This section has many high detail pictures of the LPO-50 flamethrower, many of which have never been seen before in unclassified sources. Virtually every section of the weapon, hose, and tank are photographed and described. To go to a specific part of the weapon simply click on the desired section below. Some of these pages may take a little while to load.
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The electrical wire from the three tanks connects to the gun (and single 6 volt battery) by a simple three pronged plug. The plug is hidden within a stamped metal casing that snaps open or closed. (Figure 2) The plug is then secured to the weapon by means of a screw on cap. This can be seen in Figure 3. When it is secured it is also fitted into the two holes in Figure 2 to prevent fraying. The whole wire assembly is fastened to the fuel hose by leather straps as it leads back to the fuel tanks. |
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The rear sight assembly of the LPO-50 is a simple tangent sight with only two ranging points. One for 35 meters, and the other for 70 meters. This is highly unusual, as most flamethrowers do not even have a sighting system of any kind. The front sight is a simple hooded post, similar to the one found on Moisin-Nagant and AK-47 series rifles. |
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The fuel hose found on the LPO-50 is quite similar to commercial flammable liquid hose. It has a flexible metal interior and a strong rubberized outer coating. The end caps are free floating and can be fastened to the tank without having to move the entire hose. The hose is also numbered with a series of production numbers. This particular model number is: 4362-55-25-30x01-66-1-25. I have no idea what these numbers mean. There are also two leather straps on the hose for securing the electrical wire that leads to the tanks. |
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When the fuel hose is connected to the gun, the electric wire is wrapped around it and secured by the two leather straps. When connected to the weapon the hose is only somewhat flexible (due to its metal interior) and can be difficult to aim at some targets. What this problem is like in combat I can only imagine, but the hose's rigidity was a problem in some of the photos we have taken here. |
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When the fuel is forced out of the tanks it is stopped from flowing back into the tank by means of a one way valve at the base of each tank. The valve is a simple piston and spring. It remains open only when pressure is applied to it from the tank. When there is no pressure, the spring and piston keep the fuel within the tanks. The bottom picture shows the full valve assembly when disassembled and removed from the weapon.
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