and domestic stuff. Lately they have been gradually getting rid of the now mostly obsolete Soviet gear and moving more towards Nato-compatible western equipment.
Thanks for helping me fill my daily quota of "learn something new." It was entertaining, too.
The air raid at Pearl Harbor on 7 December 1941 began with a pair of flares. Mitsuo Fuchida was to fire one flare if surprise was achieved, two if not. After firing the first flare, Fuchida didn't see any reaction from his bombers and so he fired the second flare. Imperial Japan had a severe radio shortage, especially two-way radios for communications between aircraft. By 1944 the shortage of aircraft radios and a lot of inexperienced air crew resulted in one-sided battles such as the Great Marianas Turkey Shoot. There were (still are) American aircraft communications issues, but Japanese aircraft communications handicapped flight operations--and lack of radio communications contributed greatly to the Japanese loss of four aircraft carriers at the Battle of Midway.
Flares are still used for signaling and illumination--and as decoys. Flare pistols have been replaced one-for-one by pencil flares, by 40mm flare rounds for grenade launchers, and then there are disposable "pop-up" flares.
Thanks again. That double barrel flare gun was interesting. There was a Medal of Honor winner who saved his bomber from a malfunctioning flare. This WP round was dropped through a chute in the B-29 to give a visual signal, supplementing radio comms.
en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Henry_E._Erwin
Great site sir 🎉
If I remember correctly (bookcase too far away to go check!) when a Fw190 pilot landed in error at RAF Pembury (thinking he was on a Channel Island) the officer who ran to detain him used a flare pistol 'cos he couldn't find a revolver in time.
This man knows a lot about flare guns.
Great video, thanks. I would really like to see a follow on video showcasing some of the many others out there, rare and common, vintage and current.
P.S. I had always wondered why the belled, blunderbuss-like muzzles. Now I know.
There may be another reason, not mentioned here: brass is soft and also steel when of thin wall and wide diameter can deform easily. I would call this muzzle a rib to prevent that.
That makes sense as well.@@Calligraphybooster
Re the Model 34 flare pistols, used by the Germans. Small numbers were made with rifled barrels. These were the ones that were specifically made, to be used with the small grenades. These were the ones, specifically known as Kamph pistols. Although it might have been possible to fire the grenades from the ones with unrifled barrels. The grenades were made to be used with the rifled barreled Model 34's.
They also had a rifled barrel liner that would fit the smooth bore pistols
The flare scene in 1917 demonstrates perfectly how effective illumination flares were on the battlefield. They are BRIGHT. According to the behind the scenes, they used real flares (but probably modern ones for safety and cost reasons) for that scene too, and as the ONLY light source to light the shots, no artificial light. Also a pretty impressive feat of cinematography as well since the logistics of filming with the limited time the light source was in the air and its constantly changing position must have been difficult. Makes for a beautiful scene though.
ruclips.net/video/E3Glc9i-zVk/видео.html
This video was very enlightening 😅
The correct names of the special ammunition for the german flareguns are: "Wurfgranate Patrone 326, Wurfkörper Patrone 361 and Panzerwurfkörper 42" in this video they made a mistake with the "Sonderzeichen", the little dots on top of some characters. It always drives me nuts!
Very interesting.
FYI those 26.5mm launchers have drop in conversion barrels for .410/.45LC. They make em for the 12 gauge plastic ones but I wouldn’t use one!!!
If you have a boat and no firearm onboard (you’re insane) you should consider the drop in barrel and a box of ammo. No sights really and it’s a single shot, but it’s more useful than a flare gun alone!!!
"Frank Zappa and the Mothers
Were at the best place around
But some stupid with a flare gun
Burned the place to the ground
Smoke on the water, a fire in the sky
(Smoke) on the water, you guys are great"
Ian Gillan, Jon Lord, Ritchie Blackmore, Roger Glover, Ian Paice (Deep Purple).
A very interesting video! Thank you. I didn't know that the American pronunciation of Bouy had inserted itself into Canadian speech. In England Bouy is pronounced 'Boy' lol not Boo-ee !
I have an M-8. Can you still get flairs for it?
I doubt it. Most commercially-available flare guns today are standardized on 12 gauge.
@@CanadianMacGyverYou can and they are common! Goto a gunshow or look online for 37mm flares and tons will pop up and you can also reload your own if you have the skills. Adapters are available for 26.5mm flares too.
fascinating intro to the world of flare guns - didn't know the germeans turned them into offensive weapons!
Fun thing Webley & Scott No.1 Mk.V is still in use here in the Danish army today where by many it is known as "Pirat Pistol" or english the pirate pistol.
The Germans actually did use backpack telecommunication wire spools with a second solider carrying and operating the phone during advances (Rückentrage). I cannot find any commentary as to how well this worked in practice. Not very well I suspect, in view of its not being adopted by other countries.
it was the germans that referred to the bulk green cascade target indicator parachute flares as christmas trees due to the appearance of being an upside down fir tree, other colours of sky marking flares as far as i know weren't named.
the fully stamped german is my favorite
how do you keep coming up with things I didn't know I needed to know about?
21:43 don’t. forget. to open. the. outer. Door.
The Webley No3 pistols were later converted into the L48 and L67A1 Baton gun. Used in Hong Kong to fire L1 Wooden Bullets later superseded by the L2 “Rubber Baton Anti Riot Round”
10:27 I let out an audible "holy shit" at that single-incident death-toll
That was good!
