WW2 Guns Still Used in Today's Ukraine war

For centuries wars are being fought with contemporary weapons and in some instances with future or prototype ones. However some old weapons, older than their current users, are being utilized. The Ukraine war has shown that some very old designs can still be used. Machine guns from a century ago, bolt action rifles older than that, submachine guns designed for WW2, anti-tank rifles as relics of the same conflict are being used, in big numbers or some rare occasions.
Each of these weapons tell us a story and serve as a testament of durability and the overall change and shift in the military doctrine as well as the consequences of the current situation. Not only that but those weapons, very crude and old, are serving on par with the latest designs, making the situation even more peculiar.
Most of those weapons have survived the harsh conditions of the biggest conflict in human history, years of storage and later wars beyond that. Some were served for decades as museum exhibits only to be called once again to fight in today's wars.
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Credit:
Created by Daniel Turner (B.A. (Hons) in History, University College London)
Script and animation Aleksandar Djokic
Narrator:
Chris Kane
vocalforge.com/

[@TheOriginalJphyper]

You want antiquated guns being used? Look no further than the Dardanelles Gun, a massive Ottoman siege cannon with a 25-inch barrel that, despite being made in 1464, was successfully used fend off the British in 1807 during the Anglo-Ottoman War. Still devastating even after nearly three and a half centuries.

[@akramgimmini8165]

Damn never knew that

[@smurfskii7884]

Other people: Mass Artillery The Ottomans: O N E A R T I L L E R Y Its not even the biggest one they produced, that goes to the Basilica which was used during the siege of Constantinople (biggest one by caliber is the Tsar Cannon, made by Russia in the 1580s)

[@rosaria8384]

And then there's a case in Syria where a cannonball was used to obliterate a building. Talk about antiquity.

[@andegoloran5824]

Stones and sticks

[@whishiwhooshi5783]

Doesn't matter if it's old. It a flipping giant ball that's going like 200 m/s at you

[@alanbud5181]

Ukraine had thousands of Mosin Nagants in storage. They sold many of them to the US importers in the 90’s when you could get one for about $70-80. Bought a couple myself. Still have them.

[@timbrwolf1121]

On the other side of the mosin scale. I have a hex receiver finnish conversion that seems to have swapped hands between the soviets and the fins more than once. Dropped 1000 dollars on it last year.

[@bleb87]

@@timbrwolf1121 that's one expensive Mosin. Is it a m28/30?

[@TsumyTsuny]

Much like Poland, Ukraines forces morale are High as they are fighting for their Homeland, unlike the Russians with their Innefective logistics and Rusting tank Doctrine

[@michaelmacias2412]

As a kid (I’m 28 now) I always liked to look at the Big 5 Sporting Goods ad that came in the newspaper everyday and would see Mosins advertised in them. Would those have been surplus or replicas? They were probably going for 200-300 if I remember correctly.

[@egorbananov7738]

@@TsumyTsuny we aren't talking about that tho

[@BraindeadCRY]

Firearms technology really hasn't progressed all that much since late WW2. Everything around it has evolved, optics, attachments, materials, production techniques etc, but the actual firing mechanisms and ammunition are still remarkably similar to these near-antique weapons so they're not to be underestimated even in modern conflicts.

[@jimjamauto]

Reliability, accuracy, and fire rate used to be more mutually exclusive back then. With modern firearms like a gas piston AR platform rifle you can have all three. Comparatively powerful handgun rounds like 9x19mm and .45 ACP were limited to large handguns because the metallurgy was inferior. Now we have subcompact handguns in rounds like 10mm Auto. But yeah we are basically using the same cartridges and bullet types

[@dolsopolar]

Just to remind people that modern “tacticool” weapons were like 50+ years old

[@GettingPissedMan]

Like everything has changed bro. Reciprocal recoil systems, gas and piston systems, trigger assemblies. Yes. Firing pin still hits primer, but outside of that, firearms are substantially more sophisticated than they were 70 years ago

[@sleepyrasta14820]

The technology is near it's limit the next thing is energy weapons. they're testing them on ships just now in the future they will be smaller and portable. Computers used to take up whole rooms now you can carry one around.

[@Baconator5642]

@@matztertaler2777 weve got quite a few weapons using caseless ammo, theyre just not popular because theyre usually rather cumbersome or complicated

[@TheMhalpern]

The US Army still uses a machine gun from WW2, originally built at the tail end of WW1 where it didn't see service, being too late, survived as a naval machine gun, and then became an aircraft gun in WW2 for MANY allied aircraft, and finding a new home as the heavy machine gun on a significant portion of US ground vehicles, the Browning M2 has quite a legacy

[@user-yk2xb1ti2w]

M240 is belt fed BAR

[@sooryan_1018]

M2 browning still being used since 1920s-

[@cosseybomb]

@@user-yk2xb1ti2w B.A.R. is a rifle

[@mattalley7646]

The M2 and the. 50BMG were created cause Gen. PERSHING asked JMB for a gun to stop tanks!

[@m4a1_delta66]

@@user-yk2xb1ti2w Um M240 bravo is 7.62x51 nato and the BAR is 30.06

[@eddyvader22]

Just for the record: Some branches of the Brazilian Military Police still uses the Danish Machine Gun Madsen, which saw use in WW1. Amazing how the reliability and crudeness of the design surpass time

[@LuisFelipe-cz7uw]

Imbel 1a2 discorda. Kkkkk

[@Hut71]

Oh wow, schön zu wissen.

[@tr4nsg0th1ca]

Hey, I actually knew this! And the Madsen's design is not crude. Its action is actually rather beautiful from an engineering perspective; it's basically an automatic falling block rifle... quirky, but well executed.

