Unlicensed mechanic builds armored vehicles

Having only studied until high school, but confident in his experience in the mechanical field, the 56-year-old man in Hanoi has nurtured his passion for creating military equipment, including armored vehicles, to serve the country.

Two years ago, while accidentally watching TV, Mr. Nguyen Dinh Chinh (Hoang Mai, Hanoi) was attracted by Russian armored vehicles. Listening carefully to every detail and feature of the vehicle, he thought he could do more than that. "Such equipment is not difficult for me, why not try to make it? If I can do it, Vietnam will not have to import it from abroad anymore," Mr. Chinh thought.

The next day, he told his family and relatives about the story, but no one supported him. "If armored vehicles were that easy to make, everyone would have made them. While the economy is not strong, who would buy them?", a friend stopped Mr. Chinh.

Despite the dissuasion, he continued to work as a mechanic every day, and in his spare time and evenings, he went online to read information about armored vehicles in countries around the world. In mid-September 2015, when he had enough money and more knowledge, and was confident with 20 years of experience in the mechanical profession, Mr. Chinh decided to "risk his life" and do it.

Mr. Nguyen Dinh Chinh next to the newly manufactured armored vehicle.

In September 2015, Mr. Chinh and 3 other workers started making the car, much to the surprise of his relatives and family. To have a spacious place to create this military equipment, Mr. Chinh went to Son Tay town to build a mechanical workshop of nearly 300 square meters. "I have made many machines such as steel casting machines, steel making machines, and garbage incinerators, so I believe I can do it," he said.

With the "desire to create an outstanding product", he worked day and night. In May 2016, the car was completed and could travel 20-30 km. However, due to lack of funds, the materials and machinery for the car were not synchronized.

"The product I make will have many advantages over other cars in the world. No one will believe me, but during the process of making the car, I did it all the way through without encountering any difficulties, perhaps because of my innate talent," Mr. Chinh said optimistically.

The armored vehicle designed and manufactured by Mr. Chinh himself weighs 13 tons, is 6.8 m long, 3.0 m wide and 2.6 m high. The vehicle can run on a 45-degree slope, raise and lower the chassis from 0.3 m to 1.2 m and overcome obstacles 1.5 m high, while a normal vehicle can raise and lower the chassis 20 cm and overcome obstacles 0.8 m high.

The front of the vehicle is designed with a cutting disc to destroy obstacles, cut trees or barbed wire. Inside the vehicle is the main engine, above there are two seating positions for the commander and the driver, in which the driver uses a camera and a 13-inch screen to observe 4 corners without having to open the lid to control.

Due to lack of funds, the body shell was planned to be made of thick steel with high-strength materials, but it was not possible to do so. Instead, he chose materials with normal thickness and cheaper price. The sides have two layers of bulletproof, can capture B40, B41 bullets. The vehicle can accommodate 10-12 people. On the vehicle there are loopholes for soldiers to shoot with a 5m observation angle.

8 wheels, 4 wheels on each side operate independently with separate moving clusters that are not related to each other. In case of puncture of two tires on one side, the vehicle will still move normally.

Mr. Chinh said that in the world there are many steel learning vehicles like the above, but he will create a device with many outstanding features. "Vietnam still mainly imports armored vehicles, so I cherish the idea of ​​creating a vehicle with a Vietnamese brand, contributing a small part to the military and defense science and technology," he said.

Because of this desire, Mr. Chinh has spent all the money accumulated after more than 20 years working for many construction and mechanical companies and borrowing everywhere to create an armored vehicle. He hopes the Government will help to complete the vehicle. In the near future, Mr. Chinh also plans to create many other military equipment such as field pontoon bridges and automatic underground bunkers.

According to VNE