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Panzerfaust 3 Panzerfaust 3 Background: The Panzerfaust 3 is an disposable, Anti-Tank Rocket launcher developed between 1978 and 1985 and adopted by the German army in 1985. It was designed as an Anti-Tank support weapon to replace Germany's ageing Bazooka-like Anti-Tank rocket launcher. The Panzerfaust 3 consists of a disposable rocket launcher tube carrying a shaped-charge warhead rocket and a re-usable firing and sighting unit. The projectile consists of a warhead with explosives and the projectile-shaft with tail unit. After a flight-way of approximately 5M long, the built-in fuse is released by the "safety switch" before to arm the rocket and the propellant (mostly A-Stoff mixture) flys the rocket the rest of the way. Once the warhead hits a solid object or runs out of fuel the Amatol/Syndril warhead explodes. The Panzerfaust 3 is basically a percussion rocket launcher, dating back to the Panzerfaust used by the Wehrmacht in WW2, with the RPG being launched by a spring coil and once in flight ignites its rocket engine. The Panzerfaust 3 can be fired from inside rooms since it has no dangerous backblast just plastic granulate will be blasted out at the rear end of the launcher tube. Overall, dispite being a primitive weapon, it saw action during the 1990's by German Special Forces and Peace-keeping units around the world, although it was not without problems. The main drawback is obviously had one shot and many soldiers had to get dangerously close for their warheads to penetrate heavy armour. Many soldiers found it very heavy and cumbersome, and it's firing mechanism and tube tended to get damaged and jam in battlefield conditions. Also the rocket warhead itself was found ineffective against heavy armour and had to be redesigned. In 1988, the PzF 3ZG replaced the original model with new and improved features and increased penetrating power. Although now not in use by German Armed Forces anymore, the Panzerfaust 3 is still used by many former Eastern Bloc nations after weapons deals and sales and can also be found on the blackmarket in many 3rd World nations as it is very cheap to manufacture and easily exported. There are 3 different versions of the Panzerfaust 3: PzF 3Z: Standard model with Hollowcharge PzF 3ZGT: Standard model with Dual-Hollowcharge (this warhead can penetrate Reactive Armor) PzF 3ZGS "Bunkerfaust": Used against concrete bunker PzF 3ZG: This is the newest model of the Panzerfaust 3 and was developed in 1988 after initial problems with the original model. Apart from standard features, the main tube was redesigned and constructed from a magnesium/titanium alloy, improving weight and durability. The rocket warhead was upgraded to a 120g Amatol/Syndril mix and a dual-hollow charge and "Bunkerfaust" variant were also created. Facts & Specs: Caliber: 120 mm launcher, 140 mm warhead Function: Primarily Anti-Tank weapon Weight: 4.6 kg (unloaded) Length: 1200 mm Muzzle velocity: 165 m/s Armament: -120g Amatol/Syndril Warhead (Can be Hollow-Shaped Charge or Dual-Hollow-ShapeCharge.) -Bunker-Busting Ammunition is basically 320g Amatol/Syndril Warhead with stabilising fins and heavy nose cone and stronger propellant for increased penetration. Sights: telescopic sights(can be reused, can also be fitted with 4x-16x ACOG/AWA Zoom Scopes) Maximum effictiv range: 400-500 m for stationary targets, 300 m for moving targets Penetration capability: 700 mm armor, 1.6 metres concrete Manufacturer: Dynamit-Nobel; Germany Additional notes: The Panzerfaust 3 is distributed in a special packed kit, which takes several minutes to assemble the launcher and load it. A spare parts and cleaning kit is also included. It consists of an ejector and spring, extractor, dummy extractor plug, bolt-head retaining pin, plastic cleaning rod with brass tip, bore and chamber brushes, camel's hair brush and a prismatic bore scope.
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