Description. The Boys Rifle also utilised a padded butt and smaller grip below it, all of which added to the cumbersome weight of the rifle. Irish troops unpacking a Boys Anti-Tank Rifle. There is also conflicting evidence that it was squeeze-bore, using a necked down .55 calibre case for a .303 calibre armor piercing bullet. The United Kingdom's only anti-tank rifle, the Boys was effective during the early stages of the war but quickly became obsolete. During the British Campaigns of 1940, it was effective against the Panzer Is and IIs, as well as all the lightly armored half-tracks and scout cars used by the German forces. The Boys Anti-Tank Rifle was intended to be the standard infantry anti-tank weapon of the British Army, only to be overtaken by the PIAT. During the Interim Peace (1940-41), the Finns acquired another 100 Boys from the British and bought 200 more from the Germans (who had captured a large amount from retreating forces during the Battle of France). The Boys Anti-Tank rifle was a bolt-action .55-inch rifle that was the British Army's platoon-level anti-tank weapon until replaced by the Projector, Infantry, Anti-Tank (PIAT) in 1943. Description: Boys Anti Tank rifle! During the Korean War (1950-53), the United States (using rifles borrowed from Canada) strengthened the action and mounted them with scopes. Source: Wikimedia The work was led by Captain Henry C. Boys, Assistant Superintendent of Design at the Royal Small Arms Factory, Enfield. These rifles were originally developed by Captain H.C. the picture showing the Boys gun in Israeli service is obviously a montage. Despite the overwhelming odds, the dogged defence of the Finns had stalled the Soviet advance and allowed for military aid to reach the frontlines. The Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys, often named the Boys anti-tank rifle, was a British bolt-action anti-tank rifle designed by Capt. The end scene states “a rifle is like a woman, treat her right and she will never let you down”. De Boys Mk.1 Anti-tank rifle is een Brits anti-tankgeweer uit de Tweede Wereldoorlog en werd onder meer in Canada geproduceerd door John Inglis and Company.Het wapen onderscheidde zich voornamelijk van andere varianten door de platte mondingsrem en de V-vormige bipod.. De efficiëntie van het wapen was niet bijster groot, en het wapen kreeg dan ook na de evacuatie van Duinkerken de … Another modification was the replacement of the monopod with a Bren gun bipod, which helped with production. Which value is accurate? The Boys Anti-Tank Rifle was part of Britain’s interwar development of weapons designed to take on tanks. The men of the 1/14th Punjabi Regiment, British Indian Army used their Boys to knock out several Japanese tanks and blunt the assault against their positions in Malaya 1942. Manufacturer(s) It was mainly down to this reason why it was one of the first weapons to be abandoned during a retreat and why specialist groups like the Long Range Desert Patrol and the Special Air Service replaced it with other weapons (like the M2 Browning) as soon as possible. The first German tanks knocked out by British troops were by a Boys during the Norwegian campaign. It was still kept in Divisional inventory until the end of the war. By the end of 1943, when the weapon ceased production, a total of 114,081 Boys of all marks had been produced. Boys anti-tank rifle Mk I. Others were given to the newly formed Ranger battalions, 20 per battalion, but there is no record of their deployment in combat. The biggest issues with the Boys came from its heavyweight, despite being designated as a man-portable weapon, it weighed as much as a Vickers Machine Gun. A German-produced pamphlet on the Boys An American propaganda poster showing a British ‘Tommy’ with a Boys slung over his shoulder. The Enfield designed Boys ANTI-TANK RIFLE; antitank.co.uk "Collecting Anti Tank Rifle"＞UK&Canadian ".55"Boys Anti-Tank rifle.Mark1,Mark1*,Mark2(UK&Canada)" Stop That Tank! The Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys commonly known as the "Boys Anti-tank Rifle" (or incorrectly "Boyes"), was a British anti-tank rifle in use during World War II. But the Boys would continue to be kept in the companies of the army for use in an anti-material role. The Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys commonly known as the "Boys Anti-tank Rifle" (or incorrectly "Boyes"), was a British anti-tank rifle in use during World War II. The butt padding was also filled with feathers and the bipod was made of lighter metals. To combat the recoil caused by the .55 caliber round, the barrel was mounted on a slide, with a muzzle brake and shock absorber fitted to the bipod. During the closing weeks of 1939, the Soviet Union’s invasion of Finland shocked the world and many gave the Finns only a few weeks before they capitulated. Henry C. Boys in 1936 and produced from 1937 to 1940 by RSAF Enfield, Birmingham Small Arms and John Inglis and Company. The next action for the Boys with the British was during the North African desert fighting. Test-firing the Boys Anti-Tank Rifle This was done with the kind assistance of the Kynoch Ammunition Company's (Kynamco) facility in Norfolk. It was during the production here that the engineer team took it upon themselves to make some modifications. There are reports of the Boys having been supplied to members of the Hellenic Army during the initial stages of the Italian invasion of Greece, with some still being in service during the Greek Civil War. Even during the more conventional warfare on the Karelian Isthmus, the Boys performed well as a long-range sniping weapon, being accurate up to long ranges. This category only includes cookies that ensures basic functionalities and security features of the website. firing this is like getting hit along side the head with a piece of wood attached to a steel pipe. Feed system This design improved muzzle velocity to 944 m/s and allowed it to penetrate 20mm at 300 yards, but due to the development and deployment of more effective anti-tank weapons, like the PIAT, this cartridge was never officially adopted. As light tank development progressed through the interwar years, most nations worked on producing antitank weapons for the infantry. Besides these three official models of the Boys, there were also experiments and other modifications taken. Source: Imperial War Museum Boys Anti-Tank Rifle The Boys was adopted into service by the British Army in 1937 as a Platoon level anti-tank weapon. The .55-caliber Boys Anti-Tank Rifle was an early war effort to increase the ability of infantry anti-tank teams to disable tanks, or at least render tanks vulnerable on the battlefield. Add to cart. Taking the Canadian produced Mk 1*, it was converted to fire .50 BMG, the barrel was replaced with a M2 Browning barrel and a telescopic sight was fitted. 300 m (330 yds) Source: Wikimedia. With a muzzle velocity of 884 m/s, the Boys was able to penetrate up to 23.2mm of armor at 100 yards. In the aftermath of Operation Crusader, the British forces conducted a study in which they concluded that no Boys had successfully engaged a tank. It was a weapon that could, when in the right hands, perform well. As mentioned above, the Germans had acquired a large amount of Boys rifles from the retreating British forces in France 1940. Two flying boats attempted to land on the lagoon with reinforcements for the Japanese garrison there only to find themselves under fire from a pair of Boys. A still from the Disney film, ‘Crack That Tank’ commissioned by Canada to help dismiss the rumours about the Boys. From this influence they built, like many other anti-tank rifles of the time, a large-scale bolt action rifle. Source: DesertRats.com Battlefield 5 Boys AT Rifle challenges. Any cookies that may not be particularly necessary for the website to function and is used specifically to collect user personal data via analytics, ads, other embedded contents are termed as non-necessary cookies. The man in the background is handling a MG34, the barrel of which is mysteriously cut off in the middle. Weapon type It also didn’t help that most of the ranges within the UK were not capable of handling the Boys and so training with it was limited. Originally to be dubbed the Stanchion Rifle, instead the weapon received its name from the designer, Captain H.C. This meant many of those Boys sent were never used on the frontline. Tests conducted in early 1940 showed that the Boys could penetrate up to 355mm of concrete and 254mm of sandbags. Looking closer I could see the edges of the white object. It fared very well against the Italian tanks. Soon afterwards it was decided that it would be deployed as a section level weapon. Some were also sold to the Republic of Ireland to help supplement their military forces during the Second World War (known as the Emergency) but, like many other smaller forces, their distribution is unknown. It wasn’t uncommon for the Boys to be passed unto the new guy or platoon miscreant and it almost always is seen being marched between two men. The long range and heavy punch of the Boys allowed this. Source:Imperial War Museum For example it was used against fortified positions, especially during the closing stages of the Desert Campaign and the Dieppe Raid. These arrived in January 1940 and 30 were given to the Swedish Volunteer Corps and the other 70 deployed on the Karelian Isthmus. A German soldier with a Boys anti-tank Rifle. There were three main versions of the Boys: an early model (Mark I) which had a circular muzzle brake and T-shaped monopod; a later model (Mk I*) that had a square muzzle brake and a V shaped bipod; and a third model made for airborne … During the evacuation of Dunkirk, the heavy rifle was left in large numbers upon the beaches. This led Captain Boys to redesign the round, increasing it to .55 caliber. Product #: PDF0825 Eligible for FREE shipping * Part Key: 0. The Boys rifle was effective in the early stages of the war, notably against the Panzer I and II tanks, it quickly became obsolete, with armor on tanks and vehicles becoming increasingly thicker. Your email address will not be published. MASSIVE 0.55 CALIBRE. Soldiers of the Rifle Brigade exercising with a Boys in 1939 before the outbreak of war. They do not have any explosive filler to destroy a tank through explosive like anti-tank guns. Early on, this was done by solid projectile, as … MUSEUM QUALITY FULL SIZE REPLICA MODEL RIFLE FEATURING A GUN METAL FINISH. Two Swedish Volunteers in early 1940 in Finland carrying Mk 1 Boys. The barrel and receiver are free to recoil approximately 1" against a large buffer spring. It was named after its designer, Captain Henry C. Boys, and primarily produced at the Royal Small Arms Factory in Enfield from 1937 to … In mid-1942, in order to give Airborne forces some hard-hitting firepower, a lighter and shorter version of the Boys was developed. 