Zimmerit. (And schurzen digressions)

Zimmerit is a funny thing. It's composition according to Ze Net is:

40% Barium Sulphate, BaSO4 - is made from Barium (Ba) treated with Sulpheric acid (H2SO4), and is water-insoluble
25% Polyvinyl Acetate, PVA - commonly known as white carpenters glue
15% ochre pigment, An earth-toned colouring material
10% Zinc sulphide and ZnS A natural mineral, and a Zinc ore.
10% sawdust
White glue, sawdust and ochre pigment? I could use this for my wargame bases! I wonder what the barium sulphate would be for, though

Application

For their application, the product was not used as paint and therefore it didn't require to be diluted. The surface of the vehicles neither required a special preparation, the base of traditional anticorrosive painting was only used. The zimmerit was applied in two layers with a metallic spatula. The first layer was of about 5 mm of thickness and was made a drawing in form of squares using the border of the spatula. This drawing favored the adherence of the second layer. The first layer of zimmerit allowed to dry off to ambient temperature during 24 hours. The second layer was marked with irregular lines with a metal tool in comb form. The final drawing gave him a rough and irregular appearance. After having applied the two layers, was carried out a drying by means of a gas torch to harden them. This took around one hour for vehicle. The final result was seemed the one that have the pressed sheets of cardboard and it was not brittle, but compact and very stingy to the metal. If the forced drying was not used, to the zimmerit took eight days outdoors to become hard. Also, the drying to high temperature increase their resistance to the blows. The zimmerit was also resistant to the water, but due to the behavior of the vinyl acetate was brittle to very low temperatures. There are many pictures and movies in those that armored vehicles are come with parts of the zimmerit removed. A great quantity of historical references indicates that several types and different zimmerit designs were used. The applications in the factory were generally neat and uniform apparently, while the applications in the field were not it so much, mainly keeping in mind the battle conditions and the available time for the company to complete the application. The application increased considerably the weight of the vehicles. According to the British report that is based this article, a StuG required 70 kg, a Panzer IV, 100 kg; a Panther, 160 kg and a Tiger I, 200 kg.

from WW2incolor.com

Also Most popular modelling literature has stated that zimmerit was a plaster or concrete, however this is not correct, according to a British war-time report, "'Zimmerit', Anti-Magnetic Plaster for AFVs", (reported by Major J.W. Thompson and Mr. C.E. Hollis, July 1945). In fact, zimmerit was a mixture of polyvinyl acetate, 25%, which formed the matrix, 10% saw dust used as a filler. Additionally Zimmerit included 40% barium sulphate and 10% zinc sulphide in the mix, but the report did not state why. Its dark yellow colour was achieved with the addition of 15% ochre pigment. Zimmerit was developed in Berlin by the C.W. Zimmer Company, (this was where Zimmerit got its name), it was ready for use in the summer of 1943.

from Index of /tips/tipsfilesZimmerit2.pdf

 

The first layer was of about 5 mm of thickness and was made a drawing in form of squares using the border of the spatula. This drawing favored the adherence of the second layer. The first layer of zimmerit allowed to dry off to ambient temperature during 24 hours. The second layer was marked with irregular lines with a metal tool in comb form. The final drawing gave him a rough and irregular appearance.


If this is the "official" directions...see how the final appearance would indeed difer from both the Alkett and MAIG StuGs?

I wonder what the barium sulphate would be for, though

Maybe they....had lots of it and it was non-strategically important?

 

Interesting; I've just noticed something that's NOT in there...

The first layer was of about 5 mm of thickness and was made a drawing in form of squares using the border of the spatula. This drawing favored the adherence of the second layer. The first layer of zimmerit allowed to dry off to ambient temperature during 24 hours. The second layer was marked with irregular lines with a metal tool in comb form. The final drawing gave him a rough and irregular appearance. After having applied the two layers, was carried out a drying by means of a gas torch to harden them. This took around one hour for vehicle. The final result was seemed the one that have the pressed sheets of cardboard and it was not brittle, but compact and very stingy to the metal. If the forced drying was not used, to the zimmerit took eight days outdoors to become hard. Also, the drying to high temperature increase their resistance to the blows.