[@lorenzosyperreck8941]

E no quartel em que eu vivi até uns anos atrás, ainda tinha Mauser no 7mm de antes da 2ªGM guardados na armaria, suficiente para armar mais de um pelotão inteiro. En: In the military base I used to live in a few years back, there still was some Mausers in 7mm from before the WWII stored in the armory, enough to arm more than a platoon

[@matthewsmiley3630]

I’ve seen pictures of the police there using the Madsen also

[@zelithfang2365]

Some guns are simply so well made that they embody the saying "if it ain't broke don't fix it".

[@stg4478]

M2 50 cal MG 42 cal changed to 7.62 x 51 now it's a MG3

[@hawkeyeten2450]

Some planes too. There's a reason that the TU-95, B-52 and other old aircraft remain in service. I'm really curious to see just how long the Mi-24 attack helicopter continues to be used by armies and air forces worldwide. Both Russia and Ukraine have used them with great effectiveness so far, and I'm pretty sure the UN Peacekeeper forces recently used it in a combat zone of western Africa. Heck, even eastern NATO members are modernizing theirs instead of switching to newer equipment.

[@silverhawkscape2677]

Yup. The only thing stopping them now is literally the ammo which is most likely no longer i service. But so long as the ammo is available. They'll keep serving. Just look at the 50 cal.

[@arya31ful]

@@silverhawkscape2677 Many Eastern European guns still chambers 7.62x54mmR rounds used by Mosin-Nagant since late 1800s. SVT, PK, Maxim M1910, SVD. It's basically Eastern counterpart of 7.62x51mm NATO but about 60 years older and still uses rimmed casing.

[@Shinzon23]

1911, Mosin nagant, M2, Garand... I'm missing a few, but these are a few that I feel are timeless designs that you can't really improve on without changing what it is. Yes, I'm aware of the M14 for the garand, but that was a post war thing and apparently not well liked.

[@dannyzero692]

Moral of the story: If it can still shoots, it's still deadly.

[@colasticc7508]

My hair is matted and sticky with warm musky come

[@galvinstanley3235]

The PTRD-51 would be crazy powerful if the Ukrainian's got some green tip and black tip ammo for it.

[@nathanjones411]

Your telling me the kolibri is deadly?

[@BHuang92]

One of the main advantages the Maxim has over some modern machine guns is that it can sustain rate of fire longer then typical air cooled machine guns.

[@alaxlax5405]

pkm has a quick-release barrel. They are usually taken in 2 pieces, when 1 overheats, then in 1 movement you can remove the overheated one and put in a new one (this works in a circle) Google translate

[@spyrosth.5561]

Fun Facts: 1. Most Greek Militias in WW2 had stockpiles of hundreds of muskets and flintlocks that they have acquired from their ansestors that fought in the War of Independence between 1821-1830, with some of them dating to the 1700s. 2. The 101st Bulgarian Alpine Regiment still uses Mosin-Nagants, with some of them dating to the 1890s

[@svetlinivanov6671]

Fun fact:You are brain washed

[@zero-su3un]

For the second one, do they lack the funding to get new weapons or do they just prefer the Moisin-Nagant?

[@koolaid1494]

@@zero-su3un It's most likely just their large quantity, and reliability on the battlefield, considering 100 year old guns still work. Forgot to also mention how cheap they are.

[@arya31ful]

@@koolaid1494 Also ammo availability. Mosin's 7.62x54mmR is still used as a standard "full power" rifle cartridge for Eastern European countries. That's like if the British still chambers their FN MAG with .303 ammo.

[@aryangupta6186]

@@zero-su3un Probably because Bulgaria does'nt require much of a military in the first place

[@MPdude237]

One of the things that makes these weapons still useful is the fact that the ammo is still manufactured and used for newer production guns. 7.62x54R is still used in Cold War and post Cold War designs like the PKM, SVD, SV-98, PKP, and SVDM. Similarly, the 14.5x114mm round is used in the KPV HMG, which is commonly found in early Cold War AA mounts(ZPU-2 and ZPU-4) and in many light armored vehicles, most notably the BRDM-2 and the BTR-80. Whilst other weapons from WW2 would have served just as well, like the Lee Enfield, Gewehr 98, other Maxim variants, or the Solothurn S18-1000, they would not have been as useful and are far less prolific in other conflicts due to the fact that they use ammunition that is no longer mass produced. The only exception to this is the 7.62 Tokarev, but this is because Russia and Ukraine likely has large stockpiles of ammo and Russia still actively manufactures it primarily for the Civilian Market in the decades following the end of the USSR. Also, the humble SKS is another WW2 gun that is certainly used in this conflict, although I am sure it was neglected from this video since it had only a a few months of use in WW2 and is more prominent in Cold War and post-cold war conflicts. Still, I would rather fight with an SKS instead of a Mosin if the need arises.

[@willam1992]

the lee Enfield was used against coalition troops in Iraq/Afghanistan there is a picture of an Australian with a captured lee Enfield

[@MPdude237]

@@willam1992 and that is why I didn’t rule them out entirely. If a gun still goes bang and the bullet flies where it is pointing at, it is still better than no gun. Still good luck finding .303 in the logistics chain.

[@BEZIMMIENY96]

@@MPdude237 And there is 12x99 and and 11x43. Or .50 and .45 if you prefer it in inches. Slightly younger but still in use.

[@FloodExterminator]

Don't forget the SKS! It was issued during the final months of WW2 and it uses the super common 7.62x39mm used in some AK type firearms like the AKM and RPK-74.

