Boys anti-tank rifle
Boys anti-tank rifle | |
---|---|
Type | Anti-tank rifle |
Place of origin | United Kingdom |
Service history | |
In service | 1937–1998 |
Used by | See Users |
Wars | |
Production history | |
Designed | 1937 |
Manufacturer | box magazine |
The Boys anti-tank rifle (officially Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys, and sometimes incorrectly spelled "Boyes") was a British anti-tank rifle used during the Second World War. It was often nicknamed the "elephant gun" by its users due to its size and large 0.55 in (14 mm) bore.[7]
There were three main versions of the Boys: an early model (Mark I) which had a circular
Although adequate against
Design and development
The firearm was developed by Captain Henry C. Boys, Assistant Superintendent of Design—1885-1937, who was a member of the British Small Arms Committee and a designer at the Royal Small Arms Factory, Enfield. It was initially called Stanchion but was renamed after Boys when he died a few days before the rifle was approved for service in November 1937.[8]
A
The .55 Boys cartridge was an adaptation of the .50 BMG[11] with a belt added firing a 47.6 g (735 gr) bullet. At its introduction, the weapon was effective on light armour 23.2 mm (0.91 in) thick at 100 yards (91 m).[6]
Two main service loads were used during the Second World War: The W Mark 1 a 60 g (930 gr) AP projectile fired at 747 m/s (2,450 ft/s), and the W Mark 2 ammunition, 47.6 g (735 gr) AP at 884 m/s (2,900 ft/s). The W Mark 1 could penetrate 0.91 in (23.2 mm) of armour at 100 yards (91 m),[12] about the thickness used on the frontal armour of a half-track or armoured car, or the side or rear armour of a light tank. Later in the conflict, a more effective round was developed, the W Mark 2, which fired a tungsten-cored projectile at 945 m/s (3,100 ft/s). The Boys' effective range against unarmoured targets (for example, infantry), was much greater.
Despite its recoil slide and rubber-cushioned buttpad, the recoil of the weapon (along with noise and muzzle blast) was said to be painful, frequently causing neck strains and bruised shoulders. Consequently, the Boys was almost never fired as a free weapon (that is, not affixed to a support) except in emergencies.[10]
Operational use
The Boys rifle was used in the early stages of the Second World War against lightly armoured German tanks and combat vehicles. Britain also supplied a large number of Boys anti-tank rifles to Finland in 1939 and 1940 during the Winter War with the Soviet Union. The weapon was popular with the Finns because it could deal with Soviet T-26 tanks, which the Finnish Army encountered in many engagements.[1]
Although useful against early German and Italian tanks in
The Boys' reputation after the Battle of France was such that the Canadian government, through the Directorate of Military Training, The Department of National Defence and National Film Board of Canada (NFB) commissioned a training film, Stop That Tank! (1942), from Walt Disney Studios to counter the rifle's "jinx" reputation.[14][a]
Nonetheless, in the European theatre, it was soon replaced by the
Using armour-piercing (AP), armour-piercing incendiary (API), and armour-piercing incendiary tracer (APIT) ammunition, the .50 Browning was just as capable in armour penetration
The weapon was standard issue to British and Commonwealth forces which attempted to stem the Japanese onslaught through the
The U.S. Marine Corps purchased Canadian Boys rifles prior to the attack on Pearl Harbor. They saw limited use by the Marine Raider Battalions against enemy bunkers and aided in the destruction of two seaplanes off Makin Island.[16] The U.S. Army's 1st Ranger Battalion was also equipped with Boys, but they were not used in combat. The other five Ranger battalions were authorized Boys, but were not equipped with them.[citation needed]
The Boys rifles used by the
The Boys rifles were also used by the
The Boys rifle was also equipped and used by the
In September 1965, members of the
Performance
The contemporary training manuals for the Boys directed that it was for protecting the platoon against light armoured fighting vehicles: penetrating "their armour up to about 500 yards range" and "inflict casualties on their crew, although it may not seriously damage the vehicle itself."[18]
A manual on the Boys published for the Home Guard in 1944 gave the expected performance against armour ranging from 0.91 in (22.3 mm) at 100 yards square on to 0.35 in (8.8 mm) at 500 yards hitting at a 40 degree angle. The manual also noted that maximum penetration against other materials was 14 in (360 mm) of brick walls and 10 in (250 mm) of sandbags.[19]
Users
- Australia[20]
- British India[21]
- Canada: 771 Boys Rifles produced in Canada, sold to the United States.[1]
- China[17]
- Finland – as 14 mm pst kiv/37, during the Winter War and the Continuation War.[1]
- France – received a large shipment in exchange for 25mm anti-tank guns.[8]
- Ireland[4]
- Provisonal IRA used it during The Troubles
- Israel[22]
- Kingdom of Italy – captured in the North African campaign.[23]
- Greco-Italian War and Greek Civil War.
- Malaya[3]
- Nazi Germany – rifles captured after the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Forces in Norway and France were designated 13,9 mm Panzerabwehrbüchse 782 (englisch), abbreviated PzB 782(e), in German service.[24]
- New Zealand[25]
- Philippines[1]
- Poland: Polish Armed Forces in the West[26]
- Portugal[1]
- Soviet Union – received 3,200 Boys rifles via Lend-Lease.[27]
- South Africa[28]
- United Kingdom
- United States – used by Marine Raiders.[24] Authorized for US Army Rangers in 1943, but not used. During the Korean War, the Marine Corps borrowed some Boys rifles from Canadian troops, strengthened the action and mounted them with scopes. They were used as long-range sniper rifles on an experimental basis, firing double charged .50 BMG ammunition. These rifles had a range of over 2,000 yards.[29]
- Yugoslav Partisans[30]
Vehicle mounting
The Boys Rifle was sometimes mounted on vehicles such as the Universal Carrier ("Bren Gun Carrier"), Humber Light Reconnaissance Car and the Morris CS9, Standard Beaverette and Rolls-Royce armoured cars.[8]
See also
- Mauser 1918 T-Gewehr
- PTRD-41
- PTRS-41
- Wz. 35 anti-tank rifle
Notes
- ^ In the National Film Board of Canada production, Letter from Camp Borden (1941), a Canadian sergeant is shown trying to explain the "virtues" of the Boys Mk.1 to a group of doubting recruits.