...there's NO mention of pressing anything into the hardening Zimmerit after sweating/forced drying...to press out bubbles/cavities. Both the Alkett and MIAG final stamping dealt with this, but there's nothing in that set of instructions.

 

If you look at this old thread of mine from the Munster Panzer museum, there are several examples of anitmagnetic paste used.

http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/weapons-technology-equipment/19979-visit-deutsche-panzermuseum-munster.html

Regards
Tom

 

I just love this forum !!!!!

Where else would I have a chance to talk with such knowledgable chaps about such arcane matters ?

Such as magnetic mines ?

As Maurice Chevalier once said in the film Gigi "Ah yes, I remember it well !"
I first wrote about it here, on the BBC site:
Then, when I first started posting here I asked a question about a magnetic mine that resembled an arial.................. this will take some finding but I will come back here when I've sussed it out :smile:

Got it.!....... that didn't take long, did it ? :smile: :smile: :smile:
http://www.ww2talk.com/forum/weapons...-beetroot.html

Ron

 

What is it that you don't have a recollection off tucked away somewhere?

 

Za

What is it that you don't have a recollection off tucked away somewhere? :smile:


I can't help it if I had an eventful life

Ron

 

From a Recce war diary in Italy 1943.

 

The "girl" herself Andy.

 

Back to the Zimmerit thread for the first time in a while (Cheers, Idler).
That recent Haynes tiger Manual has an excellent two-page spread from Mike Gibb on his experiences applying repro Zimmerit to an Alkett Stug in 2008 "To our knowledge, for the first time in 65 years we reproduced Zimmerit to the original detailed formula and applied it to a vehicle".
Firstly, he says the pattern and application was all - the interest being purely in creating an uneven surface that mines wouldn't stick to squarely (still no comment on what these mines might be though).

He does make interesting mention of the potential for causing fires with it - while factory instructions meant it was blowtorch treated between coats to burn off excess benzene and harden it, he notes that vehicles were painted soon after the final blowtorching, while the material was still pretty soft and contained a lot of benzene. Apparently it won't then harden/dry fully in cold conditions, so a vehicle sent East may well have been a benzene-coated little treasure, giving credence to the users reports that vehicles were burning easily (something that the German scientists had been unable to recreate at home).

Adam,

It may not be the book of the year, but I found the manual most excellent reading and more than a decent price to purchase.

I just wonder how effective or ineffective Zimmerit was, considering it was a pain to apply and used up a lot of valuable time, either at the factory or at the front being applied by the crew.

Regards
Tom

 

Interesting to see an original version of what I see as 'the schurzen misconception' in the belief it was put up to shield against PIAT/Spaced rounds.

Not too many A/T Rifles in the West Front, Adam

giving credence to the users reports that vehicles were burning easily (something that the German scientists had been unable to recreate at home).

What, as often as Shermans?

But Andy's was a nice catch, I had missed it the first time round

 

The spaced armour principle to increase protection against hollow charge antitank weapons has been used ever since the war and is still in use. The effect is to detonate the hollow charge at a greater than ideal distance from the main armour, thereby hopefully ensuring that the jet is degraded enough so it does not penetrate the main armour. Not really a misconception, though maybe the Germans did not realise it would work against hollow charge weapons as well as anti-tank rifles.

Incidentally, Zimmerit was intended to ensure that magnetic mines did not adhere.

Chris

 

Barium sulphate and zinc sulphate were common component of wall paint, the yellow (sandgelb) pigment avoid the necessity to repaint the vehicle.

Polyvinyl acetate and sawdust gave the "roughness".

It's seems more a water paint.