[@bionmccool]

@@FloodExterminator 7.62x39 is literally the most common cartridge in the world. It's also dirt cheap in post-soviet countries.

[@zoidbergler2058]

My dad was issued a grease gun when he was deployed to Saudi Arabia for OP desert shield/storm as a Bradley gun operator. He told me that his grease gun was made in 1943 and he also said he liked it a lot more than the mp5 since the grease gun shot .45 ACP ammo compared to the mp5's 9mm ammo

[@Matt-md5yt]

Indeed, just 9mm is cheaper to buy

[@irohito622]

Time stamp: Mosin Nagant 2:50 Maxim M1910 4:08 PPSH 41 5:41 PPS 43 7:38 Tokarev TT 33 9:00 PTRD 41 10:37 PTRS 41 12:50 DP 27 13:44

[@kinggiftson8024]

Do you have a sks gun?

[@irohito622]

@@kinggiftson8024 I don't think the SKS was produced during the Second World War, it was produced during 1945 after the war and brought into service in 1949 which by the time, was already obselete with the now famous ak 47

[@karlthedogwithakar98k95]

It’s not only because there was a vast number of them after WW2 but because they’re reliable, Cheap, and still effective

[@warnMPMP]

Effective*

[@Slenderslayer351]

Especially the German made weapons, those were built to last and it's no wonder why the Kar98k is still a popular rifle even well after the 2nd World War. That and the Mosin Nagant are popular rifles though because of their age, they need to be maintained properly.

[@SubduedRadical]

@@Slenderslayer351 People still use 1911s. A lot of American and British and other non-German designs were ALSO built to last.

[@Slenderslayer351]

@@SubduedRadical I didn't say that non-German designs didn't last because we all know about them, I was just mentioning the Kar98k because it's a popular rifle

[@karlthedogwithakar98k95]

@@warnMPMP they’re yah fucking happy

[@MrGray-dx8sw]

A bullet is a bullet and a firearm is a firearm is still effective regardless of what year it was made and type of war it was made for.

[@mirceazaharia2094]

As long as it's still functional, there's spare parts / ammo to be found for it, and it can put holes in people, it can be used.

[@TomTomMarchy]

say that when aliens invade 😵‍💫

[@patatas08]

@@TomTomMarchy as long as they're organic they can die

[@winchestersons6258]

Have you seen the size of a 7.62x54 round. It makes other rounds pale.

[@baneofbanes]

@@winchestersons6258 not really. Its just a regular rifle round like the .308.

[@AkioKaneko]

12:30 When you kept the OG gun in the game and maxed it out.

[@galacticbananastopmotions7292]

It feels so surreal hearing simple history talk about modern events, but I’m all for it! I still find it amazing that Maxim MGs are still being used.

[@kornaros96]

That's future history.

[@Edgariki]

Its history made live right now. Honestly its weird we can spectate a whole war and discuss it with completely strangers, while being kilometres away. Feels a little bit surreal.

[@galacticbananastopmotions7292]

@@Edgariki for real

[@monarchist1838]

Reminds me of how the Brown Bess musket saw action well into the 19th century. Used by some in the US Civil War at the Battle of Shiloh and even proved its worth amongst the Zulus in 1879. Some even turned up in the Boxer Rebellion of 1889.

[@kevinbaboolal4225]

Bruh brown bess muskets were discovered being used in afghanistan in the 2nd gulf war

[@tonylam9548]

I think the British excel in banning guns than to design any good ones. That is why they had to keep the Bess so long. You look at the Sten, it is garbage , compare with the MG42 designed in the same era and war time condition. They can make good guns, but no one can afford them.

[@andyrewpantah94]

@@kevinbaboolal4225 are you serious

[@mckutzy]

@@andyrewpantah94 yup....Muskets were still being used by some tribal people and others who just didn't have much else or.... was using it as it had being in the family for many generations... It'll kill just as much as any others, just about 3 rounds a minute in any weather, if the man was good enough...

[@cbeaudry4646]

Certain muzzle loading rifles only need a musket ball (easy to make) and gunpowder which can be easier to get in some instances than specific cartridge rounds Also, while not warfare, some criminals in the US use cap and ball revolvers as they can be bought and traded with almost no legal supervision, and ex-cons who cannot legally own modern firearms can legally have them

[@doomguyslowresolutionmodel407]

The Philippine Armed Forces still have M1 Carbines and M1 Garands in use with some Army reservists. The Philippine Marine Corps also modified most of the M3 Grease Guns in their arsenal with picatinny rails to fit modern optics. They still work pretty fine.

[@weaner556]

No one asking pinoy.

[@mirceazaharia2094]

Thanks for sharing that with us. It's crazy how long-lived some designs can be. The grandsons of the men who fought the Japanese occupiers are still using some of the weapons their grandfathers may have used.

[@theotherohlourdespadua1131]

And the rebel groups (like the New People's Army) still use worn out Springfields and Arisakas from its meager arsenals...

[@rosaria8384]

Ngl the Grease Guns they modified prove a lot, even tank crews in the US military still use it.

[@doomguyslowresolutionmodel407]

@@weaner556 we malding already?

[@The_Corporal]

The war in Ukraine takes us back to WW2 like a time machine.

[@sebastijanglozinic8630]

The PPSh-41 might date back to WW2, but tanks to its very high rate of fire and high magazine capacity (with the drum), it is still a serisouly dangerous weapon for close combat room clearing. It is also very simple to use, which makes it an effective weapon for militias with limited training.

