Civilian Technicals - Theory crafting Homemade Uparmored Civilian Vehicles

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BohrokSwarms

Banned
kiwifarms.net
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Feb 5, 2023
In this thread, I hope to foster discussion and research into increasing the survivability of commercially available civilian vehicles. This concept is similar to what are known as “technicals,” which are modified civilian vehicles adapted by state or guerrilla military organizations to become weapons of war. However, I expect the concepts discussed here to be less offense-oriented and more defense-oriented, such as being able to withstand a spontaneous random mugging at an inner city red light by gangbangers, up to a coordinated ambush by would-be politically motivated hitmen targeting an inconvenient civilian coming into his/her driveway. I want to look into what vehicles would be best suited for carrying the increased weight, what kinds of armor plating are available suited to this purpose, is it possible to replace vehicle windows with ballistic glass, what are the road-legal regulations which could impact design specifications, etc. I am envisioning something between Fury Road and Russo-Ukraine War mutant IFVs. I do not foresee anyone rolling up to 7/11 to refuel their pickup with an M2 Browning mounted in the bed, but rather an F150 with more covert plates bolted to the interior of the crew compartment and underbelly as well as potentially ballistic glass. That being said, I would not discourage general technical discussion of any improvised and modified armored vehicles as the topic is fascinating.

Edit: no fucking way
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Why meddle with perfection?
Too heavy and slow. Honestly a lot of preppers fall into this trap of more armor = better safety. While that is partially true it’s misguided. You don’t want to be easily stopped and derailed for someone to pull you out of the cabin and shoot you in the face. The dozer only works because it’s a dozer. You don’t want to drive that everywhere because it’s not efficient and will either run out of gas or become too wrecked to go further.

When you see these civilian technicals they’re slow as shit and have poor acceleration as well as ruining the suspension and wheels. That’s because Cletus welded on too much of his steel pipe and plating, he also didn’t do much research into the mechanical characteristics of the steel he used.

When you’re armoring a vehicle you want to maintain within the threshold of intended performance and operation, make sure you’ve upgraded your capabilities before adding more burden.

Look into the different schools of thought for how a vehicle should be armored and consider your best use case. Look into and do some math and testing on what the most efficient armor usage and techniques are within the scope of your project. I like working with composite spaced because it’s easier to work out on paper and in my head compared to something like explosive or crumple armor.
 
Not really a technical but you can use a hatchback like one of those old Russian trucks from the First World War.

They were really effective in Battlefield 1 - just make sure you can reverse into position well, then fuck off at full speed.
 
Not really a technical but you can use a hatchback like one of those old Russian trucks from the First World War.

They were really effective in Battlefield 1 - just make sure you can reverse into position well, then fuck off at full speed.
It's called a tachanka. Here's an example of usage from the classic Russian movie Brother 2.
 
The IRA had some success with civilian technicals. I can't find the picture, but one of the more infamous ones was a small sedan that had an armored plate in the trunk with a shooting port in the middle. Someone would lay in the back with a .50 BMG rifle and shoot at troop formations and light armor through the port. The plate would protect the shooter and drive while they made a getaway. It reminds me a little of how the DC sniper operated.

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They also messed around with mobile mortar platforms. Of all the DIY armies, the IRA was actually fairly decent at fabricating explosive launchers. A lot of the designs for 3d printed rocket launchers today are loosely based on IRA designs.

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The Toyota Hilux Champ is a fully modular truck that has an MSRP of $13,000 USD. It's built on the IMV platform. It is absolutely sexy and you could up-armor it and mount everything from a 50 BMG to a TOW on it. And get good gas mileage at the same time.
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Except you can't import it to the United States, because the government of child raping pedophiles says so.

I see the problem -> and I see the solution
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Why meddle with perfection?
Sadly, even our Prophet’s divine creation was not infallible, or rather invulnerable. The police small arms had no hopes getting through to the operator, but they were able to sever important cables and tubes which ensured an engine overheat if allowed to continue operating much longer than it was. This mobility kill would have ended the same way the unfortunate basement trap did. The fact is that against well trained and decently equipped state opponents there is no possible means for a civilian to manufacture a completely invincible vehicle. Even if one did get as complex and thoroughly protected as the Killdozer, I remember that the National Guard was contemplating targeting it with Javelin missiles, before deciding against it based on risk of collateral damage. No multibillion dollar company has ever nor will ever manufacture an indestructible vehicle, and neither will one or two preppers in a garage.
 
