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The mine deflection technology developed for the Buffel and perfected in following vehicles have saved more lives than can be counted through the years. There are a lot of middle aged men walking around in South Africa today that directly owe their lives to this development. It took a few decades but the western world has caught on, implementing this tech over the majority of their wheeled combat vehicle line up. The most notable example being the replacements for the Humvee and Land Rover tactical vehicles through the course of the Afghan war to combat IEDS and land mines.
As a side note, a deep dive into the succeeding Casspir and the Ratel IFV would give great insight into modern mechanised combat vehicles, as both of these practically hepled write the book in mechanised warfare for the modern age
I think a lot of people have their doubts, as we will see in this comments section going forward... but if I survived a mine in one of these, you bet I'd be singing songs about it. If anybody else has stories of mine survivals it'd be nice to hear The vehicle has sacrificed a lot in its design for mine protection. So it really needs to work!!
@@kalui96 it was most definitely a very compromised and specialised design, but when it was created the primary threat for this kind of vehicle was mines. As the war progressed they did start to struggle with other forms of combat, so the Casspir was brought in to replace it
@@HenkBlankes98 People also need to consider the "flimsiness" and "thin armor" might have been a result of evolution in an environment which places gross vehicle weight constraints- a heavily armoured tank would easily get stuck in unpaved african roads (some made of wet clay, dry salt with prehistoric marine sludge, etc). And additionally the consideration of material scarcity in both workshop technical level and parts inventory. Not every workshop out in the African bush has reliable high output electricity, for example. Getting fancy armor part replacements delivered out there is also a challenge
I spent far too many hours of my life in the back of one of those contraptions. Little know fact, the wire mesh covering the engine makes an excellent barbeque after you have burned the paint off.
I saw a fully laden buffel with captured ammo go over a land mine. The front wheel was thrown high in the sky but the driver and occupant was unharmed. The wheel was filled with water to minimise the blast of the anti tank mines. We just waited for the replacement wheel assembly by choppa and towed it back to live another few years of service.
Our sappers hit a double cheese mine in a buffel (two anti-tank mines on top of each other). The blast tore both front wheels off and twisted the cab to 90 degrees to the rear troop compartment. All the occupants survived.
Thank you for this video. Ours is a very little known war and not many know of its significance. We had fantastic, forward thinking engineers and designers, with many innovative ideas. A small note: the water tank was not primarily for mine blasts, it was used for drinking water during extended patrols.
Made my acquaintance with this superb vehicle in 1981-82...the comments about it being an uncomfortable ride are correct...the troop compartment, being separate from the drivers' compartment, moved from side to side on an axis perpendicular to the direction of travel...under a broiling sun, and hundreds of miles from the sea, it was easy to feel sea-sick! The seats were bloody hard too....had to be, for protection, but nevertheless....Another point is that the V-shaped chassis hed a large water-filled compartment, within it. This helped to cushion the blast from mines, but also provided a welcome reserve of water for the troops. I understand that the later Casspir was a better vehicle, but the Buffel did it for me.
Special place in my heart for the Buffel. We hit a double landmine and were fine, bit deaf but fine. The buffel was interesting to drive going into 3rd gear and you smashed your hand into the armour plating of the drivers cab. taught you to hold your hand in the wrong way upside down to get into third gear without you hurting your hand. The thing wobbled as it is too high and could fall over, especialy if hit by a mine. Thank You for your video and thank You for paying respect to the forgotten war.
About those unibuffalos in Sri Lankan parades, they are purely for demonstration. Thank you for covering the Sri Lankan usage because buffalo was used extensively in the civil war and it's very popular here because of it's unique design. It may look fragile and will stand no chance against a proper nation army but it's damn effective against rebels in a bush war.
You should do a video about the Casspir. We had the modern mrap design, as seen in service with the US Armed Forces, about 30 years prior. If the US had bought from SA and modified them to their requirements, it would have saved the US Government a lot of money in research and development.
Thanks! I had some emotional moments watching the old Buffel, which I rode on the so-called "Cutline" on the SWA-Angola border back in the day. Nicely done, thanks!
@@akosotvos747 Még nem tartok ott, de majd ha meglesz, a facebook oldalamon felteszem. Ugyanaz, mint a nevem. Gondolom, Maagyarországi kiadás kell, hogy legyen. A magyar nyelvvel nehezen bánnak a Nyugatiak! :)
I later learned that a friend used the buffel to drive over the enemy terrorist during an attack. They were using the rpg and the buffel was equipped with the 50 cal browning. But during the close quarters fighting it was easier to drive over them before the rpg could be used. We also used loud speakers with loud music to confuse and communicate in the heat of battle because radio was a bit cumbersome. During battle it's a hell of a commotion in the bush. The terrorist usually just randomly scattered. WE won the bush war but not the politics
The Buffel engine was made by Atlantis Diesel Engines, not Atlas Diesel Engines. After National Service, I actually worked for the agents of the dynamometers that was used to test the ADE engines in the town of Atlantis, near Cape Town. During National Service I drove the Buffel, which was great fun. During my Commando days I also drove the Hippo which was based on an old "Vasbyt" Bedford chassis and was a real pain in the arse to drive. Later, I actually worked for the agents of the dynamometers that was used to test the ADE engines in the town of Atlantis, near Cape Town.
You remind me of a guy I met at a camp. He was from Cape Town and an ex tiffy. One morning the water bunker was empty and going to fill it I couldn't get it in gear. He had a look and said the clutch master cylinder packed up. He quickly taught me to drive without using the clutch.
@@olsaffa7679 Once I was on night duty at an airforce base, and we had a Landrover to take coffee to the guards. We thought it's great fun at 3 AM to try and do the whole trip without using the clutch. So you'd put it in 1st, then crank the starter without engaging the clutch, and it would lurch forward, the engine would fire and you would get going all at once. To change gears, you would just crash change to the next gear, maybe first into neutral and blip the throttle and as the revs come down you can theoretically slip it into the next gear. Except one night it wouldn't go into gear, and the driver kept grinding away to get it into gear. And then the gearlever broke off, right where it goes into the gearbox. So we roped in one of the guys who was on guard duty who's day job was a welder, and we went down to a welding shop and he tried to weld it back on. It didn't really work, but the gearlever was sort of in a vertical-ish position, which was fine to return the vehicle to the vehicle park. And of course the next guy just touched it and it broke off again. Wasn't us!
@@dougerrohmer It is a long time ago but I think the Samil 100 in question had a rev counter and that gave me the confidence to learn how to do it after the lesson that day. Trick was to be in the correct rev range and then feel it softly. The lever would at the right revs, just slide in. I practiced it a lot and when working we got a student from tech. I showed off and showed her how. Week or two later the near new nissan hardbody mysteriously had transmission problems. I had to laugh: remembered how the ex tiffy told me he didn't miss a camp. If he went on holiday, his wife would go with so he did army camps and she still hasn't managed to come with
I have a deep admiration for this vehicle. It would never win any beauty contest, but it was the best MRAP of it's time in my opinion and saved many lives. It was well engineered. Despite being lurched around, you were fine if you buckled up with an aircraft-like harness into a thick formed rubber seat, which could possible absorb some explosion impact. I was a medic and came across numerous guys who had survived land mine hits, all reported that there were no casualties, but they were pretty deaf for days. Back at base a mine damaged vehicle was repaired quickly. In my sector the only Buffel casualties I was aware of were from an air burst bomb.
@@TheMadManPlace I served in both and respect the SANDF for what we achieved. SADF 10% of the RSA GDP vs SANDF 0.7% of the GDP. You get what you pay for.
The reason the Buffel was so good was where it came from originally and the design of the armour plate , along with the capacity to carry water too , that coulped with water filled tyres lessened the blast . Before the Buffel , South Africa used unimogs with sandbags to reduce blast effect , this vehicle was actually rejected by the govt innitially and started as a privately funded concern , once , however its success was seen , the story changed . A bit like during WW2 , an aircraft called the Manchester was a bit of a failure , so the designer went to the Air Ministry and pleaded his cause , he lengthened the wings , added two more engines , having scrapped the Vulture engines , he scraped together 4 Spitfire engines , the plane became an instant success , it was called the Lancaster . That is about how Unimogs turned into Buffels . In the story of the funding , another aviation event , De Haviland wanted to build a long range bomber but the Air Ministry favoured Avro and the Lancaster . Not to be outdone , De Haviland , being denied funding and materials , decided to fund their own long range bomber , (De Haviland used to build racing aircraft before WW2 and knew how to build a fast , light , excelent handling aircraft) Well as it was , they decided to use what was relatively available and not heavy , which was not restricted by war effort . They built a twin engine , lightly armed long range bomber out of wood , they christened is the Mosquito . During first tests to the Air Ministry (who almost openly gaffawed it for being built out of ply wood and balsa wood like a racing plane ) they were stunned that neither Spitfire nor Hurricaine could keep up , niether could anything Germany could offer either , once approved , De Haviland no longer funded themselves , they were awarded a contract to build . Much like the early days of the Buffel . So as you see , not all military vehicle successes are govt funded or approved at first .
I was involved in the early mraps, we were testing the wolf in rundu in 1977, the gearbox was outside the armour and we tried bike cables to connect the gear stick (which worked backwards). It caused issues as the cables were too weak. We changed over to hydraulics but that was mushy. That was why the cabin was separated from the back in the buffel. We also added water to the tires in the mogs, which apparently the rest haven’t followed.
