Original Czech Cold War Era Rare SPG-9 Recoilless Anti-Tank Gun Rocket Rendered Inert For Training – Dated 1975 Original Items

Original Items: Only One Set Available. This training rocket is totally inert and completely void of any explosives. This cannot be converted to an explosive device and is not available for export. The rocket measures approximately 34 ½ inches long with a base diameter of 3.25 inches. All components are dated 1975.

The SPG-9 Kopye (Spear) is a tripod-mounted man-portable, 73 millimeter caliber recoilless gun developed by the Soviet Union. It fires fin-stabilised, rocket-assisted HE and HEAT projectiles similar to those fired by the 73 mm 2A28 Grom low pressure gun of the BMP-1 armored vehicle. It was accepted into service in 1962, replacing the B-10 recoilless rifle.

This is a very nice Czech Army training set for the SPG-9, available to them through their communist connections during the cold war. Originally this was a live version, something not encountered often on the market. It was then rendered inert and marked as being a “school device” used for training.

A very impressive display item!

More on the SPG-9:
The projectile is launched from the gun by a small charge, which gives it an initial velocity of between 250 and 400 metres per second. The launch charge also imparts spin to the projectile by a series of offset holes. Once the projectile has traveled approximately 20 meters (65.6 feet) from the launcher, a rocket motor in its base ignites. For the PG-9 projectile, this takes it to a velocity of 700 metres per second (2,297 feet per second) before the motor burns out.

The SPG-9 is heavy (~60 kg), and is normally transported by vehicle, and carried into position by its two crew. It can be deployed in around a minute. The weapon is in service with a large number of armed forces, and a variety of ammunition is produced; however, they are mostly copies of the original Soviet PG-9 HEAT and OG-9 FRAG-HE rounds.

The SPG-9 is widely available to terrorists and maritime pirates such as in the Horn of Africa region, as well as in other regions to a lesser degree. It is not as popular as the RPG-7 because it has to be mounted on a vehicle or boat and cannot be easily carried and shoulder fired. The SPG-9 requires much more skill to fire accurately than the RPG-7. There have been reports of these mounted in skiffs and larger “mother ships”. The SPG-9 can typically be found mounted on a wide variety of vehicles known as “technicals” in Somalia.

A variant for use with airborne troops including detachable wheels was built as the SPG-9D.