Reply To: Bazooka\Panzerfaust shape charge weapons

[L.T. Russell]

Howdy Greg, Peter!

I think so of it is the nature of what the weapon is used for and how it works.  I’m no expert, but I know a little and shaped-charge weapons don’t defeat their intended target (armored vehicles) by either blasting it with a charge of high explosive or punching a hole through it with an armor-piercing projectile.  A shaped-charge warhead starts a directed molten burn through the target.  So it’s BAD to be in the way of the jet of molten metal when it burns through the armor/wall/whatever, but it doesn’t have the blast radius of a high explosive projectile, nor is it meant to.  The catastrophic explosion that might result is generally, from ignited fuel/ammunition.  I don’t know if there are/were high explosive rounds for bazookas or panzerschrecks, I’m pretty sure panzerfausts were purely AT weapons.  I get the argument for shooting at a piece of artillery, it’s a fairly big target and I imagine any decent hit would disable the gun….unless you just burn a hole through a gun-shield.  These early shaped-charge AT weapons weren’t intended for anti-infantry work….

One guy’s $.02.