[@TheShreddedSnorlax]

As a history teacher and military historian, I get asked fairly often by COD playing students and friends "What's the best weapon?" My answer remains the same: "The one you've got, that works, that you have ammo for, that you can maintain. A 100-year-old Mosin Nagant with iron sights will still kill you just as well as a brand new AK100 series, provided of course it is maintained and you have ammunition." Great video Simple History! Keep it up :) It wouldn't be the first one of your videos I've linked in a lesson!

[@asian_slav1851]

For me the best weapon in the battlefield is the radio, because with the radio you can just call the artillery, the air support or the other troops to deal the problem that is bothering u.

[@randomtexanguy9563]

@@asian_slav1851 That is of course, if you can live long enough to call for support and wait for it to arrive.

[@lordwalrus8615]

@@asian_slav1851 assuming that you have artillery and airsupport submitted to you

[@moteroargentino7944]

@Asian_ Slav18 That's the best strategical weapon, not just radio but communications in general. Soldiers in the field are more concerned about tactical weapons, the ones that allow you to win the battle at hand or at least stay alive. I'd pick a rifle over the radio any day.

[@asian_slav1851]

@@moteroargentino7944 combine it and you're the most dangerous man in the battlefield.

[@happyhowey]

I’m legally obligated to nitpick military stuff - the PTRD 41’s 14.5mm cartridge wasn’t “very effective” against infantry/personnel, it was absolutely lethal. The hydrostatic shock from a limb shot would tear the limb off (in all likelihood), and a body shot would create an unstoppable bleed, if not outright killing the individual.

[@Razor-gx2dq]

I've seen what .50 BMG does to a ballistic dummy torso, wild stuff, I assume that the PTRS and PTRD would provide similar results

[@nikitajukov4915]

There was a really brutal footage of the early days of invasion, when some territorial defence guys tried to burn down Russian vehicles with Molotovs. Seems russians disagreed about that and answered firing 14.5 mm MGs from their APCs. It was literally half a man left in the soil...

[@stanfordwillis4841]

Yes that is very true, but you should only use it that way in case of an emergency as the barrel wear on those weapons is huged, and so it is important to make every shot count if on the frontline if you don't want to have to request a new 10ish kg barrel every week

[@stanfordwillis4841]

@@Razor-gx2dq Not similar, a lot more impressive

[@TY-pf6vb]

I have a weird obsession with gore and following Ukraine conflict since 2014 and yes some of gore I’ve came across soldiers are completely turned into ground beef I would like to assume it’s because of these weapons.

[@piobmhor8529]

One that was missed was the venerable SKS-45. Although most think of it as a Cold War weapon, it was introduced late in WW2. I have seen some news coverage in Ukraine where support troops are carrying SKSs.

[@jamesconner1639]

Outstanding Simple History! Well done 👍

[@Trey_816]

Dad said he wanted to use his grandfather's M1 Garand in the Afghanistan Campaign, but used an M16A4.

[@Captain_Yorkie1]

There's a chance that someone in the Ukrainian Conflict is using the exact same weapon their grandparents used.

[@hawkeyeten2450]

Heck, there's even a chance some are fighting on the exact same spot of ground as their grandparents (just facing the other direction). The German troops engaged the Soviets (which at the time of course, included Ukrainians) in massive battles around Kharkiv for example. As one elderly Ukrainian man bluntly put it in an interview, "This isn't the first time our communities have gone through this".

[@terranceaddison4599]

Or great-grandparents used

[@yambag155]

Thats a great observation

[@Antero_14_based_88]

@@hawkeyeten2450 Ukrainian people already shot soviets in Russian civil war. So maybe the side won't change

[@randomname-cc9hc]

@@hawkeyeten2450 there is even chance to face the same direction, because batle of Kruty actually happened and this time Ukranians won

[@baroquer]

SH your simplified animations are TOP OF THE NOTCH, just love 'em

[@WalruswithTaste]

There's also a few Thompsons around in Ukraine. Presumably they're leftovers from Lend Lease when the Soviet Union had a temporary shortage of smgs so they got some Reisings and various Thompson models from the Brits and Americans.

[@DeezNuts-ju1rj]

RATTLE 'EM BOYS!

[@cmac3530]

The guy who shoulder fired the PTRS-41 is an absolute chad. That is like trying to accurately aim an Olympic barbell. (45lbs) Not to mention the amount of recoil that monster must produce.

[@brianwong7285]

Especially since that rifle's ammo is waaaay bigger than even the OSV-96's 12.7x108mm rounds.

[@galmdemonlord32]

For the record, it was based on an actual video

[@svetlana__-cc2xh]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/gKG4iWqel7Shb5o

[@Hamsteak]

I actually own a TT-33, it's a fun little pistol. Definitely bot the best pistol but it's a fun piece of history. And the Tokovev round is a fun round to shoot, has white the kick and most are hot rounds from Norinco

[@timeforgottenprince8271]

As the saying goes, "Old, but gold"

[@timbrwolf1121]

There is a story of an entire US or NATO platoon being held down in either iraq or afghanistan (unsure of all the details) by what they thought was a machine gun nest. One well received airstrike later and they discovered three dead taliban with lee enfield rifles. They were apparently putting the lee enfield through its paces and delivering effective volley fire to such an extent that the platoon leaders mistook them for a machine gun.

[@mirceazaharia2094]

They had mastered the art of the "mad minute", much like the British infantrymen of WW1 and WW2.

[@jasongunningham9545]

Bullshit

[@lordpumpkinhead265]

That must've been great coordination to keep firing bolt action weaponry in the same succession as that of a machine gun, not factoring in reloading.

