Welcome to today’s Photo of the Day! Here we have the gun that “replaced” the Bazooka. This is the Firestone M20 Recoilless Rifle (and the M18 version). At the start of World War II, just about every country had tanks that had thin armor and most countries were equipped with anti-tank solutions to deal with them. The United States was behind in this aspect for the entirety of the war. By the end of the War, the Germans had Tiger II tanks that were basically indestructible. In between the beginning and the end the US produced the Bazooka and Super bazooka but they quickly became obsolete despite their widespread usage. The solution was a gun that was portable but still fired a very large projectile. Recoilless technology was needed to achieve this. These guns use cartridges that have holes in them that vent the explosive gases forward and backward which effectively makes them recoilless. The M18 was the smaller shoulder-able version of the Firestone M20 Recoilless Rifle.
“Developed in the closing days of WWII and fielded by the U.S. military until being phased out during the Vietnam War by wire guided rockets. With M1917A1 tripod with traverse and elevation adjustment mount, M-34 Sight Unit (M-62 elbow telescopic sight, M79 adjustable mount, M9 adaptor), metal case marked “CASE, CARRYING, M78″, and canvas muzzle cover. Fine as deactivated by cutting a hole in the barrel, welding a bar across the bore, and repainted. The gun does not fully mount to the tripod. – A) U.S. Firestone M20 Recoilless Rifle with Tripod and Scope”
Lot 5105: Two Inert U.S. Military Recoilless Rifles – A) U.S. Firestone M20 Recoilless Rifle with Tripod and Scope – B) U.S. Firestone M18 Recoiless Rifle. (n.d.). Rock Island Auction Company. photograph. Retrieved February 23, 2023, from https://www.rockislandauction.com/detail/1032/5105/two-inert-us-military-recoilless-rifles.
