The Building Of The Berlin Wall - 1961-1962 - Flashbak
On August 13 1961, work began on the Berlin Wall. On 23 August, almost no citizens could pass between East and West Berlin.
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He is no fool who gives what he cannot keep to gain that which he cannot lose
There are no great men, only great challenges that ordinary men are forced by circumstances to meet.
I seem to recall that the east Germans had a special bolt action rifle chambered for the 5,45x39mm cartridge to use against civilians crossing from the wall ?
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"The M1 Blaster Rifle is an older blaster that pre-dates the Clone Wars by nearly a century. It was manufactured by Garand Armory and was purchased in large quantities by the Old Republic for use by security forces in the border regions of the galaxy. These blasters have remained in service due to their sturdiness, reliability, and ease of use. Its oversized plasma coil and gas nozzle allow for impressive range and damage, easily penetrating the toughest of armor. However, it is notoriously inefficient, causing the blaster to quickly consume power packs. To remedy this the designers added an auto-ejector for empty power packs to facilitate frequent reloads."
I remember it quite well as my father was stationed in West Germany from 1959 to 1964. I traveled to Berlin before the wall went up and after it's initial building phase. The Communist propaganda at the time it was built to keep the West out and protect the East Germans from "bad" Western influences like freedom, Rock 'n Roll, and those issues that goes along with the West. As a young kid, the one thing that stood out of my trip was the East Guard guard who got on the train had a PPSH41 with a drum magazine. What puzzled me was that the guard was wearing heavy woolen socks with a pair of sandals and not the regular "jack" boots. It was in the Winter and cold. Later I mentioned that to my Dad, who said that they did have a shortage of boots. In those days, there was a stark difference between East and West Berlin. You can see especially at night from the radio tower. The West is all lite up with flashing neon lights of many different colors and the East had only the monotone mercury vapor lights and nothing else. A life memory of an old man.
The Berlin Brigade was one of the first units to get the new M14 rifle.
The reason I remembered the 5.45x39 bolt action East German rifle is because I worked on one some years ago. An old
friend had one of these SSG 82 rifles and had problems with the cases sticking in the chamber, difficult to extract the empty
cartridges. The cartridges had a coating on them and sometimes left a residue in the chamber, this would buildup over time
and usage - and not cleaning. After cleaning the chamber thoroughly, the problem was gone.
After cleaning the chamber thoroughly, the problem was gone.
That problem still persists by the evidence and testimony of many with some of the coated ammo today. The self loaders will give sticky chambers if not tended regularly.
That problem still persists by the evidence and testimony of many with some of the coated ammo today. The self loaders will give sticky chambers if not tended regularly.
Jim- You are quite correct. Unfortunately a lot of the Soviet and Eastern Bloc 7.62x39 and 5.45x39 ammunition is coated in a lacquer coating which was design to prevent rusting of the steel cases. Unfortunately, the lacquer coating melts into the chamber with continued shooting. In addition to the priming of the Soviet and most Eastern bloc ammunition being corrosive, it adds to the necessity of cleaning the chambers and barrels even though most were chrome plated for protection. If I recall only the Yugo guns were not chrome plated. They felt that they did not need as they clean their guns after every use, Yea right.
RCS-- The SSG82 came along long after the final versions of the Wall were built. I believe the rifle was designed more as a SWAT type weapon for the Statis then a weapon for the East German border guards who were equipped as a military unit.
PM
Originally Posted by RCS