[@muntadar1655]

Definitely afghanistan, taliban don't exist in IQ

[@davidblair9877]

One serviceman told me that, during his tours, the teenagers with AKs never worried him. They couldn't hit the broad side of a barn while standing next to it. The sixty-year-old man with a Mosin-Nagant or Lee-Enfield? Those scared him. They’d been using that rifle for forty years and could headshot a rabbit at 100 meters.

[@GCho733]

Taiwan still uses 240mm Howitzers from WW2 in the defence of Kinmen. There maybe more modern versions of the M2 Browning, but it's bones are still from the end of WW1. I've heard that, in WW1, Napoleonic-era mortars were used to fill the gap for lack of trench mortars. Italy used black-powdered Vetterlis converted to fire 6.5 Carcano (not the wisest decision, but they had to) Heck, the 1911 is still a preferred pistol by some militaries. Old/Obsolete doesn't equal non-lethal. And in times of war, you use what you can get your hands on...

[@safetymikeengland]

Agreed. The 1911 pistol, the M2HB, and 303 British are 3 of my favorite antique firearms. The 1st 2 of these could be very useful on todays battlefield. Even the 303 could still be used to good effect.

[@perpetuallymediocre3453]

1911 is everywhere

[@Burningsteel]

How about the german MG 42(now MG3) still in use and produced in Greece by the *Hellenic Arms* corporation. No one in his right mind want to be on the recieving end of this old weapons.

[@prakashghumaliya2002]

Thank you for video sir

[@ChaplainPhantasm]

Another fun tidbit about the Maxim in Ukraine: There were a few guys that stuck two of those puppies together and mounted a Reflex Sight on. Presumably for more accurate shots, but I wanna believe they did it because they can

[@gozogo1233]

Now there is a triple and quad maxim

[@556hp]

Just last week I was lucky enough to get a personalized tour of a gunshop's weapons vault that held various different rare rifles, pistols, submachine guns & LMGs from every era going back 100+ years. I was shocked at how light, say, the H&K MP5 was while equally shocked at how big & heavy the MG42 was. Though I didn't get the chance to actually fire any these weapons I'll never forget it.

[@Skidracer21]

And the wild part is that while the MP5 is a design encroaching upon being 60 years old, it still finds use today alongside more versatile rifle-caliber weapons in CQB roles despite the desire by the units thst use them to have weapons that can defeat body armor.

[@johnknight416]

I think that another major reason why we still see these WW2 weapons being used today is because the same ammunition that is being used for these guns are also still being used in present modern day weapons.

[@walterbar3118]

When I was in Poland on holiday last year, I found magazines for the DP-27 in a NATO-shop. Still oiled and unused. I wonderd that they - more than 70 years after world war 2 - they still had a surplus to sell.

[@oliversherman2414]

I love your channel keep up the great stuff

[@thinstep4488]

Funfact: In the yugoslav wars (1991-1995) usage of WW2 Weaponry was not uncommon.

[@Shagyamum]

Saw a vid of Kosovo in 1999 (Yugoslav wars actually lasted until 2001) where someone had an mp40

[@urbanie]

very true, Serbian Zastava produced copies of the following guns: mg42, tt33, mauser 98k, sks, pps43 and such. i think they also had some weapons left in stock from WW2 such as Thompsons

[@rustyloonmarko7221]

My grandfather used a PPSH-41 during that war

[@lordgarion514]

The thing about saying something is obsolete just because it's old, is that your saying infinite meaningful improvements are possible. As far as the universe goes, even the most complicated machine gun is a very simple system. As such, only so much can be done. World war II pretty much got the machine gun worked out pretty well.

[@Uragan00829]

Bolt guns are absolete in modern combat. (Not as snipers)

[@SubduedRadical]

@@Uragan00829 "(Not as snipers)" ...which makes them not obsolete, right? :) They still have a use, and a lot of militia/insurgent forces likely strike from hidden vantage points and sniper positions. Making them rather useful in modern combat.

[@okie2464]

@@SubduedRadical i agree the mosin was also powerful that it almost got banned back then by the geneva convention because of how inhumane it dealt wounds to the victim.

[@Alex_D_Vasilkov]

Love the reference to that one famous video at 13:22

[@ckl9390]

0:12 I see the distinctive outlines of a Mosin-Nagant, they are very good hunting rifles. And yes, those will always have a use, even if you run out of ammunition. With bayonet affixed the most common models are a 5 1/2 ft spear. There is a Canadian military division that still use Lee-Enfields. (Or until recently at least, there was an attempt to procure replacements that I didn't hear more about). Although they're technically a scouting force and the guns are ostensibly more for self-defence from polar bears than combating enemy troops. (Although, being honest, if a shot can kill a half-ton hungry apex predator, a human is also going to be equally dead from the same shot.) There simply wasn't need to replace them, and many modern firearms that potentially could meet the criteria would experience problems in Arctic cold in the winter, and pervasive damp in the summer. There's also the issue that most modern military firearms use an intermediate or pistol cartridge, and not a full or "high" power cartridge. This is to make rapid spray fire economical and easier on the user, while not wasting potential trying to hit an enemy who is usually only 100-200m away at most. Combined with the largely open terrain a full power cartridge for efficacy at distance is called for.

[@NaCl1252]

These weapons are the definition of “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it”

[@zelithfang2365]

Thanks ro today's technology and how easily things can be shared this war has given use many interesting pictures. I've actually seen many interesting guns. Some very old and some very new. Saw this nice modified DP machine gun. Let's just hope this conflict ends soon.

[@chaosfire321]

There's something brutally impressive about a modernized anti-tank rifle.

[@Castor586]

This just goes to show that the most important quality of any firearm is the ballistics. Innovations for ballistics has seen very limited progress in the past century. As the video implied, most of the progress that firearms have made were to ease of use and overall quality. But at the end of the day, a gun that fires *enter bullet spec here* during WWII still has the same ballistic aspect as a modern firearm that uses the same round

[@xXxKAMIKAZExXx]

Apparently the Madsen machine gun is still in use and that thing existed before the Great War.

[@c-money9623]

A bit unrelated but in the book WWZ. The Russians fend off the zombie hordes with t-34s and conscripts with old WW2 equipment.

[@mirceazaharia2094]

Pity the Chinese used their militias as essentially human sacrifices in the book. But the Indians came up with the infantry square formation which the Americans later perfected and used to great effect during their March to the Atlantic. And let's not forget the Scottish mad lads who took and held a castle against the undead, nor the Japanese which cleared out a good bit of their homeland with melee weapons.

[@c-money9623]

@@mirceazaharia2094 Don't forget those scuba guys that cleared out sewers with harpoon guns!

[@Hardrockfan21]

This was such a cool book to read for the action. Nice reference 👌

[@rudisp88]

Cool Channel, thx 4 the good content

[@cstag]

Brilliant video.

[@marinlukacek7821]

Dont forget that SVT-40 was used in First and Second Chechen war

[@keegantripp1245]

Just goes to say that you don’t need all the fancy attachments, and high expensive quality weapons. What matters is the weapon’s are reliable, munitions plentiful, and easy to use makes them able to compete against modern designs.

[@baneofbanes]

Don’t discount modern weapon attachments like that. These guns are inky just barely holding onto relevance as is and generally the first thing that give meets do with them is modernizing them by finding a way to attach modern attachments to them.

[@rosaria8384]

Never underestimate modern weapon attachments. Even the old toys can be given new bling. An example would be the Philippine Marines using decked out Grease guns fitted with a modern optic, or even putting picattiny rails in old weapons.

[@SubduedRadical]

While it's true modern attachments are useful, they also aren't EVERYTHING, either. At the end of the day, the question is if a gun is reliable, accurate, and if you can get ammunition for it. Especially weapons used more as sniper or marksmen rifles, fancy attachments aren't necessarily that much of a gain over skill and knowledge of the wielder. There's a reason a lot more military and paramilitaries use AK-47s over AR-15s. As someone that prefers the latter, the truth is that the AK is still a serviceable weapon that is easy to find ammo for and can fire in almost any conditions, while requiring little in the way of complicated maintenance. At the end of the day, if you shoot a Human in the head, it doesn't matter if your weapon is a century old or not. All the attachments in the world are designed to make this easier, but a decent scope on an outdated hunting rifle can achieve the same thing as a red dot and pistol grip with a modern picatinni rail with attached bipod and adjustable/collapsing stock with an under-slung shotgun attachment.

[@moteroargentino7944]

I mean, there are definitely advantages in better weapons and attachments. But they can be levelled by skill or numbers. The only attachment that I think can make a huge difference, is night vision sights. No way to counter that with just skill.

[@Unknown_393]

I think the most important thing is the person using the weapon itself, any weapon can be deadly with the perfect shot to the eye or forehead

[@user-kr7yh8vw9m]

Thank you for this informative video Simple History. It amazes me that even the most obsolete of guns are still used today. Merry Christmas and Happy New Year🕊🎅🎁🎆.

[@-Castial-]

Really loved the fact that you include the soldier firing the ptrs 41 :D

[@davidkanengieter]

Ukraine has thousands of SVT 40 rifles in inventory. A variety of various Mauser models have also been used by both Ukrainian and separatist militias.

[@lovepeace9727]

Are they separatist or freedom fighters?)

[@KrissXSuper]

@@lovepeace9727 separatist

[@lovepeace9727]

@@KrissXSuper but they are fighting for their freedom, kinda like Mujaheddin back in 80's

[@davidkanengieter]

@@lovepeace9727 the separatists are fighting for Russia and Russian ideology because Russia told them to. Not many would say that is freedom.

[@arya31ful]

@@davidkanengieter The main difference is the mujahiddeen wanted to defend their homeland and the separatists wanted to attack their own homeland.

[@thomasprochaska5083]

very interesting and correct informative video. Congratulations!!

[@communism_is_wrong7167]

Many people forget is that this is not civilization, or a stat sheet. These guns will kill the enemy regardless and these older weapons tend to be reliable and powerful making them completely viable on a modern battlefield

[@houjisaifeddine5524]

there is no HP bar irl. if you get shot, you die. end of discussion

[@SubduedRadical]

@@houjisaifeddine5524 Well, depending on where you get shot. But the point stands and is accurate - get shot in the face with even a 1700s musket and you're not going to be having a good day. Most of these weapons still have effective ranges comparable to battlefield weapons of today, especially the sniper rifle type weapons, which are every bit as useful now as they would have been 50 years ago.

[@HalalSaulGoodman]

@@SubduedRadical Sniper rifles still have a stand because, uhh, their destruction.

[@Howlingburd19]

It’s amazing once you realize just how… influential that WW2 generation was

[@Progamermove_2003]

The WW2 generation basically created the current world order as it is today (collapse of USSR not withstanding).

[@Howlingburd19]

@@Progamermove_2003 they’re also known as the G.I. Generation and are often nicknamed the “Greatest Generation”, and definitely for some good reasons

[@abramjones9091]

Yeah, the society they built sure sucks!

