Landships II

PDA · Legend

'Simplex 20 'Engine''

Ninemillsy · Corporal

Do you happen to have any more details of this interesting image? It certainly grabbed my attention

CharlieC · Legend

The gun is the BL 6inch Mark VII which weighed about 13 tons. Supporting the gun on two flat cars was probably the only way

to get the track loading on narrow gauge track down to something acceptable. A similar but more elaborate scheme was used for the German Karlgerät in WW2.

Charlie

PDA · Legend

It's a screengrab from the IWM Collections. No copyright was infringed.

https://www.iwm.org.uk/collections/item/object/205179190

Ninemillsy · Corporal

Thanks, appreciate the response. Had a look at the IWM collection but couldn't locate any other pics of this.

CharlieC · Legend

The image came from a collection of 11 images of railway artillery. Only one of the other images is on line - a rather strange

adapted 60 Pounder gun with a cut down carriage attached to modified narrow gauge carriage. I've never seen anything like

that before.

I've attached a slightly better quality version of the original Mark VII image.

Charlie

-- Edited by CharlieC on Saturday 28th of November 2020 11:50:27 PM

Ninemillsy · Corporal

Thanks Charlie, yes I have seen the second image you attached. There's another image of this same gun from a different angle in David R P Guay's book Tracks to the Trenches about the Canadian Railway Troops page 87. I have adapted the Resicast kit of the 60 pdr and a Scalelink 2 ft wagon bogie which will be reasonably presentable once I've painted it. I have also done a similar model with the howitzer. I am keen to see what I can do with a couple of flat wagons and the Resicast 6 inch Mk VII gun.

Wayne

Hoddy · Corporal

The image that PDA posted shows a Simplex 40hp 'Protected' tractor. These came in three versions; the 'Open', 'Protected' and the 'Armoured'. The Simplex 20hp tractor is much smaller and as a rule of thumb would haul a wagon of 10 tons, the Simplex 40 hp was used for loads of 20 tons and the two versions of Petrol Electric tractors (Dick Kerr and the British Westinghouse) 30 tons. An internet search will bring up images of these tractors. The tractors powered by internal combustion engines were used between dusk and dawn right up to the rear support trenches, the steam locomotives were kept well back usually out of range of the German guns (the steam and glow of the firebox making them highly visable at night).

It was fairly common practice to haul field guns, on specially modified bogie wagons on the light railways that served the western front, in the later stages of the war. Charlie's image of the British modified 60lb gun firing from a 60cm track is new to me. For the French it was not so uncommon, having purpose built wagons that were equiped with 120mm Long or 150mm Short De Bange cannons (these were known as Systeme Pechot affects-trucks du General Peigne) that fired from the track. A sequence of this can be seen on archives.ecpad.fr/les-petits-trains-de-la-grande-guerre-2/ 10minutes 20 seconds in.

Larger calibers that were transported and in essence fired from the track were the French 'Cannon 240mm model 1903' and the 'Mortar 293mm model 1903'. More information on these can be found in the book on railway artillery bt Eugene Leeslover. eugeneleeslover.com/ENGINEERING/Railway_artillery2.pdf

James

CharlieC · Legend

The French Systeme Pechot affûts-trucks du General Peigne were associated with fortress narrow gauge railways originally intended to resupply fortresses. The intent of the rail mounted guns was to increase the area of effective fire of the fortresses. According to Gen Guy François in "Les Canons de la Victoire" these units were manufactured in 1888-89.

AFAIK these rail mounted guns, there were always two guns per unit, were not deployed to the Western front but remained with the fortresses.

Landships II (landships.info) has short videos of the 4 types of Simplex tractors used in WW1.

I note that the image of the rail mounted 60 Pounder appears to be of an abandoned gun since the breechblock is missing and there are no tools or ammunition around the gun.

Perhaps the front moved out of range of the gun and it was awaiting salvage.

Charlie