I’m just curious if schurzen on german tanks defend them from AT rifles and HEAT weapons.
They should at least decrease their effectiveness if not complitelly counter them.
The sideskirts were almost completely introduced to counter PTRDs from penetrating the side armor on Pz3s and Pz4s. Which they did quite effectively.
Other than that, no real intended use.
From my experience… not really, in the previous normandy test my bazooka went clear through it.
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spaced armor is still used today to protect against rockets, so it should work for the same purpose. It just doesn’t.
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Spaced armor nowadays is separated further from the tank, in addition to being thicker. And also the armor behind these skirts is too thin to make use of the reduced penetration on HEAT projectiles anyways.
Yes, and they had some effectiveness against HEAT. Unintended but it worked.
It seems that you rewrote my post with slight changes instead of answering. But maybe it’s only me 
Are we thinking the same spaced armor?
I’m referring to the fence-looking mesh. Wouldn’t call that thicker.
Ah no those are only intended to detonate HEAT projectiles.
They are still much further away from the hull, tho.
It sounds like you thought about modern spaced armor that counters AT rifles.
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no. I am saying they are only meant to detonate them, not to reduce their penetration by being thicc.
Yes. This is how they work.
What does it proof? Nobody denyed this.
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WW2 skirts were made with the intend of being thicc enough to stop AT rifles with the extra metal.
I’ll try to make a guess what you mean. Because you clearly don’t like sth but from your posts I can’t understand what.
I guess you want to make a point that ww2 schurzen were thick to counter AT rifles and not as spaced as modern ones, and this somehow means that they shouln’t affect HEAT.
Tell me if I got it right.
Wasn’t it to deform them so they can’t penetrate?
Just like how Japanese face-harded armor was thin, but caused uncapped bullets to shatter and lose energy.
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And to make fly path turbulent (not straight, I don’t know a better world).
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The sideskirts were not face-hardened. The Germans found out they were literally missing 5mm of armor to shield themselves against AT rifles and adding it on the outside was much cheaper than modifying the hull itself to widen it, alongside a wider transmission, suspension, etc. They didn’t have any other reason to add it on the outside at the time. That’s why on later models, they took this into account and went with increased side armor thickness, without sideskirts.
I’m saying it’s the same theory, not the same execution.
Damage the round enough to render it harmless.
Which is the purpose of all armour.
I think you’re wrong
PTRD fires a kinetic bullet so sideskirts are not going to reduce it’s power by much
Bazooka is HEAT, when it hits the tank, it explodes. Sideskirts are not completely sticked to the tank so explosion will loose a lot of power while traveling from the sideskirt to the armour plate
To counter PTRD’s Germans developed better side armour
Sideskirts were first developed to counter explosions and AT grenades, later they served in anti-tank role
So no, they were never made to counter PTRD’s
In 1943, when sideskirts started seeing wide service, PTRD was already obsolete
Exactly
Again wrong
Germans never knew the exact penetration values of tanks, rifles, cannons…
Even today’s experts don’t know the exact penetration value. And no! German scientists were not Wunder-aliens so don’t throw that at me
Actually, Germans were very bad at measuring armour effectiveness, it took them 3 years of war to figure out how angled armour works
Plus If Germans really knew the amount of penetration, they won’t give it exactly 5mm
They’ll give the sideskirt some more armor just in case
So
Sideskirts should be effective against Bazookas
I agree with @VoyoMayPL @8383908
They were probably effective against PTRD too
But unlike Tcat said, they weren’t designed to counter PTRD’s
Sideskirts should certainly have SOME effect against all hollowcharge weapons - not just bazookas.
But how much? They were not optimally placed to defeat HEAT, and most HEAT in those days wasn 't optimally designed in the first place…??
Also of course they should easily be broken or destroyed including by passing through bush/forest of alongside buildings!
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