I grew up in Windhoek during the bush war years, stayed in Suiderhof, close to the Suiderhof military base, the HQ unit, had the “gemsbok” on a faded yellow diamond shaped insignia, I remember as a kid how the took the military drivers of those vehicles, Buffel, Spook and Caspirs to the dry riverbed/bush behind the Suiderhof primary school and went all out “bundu bashing”... testing or training them on the steep sides of the dry river bed.... awesome times...
@@theodecy4748 Training? Nah, that would have been just rondfok. We got stuck in a mielieland in a Samil 20 once, right down to the diffs in mud. We weren't meant to be there, fortunately there were some Tiffies in a Samil 100 recovery around and we got yanked out without anybody knowing.
@@dougerrohmer yup, most of those bundu bashing was indeed just rondfok, but SWATF was regularly giving training to newly drivers.... the terrain behind Suiderhof primary school, the area opposite the maintenance of the SWATF HQ, was ideal to test both driver and vehicle... they even had a tank down there in the dry riverbed once...... not to sure what tank it was (could’ve been an Olifant) We use to watch them from SAWI Cafe (army cafe was right on the corner in same road of SWATF main gate entrance) As a 10/11/12 year old kid, those military vehicles was huge....
Note:- Buffels were the Primary MRAP and the first wheeled base APC of the Sri Lankan army during the 1980s. After South Africa and Rhodesia, The Buffel saw major share of it's combat in the Sri Lankan civil war against the rebel Tami tigers. They were mainly given a PKM or an M1919A4 for firing support. and some were converted to carry Medical evacuations. They even added sand bags and cement bags for protection against RPG Rounds as well as grenades ad mortar shrapnels. of course due to strategic disasters up north in 80s and 90s, a large number of arsenals of theSri lankan army fell in the hands of the tamil tigers, which also included the Buffels. These were later used for ground support and low level AA role, usually equipped with salvaged Oerlikkon 20mm from downed or captured sri lankan naval crafts , ZPU-2/ 4 , KPV etc. The Buffels were subsequently supplemented with the more Robust BTR-80s and WZ 551 (wheeled configuration APCs) but remained the standard MRAP till early 2000s.It was eventually replaced by locally produced Unicorn and more advanced Unibuffel variants. Also South Africa had a n improvised Rhino APC Variant.
@@tightcamper details have not been yet revealed. But they palyed a cruicial role in Rhodesian raids in Mozambique late in war. Most likely they were either with the Rhodsian Light Infantry i suppose. Since they were the spearheading units of RSF in such raids
I knew a guy who was involved in the design of the Buffel. I remember him saying the designers weren't happy that so many were built and that it saw so much service because it was only ever intended to be a temporary stop-gap while more substantial vehicles like the Casspir were in development.
@@mazambane286 That does not contradict what the Armscor engineer told me - the development team did not regard the Buffel as a permanent, long-term solution but the SADF clearly did.
@@grantm6514 The Casspir was developed by the CSIR with input from the SAP....Hence the name CASSPIR. Nothing to do with Armscor or the SADF at all. In fact the first Casspirs were built by TFM who build drums for concrete trucks.
@@grantm6514 The CSIR were very proactive when it came to improvements to the Casspir. They would actually come to the operational area and speak to the Policemen who actually used them Most of the improvements made over the years were suggestions from the users. The SAP were light years ahead of the SADF when it came to counter insurgency and the equipment and tactics required to be successful.
@@mazambane286 I didn't say Armscor had anything to do with Casspirs, I was only stating what an engineer involved in the Buffel project told me, that the development team did not regard it as an ideal or long-term solution, and they were unhappy that the SADF relied so heavily on them. If you disagree, I honestly don't care, take it up with him, if he's still alive.
There's a lot of mentions around of the 100 litre water tank helping in a detonation or just in vehicle stability but none of them seem to mention that the water tank filled only a third of the V of the hull. The other two thirds was the 200 litre diesel tank. As a Buffel driver we never considered the water tank useful for anything other than drinking. Applying a bit of common sense I have to ask myself how much 100 kg of water can really contribute to the stability of a vehicle weighing in excess of 6000 kg. Other comments here also mention water filled tyres, but that too is not something we ever did. With multiple punctures daily being common while bundu bashing, there would have been no practical way to keep the tyres filled with water anyway.
At first it was strange to have a left hand drive as that's opposite from other vehicles in South Africa (the Ratelwith central driver position was easier to get used to. Another thing with the buffel was a tight clutch (similar with other blast deflection vehicles like the Kwevoel) and a bang of the elbow into the armor plated cab when putting it in reverse. And because of the suspension the top heavyness would make it easy to roll. The Casper with a longer wheelbase felt and was more stable and the troops were safer and more comfortable more enclosed. The Ratel had great suspension, was mildly comfortable and has the driver choose between automatic and semi automatic transmission at start. You could also push the gear lever from top gear, all the way forward, while motoring forward, and it would automatically gear down to a stop and start reversing (for if you got hit in battle). On losing one of the four rear wheels, you could sling the axle with a chain and keep going. A driver would have to pass a driving test in each type of vehicle to get a military license for that type and the Military Police would check every so often. I was fortunate in that there was a serious need for drivers and I got to learn to drive basically everything from the "civilian fleet", the echelon vehicles (Samils, Kwevoel, etc open, diesel bunkers) and armored cars (Buffel, Casper, Ratel). The Army was often described as "lekker k@k" (fun and awful at various times).
One of the major positives of the Unimog chassis is the enclosed (torque-tube) driveshaft system, so that it could do a lot of bush work without fouling the prop-shafts, that, together with the high arch axles gave a great ground clearance. The other thing noteworthy was that it had a straight forward/reverse system, and thus had as many gears in reverse as going forward. The Buffel was top-heavy, but in difficult terrain usually slow-rolled onto its side, and could be pushed back onto its wheels again with little difficulty. The SAMIL 20 (mk1) was based wholly on the Deutz Intrac (an opposition product to the Unimog). In the tractor variant it would have a front PTO and 3-point hitch system, typically used for crop spraying, snow ploughing etc. The Off-road ability of the SAMIL 20 was in a league of its own!
Actually not the same number of gears forward and reverse. Forward was 8, 4 high range and 4 low range, but reverse had only low range and thus only 4. Even so, a fair speed could be achieved in reverse, and during several months spent at 4VRP (Vehicle Reserve Park) in 1982 we even had a few reverse races, where we had to hang out of the driver's door to see where we were going. Ah, the days when we were young and stupid.
I used the Leopard quite a bit in Rhodesia. My main concern with it was that the engine and fuel tank were at the back, as you tried to exit the vehicle. That was the only way in or out. I was always concerned about a fuel fire in an ambush.
I don’t know why you are harping on about how uncomfortable the Buffel was. I practically lived in one for almost a year. In both urban and rural terrain. Never once did I feel uncomfortable, quite the contrary. It was rather fun and massively comforting to be on the Buffel. The only thing that was a drawback was that jumping from the Buffel, with the sides up, was quite a way down to Mother Earth. Which made it somewhat unpleasant, especially in urban terrain. I have many happy memories of the Buffel and the only vehicle that offered more, was the formidable Casspir.
I was a pioneer never jumped over the side always at the spare wheel was in operation area for 16 months seen buffel hit plenty mines never seen serious injuries
The Buffel was damned dangerous by itself! Here in SA we drive on the left side of the road, and the Buffel is a right-hand drive vehicle that took some getting used to. There was a dash of paint on the armoured windscreen that the driver lined up with the solid white or yellow lines on the side of the road. Lining that dash up for hours on end on long trips on the highway was mentally exhausting! Driving into the back of a vehicle was a real danger, especially in a convoy. The Buffel did not have a radio fitted, so someone had to keep an eye out for the vehicles behind you in a convoy. The damned things were difficult to get in and out of, especially if you're a shortarse like myself. The water tank was it's best feature, as it also helped keep the center of gravity low, preventing roll overs. Those plastic, or fiberglass roofs often went missing while on ops, leaving the African sun to bake down on the driver in that one man sauna. The roof had to removed so the driver could communicate with the passengers, and if the driver got stupid and tried to kill them with his bad driving, a helmet swing down on your head soon taught you to stop f-ing around with the passengers lives. I would not be surprised to find that more troops died in accidents than landmine contacts in the Buffel.
Another point tha the video does not mention, the Buffel had a hand throttle at the top of the driver's cab so that you could stand up and drive. I remember driving down the runway at Eenhana with my arse onthe top of the driver's seat, using the hand throttle to keep the revs just high enough to keep going, and my feet on the steering wheel to keep us straight.
Which reminds me of a funny story. I was a driver at 53BN (note the Buffels in the video with 53 and 53A painted on the sides) in Ondangwa in late 1982 and early 1983. Unless very new Buffels were often in pretty bad shape from bundu bashing; first thing to go were the mirrors and the handbrake cables didn't last either. As most of our Buffels had no handbrake we parked them in gear in the very flat and level vehicle park and were supposed to ensure the hand throttle was in the closed position. We also had two Kwevoël horse boxes (based on Magirus Deutz/SAMIL 100 with landmine protected, armoured cab and landmine protected rear that could carry 10 horses), one of which I drove for a while. One late afternoon we returned to base in the empty horse boxes and swung them into their slots in the vehicle park, behind a row of Buffels. My compatriot was having brake trouble and decided to coast slowly and use the Buffel in front of him as a buffer to stop against. Of course that Buffel had no handbrake, was parked in gear and had the hand throttle in a slightly faster than idle position. Diesel vehicles don't need a spark to start their engines so when the Buffel was bumped, it jerked forward, the engine started and it drove itself forward and demolished half of the shed used to park the bike squad's motorcycles. As I recall the driver of that Buffel spent the next hour or so flipping a Buffel wheel around the parade ground.