36 pounds (16 kilograms) Description: Boys Anti Tank rifle! https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2018/08/17/the-boys-anti-tank-rifle-is-back-in-town-burmese-anti-materiel-rifle-development/, https://guns.fandom.com/wiki/Boys_anti-tank_rifle?oldid=88773. Production ended The Boys is often and incorrectly spelled "Boyes". as well as small-bore rifles of B.S.A. Technical specifications Zaloga, Steven J. , The Anti-Tank Rifle, Bloomsbury Publishing, 2018 This website uses cookies to improve your experience while you navigate through the website. Weeks, John S. , Men against tanks: a history of anti-tank warfare, Mason/Charter, 1975 Add to My Saved Parts. Close up of the sight and muzzle break on the Mk 1 Boys. Year(s) designed In Finland it was issued as the 14 mm pst kiv/37. There were two main types, an early model which had a circular muzzle brake and T shaped bipod, and a later model that had a … The Boys was meant to work in conjunction with other weapons to allow the infantry platoon to combat armor. At the start of World War II, only some European nations had an anti-tank rifle based on a high-velocity, large-calibre round, such as the British Boys anti-tank Rifle. Top PM Register To Reply. The Boys Anti-Tank Rifle was part of Britain’s interwar development of weapons designed to take on tanks. Out of this necessity came the Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys. This website uses cookies to improve your experience. Rifle includes 49 rounds of the original .55 cal ammunition. The whole barrel and receiver were mounted on a slide that pushed against a large spring when the weapon was fired. Production information English: The Boys or more often and incorrectly Boyes was a British anti-tank rifle named after the Captain leading the development team. Despite all of these features, the Boys Rifle's recoil was said to be terrific, causing numerous neck strains and bruised shoulders. The Boys Anti-Tank rifle was a bolt-action .55-inch rifle that was the British Army's platoon-level anti-tank weapon until replaced by the Projector, Infantry, Anti-Tank (PIAT) in 1943. There was also a walnut cheek-piece and the butt was curved and padded to allow for better control of the weapon. Source: Imperial War Museum This meant a tank could take several hits before stopping (if it stopped at all), thus demoralising troops. 5 Anti-Tank Rifle 1942, https://www.rifleman.org.uk/Enfield_Boys_Anti-Tank_Rifle.html, Flying Dragon | WZ-141 Super Light Model Anti-Tank Fighting Vehicle, WZ-141 Super Light Model Anti-Tank Fighting Vehicle. The Commonwealth and British forces posted to defend British territory in Japan claimed to have destroyed several tanks (1/14th Punjabis) and was successful in punching holes in walls during the battle of Singapore (1st Cambridgeshire Regiment) although there are no Japanese accounts to justify these claims. United Kingdom The United States's Marine Raiders were also known to have used the Boys, albeit highly modified with double-charged .50 BMG ammunition and mounted with scopes. Product #: PDF0825 Eligible for FREE shipping * Part Key: 0. The Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys commonly known as the "Boys Anti-tank Rifle" (or incorrectly "Boyes"), was a British anti-tank rifle in use during World War II.It was often nicknamed the "elephant gun" by its users due to its size and large bore. The barrel and receiver are free to recoil approximately 1" against a large buffer spring. Two Boys Mk Is were produced in a 13.2 calibre (the same calibre as the Tankgewehr of 1918). Source: Wikimedia However, when the United Kingdom entered World War II, the .55 Boys round was soon found to be insufficient against even early war … Developed by BSA and Captain H.C. Source:DesertRats.com One was set on fire soon after landing, the other attempted to take off but was so riddled with Boys rounds that no sooner had it left the water than it plunged back in, breaking up. Required fields are marked *. 11-22-2009 11:40 PM … Several examples were sold to other countries, such as the U.S. during the war, as well as captured units being renamed and used against the Allies during and following the war. These vehicles were armed with Bren Guns and Boys Anti-Tank Rifle. Early rifles … Interesting part is that they called in an expert, Bruce Canfield. The Boys Anti-Tank Rifle was an AT rifle used by Great Britain during World War II. For his actions that day, which helped keep the right flank of the British position solid, he was awarded the Distinguished Conduct Medal. The Soviets received 3,200 of the Boys through the Lend Lease programme. Maximum effective range The most noticeable is the muzzle brake, often referred to as the harmonica. The British Mark 1, Mark 1*, and Mark 2 Boys Anti-tank rifles were typical of the breed. The Rifle, Anti-Tank .55in Boys, commonly known as the Boys Anti-tank Rifle was a British bolt action anti-tank rifle in use during the World War II. Source:Rifleman.org.uk, Rifleman.org.uk The Rifle, Anti-Tank, .55in, Boys was also commonly (and mistakenly) referred to by the name "Boyes". Something slightly different from my usual WW1 stuff, but here it is, the Boys Anti-Tank Rifle! Boys Anti-Tank Rifle Parts Layout w/ List. It wasn’t just the cartridge that went through upgrades but the rifle itself. Out of these cookies, the cookies that are categorized as necessary are stored on your browser as they are essential for the working of basic functionalities of the website. This was then placed into a .50 BMG case that had an enlarged neck for the .55 round and a belt added near the base to stop it from being chambered into .50 caliber weapons. Mecheye 13:48, 28 November 2018 (UTC) Void. 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