German Motorcycles 1942-43 - BMW R750 - KS 750 - Finnish Volunteer Btl Waffen SS 5th Wiking - NSKK

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DAS MOTORRAD 1942-43

That Finnish footage from late 1942 fits in well with the unboxing of this beautifully illustrated collection from the series Das Motorrad or The Motorcycle containing all 26 periodicals from 1942 and the first 4 from 1943.

The publication has a history spanning more than 100 years. In 1933 it was subjected to Nazi influence and in March of 1943 the publication was halted and replaced by the series Deutsche Kraftfahrt which covered vehicles in general. Finding late war issues of this series is difficult, finding complete collections like this is nearly impossible.

Between 1941 and 43 the Finish military received about 1500 Zündapp K750 motorcycles. At the time the they were considered technologically advanced with 70% of the engine, powering the rear wheel and 30% going to the wheel of the attached sidecar which kept the motorcycle going straight. In addition to normal road gears, it also had off-road and reverse settings. The company Zündapp was also involved in the development and production of the remote controlled Goliath anti tank weapon.

This nice 1944 footage show the delivery of Zündapp KS 750 motorcycles to the Finnish army. The crews are literally putting them together. With the relatively undeveloped system of roads and harsh Winter conditions in the region these durable and stable motorcycles proved useful.

The unibody type construction of the motorcycle is described here which makes the frame much stronger and motorcycle generally much easier to maintain. With the sidecar three passengers can be carried comfortably, with it removed full power is provided to the rear wheel and the motorcycle regains the high performance of the well known KS Models

Lets take a look at a few more of the beautifully illustrated covers. The periodical originally came out weekly but starting in 1942 it became bi-weekly. The numbering system continues on through the year so the last page of the December 26 issue for 1942 is 718. That makes specific content easy to find. In the first periodical for 1943 we get a table of contents for all of 1942.

Not only did the Germans make available high quality equipment, they also provided the framework of advanced mechanical and organizational training.

Ok, at this time logistics were still relatively primitive.

German units, lead by the popular and able general Eduard Dietel were active on the Arctic front. Here we see them crossing over the German Soviet border in June of 1941. Having Finish troops well equipped and competent was certainly advantageous for the Germans.

...and of course help was always needed. This Finish footage shows a German Luftwaffe Kradmelder or motorcycle messenger who has a mechanical problem.

Other technological developments came from experience dealing with the intense cold of the Russian Winters on the Eastern front.

An important improvement was using the heat generated by the running motor to warm the hand grips and foot rests. With this introduction the incidents of frostbite dropped considerably.

Special goggles were also developed that improved vision in heavy rain or driving snow. Depending on the type of weather different lens insets could be placed. The band was also designed to fit around the outside of the riders helmet.

There turned out to be much overlap in the use of such specialized equipment. This footage from 1942 shows Finnish volunteers connected to the 5th SS PzD Wiking. I can’t show more of this footage here because of YouTube’s policies. If you are a Patreon channel member I’ll be send you a link to further exclusive footage shortly. If you’re not yet a member please consider becoming one.

Here’s another example of footage that I’m giving my Patreon Channel members access to this week. Thanks for watching.