Aaahhh a South African wheeled marvel. At first sight it was very similar for me to the Ystervark which is the most unusual vehicle on the battlefields of WarThunder. And now I know why. As an SPAA not my favourite, but as an MPV, it is more interesting. And it is exciting to think about that, this vehicle which is looks the child of love of a Mad Max vehicle and a tiny mining dump truck is the grand father of nowadays MRAPs like Oshkosh JLTV, ATF Dingo, Eagle IV, Gidran etc. (Or someone says it is Cadillac Commando but eeehh what do you think?). The story of the Buffle is is thought-provoking, all of us remember to a Greek warrior trough centuries because in theory he was undefetable but just a few people rember to a vehicle wich saved the life of hundreds of soldeirs and opened the way for a new class of armored vehicles. But the most sad thing is alnost no one rembers those people who planned this weapon legend. This vehicle is wonderful but my South African war machine is still the Rooikat. And I have two questions actually. Are there any difference between the MPV and MRAP? And have you made video about the Rooikat? Thanks for the video and have a nice day.
Thanks for your nice comment. Actually there is no distinct differences between the MPV and MRAP. It is a classical US trick, renaming already existed weapon system and concept and marketing it as new. But, we can say the modern MRAPs have better ballistic protection than the old generation MPVs. Here is our Rooikat video. We hope you will enjoy it. th-cam.com/video/1RgZMljXF6o/w-d-xo.html
I remember a Buffel parked out side our front door with soldiers in it, in 1985. We would put wet towels at the bottom of the front door to prevent the tear gas from coming in the house. We(3 young boys) would hide in the back room with our dog. Those were sad & horrible days. Thank goodness my kids doesn't have to go through that experience.
Too nice video about Buffel mine protection vehicle..video clearly explained characteristics of this successful designed military armor vehicles.also its background history of its designs which is suitable for fighting mine threats in addition to fighting militia threats. . Thanks (weapon detective) channel for sharing this video
You mention 1978 but I was with Regt De Wet and the SP Guards who were using Buffels in October 77 at Elundu (Pff, what's a month or two?). Bloody uncomfortable but they definitely saved lives when used properly.
Why has evey video of yours varying degrees of volume? From one moment to the next the volume increases or decreases somehow. Would be great if you could improve on that so that the volume stays always the same and stable. Otherwise great work!
Thank you for your constructive criticism. Actually, we use an audio pitch stabilizer while making our videos. We will try other programs to solve this problem.
Nothing was said about the Bulldog which the air force used. It was enclosed on the top as well. Use to race with it in the middle of the night around Ondangwa air force base, just a fellow soldier and I, no one knew. Full moonlight 1am 2 am 3 am did not matter. Often nearly rolled it. By the grace of God we never did. Then went back to base to eat steaks and big rolls of cheese we got earlier from the chef.
Good video. I have learnt many things about South African and Rhodesian mine-protected vehicles. But I think you were tough to mention why did South Africa replace the Buffels with Casspirs. The South Africans wouldn't retire them if they weren't obsolete vehicles.
I knew a guy who was involved in the design of the Buffel. I remember him saying the designers weren't happy that so many were built and that it saw so much service because it was only ever intended to be a temporary stop-gap while more substantial vehicles like the Casspir were in development.
They were all heavily used, also in country in counter insurgency and patrol duties. Used every day for 20-30 years. they were retired as newer vehicles came in (huge mistake, should have gone to reserve units)
@@grantm6514 Not so. The SAP, who had way more experience in these matters than the SADF, started development of the Casspir in the mid 70's. Both the SAP and the SADF realised the Hippo had to replaced. However the SADF rejected the invite by the SAP to join them in a joint venture to develop a new vehicle. The SADF preferring to go their own way. The result was the SAP got the superb CASSPIR and the SADF sucked hind tit with the Buffel. It look the SADF up to late 80's to finally accept the Casspir was a far better vehicle.
I broke my front teeth debussing from a Buffel during training. We were doing standard operating drills, but we were not allowed to put down the sides. We had to jump with full kit from the top and deploy in the correct positions super fast or we got fucked up badly.
Thats right, we were not allowed to drop the sides. I never saw a buffel being used with dropped sides. There was a funny story about a sargent called Stein who only spoke Afrikaans. Apparently, he started out only speaking English. One day a Buffalo klap (side flap) dropped on his head and put him in a coma for a few weeks. He woke up speaking Afrikaans. Undoubtedly a nonsense legend.
@@derekmarshall7258 😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂 Now I know where some of our NCO's got their PK's from.... Stone got klapped into Stein/Steyn, or Stein/Steyn into Stone... 😂😂😂 They only used to speak English in self defence... We should have called it a BK... Buffel klap vs Poes klap. Lekker, Derek... Ja, ek glo dit was net n kroeg storie...lekker! 🦇🦇🦇
The water tank underneath was said to help mitigate mine effects and stabilise the vehicle. Extremely uncomfortable drive, very hot but served its purpose very well for protection from small arms and mines. The troops carried their own water bottles but the water tank could be used as a last resort. Both rear sides could be dropped depending on which direction you wanted to leave the vehicle. Those sides are extremely heavy.
Interesting vehicle to drive. Every driver smashed their knuckles into the steel side of the drivers cab when changing gears to third gear. Buffel drivers developed the habit (very fast) of using the lower part of the gear lever to change gears with your hand upside down for third and fourth gears. Good memories, Thank You.
Shes a beautjfully ugly behemoth I hope they become for sale on the american civilian market. Their is some pretty sweet stuff you can contract to have buolt here if you got the monet and citizenship its great but little exists for the poors i think about building a motorized carriage 1800s style.
years upon years of being sidelined by the world has made SA truly independent dor their equipments and supplies … there’s a lesson to be learnt there …
The water was more as ballast as the Buffel was quite top heavy. During training our water rations were limited. So some guys stole the water from a Buffel one night. The next day that Buffel over turned as it drove our of the base. Luckily no one was injured but the rest of the day we got an Opfok!
@@dirkvanniekerk4796 buffles got rolled even with full water tanks the water was for you to drink in die field same as every other SADF especially pantser ones the casspir has water tanks the mamba even die withings
Excellent video, thanks. I wish to God the British army would have gone for some tried & tested S.African MRAP vehicles for Afghanistan. Instead they spent years developing the Foxhound vehicle (composite armour & an under powered speed boat engine!!!) that when it finally got to theatre in 2012... broke down in hot weather! The design of the Foxhound looks like a spitting image of the 'Hot-lips' S. African vehicle too
@@piet8803 Those £1,000,000/each pretty vehicles being stuck in workshops in Camp Bastion cost men out in the field their lives - the corruption & profiteering behind the procurement was shameless. I still hope to see those profiteers held to account one day.
@@piet8803 I'm working on bucking that trend - I'm sick of seeing soldiers left hung out to dry while profiteering Generals get golden handshakes from the Military Industrial Complex. Maybe naive or overly ambitious, but that is my mission
I'ma Ratel gunner originally from 1979 January to 1980 December from 1SAI Bloemfontien, but the last half of my second year I had the opportunity to get my B spec license for unimog and buffel and grabbed it open arms and for the next 11 years while been called up every year for military service I had a lot of involvement with the Buffel as a passenger at times and more times being the driver, and I can tell many amazing stories about the awesome Unimog/Buffel, the water storage was there for 3 things, for fresh ice cold water supply, it helped alot in a landmine hit or even a rpg hit if hit in the lower area and most importantly it was there to help the balance of the Buffel when loaded with troops making it top heavy, I've heard of them falling over but never seen it myself and I can understand why they could, firstly the driver's duty was to insure good maintenance on hese buffel and that included keeping the fuel and water tanks topped up as frequently as possible for those reasons, but they are still verry stable even when low on fuel and water, they can get into a rock and then fall over but they did have shock absorbers attached from chassis to bin to avoid it rocking mostly but still demanded a good bit of skill from the driver, but still the Buffel was a brilliant all round performer with amazing range and speed for such a heavy 4 wheeler, and in my oppinion still the best for its role to this day, and as for Unimog itself that I've also driven a heck of a lot there's no better 4×4 bush Wacker off roader ever made, these machines could get you anywhere u wished with outstanding reliability, only problem I've ever had was if it's driven to empty then once putting Diesel in again it has to be bled to get the air outta the fuel system or that baby is going nowhere lol, it happened to me once and though there are bleeding points for doing it easly for the driver just behind the drivers cab on the chassis its still a crap dirty job 🤣, but that's it, never have I had any other problems with any of my buffels, great machines and I miss them and Ratels so much ✌
Wow ou Fred.... Amper gedink jy't vergeet om asem te haal soos jy skryf... Goeie herhinneringe, ou makker. Kan sien jy was trots op jou voertuie.. Respek. 💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻 🦇
Had the privalege of being a driver of a Buffel in mid 80's for 2 mnths near the former rhodesian border. Absolutely loved it but at times it could get scary as it was bit to heavy. Nevertheless twas an awesome time.
