Out of Mothballs: Obsolescent Weaponry on the T2k Battlefield

[Olefin]

The question is what would be a museum piece - that would depend on the country. The Soviets and Russians were still using T-34 tanks for driver training well into the 1990's - whereas in the US the comparable tank, the Sherman, by then was 100% a museum piece.

In Mexico and Paraguay they were still using Stuart tanks into the period of the timeline - here those are museum pieces. There they were active duty tanks.

So it may have to be something you would look at on a country to country basis as to what would be a museum piece. Keep in mind there are active duty T-34's still in several country's armies and that in the 90's you could encounter M-47 tanks in service in Turkey, Iran, Croatia, Pakistan and South Korea and in reserve storage in Italy.

And Austria has a lot of old tank turrets being used for bunkers - so while you wont run into the tank you could very easily run into the still very operational turret and its armament

Perfect example is the Ferret APC - its still in use in a lot of countries - so while some would call it a museum piece others would call it very much obsolescent but still operational.

[Raellus]

Originally Posted by Olefin

The question is what would be a museum piece - that would depend on the country.

Yes, but as you pointed out, if it a vehicle is in a military's reserve stock, for the purposes of this thread, it is not a museum piece (yet).

If a particular vehicle is actually on display at a museum, it is a museum piece.

Feel free to discuss the former here; please discuss the latter in the previously referenced and linked Littlefield Collection thread.

-

[Olefin]

Originally Posted by Raellus

Yes, but as you pointed out, if it a vehicle is in a military's reserve stock, for the purposes of this thread, it is not a museum piece (yet).

If a particular vehicle is actually on display at a museum, it is a museum piece.

Feel free to discuss the former here; please discuss the latter in the previously referenced and linked Littlefield Collection thread.

-

You got it - and as I said that is dependent on the country. So that offers a great way to pull out the rare older vehicle to surprise players. "What the heck I thought all the (fill in the blank with Ferrets, T-34's, M47's) went to the boneyard a lot time ago?"

And the answer is yes they did - but not in Croatia or Greece or Turkey or Africa

By the way that is one reason the East Africa and Korea areas are such a great place to campaign - not only because of the re-enactor unit in Kenya but precisely because so many obsolescent vehicles are still being used that can be used to challenge the players with and not just the same tanks, BMP's, etc.

[mpipes]

Interesting to note that a lot of weapon systems were still in service or buried in some forgotten corner of some warehouse someplace. Examples -
1) Some friends cleaning out a warehouse found a crate of unissued Springfield Model 1884 rifled muskets in 1996.
2) T-34/85s could still be found in Russian training units and Machine Gun Divisions in the Far East in 1990.
3) Approximately 50 M60A2s were still in US POMCUS warehouses in 1990 as well as un-updated M60A1s.
4) MG34 and MG42 machineguns were in East German police and militia armories at reunification.
5) French police still have German G43s rifles in armories.
6) Norway still has MP40s SMGs in its militia armories.
7) German STG44s were captured in Iraq in 2003.
8) Up till about 1994, there were still M1 Carbines maintained in US armories.
9) Many US police agencies still possess M1928 Thompsons in their armories.

In my campaign, I have a fully operational M60A2 that was pulled out of a museum in a CIVGOV unit.

[Raellus]

Originally Posted by mpipes

Interesting to note that a lot of weapon systems were still in service or buried in some forgotten corner of some warehouse someplace. Examples -
1) Some friends cleaning out a warehouse found a crate of unissued Springfield Model 1884 rifled muskets in 1996.
2) T-34/85s could still be found in Russian training units and Machine Gun Divisions in the Far East in 1990.
3) Approximately 50 M60A2s were still in US POMCUS warehouses in 1990 as well as un-updated M60A1s.
4) MG34 and MG42 machineguns were in East German police and militia armories at reunification.
5) French police still have German G43s rifles in armories.
6) Norway still has MP40s SMGs in its militia armories.
7) German STG44s were captured in Iraq in 2003.
8) Up till about 1994, there were still M1 Carbines maintained in US armories.
9) Many US police agencies still possess M1928 Thompsons in their armories.

Thanks, MPipes. Those are exactly the kinds of things I'm hoping to catalogue here.

Re #7, according to Wikipedia...

"The Sturmgewehr remained in use with the East German Nationale Volksarmee with the designation MPi.44 until it was eventually replaced with domestic variants of the AK-47 assault rifle. The Volkspolizei used it until approximately 1962 when it was replaced by the PPSh-41. It was still used by other public security formations thereafter.[24] The ammunition was manufactured there at least until 1961.[24] Other countries to use the StG 44 after World War II included Czechoslovakia (although it was not officially adopted)[24] and Yugoslavia, where units such as the 63rd Paratroop Battalion were equipped with it until the 1980s,[25] when the rifles were ultimately transferred to Territorial Defense reserves or sold to friendly regimes in the Middle East and Africa. France adopted captured StG 44 for colonial Foreign Legion units."

And, apparently, it is still produced today in Germany as a sporting rifle, both in the original caliber and in .22 rimfire.

So, one could expect to find examples of the StG 44 scattered about during the Twilight War.

In addition to previous examples, Romanian Patriotic Guard troops were equipped with MG-34s until at least the 1970s.

I also reckon that one would frequently encounter PPSh-41s and PPS-43 SMGs in East Bloc militia/irregular/deep reserve units come 2000.

-

[Vespers War]

Originally Posted by Raellus

I also reckon that one would frequently encounter PPSh-41s and PPS-43 SMGs in East Bloc militia/irregular/deep reserve units come 2000.

-

Both the PPSh-41 and PPS were used at the start of the current Ukrainian unpleasantness, so they would definitely still be around in any of the existing Twilight War timelines. They might also appear in Africa and East Asia, based on the users and former users listed on Wikipedia.

[Olefin]

Keep in mind this is current data on the T-34 tank as of 2020

Current
Cuba: 642 supplier - undisclosed number in service.
Bosnia-Herzegovina: 5
Republic of the Congo: In reserve.
Guinea: 30 still operational
Guinea-Bissau: 10
Namibia: 4 (in reserve)
North Korea: 650 - undisclosed number in service
Yemen: 30 operational
Vietnam: 45 in service as a trainer