[@Starobrno341]

Amazing video, about amazing guns 👍❤️

[@docternoblex]

3:56, Zaitzev actually used the PEM scope in his era, the PU scope was less common

[@chrislaurent1137]

If the weapon can still fight, it’ll fight once more, regardless of the time period

[@YaBoiBrendo]

Unless it’s a flintlock weapon. By todays standards, they’re worthless.

[@chrislaurent1137]

@@YaBoiBrendo most likely a very last resort if you got nothin else

[@Awfulfeature]

If it can still, shoot, reload and kill reliably. It is never truly obsolete.

[@epistimonkapetanios]

I have seen a photo of a Russian soldier carrying a sword a along with his rifle.

[@planderlinde1969]

@@epistimonkapetanios "An officer who does not go into battle with his sword is improperly dressed" - Mad Jack Churchill

[@Russianbro777]

The Mosin isn't the most modern but it is still very effective 7.62x54 is a excellent round.

[@GameTavern2224]

If it sends led it works. Least it's a firearm. I heard some poor Russian cat was basically given a pellet gun in the field and was told to figure it out

[@letsgobrandon5916]

Still kept my mosin. It’s simply part of history I would never let it go.

[@strickersniper7909]

The only thing that is really outdated is the old muzzle loaders. Until something better than breach loading can be found we will continue to see old weapons in use.

[@suacemanaquiatan9380]

What about the muzzle loader?

[@DiggingFrance]

After a nuclear war, they would probably be the only guns people could make their own ammo for!

[@sparta2705]

@@DiggingFrance there were cartridges made for black powder

[@DiggingFrance]

@@sparta2705 correct! I collect them. The chasspot was the first military rifle to use them, in paper, then metal in 1866. However metal cartridge s were being used since the 1830 in carnivals with the flobert rifles and lafauceux was using them in his revolvers long before the military adopted them.

[@sparta2705]

@@DiggingFrance and the morse carbine adopted by the south Carolina militia in the civil war

[@McLovin-zf7wq]

This isn’t related to the video, but I wanted to suggest you guys do a video about the North Hollywood Shootout. I think it’d be pretty interesting to learn about and see more in depth information from you guys. Thanks for the amazing video though, I look forward to watching it!

[@someonewhospams0w0inchat16]

No they will not 😈😈😈

[@Gary109]

Would be nice but channel’s too bias

[@preludetodemise]

My old man did a little time in an airborne tank unit in the 90s and was issued an m3 grease gun. By the time I enlisted in 2018 I don't think anyone used them anymore though, I've never seen one fired in person but I've always wanted one.

[@joeyakathug5215]

In Korea, we have a slang of "Abusing old folks" in military enthusiast community, meaning old military equipment are being used to this day. And Korean military enthusiast community will put Mosin Nagant as it's prime example, along side Patton M60 as it's still used in front line combat in Korean Marines

[@cuongtrancong5799]

Fun fact: some of French and WWII weapon such as Mass rifle, M1 rifle, Garand, mosin nagant, some of old russia weapon and MATT modified SMG still use for civilian self-defense force in VietNam. I FROM VIETNAM

[@aleka22k]

Brilliant video! Love these types of videos, particularly ww2 and ww1 based: my favorite topics via history

[@walterbar3118]

When I did my time in the German Bundeswehr in the early 2000s. We still used the Wehrmacht P38 pistol (Bundeswehr names it P1) and the MG3, wich was basicly the good old MG42 with slight modification. My G3 was produced in the early 60s ans might - brandnew - havebeen used as my dads weapon. The pistols ans machineguns were so old, the might have been used by my grandpa during the war.

[@seashellguy9416]

ngl german machine guns are pretty cool

[@howtomundane3109]

The MG3 is only slowly being phased out and replaced by MG5s, because they are still running quite well.

[@CJ-hj3co]

The lesson of the day: Just because it's old, does not mean it's garbage.

[@chroniccrypto5621]

The Mosin is a great rifle, as well as the SKS. I own both guns and have owned the carbine version of the Mosin, and currently have an official ex sniper Tula Mosin and a PU scope for it, but this rifle is one of the only ones with the original stock and fixed wood from where the pu scope bolted in at and is worth more without the scope attached. Very accurate and powerful round.

[@nikitajukov4915]

Can't say that Mosin is as great. It's front heavy, have straight stock grip and design is stupidly over engineered. It has some features really neat for a guy in the field, like extreme ease of maintenance operations but it is better to be not over hyped by historical significance of that rifle.

[@MrZcar350]

And the Finns are finally retiring it (along with their SVDs) where it's been a sniper as the 7.62 TKIV 85, built in the 80s on old Mosin-Nagant receivers, with the Sako M23.

[@cooliphonetricks]

@@MrZcar350 Don't worry, we don't have enough budget to replace them all so I guarantee they'll still be kept in warehouses. Just a couple years ago my friend trained on a TKiV 85 as a designated marksman/sniper.

[@Alex462047]

I've hunted with both the carbine and full-length versions of the 1891/30. The carbine is a lot of fun, you get a 3ft sheet of flame out the muzzle on every shot with Barnaul ammunition. The full-length Mosin i hunted with using iron sights (not a great fan of scopes, personally, they narrow your field of vision a lot, among other things). The accuracy i could achieve with it was perfectly adequate.

[@nikitajukov4915]

@@Alex462047 yeah, Mosins are known to be very accurate, especially if bedding is not messed up, but comparing to most of WWII rifles, full-length variant was kinda unwieldy, at least for me personally. Carbine actually is really great thing to carry, but you still got some issues of the design.

