• Steel Soldiers now has a few new forums, read more about it at: New Munitions Forums!

  • Microsoft MSN, Live, Hotmail, Outlook email users may not be receiving emails. We are working to resolve this issue. Please add support@steelsoldiers.com to your trusted contacts.

Was there a final correct answer on the LM/FMTVs being EMP proof ????

serpico760

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
688
1,760
93
Location
San Diego, CA
From what I remember of reading and watching various things, The 3116 trucks that were all mechanical are EMP proof at least as far as the motor was concerned. Not so sure about the transmission if that has a computer to control it since it does have that fancy little number pad control module.
 

GeneralDisorder

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
2,051
5,257
113
Location
Portland, OR
The 3126b and C7 engine wiring harnesses are wrapped in woven stainless mesh. All DOD assets are required to conform to MIL-STD-461 and subsequent revisions since 1967 which governs their emissions and their ability to function in environments where large amount of EMI and RFI are present (such as near high powered search radar equipment, etc). This in effect means they have a very high tolerance for such things as EMP. Depending in the power, proximity, and duration of such an event they may or may not be affected as not every single conductor is completely shielded - if a powerful enough emission were encountered it could cause unwanted interference.

The 3116 trucks are not really any better in that regard since the transmission computer (yes they are 100% computer controlled) would put them out of action just the same as the later trucks.
 

coachgeo

Well-known member
5,147
3,463
113
Location
North of Cincy OH

Third From Texas

Well-known member
2,766
6,498
113
Location
Corpus Christi Texas
IMO, if a foreign power pops the USA with an EMP strike then the subsequent retaliatory actions will pretty much snowball.

Unless you happen to own or can gain access to a silo or bunker, you're likely screwed.

Forget the truck, keep that bunker stocked with cheerleaders !! They eat like birds, too. Very low maintenance in that regard.
 

GeneralDisorder

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
2,051
5,257
113
Location
Portland, OR
IMO, if a foreign power pops the USA with an EMP strike then the subsequent retaliatory actions will pretty much snowball.

Unless you happen to own or can gain access to a silo or bunker, you're likely screwed.

Forget the truck, keep that bunker stocked with cheerleaders !! They eat like birds, too. Very low maintenance in that regard.
Exactly this.

Unless you happen to have some 4,000,000 SPF sunscreen it's likely to be a REAL BAD day. Also the roads will be impassably clogged with things that aren't EMP capable. Best bet is a backpack full of gear and a dual-sport motorcycle with a carburetor. Unless you are ALREADY way, way off-grid, the FMTV isn't likely to help you bug-out of the population center you are in now. And honestly if you ARE way, way off grid then just surround your shop/house/domicile/etc with a Faraday cage and protect everything if you are that concerned.
 

Guruman

Not so new member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
Exactly this.

Unless you happen to have some 4,000,000 SPF sunscreen it's likely to be a REAL BAD day. Also the roads will be impassably clogged with things that aren't EMP capable. Best bet is a backpack full of gear and a dual-sport motorcycle with a carburetor. Unless you are ALREADY way, way off-grid, the FMTV isn't likely to help you bug-out of the population center you are in now. And honestly if you ARE way, way off grid then just surround your shop/house/domicile/etc with a Faraday cage and protect everything if you are that concerned.
Ha.... We had a house in Montana, the entire basement was a faraday cage. They embedded copper wire mesh in the walls all around and in the ceiling/main floor.

Cool, but it was a job to get the wifi down to the Xbox.
 

chucky

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
6,622
18,965
113
Location
TN .
IMO, if a foreign power pops the USA with an EMP strike then the subsequent retaliatory actions will pretty much snowball.

Unless you happen to own or can gain access to a silo or bunker, you're likely screwed.

Forget the truck, keep that bunker stocked with cheerleaders !! They eat like birds, too. Very low maintenance in that regard.
See you cut rite thru all the blah blah blah to the most important part of true survival ! Lets all tip our hats to @Third From Texas for thinking outside the box cause you cant teach insight like that when the real SHTF !!!! Im sol on a missile silo but ive got a septic tank with a periscope with some cans of pringles stored for just in case ! And i can park my truck over the top of for camoflage !!!!
 

chucky

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
6,622
18,965
113
Location
TN .
The 3126b and C7 engine wiring harnesses are wrapped in woven stainless mesh. All DOD assets are required to conform to MIL-STD-461 and subsequent revisions since 1967 which governs their emissions and their ability to function in environments where large amount of EMI and RFI are present (such as near high powered search radar equipment, etc). This in effect means they have a very high tolerance for such things as EMP. Depending in the power, proximity, and duration of such an event they may or may not be affected as not every single conductor is completely shielded - if a powerful enough emission were encountered it could cause unwanted interference.

The 3116 trucks are not really any better in that regard since the transmission computer (yes they are 100% computer controlled) would put them out of action just the same as the later trucks.
See my naive thought was that a military vehicle would be built for such stuff but i thought i ought to ask instead of expecting something better on a bad day ! Thanks
 

coachgeo

Well-known member
5,147
3,463
113
Location
North of Cincy OH
Exactly this.

Unless you happen to have some 4,000,000 SPF sunscreen it's likely to be a REAL BAD day. Also the roads will be impassably clogged with things that aren't EMP capable. Best bet is a backpack full of gear and a dual-sport motorcycle with a carburetor. Unless you are ALREADY way, way off-grid, the FMTV isn't likely to help you bug-out of the population center you are in now. And honestly if you ARE way, way off grid then just surround your shop/house/domicile/etc with a Faraday cage and protect everything if you are that concerned.
or keep a spare trans computer and harness.... spare alternar, and other parts in faraday boxes (Galvanized trash cans with aluminum tape around seam of lid? )
 

tgreening

Member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
45
94
18
Location
Canton/OH
IMO, if a foreign power pops the USA with an EMP strike then the subsequent retaliatory actions will pretty much snowball.

Unless you happen to own or can gain access to a silo or bunker, you're likely screwed.

Forget the truck, keep that bunker stocked with cheerleaders !! They eat like birds, too. Very low maintenance in that regard.

The Gub'ment wouldn't even wait for it to "pop". An ICBM designed specifically for an EMP strike would be indistinguishable from a standard nuclear attack. IOW, WWIII has already started. Plus EMP events are some of the most over-hyped "problems" in the survival circles.

Problem 1 I just stated, and no capable party is going to bother. Their retaliation is already on the way to wherever they are and Uncle Sam is already hardened against EMP in all his critical systems anyway.

Problem 2 is any EMP semi-effective strike can only be carried out by a handful of players, and we know who they are and they know we know. A strike has to be of significant yield, at a relatively specific altitude, and under pretty favorable weather conditions. It's benefits are iffy at best, so anybody deciding to attack will just get on with the big boomers.

Problem 3 is EMP events, man made or natural, will generally affect power grids and not much else. The largest known recent history EMP event was in 1989 and wiped out power in the entire province of Quebec, for a whopping 9 hrs. The only effect in the US was New York had to buy some power elsewhere that they would have normally got from Canada. Naturally there were substantial communication disruptions, but these are a regular thing in HF comms, which come and go depending on solar activity. And remember, solar events hit the entire planet, or at least the half facing the sun when the flares arrive. There were no reported issues with motor vehicles or any kind or home electronics. Any EMP capable of wiping out your vehicle is likely to just kill you outright.

I wouldn't waste much money or time worrying about EMP. If it fries my truck its probably fried me too. But I'm all in on stocking up with the Cheerleaders! And peanut butter. The world might as well burn if I cant have my peanut butter. And bacon.

You got to have priorities...
 

TechnoWeenie

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
1,654
1,669
113
Location
Nova Laboratories, WA
Recent - in terms of modern day... But you neglect to mention the Carrington event..... which was sufficient enough to set telegraph wire/poles on fire and destroy a lot of equipment... and that's just basic stuff - nowhere near the extent of longwires and sensitive electronics that we have today.

I do believe the last military estimate of a deployment of an EMP put fatalities at something like 50% within 6 months and 85% within 12 months. The amount of damage to infrastructure would cause a failure that wouldn't be restorable for 5-6 years at minimum.. with some estimates pushing a decade to 'get back to normal'. With our JIT (Just In Time) delivery system in place, stores would be instantly out of food, gas wouldn't be able to pumped for the vehicles that still are mobile, food wouldn't be made, etc. which would lead to mass starvation.