- ^ Quote: "A review of World War II U.S. .50 caliber AP, API, and APIT ammunition specifications reveals that all armour-piercing varieties of the U.S. .50 BMG cartridge were required to completely perforate 7/8" (22.23 mm) of hardened steel plate armour at 100 yards (91 m).[15]
References
Citations
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j Robinson, Laurance Kenneth (24 July 2018). "Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys "Boys Anti-Tank Rifle"". Tank Encyclopedia.
- ISBN 9780850458374.
- ^ a b c "Photo: Malaysia, armed Malay troopers during the Malayan Emergency". University of Wisconsin. 1950.
- ^ a b c White 2006, p. 130.
- ^ Huon 1988, pp. 339–340.
- ^ a b c Boys Anti-Tank Rifle Mk.I, 1942, Small Arms Training, Volume I, Pamphlet No.5
- ^ Henderson 1958, p. 18.
- ^ a b c Bishop 2002, p. 212
- ^ Smith 2006, p. 541.
- ^ a b Dunlap 1996, p. 144
- ^ Williams, Anthony G. (January 2013). "An Introduction to Anti-Tank Rifle Cartridges". Archived from the original on 2016-02-25. Retrieved 2014-11-09.
- ^ 1942 Pamphlet, Appendix, Table 1.
- ^ a b Weeks 1979, p. 91
- ^ "Walt Disney Goes to War". Life. 31 August 1942. p. 61.
- ^ Barnes 2012, p. 432
- ^ Rottman 1995, p. 18.
- ^ ISBN 9781910294420.
- ^ Small Arms Training Volume 1, Pamphlet No. 5 Anti Tank Rifle. 1937 (updated 1939), p. 5.
- ^ Boys Anti-tank Rifle - Mark 1 1944. Gale and Polden Ltd., p. 7.
- ^ "Boys Mark 1 Anti tank Rifle". awm.gov.au. Australian War Memorial.
- ISBN 9781841761961.
- ISBN 9780850458374.
- ^ Battistelli 2013, p. 32
- ^ a b Bishop 2002, p. 213
- ISBN 9781780961118.
- ISBN 9780850454178.
- ^ Zaloga & Ness 1998, p. 197.
- ^ Bishop 2002, p. 88.
- ^ Pegler 2010, p. 55.
- ISBN 978-1-84176-675-1.
Bibliography
- Barnes, Frank C. (2012) [1st pub. 1975]. Cartridges of the World: A Complete Illustrated Reference for More Than 1,500 Cartridges. Northfield, Illinois: DBI Books. ISBN 978-1-4402-3059-2.
- Battistelli, Pier Paolo (2013). Italian Soldier in North Africa, 1941-43. London: Osprey. ISBN 978-1-7809-6855-1.
- Bishop, Chris (2002). The Encyclopedia of Weapons of World War II, illustrated edition. New York: Sterling Publishing Company, Inc. ISBN 978-1-58663-762-0.
- Rottman, Gordon (1995). US Marine Corps 1941–45. London: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-8553-2497-8.
- Dunlap, Roy F. (1996) [1948]. Ordnance Went Up Front: Some Observations and Experiences of a Sergeant of Ordnance, Who Served Throughout World War II with the United States Army in Egypt, the Philippines and Japan, Including Way Stations. With Comment and Opinions on the Many Different Small-arms in use by the Forces Engaged. Los Angeles: Samworth Press, for R & R Books. ISBN 978-1-88484-909-1.
- Henderson, Jim (1958). 22 Battalion War History Branch. Washington, D.C.: Department of Internal Affairs.
- Huon, Jean (1988). Military Rifle & Machine Gun Cartridges. Riverside, Maryland: Ironside International, Inc. ISBN 978-0-935554-05-2.
- Pegler, Martin (2010). Sniper Rifles: From the 19th to the 21st Century. Illustrated edition. London: Osprey Publishing. ISBN 978-1-84908-398-0.
- Smith, Colin (2006). Singapore Burning. London: Penguin. ISBN 978-0-14-101036-6.
- War Office (1937). Pamphlet No. 5 - Anti-Tank Rifle. Small Arms Training, Volume I. London: HMSO – via Archive.org.
- War Office (25 April 1942). Pamphlet No. 5 - Anti-Tank Rifle, 1942. Small Arms Training, Volume I (Canadian reprint ed.). London: HMSO – via Archive.org.
- Weeks, John (1979). Small Arms of World War II. New York: Galahad Press. ISBN 978-0-88365-403-3.
- White, Robert Williams (2006). Ruairí Ó Brádaigh: The Life and Politics of an Irish Revolutionary. Bloomington, Indiana: Indiana University Press. ISBN 978-0-253-34708-4.
- Zaloga, Steven J.; Ness, Leland S. (1998). Red Army Handbook 1939–1945. London: Sutton. ISBN 978-0-7509-1740-7.
External links
- The short film Stop That Tank! is available for free viewing and download at the Internet Archive.