Tanks

Tanks

What's inside those mechanized fighting vehicles?
Firearms

Firearms

See the insides of rifles, handguns, automatic weapons, etc.
Turtle Personal Tank 1952

Turtle Personal Tank, 1952

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As far as I know, this one-man tank never left the mind of Les G. Scherer.

Scherer designed this personal-sized tank to weigh 7,000 pounds, pack two .30 caliber machine guns, and have 650 ports arrayed around the driver with each port containing a shotgun shell that could be electrically fired.  Main selling point of the Turtle Tank was its low center of gravity.  Like its terrapin namesake, this tank would have been difficult to turn over.

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Turtle Personal Tank 1952

Turtle Personal Tank 1952

Source:  Popular Science April 1952

Atomic-Powered Heating System for Building 1952

Atomic-Powered Heating System for Building, 1952

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This was real, not Fifties fantasy:  a building heated by atomic energy.

Appropriately enough, the building, located in Harwell, England, was the center for that nation’s atomic research.  Waste heat from the nicknamed “Bepo,” one of the atomic piles, was diverted to heat the 330,000 cubic foot/80 office building.  The system cost $42,000, but it was estimated that it would save $7,500 per year in heating bills.

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Atomic-Powered Heating System for Building 1952

Atomic-Powered Heating System for Building 1952

Source:  Popular Science February 1952

Hal B Hayes House Hollywood CA 1953 Exterior Glass Wall

Hal B. Hayes House, Hollywood California, 1953

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Hal B. Hayes House, Hollywood, CA Exterior 1953

Hal B. Hayes House, Hollywood, CA Exterior 1953

Though I’ve lately dedicated this site to cutaway drawings from the golden age of illustration art–1930s to 1960s–certain things come along that are so amazing that they trump my mission.  The Hal B. Hays residence in Hollywood, CA is one such thing.

I ran into the Hal B. Hayes residence, which Popular Mechanics described as a House For the Atomic Age.  Ever practical, the magazine notes how Mr. Hayes designed the house to withstand or flex against the stresses of an atomic bomb blast.  The outer walls are “fluted to resist shock waves” and the large front glass window, pictured above, will sweep away in the same blast.  There is an underground concrete-and-steel fallout shelter, as well as another room equipped with bottled oxygen.

Hal B Hayes House Hollywood CA 1953 Exterior Glass Wall

Hal B Hayes House Hollywood CA 1953 Exterior Glass Wall

But the house is also whimsical.  The magazine says that the car’s parking spot was cantilevered because “space is at a premium.”  Perhaps:  I don’t know the house’s location, but I assume it’s in the Hollywood Hills.  But I really think Hayes cantilevered the car for the drama of it.

This is drama, this is show and fun.  How else to account for things like the three-story tree growing in the house and passing through a skylight:

Hal B Hayes House Hollywood CA 1953 Tree Through Skylight

Hal B Hayes House Hollywood CA 1953 Tree Through Skylight

Or the underground sanctuary accessed by swimming underwater:

Hal B Hayes House Hollywood CA 1953 Underground Sanctuary and Pool

Hal B Hayes House Hollywood CA 1953 Underground Sanctuary and Pool

Who was Hayes?  In 1956, Zsa Zsa Gabor announced that she would marry Hal Hayes.

L.A. Curbed tells us that the house is located at 1235 Sierra Alta Way Los Angeles, CA 90069 but is so built over that it no longer resembles the original house.  It last sold on May 7, 2010 for $8.4 million.

We see from Google Maps that “the tree” mentioned above (or some kind of tree, anyway), is visible in this satellite shot:

1235 Sierra Alta Way West Hollywood CA Satellite View 2013

1235 Sierra Alta Way West Hollywood CA Satellite View 2013

Source:  Popular Mechanics August 1953

 

 

Hand Grenade Cutaway Drawing 1951

Hand Grenade Cutaway Drawing, 1951

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This is what a generic 1950s hand grenade looks like, cut in half.  The only difference between the two versions of the hand grenade is that the second one shows the safety pin ring removed and the safety lever raised.  Thus, the striker (circled) is allowed to rotate and light the timed fuse.

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Hand Grenade Cutaway Drawing 1951

Hand Grenade Cutaway Drawing 1951

Source:  Popular Science November 1951

Colt 45 Automatic Pistol Cutaway Drawing 1951

Colt .45 Automatic Pistol Cutaway, 1951

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This  cutaway of the classic Colt .45 Automatic was part of Popular Science’s “Know Your Weapons” series that started up in 1951.  This series was aimed squarely at WWII (and even WWI) veterans who had been intimately familiar with these military firearms only a few years before.

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Colt 45 Automatic Pistol Cutaway Drawing 1951

Colt 45 Automatic Pistol Cutaway Drawing 1951

Source:  Popular Science October 1951

Atomic Airplane Cutaway 1951

Atomic Airplane Cutaway, 1951

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Even though I like Ray Pioch, his 1951 cutaway drawing of this fanciful atomic airplane really isn’t very good.  It’s got the typical middle-of-magazine two-color scheme, and the perspectives within this so-called atomic airplane are all wrong.

That said, it was predicted that, by 1980, atomic-powered jets would already be in use.  However, more realistically, it was said that the nuclear power plant would be so heavy (about 50 tons) that it would cost as much in terms of weight as a petroleum-fueled plane (power plant replacing fuel).

Another problem:  a radioactive engine being dangerous to the flight crew, extensive and heavy shielding would have to be added.

And another problem:  the nuclear reactor’s slow start-up time.

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Atomic Airplane Cutaway 1951

Atomic Airplane Cutaway 1951

Source:  Popular Science October 1951

Winchester M1 Carbine Cutaway 1951

Winchester M1 .30 Carbine Cutaway, 1951

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Firing .30 caliber cartridges, the Winchester M1 Carbine wasn’t intended to be the ultimate killing machine  Rather, it was an intentionally lightweight piece for radiomen, cooks, officers, and others for whom a firefight wasn’t their main job.

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Winchester M1 Carbine Cutaway 1951

Winchester M1 Carbine Cutaway 1951

 

Source:  Popular Science September 1951

Soviet TU 10 Two Jet Bomber 1951

Soviet TU-10 Two-Jet Bomber Cutaway, 1951

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This is the Tupolev TU-10 bomber.  I have not been able to find information on this aircraft.  If anyone has leads, please leave information in the comment section.

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Soviet TU 10 Two Jet Bomber 1951

Soviet TU 10 Two Jet Bomber 1951

Source:  Popular Science August 1951

M1 Garand Rifle Cutaway 1951

M1 Garand Rifle Cutaway, 1951

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The M1 Garand is a rifle with a storied reputation.  Over 6.25 million of these .30 caliber shell-firing rifles were produced from 1936 to 1957.

This cutaway was published in 1951 to an audience of veterans who had been quite familiar with the Garand on tours of duty during both WWI and WWII.

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M1 Garand Rifle Cutaway 1951

M1 Garand Rifle Cutaway 1951

Source:  Popular Science August 1951