Britain
Universal Carrier (Bren Carrier)

Tweet The Universal Carrier was designed in 1934, manufactured by Vickers Armstrong and was in use from 1935 to 1980. General Details Specifications Operational Date(s) 1935 - 1980 Quantity Produced 57000 Weight 3.75 tonne Crew 2 M.G's small 1 M.G's large(>10mm) n/a Length 3.69 mtr Width 2.08 mtr Height 1.46 mtr Engine Details/Performance Max Road Speed 30 mph Max Cross Country Speed 16 mph Range Road 150 miles Range Cross Country 60 miles Fuel Type Petrol Fuel Capacity 20 gal Horse Power 85 hp Power/Weight 22 hp/tonne General Information The Universal Carrier was designed in 1934, manufactured by Vickers Armstrong and was in use from 1935 to 1980. The vehicle was powered by Ford 'V8' petrol powerplant producing 85 HP which could drive the vehicle on roads at up to 30 mph with a range of about 150 miles before refuelling. Its cross country performance was good providing a max speed of about 16 mph and a range of about 60 miles. It was armed with 1 light machine gun , a Bren Gun. The Bren Carrier or the more accurate name the Universal Carrier was designed around the Carden Lloyd tankettes from the 1920s. This small vehicle was used in numerous roles and had a number of derivatives, all with the same basic chassis. Various models were produced MkI,MkII, the wasp a flame throwing model, and the Preying Mantis an experimental design to fire machine guns over walls or high hedges. Armour Details Turret Front n/a Side n/a Rear n/a Top n/a Superstructure Front 10mm @ 0° (10mm) Side 10mm @ 0° (10mm) Rear 7mm @ 0° (7mm) Top n/a Hull Front 10mm @ 0° (10mm) Side 10mm @ 0° (10mm) Rear 7mm @ 0° (7mm) Top 7mm @ 90° (7mm) Armour (x)mm @ (y)° (Effective mm @ 0°) Effective Armour - Maximum 10 mm - Minimum 7 mm Weapon Details Bren Gun (Machine Gun) History The Bren gun was licenced from the Czechoslovak ZB vz.27 light machine gun which was designed and manufactured in Brno from 1935. It fired the standard British .303 rifle round. Manufactured 1930 - 2004 Calibre 7.70mm Length L/82 Rate of Fire 500 rpm   Ammunition Details Name/Id Calibre Weight MVelocity Explosive Content Standard british .303 round - HPBT (BALL Standard Small Arms) 7.70mm 0.01Kg 761M/Sec Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.17 Penetration(mm@30°) 1 Penetration(mm@0°) 2 Hit Probability(%) 98 Standard british .303 round (BALL Standard Small Arms) 7.70mm 0.017Kg 783M/Sec Range(Mtr) 100 200 400 800 1200 1600 2000 2400 Flight Time(Secs) 0.15 Penetration(mm@30°) 4 Penetration(mm@0°) 5 Hit Probability(%) 98

Hit probability is based on a static 2 x 2.4 metre panel at 0 degrees(vertical) at the range specified.

The data that has been used to create these records has come from Wikipedia, The Lone Sentry, The Bundes Archive and numerous books and websites that have provided the detailed information that has not been available anywhere else. The information we use to calculate the penetration tables, flight times and the hit probability comes from the Gun Calibre, the Shell Mass(Kg) and the muzzle velocity, plus range reductions to allow for gravity and wind resistance. This calculation originally came from a pre-war Krupp calculation which has been modified, and seems to fit the actual test results.

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