[@azimisyauqieabdulwahab9401]

In Malaysia, several guns during WW2 era still using including Lee Enfield, M1911 & Sten

[@galaxy-wg1lf]

I am very happy with this video. You managed to make a video about the war in Ukraine without including propaganda of either side

[@davidodonovan1699]

Well done in making this video. You do great work. God bless you sir. Hello from Ireland BTW.🇮🇪💚🤍🧡🕊✝️☘🇺🇲❤🤍💙💜

[@j.peters1222]

The TT pistol is such a nice gun. Fits real well in your hand. One of the better handguns of WWII in my opinion.

[@blushingralseiuwu2222]

A sad gun?

[@ausernamed]

@@blushingralseiuwu2222 hapy gun

[@mjatriumxironreign8969]

The Nagant 1895 and the Mosin nagant 91/30 was used in Ww1 and ww2 which shows how good these guns are

[@bs84578]

very popular in India and most expensive here sells in india in 20,000 DOLLARS IN INDIA. 2nd highest sale after 32 long revolver and 32acp pistol as 9mm is not allowed for civilaians here Ipersonaly own 32long revolver .

[@cooliphonetricks]

I mean it's basically a direct copy of the Colt 1903 in 7.62x25. The design had been proven for years even before the TT.

[@doggod8152]

YES finally this what I’ve been waiting for! Thank you SO much for this Simple History

[@stevenrusch6341]

As a Gears of War fan, this reminds me of how the Retro Lancer, the Markza, and the Booshka, old-fashioned Locust War Mk 2 Lancers were once more pressed into service.

[@Nick-1992-SRB]

That’s a good thing WW2 guns used some nice nostalgia 👌🏼

[@zacharybailey8561]

WOW Simple history, I have been an avid watcher since 2016...Your attention to detail on weapons an uniforms never ceases to amaze me. Keep it up!

[@jameswells554]

We still use the M2-HB .50 caliber machine gun in the US Military, and it was designed during WWI. The only changes that have been made are cosmetic; the handgrips are high impact plastic, and the trigger is now a butterfly rather than the finger loops it first had (though I'm pretty sure those are probably still in a warehouse somewhere just in case).

[@Flan67]

As far as I remember, some units still use the Colt 1911 pistol too. 2 guns with a centenarian design.

[@ruqwer1456]

Good weapone, will be steel good after the ages

[@bobverick]

Mosin-Nagant was my first hunting rifle. It’s a good rifle and easy to maintain.

[@authentic_ametin]

Not surprised PPSH-41 is still used, its insane ROF is still deadly in today's conflicts

[@recheat8264]

People ignoring the fact that M18s, M1911/1911, M2 Browning and browning high powers are still used by modern militaries? Oh yeah let’s not forget the AK-47 and I think quite a few mortar systems as well.

[@naraedhawigar12]

Bruh

[@monstermoviefan9771]

Great content in relation to current events. Top tier quality channel.

[@akumadaYT]

There wasn't a 'War, war never changes' joke at the beginning and I am immeasurably dissapointed. Fantastic video as per usual 👍

[@appelmelk5664]

i like how you animated that video of the slav dude shoulder firing the PTRS as he is walking forward

[@dimazaharov8565]

I mean, it/s not a weapon that kills, it's bullets. Weapons are just different platforms to launch them.

[@yoyoyomartinjason4866]

This video is awesome, I never seen a history channel talking about the current event, but keep doing the good work!

[@randominternetguy88]

"If it ain't broke, don't fix it." when it comes to firearms and weapons, this phrase is extremely common to be seen irl.

[@Mrgunsngear]

Thanks

[@terranceaddison4599]

They're like the "toyota of firearms" Affordable, reliable, durable, interchangeable, Mass-produced and simple on maintenance

[@batticusmanacleas510]

This makes me think of the American M2 heavy machine gun. Ma Deuce has been in service for 101 years now, having been designed at the tail end of WW1. A mainstay of the US military and in use by so many other nations I'd have to Google to hope to name them all.

[@alanbud5181]

If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.

[@TheHammerGuy94]

Don't forget the classic boomer weapon that also refused to die The colt M1911!!! Designed by the same guy as the m2 heavy machine gun

[@adsdestroyer7390]

WW2 Weapons are awesome like MG42 and STG44 also the PPSH 41 is better because it has many rounds like the Machine Gun

[@vasilijepapovic9092]

Nice video

[@neofulcrum5013]

War never ends, war never changes

[@izzaabrarsyah4845]

This a War about freedom

[@TinyBearTim]

@@izzaabrarsyah4845 that’s what we said about Afghanistan

[@J--12]

@Russian Waifu Just so you know, the utter barbarian scum that are urinian army are literally naw-tzee-s. They have funny red-white-black german flags of WW2 in every second house and they been killing the russian population in their second world country without any repercussion for the last ten or so years. Oh but since reddit and other CIA-controlled news networks support that country (almost as if they are somehow have a hand in all of this) the current thing supporters immediately jump on the hype train and those nazis they wanted to punch so much are one of their own. Well whatever, soon these swines will be rotting either in the ground or jail, preferably the first.

[@Cadriul]

@@TinyBearTim .. I mean if you use more than two brain cells you can easily see that this war is different. Ukraine is fighting for its survival in a war it didn’t start nor wanted.

[@affan3095]

@@TinyBearTim or Iraq or Libya or Vietnam.... only blood Money wins war nothing else

[@josephbrown4768]

I'm happy Simple History is here. Great channel. Reminds me that I'm living in History every now and again.

[@urosmarkovic6535]

12:37 that's something you only could see in some anime war game 😂😂

[@lorisperfetto6021]

This is actually outstanding