Ford Maverick AWD is a good substitute for the classic Hilux Technical imo. Pricier, but it’ll work.
Not even close. Nu-trucks are just SUVs for fat Americattle that have your mandated EPA start/stop and shit build quality with a dial knob for a gear selector. Modern trucks are just status symbols, very few working class people actually drive the shit they are making today. And good luck getting anything close on the MPG to a Hilux.
 
Back in college, while I was studying electronics and other things, I added a shelf type container that could drop caltrops or other tire puncturing things.

Another thing was using an old windshield washer sprayer motor along with nozzles that could spray an oil slick under and behind the car. There was a second use or idea I was considering which was adding a torch lighter type ignition device further away from the nozzle to ignite the oil/petroleum mixture to cause a smoke screen.

I'm considering modifying a current project car to do these exact things just for shits and giggles; just now that I'm older, I don't know what the legal ramifications would be if I was pulled over and my car just so happened to be searched. Good luck telling a 70 IQ cop that it's just for bullshitting and a hobby and there's no reason to dump oil onto a highway in rainy weather.
 
Not even close. Nu-trucks are just SUVs for fat Americattle that have your mandated EPA start/stop and shit build quality with a dial knob for a gear selector. Modern trucks are just status symbols, very few working class people actually drive the shit they are making today. And good luck getting anything close on the MPG to a Hilux.
Pre-89' Toyota Pickup in the US market is as close as you will ever get. They had straight axles, weighed almost nothing, and had the 22R motor that was surprisingly beefy when attached to such a light frame. I stripped one down to bare bones in the early 2000s and it made for a great amateur rock crawler. I would guess that a lot of these got demolished during the cash for clunkers program which drove up the price of affordable used vehicles and made finding old parts much harder.

If you're planning on mounting some kind of heavy weapon on a truck one day, any 4x4 truck you can get your hands on will probably suffice. If you want to do the IRA thing of shooting and moving constantly, the best option is probably whatever vehicles are most common in your area of operation. If every 3rd car in your city is a blue Prius, use a blue Prius. The commonality will make you harder to track and will potentially create confusion for witnesses. If you live in an rural area, get a white work van or whatever style truck your department of highways uses and slap some yellow lights on it.

I can't see North America or Europe ever having a domestic conflict where belt fed machine guns in the beds out trucks riding around out in the open would be anything but a disadvantage. The less conspicuous, the better.
 
I think we will see armor (more than most people could carry) on top of consumer off-the-shelf powered exoskeletons one day in the near future. Basically ghetto mechs.

https://arstechnica.com/science/202...eton-adjust-to-different-users-handle-stairs/ (archive)
Building handcrafted control policies and doing long human trials for each user makes exoskeletons super expensive, with prices reaching $200,000 or more. So, Su’s team used AI to automatically generate control policies and eliminate human training. “I think within two or three years, exoskeletons priced between $2,000 and $5,000 will be absolutely doable,” Su claims.
 
this is the most retarded thread on the site right now.
Thats what makes it the best.

This is a good thread, and I think its only gonna get better, I love Seeing how creative some people can get when it comes to bolting guns & other military hardware onto vehicles, attempts I've seen range from "pretty neat, actually" to hilariously bad.

Tax: Some rocket trucks disguised as Dump trucks. I think these count?
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The second one also has rocket pods in what looks like delivery trucks, though im not entirely sure what they are.
 
A school bus has a higher weight capacity & cheaper than most other with the same weight capacity. Plus all the weight you removed... seats, everything down to the frame which can be shortened. "no replacement for displacement" engines. HD drivetrain regularly maintained "for the kids". Same with shabby old winnebagos with 440 Chryslers.

 
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Storm chasers and cartels have this covered sorta. The storm chaser build focuses more on the defensive - protection for windows, winches, ram bars, metal shielding under the engine, etc. The desert cartel build appears to be lighter and more offensive for better maneuverability and weapons/body storage. Both seem to to favor American body on frame SUVs and trucks. I'm probably bullshitting the cartel part honestly but I think there's some truth to it.
 
Not even close. Nu-trucks are just SUVs for fat Americattle that have your mandated EPA start/stop and shit build quality with a dial knob for a gear selector. Modern trucks are just status symbols, very few working class people actually drive the shit they are making today. And good luck getting anything close on the MPG to a Hilux.
Stop Start? Press the button (or remove the easy to find switch under the panel).
MPG? Comparable to better without the stop start. Average usage of Hilux ranges between 23-35 mpg. Maverick ranges 25-37 mpg.
Dial knob? Yeah I got nothing. It’s not the best choice overall, but between all the others available domestically.
 
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