On this page: Weapons / Equipment

• Vickers .303 water cooled - Veterans of the first World War, these machine guns were among the first weapons issued to LRDG patrols. They proved to be pretty reliable and remained in service throughout the African campaign. Shortage of cooling water was successfully overcome by filling them with Hypoid oil.

 

The water cooled .303 Vickers


 
• Lewis Mk. I - Another remnant of the first World War, the Lewis Mk.1 .303 calibre was a common sight on LRDG trucks during their early days. The exposed magazine base proved to be pretty susceptible to sand, and the weapons had a nasty tendency to jam if not cleaned regularly.

 

The Lewis Mk.I


 
• Boyse A/T Rifle - A rather old-fashioned design, the Boyse was a high-velocity rifle shooting a special armor-penetrating projectile. While it was effective at penetrating vehicle armor at several hundred feet, the amount of damage done by the non-explosive bullet was negligible (the chances of hitting something vital inside the vehicle were pretty slim). The Boyse rifles were soon discarded by the Group, to be replaced by the much more effective 37mm Bofors and later, captured Breda guns (see here).

 

The Boyse Antitank Rifle, obviously on a W/T truck


 
• Browning Aircraft Pattern - These heavy .5in machine guns were among the most powerful weapons in LRDG's arsenal, proving especially effective against air attacks. To a limited extent, the .50cal could even be used against armored vehicles; it has been noted by several people that at the time, a Jeep armed with a single .50cal could well hold its own against a light tank due to its advantage in speed and maneuverability.

 

An LRDG trooper proudly displaying his Browning.


 
• Vickers K/KO - The Vickers K (twin gun) and KO (basically same design, single gun) were a common sight both on LRDG and SAS vehicles; originally designed for Aircraft use, LRDG was equipped with a number of these machine guns after the RAF's Lysanders were put out of service and stripped of their weapons. These weapons had to be fitted with improvised stocks and triggers in order to be operated manually.

 

An SAS Jeep armed with twin Vickers. Note the single Vickers KO in the back of the vehicle.

• No. 11 Radio Set - The British No.11 Radio set was standard equipment for LRDG's wireless trucks. Standard operational range for voice transmission for this set was 15 miles; using morse code and an external antenna, communication over distances of several hundred miles could be achieved. The largest recorded distance of an LRDG patrol using a No.11 set was 1500 miles.
  LRDG patrols used the Wyndon Aerial which consisted of a wire of variable length stretched between two poles. Wireless trucks can easily be identified on photos by the disassembled poles mounted to the side of the vehicle.



The No.11 set as depicted in the set's manual.

A No.11 set in prime condition.

Schematic drawing of the Wyndon Aerial from the manual.


 
• Sun Compass - Due to the influences of the vehicle moving about and the car's metal parts, navigation by magnetic compass while driving in a car is comparatively inaccurate. While this effect is easily corrected by checking against landscape features like mountains, rivers etc., the absence of such features in desert terrain made magnetic compasses almost totally useless for LRDG units. They resorted to using sun compasses, which basically record the sun's position and give the direction according to the current time of day. For exact navigation, it was thus essential to know the exact time, and LRDG radio operators had the additional duty of constantly monitoring BBC's time signals.

 

The dashboard of a restored 30cwt Chevy with a good view of the sun compass

Detailed view of the sun compass


 
• Water Condenser - This simple yet ingenious device invented by LRDG officer Ralph Bagnold in the 1920's quickly became a standard piece of equipment for car engines, thus not only enabling the desert patrols to use their vehicles in extreme temperatures, but also greatly contributing to the reliability of car engines in general: As opposed to earlier water cooling systems which allowed boiling water to evaporate through a vent on top of the radiator, Bagnold simply placed a pipe on top of that vent, collecting all the steam and directing it to an external container where it condensed back to water. As the engine cooled, pressure in the radiator would drop and the water from the external container would be sucked back into the cooling system.

 

Both water condenser and sun compass are clearly visible on this WB Chevy