A new Buffel came with stairs, headlights, exhaust pipe, and working battery. One trip into the bush was enough to get rid of the stairs (one of the best ways of avoiding mines is to go over trees instead of around them - and always avoid even the most remote vehicle tracks). The exhaust pipes never lasted, so the driver would have diesel fumes blowing in through the holes the gear levers went through. Radiators were also prone to clogging with grass seeds. Combine this with the fact that it was common for the battery to die young (so requiring a pull start by another Buffel in better shape), and activity involving lots of stopping (leaving the engine running, because it was so awkward to start), and sometimes they'd heat seize. The fixed machine guns were seldom used AFAIK. Never saw those. Probably too vulnerable to being smashed by trees. The idea on contact was to keep moving - and drive over anyone you could run over - so I think in a combat situation the machine gun would've just sprayed the sky full of rounds. They were great at coping with landmines. I drove them, and missed three mines by luck. (Two that took out a vehicle, and one that took out a really nice sapper I'm glad I didn't have to see dying.) In one case I was up for vehicle patrol, and a friend of mine wanted to experience this, so managed to get permission to drive in my place. In the middle of the bush, near no homestead, near no road, and on a piece of track that petered out, which he used to drive round a tree (I told him to drive over them, but I suppose he couldn't), boom. Right front wheel, I think. No being thrown by the explosion, just a huge, deafening bang, and there goes your wheel. In another case we had a long day moving a unit out for some operation. Up before dawn to sweep the road, and then back and forth over a corrugated road that the Buffel would kind of float over the surface of, drifting this way and then that - and no chance of sticking to the swept tracks when driving at full speed. The door would clatter something terrible, dust everywhere (roll your sleeve down and it's brown, not white like everything else). Only the hand throttle worked nicely, so you had a lot of one handed steering. At sunset I was still going, and had one more trip to do, and a friend of mine told me to go and wash up and get some proper supper at the mess (I would've been too late for supper, and hadn't eaten all day). Off he went, and hit a mine, too. (Wheel off again, but he got thrown up and landed badly enough to get severe shin splints - and had a hell of a time getting a doctor to treat this, too. He didn't like wearing the seat belt. Me neither, but they said you had to, so I did.) His mine would've been quickly planted by an insurgent in the gap between the Buffel traffic. Buffels going all day would've drawn him to the roads we used quite quickly. Risky business. I never hit a mine myself. I always used to get other people to go and hit my mines for me. (It's almost like that, because I can't think of any other occasions where other guys drove my Buffel.) Oh yes, power steering, so careful of your arm. Often when you run over a "little bush" there's a big old tree trunk hidden in it and you come to an immediate halt. Hit that with one wheel, and if your arm is inside the steering wheel (or if your thumb is in the usual driving position for most people - inside the wheel) that wheel spins hard enough to break your arm, or your thumb. And if you hit it really badly the automatic transmission fluid of the power steering sprays your window pink, and from then on it's a struggle to fight the steering wheel. Actually my first Buffel got christened "Skippy" by the section I always seemed to end up transporting in it, because it "hopped like a kangaroo". The suspension on the left hand side had collapsed, so it leaned over to one side ... what? ... workshop? ... what workshop? The best Buffels were always at the bases that didn't need them. The ones "at the end of the track" were a bit of a mess - but kept going, nevertheless.
I forgot about the High/Low range in forward, but it does remind me of a story. A student driver (troep) managed, somehow, to go from driving at about 50 km/h (Forward) directly to reverse. The result was that the internal driveshaft in the torque tube looked like a twisted paper towel roll core that had been twisted up, it also damaged the outer tube to the extent that it had to be replaced.
SA - Making MRAPs in the 60's. UK, still putting their soldiers in land rovers in late 2000's after hundreds already killed by IEDs. "Land rover's still the best solution." - Some idiot from the UK.
@@Aron-ru5zk Yes. But I'm not saying you can't have unarmored jeeps and such. You need those as well. But the humvee certainly wasn't the best solution countering IEDs either. :'D
The 100L of water was there for one reason, supply. But they put it under the vehicle to help lower the centre of gravity and a healthy side effect of that was added protection, regardless of how minimal
Being uncomfortable is better than dying by a cheap land mines!!!but are you sure that this vehicle is 100% mine proof?because if it is?then it’s a very useful and amazing invention.Lastly can this vehicle protect soldiers from IED?
Their safety towards land mines relied on the occupants being strapped in. A driver in my company was killed when a double chees mine (so 14kg of explosive) rear wheel detonation threw the vehicle up and over it's nose; landing upside down it crushed him as he had been standing up at the time to free a jerry-rigged wire throttle mechanism that had jammed. Another soldier in my company died when a double mine rear detonation fractured the brake disc and sent a piece of it through the bottom of the troop compartment hull, killing him. But that was a freak occurrence; usually if people were properly strapped in they sustained little or no injury. IEDs were not something we needed to contend with in our war, only land mines, But the armour was light (6 or 7 mm) and only provided protection from small arms fire. So no, they wouldn't have been much protection from the sort of IEDs used in Afghanistan and Iraq.
I was conscripted after the war but we did training and manoeuvres in Buffels. I hated the things because they were slow and underpowered, the sun torched us in the back when we drove for hours between our base and the training grounds, and if you jumped out of it wrong wearing full battle gear you could easily sprain an ankle. I was happy when they gave us riot bakkies (modified pickup trucks nicknamed fish tanks and hoenderhokke depending on the configuration) to quell riots in the townships - although that was unpleasant work.
South African military intellectual property stolen by foreign countries, especially by the United States, who comes under the pretentious to train snd learn military competency... like they got South Africa Defence Force involved in a proxy war to keep Russia occupied and busy in Angola during the US USSR cold war..... they also stole intellectual property from Russia, like they did with that Russian helicopter in Lybia....... transported that same day they recover it,on a cargo aircraft to the US
Looks like the wide wheelbase made it less likely to rollover at lower speeds, and any mine explosion would initiate further away from the vehicle hull.
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The mine deflection technology developed for the Buffel and perfected in following vehicles have saved more lives than can be counted through the years. There are a lot of middle aged men walking around in South Africa today that directly owe their lives to this development.
It took a few decades but the western world has caught on, implementing this tech over the majority of their wheeled combat vehicle line up. The most notable example being the replacements for the Humvee and Land Rover tactical vehicles through the course of the Afghan war to combat IEDS and land mines.
As a side note, a deep dive into the succeeding Casspir and the Ratel IFV would give great insight into modern mechanised combat vehicles, as both of these practically hepled write the book in mechanised warfare for the modern age
I think a lot of people have their doubts, as we will see in this comments section going forward... but if I survived a mine in one of these, you bet I'd be singing songs about it.
If anybody else has stories of mine survivals it'd be nice to hear
The vehicle has sacrificed a lot in its design for mine protection. So it really needs to work!!
@@kalui96 it was most definitely a very compromised and specialised design, but when it was created the primary threat for this kind of vehicle was mines. As the war progressed they did start to struggle with other forms of combat, so the Casspir was brought in to replace it
@@HenkBlankes98 People also need to consider the "flimsiness" and "thin armor" might have been a result of evolution in an environment which places gross vehicle weight constraints- a heavily armoured tank would easily get stuck in unpaved african roads (some made of wet clay, dry salt with prehistoric marine sludge, etc). And additionally the consideration of material scarcity in both workshop technical level and parts inventory. Not every workshop out in the African bush has reliable high output electricity, for example. Getting fancy armor part replacements delivered out there is also a challenge
@@HenkBlankes98 even the new MRAPs, South Africa is still definitely some of the best in the world at designing mraps
I spent far too many hours of my life in the back of one of those contraptions.
Little know fact, the wire mesh covering the engine makes an excellent barbeque after you have burned the paint off.
Barbeq..... Braai. brother braai. Yes braaid
I saw a fully laden buffel with captured ammo go over a land mine. The front wheel was thrown high in the sky but the driver and occupant was unharmed. The wheel was filled with water to minimise the blast of the anti tank mines. We just waited for the replacement wheel assembly by choppa and towed it back to live another few years of service.
Our sappers hit a double cheese mine in a buffel (two anti-tank mines on top of each other). The blast tore both front wheels off and twisted the cab to 90 degrees to the rear troop compartment. All the occupants survived.
i was a auto electrician on these vehicles in Durban NCW 1989.....incredible vehicle.
Thank you for this video. Ours is a very little known war and not many know of its significance. We had fantastic, forward thinking engineers and designers, with many innovative ideas. A small note: the water tank was not primarily for mine blasts, it was used for drinking water during extended patrols.
Made my acquaintance with this superb vehicle in 1981-82...the comments about it being an uncomfortable ride are correct...the troop compartment, being separate from the drivers' compartment, moved from side to side on an axis perpendicular to the direction of travel...under a broiling sun, and hundreds of miles from the sea, it was easy to feel sea-sick! The seats were bloody hard too....had to be, for protection, but nevertheless....Another point is that the V-shaped chassis hed a large water-filled compartment, within it. This helped to cushion the blast from mines, but also provided a welcome reserve of water for the troops. I understand that the later Casspir was a better vehicle, but the Buffel did it for me.
Anything is better than the foot bus ;)
Special place in my heart for the Buffel. We hit a double landmine and were fine, bit deaf but fine. The buffel was interesting to drive going into 3rd gear and you smashed your hand into the armour plating of the drivers cab. taught you to hold your hand in the wrong way upside down to get into third gear without you hurting your hand. The thing wobbled as it is too high and could fall over, especialy if hit by a mine. Thank You for your video and thank You for paying respect to the forgotten war.
I forgot about the gear changes...
Wasn't there a rifle clip where you elbow ended up?