The most famous carrier pigeon of WWI was, of course, Speckled Jim.
A quite informative video, very well done 👍
Just one constructive criticism:
As a native speaker I noticed at around 30 Min. you mixed up the umlauts for example it’s called Wurfkörper not Würfkorper. Or is this intentional to make it easier to read it the right pronunciation like some kind of phonetic spelling?
You are a super-mega-ultra nerd, and I like it.
I have one of the Schermuly line launching pistols :D
The German ones have a pin which sticks out when the gun is loaded so you can feel in the dark if a flare is in the barrel. There are also existing double barrel versions in brass which have the shape of the aluminium version.
Bought a Walther 1926 with it’s original 9” barrel some years ago for about eighty Euro’s
About radio: let's not forget that for a long period of time communication by radio meant sending a message using morse code. Having a radio on board i.e. an airplane meant that one needed a radio operator to manage any serious communication, the pilots etc. had their hands full with operating the plane. This is why ships used to have a radio operator on board (i.e. someone from the Marconi company). The transmission of voice messages is a relative 'recent' invention that made radio communication a lot simpeler and faster. Hollywood presents us a with bit of a misleading idea, as usual, and therefore we have a tendency to think that 'a radio message' = a message by voice
Wildland firefighters use what are essentially flare pistols to start controlled burns and backburns too
Thank you for this video. I’m not sure why they had all the different designs when they could have just copied a single shot break action shotgun design, or a rolling block design. It’s like they just ignored firearm designs to come up with something unique.
Excellent. I always wondered why on earth they called them very pistols, like there also existed pistols that were less so pistols. But it was the Very pistol, named after a person. My only real experience with flare guns is the orange plastic models you can buy at marine supply stores that stay with your boat and will be available for signaling if you need them. It could happen.
The smallest flare gun is the Berloque pistol from Austria (produced since 1905).
They are still commonly known as "Very" pistols or flares in the US.
I doubt Ian would sue you.
Hello former army man here I can assure you that they are still in use today
THIS THEME MUSIC is so iconic ... however i can't remember by whom and what it is called. Someone can help??????
Pictures at an Exhibition
wow thanks!! @@AerialReconnaissance
Flares (and light signals) are still used by control towers to signal landing status in case of aircraft radio failure.
Any idea why some of these were never date stamped?
No idea. I'll have to do some more in-depth research on the subject.
They were considered inexpensive and common enough and also semi disposable. They were not dangerous or expensive like firearms, drugs, ordnance and other equipment. Thus no time taken... at least on most. It was often made in war time or post war economies. Some German ones did.
Cheating death 101 NOTE, RE: Hand held flare use, or outdated flare "disposal" on a fogged in mountainside.
Flare Guns are safer than your typical marine, hand held, lanyard fired, emergency distress signal SCHERMULY type Hand Flares, who's ignition recoil can cause it to slip and blow backwards through the holding hand, (or via beyond the "best before due date" of the brittle dried glue of it's paper wrapper, and thereby launch from the deck or ground behind you, potentially shooting burning magnesium into one's own kidney area, etc.
Launching a hand held distress or para flare, at arm's length, from just above a flat solid surface can be recommended for a safer trajectory.
I have heard that too! Arms length and at and angle upwards and you don't look at flare fired as in the dark your eyes will not be as good at seeing in the dark then. Also usually a step back or two (or more) as you become a target for fire.
Ian wouldn't sue he would demand to see your collection and probably bring ammo for some obscure caliber u needed😂😂ian is the man
At around 6:25. Why would a sentry want a bright light for a "couple of seconds"? That woould destroy their night vision and blind them. A light for 30 or 40 seconds would make more sense.
Tanks had similar or the same mounting to fire flares from inside the vehicles I think the could also fire smoke
I didn't know that Very Pistol/ Very gun was uk specific
Weird that she mentioned Ian, because I normally only say this on his channel: I think I found out my Star Wars gun 😃
So it's been 20 years .. Outfitted a boat for someone, the 2" (muzzle) flare pistol manufactured from cheap PVC, the shells kind of looked like 12 Gau, and you just know we had to pop a few of them off. But I recall them being totally unimpressive, and unlikely to be of useful signal to anyone who hadn't already seen you. The devices that you present appear to be engineered firearms, and you specifically note recoil. This makes me assume apples and oranges?
*Gilles: **_"...don't want to get sued by Ian McCollum..."_*
🤭🤭🤭🤭🤭
{Great video...👍}
I don't know why but I love flare pistols!
There is something steam punk, or maybe Captain Nemo, about flare guns. Especially the brass pieces.
Don´t let the pidgeons hear that you call them "old Technology"!😝
In the Dutch army we still have a couple of flare pistols in the armory
You have whining background sound at around 15-25 kHz from somewhere around the 17:45 mark and forward...
Gilles i regret to inform you that your ears may be getting old. there is a distinct and persistent high pitched whine all throughout this video that seems to have been missed during editing. might pay to add a filter to your standard editing procedure that filters out anything over a certain frequency even if you can't hear it
edit, just realised the age of this video, perhaps you have already done this in which case ignore me!
Reminds me of Biggles books.
I wonder if anyone could have predicted that the war would turn into Trench Warfare and/or if they planned for it or if both sides had to react and adapt to it.
This guy must be related to Ian McCollum
slap a scope and a few greebles on these flare guns and you have a prop ready for star wars