I work in the transportation industry and I've seen the chaos that happens from one small hiccup in the supply chain... One warehouse goes down and they can't accept loads. If they can't accept loads they're kept at terminal.. Terminal can't get them outbound which means there's no room for new containers to be unloaded... can't unload containers from vessel means other vessels are delayed berthing.... Last 2 years I've seen vessels 6-8 weeks behind schedule.... which might not sound bad, but what happens when your chocolate filled Advent calendars you order in August, to depart in September, to arrive at distribution points and in stores by November, doesn't even hit the warehouse until almost January? It happened last year. 40' shipping container full of advent calendars....

But I digress....

IMO, anything newer than an M939, ESPECIALLY vehicles like FMTV with electronically controlled transmissions, will be susceptible.
 
Last edited:

coachgeo

Well-known member
5,147
3,463
113
Location
North of Cincy OH
...

IMO, anything newer than an M939, ESPECIALLY vehicles like FMTV with electronically controlled transmissions, will be susceptible.
on FMTV A0... what spares would one in worst case repair scenario need too have carried in a Faraday caged box to get back up running.... Tranny computer module?, and relay's to replace those in Power Distribution panel?. CTIS module?
 

TechnoWeenie

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
1,654
1,669
113
Location
Nova Laboratories, WA
on FMTV A0... what spares would one in worst case repair scenario need too have carried in a Faraday caged box to get back up running.... Tranny computer module?, and relay's to replace those in Power Distribution panel?. CTIS module?
Anything computer related or that has contacts that can arc and cause damage. Technically, probably wouldn't be a bad idea to have a spare starter and alternator, as the windings may be damaged, or diodes in the alternator toasted... although, in all reality I think it's better to have a spare of each of those ANYWAY... I wouldn't really say anything specific to EMP, more like common replacement parts that, if damaged/inop, would leave you disabled somewhere.

One of the reasons I prefer mechanical 'everything'... Got flat but no spare? take wheel off and bind the axle up so it's not dragging. Full mechanical = no issues. Try that on a vehicle with wheel speed sensors and watch your ABS go absolutely nuts.

My expertise is communications/SIGINT, and associated fields, so while I'm no expert on EMPs themselves, I have a pretty good understanding on what they would/wouldn't impact...

The 'limp mode' on FMTVs has no business being on combat vehicles, IMO. Any error or issue that the controller sees and you're gonna be stuck to ...21(?) MPH.... Too much to go wrong to want to rely on that in the event of an EMP.

I think one of the last completely EMP proof trucks is probably the multifuel deuces. ALL mechanical, manual trans = push start, no fuel solenoid, can run without an alternator/starter, etc.
 

TechnoWeenie

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
1,654
1,669
113
Location
Nova Laboratories, WA
To wit; re: Deuce - I used to live next to a farm. He had an old 1930s diesel tractor, I think it might have even been a Ford... He would ALWAYS park it at the top of the hill next to his barn when he got done... a couple times I saw him start down the hill, silent as a mouse, and about halfway down it'd roar to life... I finally got curious enough, as a kid, to start asking him about the tractor, and quickly realized it had no battery.... It was a crank start....and that's how I learned about roll starting/push starting. Theoretically, with a deuce, make sure you got good brakes, and park it facing downhill, and you could run it nearly indefinitely with no battery... just park it back on the hill when you're done, and when you wanna get going again... and roll start it.... I relearned that lesson a little later, still a child, when my mom had a chevy cavalier wagon that she couldn't afford to fix but it had a bad battery drain... and she intentionally parked on a hill so when she came out the next morning she'd just pop the clutch and be on her way.

Can't do that with an LMTV....or a 939 series...
 

MarkM

CODE BROWN...It's all going to sh~t !
Steel Soldiers Supporter
1,081
1,972
113
Location
WOBURN. MA.
Ha.... We had a house in Montana, the entire basement was a faraday cage. They embedded copper wire mesh in the walls all around and in the ceiling/main floor.

Cool, but it was a job to get the wifi down to the Xbox.
Cooper mesh in the walls? That is a motivated owner. Did the previous owners wear aluminum foil hats to protect themselves? You can put aluminum foil inside your baseball cap to covertly protect yourself. Lol

But seriously the Carrington event just happened 160 years ago so it is not an uncommon event. I do believe that is the most likely scenario we face.