About those unibuffalos in Sri Lankan parades, they are purely for demonstration. Thank you for covering the Sri Lankan usage because buffalo was used extensively in the civil war and it's very popular here because of it's unique design. It may look fragile and will stand no chance against a proper nation army but it's damn effective against rebels in a bush war.
I spent many hours in the back of a Buffel.
We hope you enjoyed the video. The opinion of a real operator is always prior to us
Looks like it was uncomfortable.
Did you hit a mine?
Yes agree and also in a Ratel
@@WeaponDetective My stepdad was a Buffel driver. I will show this to him tomorrow.
You should do a video about the Casspir. We had the modern mrap design, as seen in service with the US Armed Forces, about 30 years prior. If the US had bought from SA and modified them to their requirements, it would have saved the US Government a lot of money in research and development.
Thanks! I had some emotional moments watching the old Buffel, which I rode on the so-called "Cutline" on the SWA-Angola border back in the day. Nicely done, thanks!
Üdvözlöm! Szívesen olvasnám a visszaemlékezéseit, ha léteznek valamilyen írott formában. Üdvözlettel, Ötvös Ákos
@@akosotvos747 Magnó kazettán vettem föl apám elbeszéléseit, az arról készülő könyvet jövőre tervezem kiadni. Üdv, Kristóf
Magyarországi kiadás lesz? A címe tudható? Majd keresném mindenképp!
@@akosotvos747 Még nem tartok ott, de majd ha meglesz, a facebook oldalamon felteszem. Ugyanaz, mint a nevem. Gondolom, Maagyarországi kiadás kell, hogy legyen. A magyar nyelvvel nehezen bánnak a Nyugatiak! :)
Ahhhh.
Die Kaplyn.
I later learned that a friend used the buffel to drive over the enemy terrorist during an attack. They were using the rpg and the buffel was equipped with the 50 cal browning. But during the close quarters fighting it was easier to drive over them before the rpg could be used. We also used loud speakers with loud music to confuse and communicate in the heat of battle because radio was a bit cumbersome. During battle it's a hell of a commotion in the bush. The terrorist usually just randomly scattered.
WE won the bush war but not the politics
It saved my life twice in landmine blasts during the Angolan border/bush war!
Once double cheeser. Respect brother.
There is no argument with that sir! God bless.
One BAD ambush & one mine here.
Drivers cab blown off the chassis but he was OK
Good that you are still alive. Enjoy👍
Doubt that very much. Utter rubbish
The Buffel engine was made by Atlantis Diesel Engines, not Atlas Diesel Engines. After National Service, I actually worked for the agents of the dynamometers that was used to test the ADE engines in the town of Atlantis, near Cape Town. During National Service I drove the Buffel, which was great fun. During my Commando days I also drove the Hippo which was based on an old "Vasbyt" Bedford chassis and was a real pain in the arse to drive. Later, I actually worked for the agents of the dynamometers that was used to test the ADE engines in the town of Atlantis, near Cape Town.
You remind me of a guy I met at a camp. He was from Cape Town and an ex tiffy. One morning the water bunker was empty and going to fill it I couldn't get it in gear. He had a look and said the clutch master cylinder packed up. He quickly taught me to drive without using the clutch.
@@olsaffa7679 Once I was on night duty at an airforce base, and we had a Landrover to take coffee to the guards. We thought it's great fun at 3 AM to try and do the whole trip without using the clutch. So you'd put it in 1st, then crank the starter without engaging the clutch, and it would lurch forward, the engine would fire and you would get going all at once. To change gears, you would just crash change to the next gear, maybe first into neutral and blip the throttle and as the revs come down you can theoretically slip it into the next gear. Except one night it wouldn't go into gear, and the driver kept grinding away to get it into gear. And then the gearlever broke off, right where it goes into the gearbox. So we roped in one of the guys who was on guard duty who's day job was a welder, and we went down to a welding shop and he tried to weld it back on. It didn't really work, but the gearlever was sort of in a vertical-ish position, which was fine to return the vehicle to the vehicle park. And of course the next guy just touched it and it broke off again. Wasn't us!
@@dougerrohmer It is a long time ago but I think the Samil 100 in question had a rev counter and that gave me the confidence to learn how to do it after the lesson that day. Trick was to be in the correct rev range and then feel it softly. The lever would at the right revs, just slide in. I practiced it a lot and when working we got a student from tech. I showed off and showed her how. Week or two later the near new nissan hardbody mysteriously had transmission problems.
I had to laugh: remembered how the ex tiffy told me he didn't miss a camp. If he went on holiday, his wife would go with so he did army camps and she still hasn't managed to come with
My father used to work for ADE as quality control until they started to shutdown. They made some damn good engines in the day.
The Hippo seemed cumbersome and slow.,
I have a deep admiration for this vehicle. It would never win any beauty contest, but it was the best MRAP of it's time in my opinion and saved many lives. It was well engineered. Despite being lurched around, you were fine if you buckled up with an aircraft-like harness into a thick formed rubber seat, which could possible absorb some explosion impact. I was a medic and came across numerous guys who had survived land mine hits, all reported that there were no casualties, but they were pretty deaf for days. Back at base a mine damaged vehicle was repaired quickly. In my sector the only Buffel casualties I was aware of were from an air burst bomb.
I mean rhere is definetly betted but its clearly innovative
Ole SADF was ages into the future
Best Army Africa has known
🇳🇱 🇬🇧
And the SADF was "in the top 3 military forces in the world" at the time.
Won't talk about the SANDF under the new regime...
👍🏻✌🏻👊🏻
🦇🦇🦇
@@TheMadManPlace
I served in both and respect the SANDF for what we achieved.
SADF 10% of the RSA GDP vs SANDF 0.7% of the GDP. You get what you pay for.
Well done!
Even your Afrikaans pronunciation of "Buffel" (Buffalo) is spot on 👍👍👍
And it’s a far, FAR different beast than the American buffalo (bison)
But not the Moffel.
The reason the Buffel was so good was where it came from originally and the design of the armour plate , along with the capacity to carry water too , that coulped with water filled tyres lessened the blast . Before the Buffel , South Africa used unimogs with sandbags to reduce blast effect , this vehicle was actually rejected by the govt innitially and started as a privately funded concern , once , however its success was seen , the story changed . A bit like during WW2 , an aircraft called the Manchester was a bit of a failure , so the designer went to the Air Ministry and pleaded his cause , he lengthened the wings , added two more engines , having scrapped the Vulture engines , he scraped together 4 Spitfire engines , the plane became an instant success , it was called the Lancaster . That is about how Unimogs turned into Buffels . In the story of the funding , another aviation event , De Haviland wanted to build a long range bomber but the Air Ministry favoured Avro and the Lancaster . Not to be outdone , De Haviland , being denied funding and materials , decided to fund their own long range bomber , (De Haviland used to build racing aircraft before WW2 and knew how to build a fast , light , excelent handling aircraft) Well as it was , they decided to use what was relatively available and not heavy , which was not restricted by war effort . They built a twin engine , lightly armed long range bomber out of wood , they christened is the Mosquito . During first tests to the Air Ministry (who almost openly gaffawed it for being built out of ply wood and balsa wood like a racing plane ) they were stunned that neither Spitfire nor Hurricaine could keep up , niether could anything Germany could offer either , once approved , De Haviland no longer funded themselves , they were awarded a contract to build . Much like the early days of the Buffel . So as you see , not all military vehicle successes are govt funded or approved at first .
The South Africans were very resourceful and innovative
Great video. A video about ratel 90 would be great as well.
Great content and 105 bonus points for your pronunciation of Buffel! Perfectly executed.
I was involved in the early mraps, we were testing the wolf in rundu in 1977, the gearbox was outside the armour and we tried bike cables to connect the gear stick (which worked backwards). It caused issues as the cables were too weak. We changed over to hydraulics but that was mushy. That was why the cabin was separated from the back in the buffel. We also added water to the tires in the mogs, which apparently the rest haven’t followed.
I grew up in Windhoek during the bush war years, stayed in Suiderhof, close to the Suiderhof military base, the HQ unit, had the “gemsbok” on a faded yellow diamond shaped insignia, I remember as a kid how the took the military drivers of those vehicles, Buffel, Spook and Caspirs to the dry riverbed/bush behind the Suiderhof primary school and went all out “bundu bashing”... testing or training them on the steep sides of the dry river bed.... awesome times...
@@theodecy4748 Training? Nah, that would have been just rondfok. We got stuck in a mielieland in a Samil 20 once, right down to the diffs in mud. We weren't meant to be there, fortunately there were some Tiffies in a Samil 100 recovery around and we got yanked out without anybody knowing.
@@dougerrohmer yup, most of those bundu bashing was indeed just rondfok, but SWATF was regularly giving training to newly drivers.... the terrain behind Suiderhof primary school, the area opposite the maintenance of the SWATF HQ, was ideal to test both driver and vehicle... they even had a tank down there in the dry riverbed once...... not to sure what tank it was (could’ve been an Olifant)
We use to watch them from SAWI Cafe (army cafe was right on the corner in same road of SWATF main gate entrance)
As a 10/11/12 year old kid, those military vehicles was huge....
@@theodecy4748 As someone else said in another comment here, those days were lekker kak - sometimes lekker, and sometimes kak. 😁
Note:- Buffels were the Primary MRAP and the first wheeled base APC of the Sri Lankan army during the 1980s. After South Africa and Rhodesia, The Buffel saw major share of it's combat in the Sri Lankan civil war against the rebel Tami tigers. They were mainly given a PKM or an M1919A4 for firing support. and some were converted to carry Medical evacuations. They even added sand bags and cement bags for protection against RPG Rounds as well as grenades ad mortar shrapnels.
of course due to strategic disasters up north in 80s and 90s, a large number of arsenals of theSri lankan army fell in the hands of the tamil tigers, which also included the Buffels. These were later used for ground support and low level AA role, usually equipped with salvaged Oerlikkon 20mm from downed or captured sri lankan naval crafts , ZPU-2/ 4 , KPV etc.
