Canadian Skink Turrets

[Panzercommander]

During the war only 8 turrets were put into production, and only three remain, two in good to fair condition and the last used as a range target. The Skink held 4 AA guns on a Grizzly (Canadain M4A1 Sherman chassis).Only one saw any service in NWE. These two turrets were rescued off a rifle range and now rest outside. One is still waiting to be shipped to the Canadain war Museum.

[Whiterook]

Wow....that's really cool! I've never seen one of those! What on earth would they be using one of these bad boys on a rifle range for? Odd. Thanks for putting this thread up....very interesting!

[Panzercommander]

Both the blue rare turrets maked the left and right on a rifle range, thus the smurf paint job.

[Frizzenspark]

Hmmmm.... the Right-Side marker appears to have been hit, with the shots not straying out of the lines.

What else do you do with worthless junk? You throw it away or BLOW IT UP!!!!

I pointed out some M-114s being used to build berms or being prepped as targets on the ranges in Germany to one of my friends; I mentioned that they were discontinued due to being under-powered, they had a big-block chevy engine instead of a proper tank engine.

I barely saw him for the better part of two months; I questioned him about it.
After getting the run-around with all installation property offices, we don't own these, check range control.....etc. he decided nobody owned the engines in these things and he salvaged twenty of them and shipped them home.

[Panzercommander]

From Shilo Museum the third turret used as a range target.........

[Panzercommander]

All three turrets are rough castings , there is no milling out the the areas to attach the hatch's. The two smurf coloured turrets are numbered 80 & 81, while the range target one in numbered 78. They only made 8 turrets..........

[jj2jr]

Predator? Jesus!

[Panzercommander]

From Wiki:

The Tank AA, 20 mm Quad, Skink was a Canadian self-propelled anti-aircraft gun. It was also designated as "Project 47" by the Canadian Army.

When Canadian Ram tank production ceased in 1943, the lines at the Montreal Locomotive Works were turned over to Grizzly Is. It was rapidly realized this was unnecessary, as U.S. factories were more than able to meet the demand, and only 188 Grizzlys were built, most retained for training.

As the invasion of Europe was impending, and it was felt a self-propelled anti-aircraft gun able to keep up with armored formations might be required, the Canadian Ministry of Defence (MOD) arranged with Waterloo Manufacturing Co. for the design of a cast turret with four Hispano-Suiza 20 mm cannons (later changed to the simpler British Polsten, a derivative of the Oerlikon) capable of firing about thirty rounds per second combined. They were aimed by periscope or roof-mounted reflector sight via electrohydraulic joystick control.

Early in 1944, the first test models were ready. Plans to build these, as well as conversion kits for existing Grizzly and Sherman tanks, were quickly superseded by the realization that Allied air forces had achieved air supremacy over Normandy. Since the Skink was now redundant, the project was cancelled in April 1944 after only three vehicles and eight conversion kits were completed. The original program had planned for the production of 135 Skinks for the Canadian Army and 130 Skink turrets for the British forces.

Reportedly the sole Skink sent to Britain for evaluation actually saw action. After being transshipped to Antwerp on 24 January 1945, it reached the 2nd Canadian Armoured Brigade a few miles south of Nijmegen, Holland, on 4 February, and entered combat in support of the 6th Canadian Armoured Regiment (CAR) north of Nijmegen bridge, later with 22nd CAR at the Battle of Hochwald Forest

[Panzercommander]

Photos from the net: