Rhodesian weapons

**Chas Lotter** · 29-01-2011, 11:54

There was a wide variety of weapons used by one side or the other during the Rhodesian War.

We all know about the FN-FAL's, the H&K G3's, the AK47's and the AKM's - but what about the rest?

Here is one to kick off the thread with......

The very first liberation force firearms captured by the Rhodesian security forces, in the 1960's, were Lanchester smg's.

I have, on file, a series of emails from former BSAP members who remember a police roadblock where they stopped and searched a car only to find the boot full of Lanchester smg's.

Since, in those early days, the Brits were still talking to the Rhodesians, a rather stiff protest was lodged with London about British military weapons being supplied to Rhodesian liberation fighters.

After investigating the serial numbers, the rather embarrassed Brits came back and said that these were Royal Navy weapons which had been marked as obsolete and tossed off a ship into the ocean off Dar-Es-Salaam.

Somebody had tossed bags of scrap metal into the ocean and sold the weapons to the Egyptians. The Egyptians, in turn, supplied them to Rhodesian liberation forces being trained in Egypt.

**G-force** · 21-02-2011, 16:02

Thanks for that bit of info.The Britte really dropped us Rhodies in more ways than one.

**BigT** · 21-02-2011, 16:28

They also had some very cool looking Browning A-5's with extended mag tubes and full length fore ends. They must been very heavy clunky things but very distinctive.

**G-force** · 21-02-2011, 16:39

Originally Posted by BigT

They also had some very cool looking Browning A-5's with extended mag tubes and full length fore ends. They must been very heavy clunky things but very distinctive.

I've seen some pics of youngsters slinging these things...they look about 18yrs old...carrying this serious ass gun.

**Lance76** · 21-02-2011, 16:53

We all started early there, used to have some photos and 8mm film of me aged about 4 or so loading FN mags,or at least trying to.

**G-force** · 21-02-2011, 16:56

I too have old 8mm film..I think we converted it to video though.I have footage of my grandad helping with the build of Kariba dam.

**Lance76** · 21-02-2011, 16:59

small world hey, my granfather did some road building in the valley at the time, to get some equipment up that way.

**G-force** · 21-02-2011, 17:11

Hercules Marinos is his name.He is 93 now.Still strong like the bulldozers he maintained.H e was a diesel mack and more than likely worked on your grandads equipment.Small world indeed.

**Lance76** · 21-02-2011, 17:22

John Knott was his, but normaly went by the name jack. he died in 85 i think it was, would have been 103 now.
and sorry for hi-jack.

all i really recal were the FN types that had to be carted around old man was TA so 8 weeks in 6 weeks out and his work gun, he worked in the postoffice,

**StefanM** · 22-02-2011, 08:25

I'm trying to find out what handguns they used.

Apart from various grenades, landmines and claymores, they had mortars, Browning 12.7's

And of course the unique Rhodesian invention, the Bunker Bomb