The Buffels were subsequently supplemented with the more Robust BTR-80s and WZ 551 (wheeled configuration APCs) but remained the standard MRAP till early 2000s.It was eventually replaced by locally produced Unicorn and more advanced Unibuffel variants.
Also South Africa had a n improvised Rhino APC Variant.
The Buffel was not used in Rhodesia.
@@tightcamper The Buffels were used very late in Rhodesia.
@@patriotenfield3276 What units used the Buffel?
@@tightcamper details have not been yet revealed. But they palyed a cruicial role in Rhodesian raids in Mozambique late in war. Most likely they were either with the Rhodsian Light Infantry i suppose. Since they were the spearheading units of RSF in such raids
@@patriotenfield3276 Sounds to me like you are guessing. Why would Rhodesia use the Buffel when we had our own superior localy manufactured MAPs.
I knew a guy who was involved in the design of the Buffel. I remember him saying the designers weren't happy that so many were built and that it saw so much service because it was only ever intended to be a temporary stop-gap while more substantial vehicles like the Casspir were in development.
Not true. The SADF rejected the Casspir in favour of the Buffel during the development stage. It took the SADF up to late 80's to admit their mistake.
@@mazambane286 That does not contradict what the Armscor engineer told me - the development team did not regard the Buffel as a permanent, long-term solution but the SADF clearly did.
@@grantm6514 The Casspir was developed by the CSIR with input from the SAP....Hence the name CASSPIR. Nothing to do with Armscor or the SADF at all.
In fact the first Casspirs were built by TFM who build drums for concrete trucks.
@@grantm6514 The CSIR were very proactive when it came to improvements to the Casspir. They would actually come to the operational area and speak to the Policemen who actually used them
Most of the improvements made over the years were suggestions from the users.
The SAP were light years ahead of the SADF when it came to counter insurgency and the equipment and tactics required to be successful.
@@mazambane286 I didn't say Armscor had anything to do with Casspirs, I was only stating what an engineer involved in the Buffel project told me, that the development team did not regard it as an ideal or long-term solution, and they were unhappy that the SADF relied so heavily on them. If you disagree, I honestly don't care, take it up with him, if he's still alive.
There's a lot of mentions around of the 100 litre water tank helping in a detonation or just in vehicle stability but none of them seem to mention that the water tank filled only a third of the V of the hull. The other two thirds was the 200 litre diesel tank. As a Buffel driver we never considered the water tank useful for anything other than drinking. Applying a bit of common sense I have to ask myself how much 100 kg of water can really contribute to the stability of a vehicle weighing in excess of 6000 kg.
Other comments here also mention water filled tyres, but that too is not something we ever did. With multiple punctures daily being common while bundu bashing, there would have been no practical way to keep the tyres filled with water anyway.
You forgot to state that the engine guard made an excellent braai grill
Thank you for the upload
At first it was strange to have a left hand drive as that's opposite from other vehicles in South Africa (the Ratelwith central driver position was easier to get used to. Another thing with the buffel was a tight clutch (similar with other blast deflection vehicles like the Kwevoel) and a bang of the elbow into the armor plated cab when putting it in reverse. And because of the suspension the top heavyness would make it easy to roll. The Casper with a longer wheelbase felt and was more stable and the troops were safer and more comfortable more enclosed. The Ratel had great suspension, was mildly comfortable and has the driver choose between automatic and semi automatic transmission at start. You could also push the gear lever from top gear, all the way forward, while motoring forward, and it would automatically gear down to a stop and start reversing (for if you got hit in battle). On losing one of the four rear wheels, you could sling the axle with a chain and keep going. A driver would have to pass a driving test in each type of vehicle to get a military license for that type and the Military Police would check every so often. I was fortunate in that there was a serious need for drivers and I got to learn to drive basically everything from the "civilian fleet", the echelon vehicles (Samils, Kwevoel, etc open, diesel bunkers) and armored cars (Buffel, Casper, Ratel). The Army was often described as "lekker k@k" (fun and awful at various times).
One of the major positives of the Unimog chassis is the enclosed (torque-tube) driveshaft system, so that it could do a lot of bush work without fouling the prop-shafts, that, together with the high arch axles gave a great ground clearance.
The other thing noteworthy was that it had a straight forward/reverse system, and thus had as many gears in reverse as going forward.
The Buffel was top-heavy, but in difficult terrain usually slow-rolled onto its side, and could be pushed back onto its wheels again with little difficulty.
The SAMIL 20 (mk1) was based wholly on the Deutz Intrac (an opposition product to the Unimog). In the tractor variant it would have a front PTO and 3-point hitch system, typically used for crop spraying, snow ploughing etc.
The Off-road ability of the SAMIL 20 was in a league of its own!
Actually not the same number of gears forward and reverse. Forward was 8, 4 high range and 4 low range, but reverse had only low range and thus only 4. Even so, a fair speed could be achieved in reverse, and during several months spent at 4VRP (Vehicle Reserve Park) in 1982 we even had a few reverse races, where we had to hang out of the driver's door to see where we were going. Ah, the days when we were young and stupid.
@@strandloper I would have just stood on the seat and used the hand throttle.
Excellent subject matter and another superb video. Thanks Weapon Detective!
I spent a lot of time in these.
I enjoyed the video, thank you
Funfact: the Buffel is the vehicle you ride in during the COD: Black Ops II mission, Pyrrhic Victory.
I missed that. I was too much of an ignorant kid when I probably walked by it in the game. Thanks for the info
DEATH TO THE MPLA!
I used the Leopard quite a bit in Rhodesia. My main concern with it was that the engine and fuel tank were at the back, as you tried to exit the vehicle. That was the only way in or out. I was always concerned about a fuel fire in an ambush.
I had shintsplints jumping of those dam buffels.... aaa the good old days 🙂
I don’t know why you are harping on about how uncomfortable the Buffel was. I practically lived in one for almost a year. In both urban and rural terrain. Never once did I feel uncomfortable, quite the contrary. It was rather fun and massively comforting to be on the Buffel. The only thing that was a drawback was that jumping from the Buffel, with the sides up, was quite a way down to Mother Earth. Which made it somewhat unpleasant, especially in urban terrain. I have many happy memories of the Buffel and the only vehicle that offered more, was the formidable Casspir.
Ja a Buffel was a luxury compared to walking and running. I always fell asleep riding in a Buffel.
It was a looong way down if you jumped over the side.. I think that many old Riflemen have back problems today.
I was a pioneer never jumped over the side always at the spare wheel was in operation area for 16 months seen buffel hit plenty mines never seen serious injuries
The Buffel was damned dangerous by itself!
Here in SA we drive on the left side of the road, and the Buffel is a right-hand drive vehicle that took some getting used to.
There was a dash of paint on the armoured windscreen that the driver lined up with the solid white or yellow lines on the side of the road. Lining that dash up for hours on end on long trips on the highway was mentally exhausting!
Driving into the back of a vehicle was a real danger, especially in a convoy.
The Buffel did not have a radio fitted, so someone had to keep an eye out for the vehicles behind you in a convoy.
The damned things were difficult to get in and out of, especially if you're a shortarse like myself.
The water tank was it's best feature, as it also helped keep the center of gravity low, preventing roll overs.
Those plastic, or fiberglass roofs often went missing while on ops, leaving the African sun to bake down on the driver in that one man sauna.
The roof had to removed so the driver could communicate with the passengers, and if the driver got stupid and tried to kill them with his bad driving, a helmet swing down on your head soon taught you to stop f-ing around with the passengers lives.
I would not be surprised to find that more troops died in accidents than landmine contacts in the Buffel.
Thanks for your unique insider info
Another point tha the video does not mention, the Buffel had a hand throttle at the top of the driver's cab so that you could stand up and drive. I remember driving down the runway at Eenhana with my arse onthe top of the driver's seat, using the hand throttle to keep the revs just high enough to keep going, and my feet on the steering wheel to keep us straight.
It also had 4 gears in reverse...like Unimog
Which reminds me of a funny story. I was a driver at 53BN (note the Buffels in the video with 53 and 53A painted on the sides) in Ondangwa in late 1982 and early 1983. Unless very new Buffels were often in pretty bad shape from bundu bashing; first thing to go were the mirrors and the handbrake cables didn't last either. As most of our Buffels had no handbrake we parked them in gear in the very flat and level vehicle park and were supposed to ensure the hand throttle was in the closed position. We also had two Kwevoël horse boxes (based on Magirus Deutz/SAMIL 100 with landmine protected, armoured cab and landmine protected rear that could carry 10 horses), one of which I drove for a while. One late afternoon we returned to base in the empty horse boxes and swung them into their slots in the vehicle park, behind a row of Buffels. My compatriot was having brake trouble and decided to coast slowly and use the Buffel in front of him as a buffer to stop against. Of course that Buffel had no handbrake, was parked in gear and had the hand throttle in a slightly faster than idle position. Diesel vehicles don't need a spark to start their engines so when the Buffel was bumped, it jerked forward, the engine started and it drove itself forward and demolished half of the shed used to park the bike squad's motorcycles. As I recall the driver of that Buffel spent the next hour or so flipping a Buffel wheel around the parade ground.
I have always loved the vehicle design. Nice job Boer boys 👏
Aaahhh a South African wheeled marvel. At first sight it was very similar for me to the Ystervark which is the most unusual vehicle on the battlefields of WarThunder. And now I know why. As an SPAA not my favourite, but as an MPV, it is more interesting. And it is exciting to think about that, this vehicle which is looks the child of love of a Mad Max vehicle and a tiny mining dump truck is the grand father of nowadays MRAPs like Oshkosh JLTV, ATF Dingo, Eagle IV, Gidran etc. (Or someone says it is Cadillac Commando but eeehh what do you think?). The story of the Buffle is is thought-provoking, all of us remember to a Greek warrior trough centuries because in theory he was undefetable but just a few people rember to a vehicle wich saved the life of hundreds of soldeirs and opened the way for a new class of armored vehicles. But the most sad thing is alnost no one rembers those people who planned this weapon legend. This vehicle is wonderful but my South African war machine is still the Rooikat. And I have two questions actually. Are there any difference between the MPV and MRAP? And have you made video about the Rooikat?
Thanks for the video and have a nice day.
Thanks for your nice comment. Actually there is no distinct differences between the MPV and MRAP. It is a classical US trick, renaming already existed weapon system and concept and marketing it as new. But, we can say the modern MRAPs have better ballistic protection than the old generation MPVs.
Here is our Rooikat video. We hope you will enjoy it.
th-cam.com/video/1RgZMljXF6o/w-d-xo.html
@@WeaponDetective Thank you so much, I've started to watch it!
Good content as always 👍
I remember a Buffel parked out side our front door with soldiers in it, in 1985. We would put wet towels at the bottom of the front door to prevent the tear gas from coming in the house.
We(3 young boys) would hide in the back room with our dog. Those were sad & horrible days. Thank goodness my kids doesn't have to go through that experience.
Hectic. Whereabouts did you stay?
@@MediaFilter Mitchell's Plain, close to Spine Road.
Too nice video about Buffel mine protection vehicle..video clearly explained characteristics of this successful designed military armor vehicles.also its background history of its designs which is suitable for fighting mine threats in addition to fighting militia threats. . Thanks (weapon detective) channel for sharing this video
You mention 1978 but I was with Regt De Wet and the SP Guards who were using Buffels in October 77 at Elundu (Pff, what's a month or two?). Bloody uncomfortable but they definitely saved lives when used properly.
Why has evey video of yours varying degrees of volume? From one moment
to the next the volume increases or decreases somehow. Would be great if
you could improve on that so that the volume stays always the same and
stable. Otherwise great work!
Thank you for your constructive criticism. Actually, we use an audio pitch stabilizer while making our videos. We will try other programs to solve this problem.
Nothing was said about the Bulldog which the air force used. It was enclosed on the top as well. Use to race with it in the middle of the night around Ondangwa air force base, just a fellow soldier and I, no one knew. Full moonlight 1am 2 am 3 am did not matter. Often nearly rolled it. By the grace of God we never did. Then went back to base to eat steaks and big rolls of cheese we got earlier from the chef.
My Uncle had a crocodile that he got after the war, he used it on the farm in Zim, we use to drive around on the farm in the Crock.
Good video. I have learnt many things about South African and Rhodesian mine-protected vehicles. But I think you were tough to mention why did South Africa replace the Buffels with Casspirs. The South Africans wouldn't retire them if they weren't obsolete vehicles.
I knew a guy who was involved in the design of the Buffel. I remember him saying the designers weren't happy that so many were built and that it saw so much service because it was only ever intended to be a temporary stop-gap while more substantial vehicles like the Casspir were in development.
They were all heavily used, also in country in counter insurgency and patrol duties. Used every day for 20-30 years. they were retired as newer vehicles came in (huge mistake, should have gone to reserve units)
@@grantm6514 Not so. The SAP, who had way more experience in these matters than the SADF, started development of the Casspir in the mid 70's. Both the SAP and the SADF realised the Hippo had to replaced. However the SADF rejected the invite by the SAP to join them in a joint venture to develop a new vehicle. The SADF preferring to go their own way. The result was the SAP got the superb CASSPIR and the SADF sucked hind tit with the Buffel. It look the SADF up to late 80's to finally accept the Casspir was a far better vehicle.
I broke my front teeth debussing from a Buffel during training. We were doing standard operating drills, but we were not allowed to put down the sides. We had to jump with full kit from the top and deploy in the correct positions super fast or we got fucked up badly.
Thats right, we were not allowed to drop the sides. I never saw a buffel being used with dropped sides.
There was a funny story about a sargent called Stein who only spoke Afrikaans. Apparently, he started out only speaking English. One day a Buffalo klap (side flap) dropped on his head and put him in a coma for a few weeks. He woke up speaking Afrikaans. Undoubtedly a nonsense legend.
@@derekmarshall7258 That side flap would kill you I always though. It was ridiculously heavy.
So, only your teeth got fucked up ???
Lekker Louis, harde maar lekker dae gewees... 🤝🏻
@@derekmarshall7258
😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂🤣😂
Now I know where some of our NCO's got their PK's from....
Stone got klapped into Stein/Steyn, or Stein/Steyn into Stone... 😂😂😂
They only used to speak English in self defence...
We should have called it a BK...
Buffel klap vs Poes klap.
Lekker, Derek...
Ja, ek glo dit was net n kroeg storie...lekker!
🦇🦇🦇
My memory as well. It was a long way down when carrying a LMG 😂😂😂
Yes thanks to the Buffel I'm still here today was driver off a Buffel in 1981 in Angola war and drove ower landmine
The water tank underneath was said to help mitigate mine effects and stabilise the vehicle. Extremely uncomfortable drive, very hot but served its purpose very well for protection from small arms and mines. The troops carried their own water bottles but the water tank could be used as a last resort. Both rear sides could be dropped depending on which direction you wanted to leave the vehicle. Those sides are extremely heavy.
Interesting vehicle to drive. Every driver smashed their knuckles into the steel side of the drivers cab when changing gears to third gear. Buffel drivers developed the habit (very fast) of using the lower part of the gear lever to change gears with your hand upside down for third and fourth gears. Good memories, Thank You.
Shes a beautjfully ugly behemoth I hope they become for sale on the american civilian market. Their is some pretty sweet stuff you can contract to have buolt here if you got the monet and citizenship its great but little exists for the poors i think about building a motorized carriage 1800s style.
they later put an auto canon on it and called it the YSTERVARK, a vehicle available to play in warthunder
The vehicle looks very fragile but somehow can protect against a mine.
I think it's like the drunk man who falls down the stairs... so wobbly that it can't be broken
years upon years of being sidelined by the world has made SA truly independent dor their equipments and supplies … there’s a lesson to be learnt there …
The water tank was not for land mines it was for water as south west africa or namibia is very dry and water is far and not much
The water was more as ballast as the Buffel was quite top heavy. During training our water rations were limited. So some guys stole the water from a Buffel one night. The next day that Buffel over turned as it drove our of the base. Luckily no one was injured but the rest of the day we got an Opfok!
@@dirkvanniekerk4796 buffles got rolled even with full water tanks the water was for you to drink in die field same as every other SADF especially pantser ones the casspir has water tanks the mamba even die withings
Cooles Video, weil unser Unimoc❤
Nice , really interesting 🤔
Thanks for the video , theres little on internet about it.
Excellent video, thanks. I wish to God the British army would have gone for some tried & tested S.African MRAP vehicles for Afghanistan. Instead they spent years developing the Foxhound vehicle (composite armour & an under powered speed boat engine!!!) that when it finally got to theatre in 2012... broke down in hot weather! The design of the Foxhound looks like a spitting image of the 'Hot-lips' S. African vehicle too
At least they looked pretty.
@@piet8803 Those £1,000,000/each pretty vehicles being stuck in workshops in Camp Bastion cost men out in the field their lives - the corruption & profiteering behind the procurement was shameless. I still hope to see those profiteers held to account one day.
@@anthonycheaford1962 The sad thing is we both know nothing will happen to them. Bad things these days only happens to honest citizens.
@@piet8803 I'm working on bucking that trend - I'm sick of seeing soldiers left hung out to dry while profiteering Generals get golden handshakes from the Military Industrial Complex. Maybe naive or overly ambitious, but that is my mission
I'ma Ratel gunner originally from 1979 January to 1980 December from 1SAI Bloemfontien, but the last half of my second year I had the opportunity to get my B spec license for unimog and buffel and grabbed it open arms and for the next 11 years while been called up every year for military service I had a lot of involvement with the Buffel as a passenger at times and more times being the driver, and I can tell many amazing stories about the awesome Unimog/Buffel, the water storage was there for 3 things, for fresh ice cold water supply, it helped alot in a landmine hit or even a rpg hit if hit in the lower area and most importantly it was there to help the balance of the Buffel when loaded with troops making it top heavy, I've heard of them falling over but never seen it myself and I can understand why they could, firstly the driver's duty was to insure good maintenance on hese buffel and that included keeping the fuel and water tanks topped up as frequently as possible for those reasons, but they are still verry stable even when low on fuel and water, they can get into a rock and then fall over but they did have shock absorbers attached from chassis to bin to avoid it rocking mostly but still demanded a good bit of skill from the driver, but still the Buffel was a brilliant all round performer with amazing range and speed for such a heavy 4 wheeler, and in my oppinion still the best for its role to this day, and as for Unimog itself that I've also driven a heck of a lot there's no better 4×4 bush Wacker off roader ever made, these machines could get you anywhere u wished with outstanding reliability, only problem I've ever had was if it's driven to empty then once putting Diesel in again it has to be bled to get the air outta the fuel system or that baby is going nowhere lol, it happened to me once and though there are bleeding points for doing it easly for the driver just behind the drivers cab on the chassis its still a crap dirty job 🤣, but that's it, never have I had any other problems with any of my buffels, great machines and I miss them and Ratels so much ✌
Thanks for your interest and the first-hand information. Our next Weapon Legend content will be about the Ratel. Please don't miss it.
