Originally Posted by
Garvin
I was just re-reading a thread on FKN and names and saw a post from Mike Driskill pointing out that a feared German tank during WW2 was also called a 'Tiger'. If you'll excuse me quoting myself, I posted this in response:
"I was aware of the "Königstiger" tank of the same name but your post has made me think. Considering the War had been over only a few short years, it must have been a somewhat bold move for a German company to give a home grown (air) rifle the very same name as an iconic battlefield weapon of the defeated German army!
The Tiger tank was built in Kassel, Hesse, which is about 80 miles south of the site of the Falke factory, near Hannover. I found the following description of the Tiger on Wikipedia, which is amusing when you think how the name was used by FKN.
The Falke mod 80 rifle was largely hand-made from the highest quality materials. Its rear sights alone were a marvel of detailed, labour intensive machining and finishing. The high cost of making the Falke underlevers 80 and 90 could easily have played a part in the company going out of business less than a decade after it started.
From Wikipedia: "While the Tiger I was feared by many of its opponents, it was over-engineered, used expensive and labour-intensive materials and production methods, and was time-consuming to produce. Only 1,347 were built between August 1942 and August 1944." I suppose you could argue that the German High Command's decision to build the Tiger tanks contributed to the Nazi regime 'going out of business' too..."
Reply With Quote