@@WeaponDetective I surely won't thank you bro, can't wait as the Ratel was a legend and my other true love apart from the Buffel 👍
Wow ou Fred....
Amper gedink jy't vergeet om asem te haal soos jy skryf...
Goeie herhinneringe, ou makker.
Kan sien jy was trots op jou voertuie..
Respek.
💪🏻💪🏻💪🏻
🦇
@@alwynvanwyk1851 haha dankie maat 🤣👍
another good video excellent
Had the privalege of being a driver of a Buffel in mid 80's for 2 mnths near the former rhodesian border. Absolutely loved it but at times it could get scary as it was bit to heavy. Nevertheless twas an awesome time.
A new Buffel came with stairs, headlights, exhaust pipe, and working battery. One trip into the bush was enough to get rid of the stairs (one of the best ways of avoiding mines is to go over trees instead of around them - and always avoid even the most remote vehicle tracks). The exhaust pipes never lasted, so the driver would have diesel fumes blowing in through the holes the gear levers went through. Radiators were also prone to clogging with grass seeds. Combine this with the fact that it was common for the battery to die young (so requiring a pull start by another Buffel in better shape), and activity involving lots of stopping (leaving the engine running, because it was so awkward to start), and sometimes they'd heat seize.
The fixed machine guns were seldom used AFAIK. Never saw those. Probably too vulnerable to being smashed by trees. The idea on contact was to keep moving - and drive over anyone you could run over - so I think in a combat situation the machine gun would've just sprayed the sky full of rounds.
They were great at coping with landmines. I drove them, and missed three mines by luck. (Two that took out a vehicle, and one that took out a really nice sapper I'm glad I didn't have to see dying.)
In one case I was up for vehicle patrol, and a friend of mine wanted to experience this, so managed to get permission to drive in my place. In the middle of the bush, near no homestead, near no road, and on a piece of track that petered out, which he used to drive round a tree (I told him to drive over them, but I suppose he couldn't), boom. Right front wheel, I think. No being thrown by the explosion, just a huge, deafening bang, and there goes your wheel.
In another case we had a long day moving a unit out for some operation. Up before dawn to sweep the road, and then back and forth over a corrugated road that the Buffel would kind of float over the surface of, drifting this way and then that - and no chance of sticking to the swept tracks when driving at full speed. The door would clatter something terrible, dust everywhere (roll your sleeve down and it's brown, not white like everything else). Only the hand throttle worked nicely, so you had a lot of one handed steering. At sunset I was still going, and had one more trip to do, and a friend of mine told me to go and wash up and get some proper supper at the mess (I would've been too late for supper, and hadn't eaten all day). Off he went, and hit a mine, too. (Wheel off again, but he got thrown up and landed badly enough to get severe shin splints - and had a hell of a time getting a doctor to treat this, too. He didn't like wearing the seat belt. Me neither, but they said you had to, so I did.) His mine would've been quickly planted by an insurgent in the gap between the Buffel traffic. Buffels going all day would've drawn him to the roads we used quite quickly. Risky business.
I never hit a mine myself. I always used to get other people to go and hit my mines for me. (It's almost like that, because I can't think of any other occasions where other guys drove my Buffel.)
Oh yes, power steering, so careful of your arm. Often when you run over a "little bush" there's a big old tree trunk hidden in it and you come to an immediate halt. Hit that with one wheel, and if your arm is inside the steering wheel (or if your thumb is in the usual driving position for most people - inside the wheel) that wheel spins hard enough to break your arm, or your thumb. And if you hit it really badly the automatic transmission fluid of the power steering sprays your window pink, and from then on it's a struggle to fight the steering wheel.
Actually my first Buffel got christened "Skippy" by the section I always seemed to end up transporting in it, because it "hopped like a kangaroo". The suspension on the left hand side had collapsed, so it leaned over to one side ... what? ... workshop? ... what workshop? The best Buffels were always at the bases that didn't need them. The ones "at the end of the track" were a bit of a mess - but kept going, nevertheless.
I am sl army soldier 🇱🇰 ❤️
hello machan
I forgot about the High/Low range in forward, but it does remind me of a story.
A student driver (troep) managed, somehow, to go from driving at about 50 km/h (Forward) directly to reverse. The result was that the internal driveshaft in the torque tube looked like a twisted paper towel roll core that had been twisted up, it also damaged the outer tube to the extent that it had to be replaced.
SA - Making MRAPs in the 60's.
UK, still putting their soldiers in land rovers in late 2000's after hundreds already killed by IEDs.
"Land rover's still the best solution." - Some idiot from the UK.
USA: adopts the Humvee that has no mine protection in 1987
@@Aron-ru5zk Yes. But I'm not saying you can't have unarmored jeeps and such. You need those as well.
But the humvee certainly wasn't the best solution countering IEDs either. :'D
Necessity truly is the mother of invention. South African military developed many good domestic vehicles and variants
The 100L of water was there for one reason, supply. But they put it under the vehicle to help lower the centre of gravity and a healthy side effect of that was added protection, regardless of how minimal
Thank you
"Our journey to victory has begun! Death to the MPLA!"
-Jonas Savimbi in a Buffel, from the hit game Call of duty Black ops 2
Fantastic vehicle. Bought a few when they were decommissioned. Should have kept one!!
I spent my deployment in the MRAP Caiman, so I'll give this oddity the credit for being the grandpappy of it. XD
Being uncomfortable is better than dying by a cheap land mines!!!but are you sure that this vehicle is 100% mine proof?because if it is?then it’s a very useful and amazing invention.Lastly can this vehicle protect soldiers from IED?
Their safety towards land mines relied on the occupants being strapped in. A driver in my company was killed when a double chees mine (so 14kg of explosive) rear wheel detonation threw the vehicle up and over it's nose; landing upside down it crushed him as he had been standing up at the time to free a jerry-rigged wire throttle mechanism that had jammed. Another soldier in my company died when a double mine rear detonation fractured the brake disc and sent a piece of it through the bottom of the troop compartment hull, killing him. But that was a freak occurrence; usually if people were properly strapped in they sustained little or no injury.
IEDs were not something we needed to contend with in our war, only land mines, But the armour was light (6 or 7 mm) and only provided protection from small arms fire. So no, they wouldn't have been much protection from the sort of IEDs used in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Hep dikkatimi çekmiş ilginç bir aratı. Güeny afrikanın ürettiği tekerlekli topçu sistemi de çağının ötesindeydi.
Best Design..I love it.
I was conscripted after the war but we did training and manoeuvres in Buffels. I hated the things because they were slow and underpowered, the sun torched us in the back when we drove for hours between our base and the training grounds, and if you jumped out of it wrong wearing full battle gear you could easily sprain an ankle. I was happy when they gave us riot bakkies (modified pickup trucks nicknamed fish tanks and hoenderhokke depending on the configuration) to quell riots in the townships - although that was unpleasant work.
Make a video on the Caspir please.
I love Buffel and other MRAP - RPGman :D
It's also on a Unimog
And also one of my dream trucks
Yip a great truck, I saw one a few weeks ago parked outside a mall, it certainly reminded me of my days in the army.
2 uncles served in the border wars. They were using Casspirs I think. It had longer wheel base and fully enclosed for better protection.
More please. ;)
It was also used as a radio vehicle during large operations.
Very interesting vehicle.
My family used to have a MPV!!!
It had a Mazda logo on it though. And it was red
That thing also looks like that light troop transport from Death Stranding
Sure beats a humvee...
Ok well probably not a humvee but it is good
I spent countless hours in that bin!!
My favorite armoured personnel carrier!!
Are you planning a video on the Casspir?
A lucky request. Our next Weapon Legends-Land content will be the Caspir.
"OUR JOURNEY TO VICTORY HAS BEGUN!"
Have you reviewed the Ratel family of vehicles? A quick TH-cam search didn’t show one.
We have the Ratel on our list. We will make a video as soon as possible.
@@WeaponDetective Thanks! I've always been fascinated by the Ratel; from what little I've seen, it seems like a very useful and versatile vehicle.
South African military intellectual property stolen by foreign countries, especially by the United States, who comes under the pretentious to train snd learn military competency... like they got South Africa Defence Force involved in a proxy war to keep Russia occupied and busy in Angola during the US USSR cold war..... they also stole intellectual property from Russia, like they did with that Russian helicopter in Lybia....... transported that same day they recover it,on a cargo aircraft to the US
As the Afrikaans saying goes: ‘’n Boer maak ‘n plan.’
Looks like the wide wheelbase made it less likely to rollover at lower speeds, and any mine explosion would initiate further away from the vehicle hull.
Wrong flag at the end. The new flag cannot claim development
One of 😮 the best😊
Caminhão do mad max.
The mortar carrier you mentioned was not a Buffel. It was a uniquely developed Rhodesian vehicle.
I have to ask why the drivers cab is on the left and not the right?
Derpy but badass