Mark
 

Guruman

Not so new member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
Cooper mesh in the walls? That is a motivated owner. Did the previous owners wear aluminum foil hats to protect themselves? You can put aluminum foil inside your baseball cap to covertly protect yourself. Lol

But seriously the Carrington event just happened 160 years ago so it is not an uncommon event. I do believe that is the most likely scenario we face.

Mark
There are some folks in Montana who are prepared for anything.
 

MarkM

CODE BROWN...It's all going to sh~t !
Steel Soldiers Supporter
1,081
1,972
113
Location
WOBURN. MA.
There are some folks in Montana who are prepared for anything.

The problem with "anything" is you need to prepare for all possible contingencies, known and unknown. Lol

I personally have been planning an offensive assault against the Mole people should they ever emerge from their subterranean labyrinth . The truth is out there.

Mark

MV5BNDJhMDZkNDctM2FkNS00MmU3LTljZTEtNjViMTYxNTUzZDI5L2ltYWdlL2ltYWdlXkEyXkFqcGdeQXVyMTE2NzA0Ng...jpg
 

TechnoWeenie

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
1,654
1,669
113
Location
Nova Laboratories, WA
Not to get too far out into the weeds, since 'zombie apocalypse' and 'shtf' discussions are banned on this site, but it's not 'zombies' that people prep for when they say they're preparing for a zombie apocalypse. It's the idea that there's an ever-present enemy, that is constantly trying to get you.

It's the general idea that, if you can prepare for and survive a zombie horde, then anything else, like a natural disaster, failed economy, or rioting, is child's play. 'Plan for the worst, hope for the best'..

Natural events, like earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes, etc are a much more likely threat... and simple things like not being prepared for a power outage during an ice storm are what kill bunch of people each year.

Keep common spare parts on your truck. It doesn't matter if it's a Carrington event, or a zombie apocalypse, or an EMP... or most likely, a random mechanical failure - It's just good planning and makes sense... You're on the side of a mountain in December in your LMTV and the starter dies... no cell service... what are you gonna do?

General preparedness isn't a bad thing. Keeping spare parts on your truck is a smart move.

Both my deuce and my M1031 have a spare starter, spare alternator, spare belts, spare hoses, spare fluids, etc etc. It doesn't take up as much space as you think it does. You don't want to spend $500 to have spare parts/fluids on hand? What do you think a tow is gonna cost you? You think the new starter is gonna be free when you need it? Oh, you can just order it from Cummins and have it in here in a week? How's that gonna help you if you're on the side of the road, or stuck in a parking lot somewhere, or god forbid, in the middle of the desert or on a mountain in winter? Spend money up front to save hassle down the road ;)
 

Mullaney

Well-known member
Steel Soldiers Supporter
Supporting Vendor
7,724
19,772
113
Location
Charlotte NC
Not to get too far out into the weeds, since 'zombie apocalypse' and 'shtf' discussions are banned on this site, but it's not 'zombies' that people prep for when they say they're preparing for a zombie apocalypse. It's the idea that there's an ever-present enemy, that is constantly trying to get you.

It's the general idea that, if you can prepare for and survive a zombie horde, then anything else, like a natural disaster, failed economy, or rioting, is child's play. 'Plan for the worst, hope for the best'..

Natural events, like earthquakes, tornados, hurricanes, etc are a much more likely threat... and simple things like not being prepared for a power outage during an ice storm are what kill bunch of people each year.

Keep common spare parts on your truck. It doesn't matter if it's a Carrington event, or a zombie apocalypse, or an EMP... or most likely, a random mechanical failure - It's just good planning and makes sense... You're on the side of a mountain in December in your LMTV and the starter dies... no cell service... what are you gonna do?

General preparedness isn't a bad thing. Keeping spare parts on your truck is a smart move.

Both my deuce and my M1031 have a spare starter, spare alternator, spare belts, spare hoses, spare fluids, etc etc. It doesn't take up as much space as you think it does. You don't want to spend $500 to have spare parts/fluids on hand? What do you think a tow is gonna cost you? You think the new starter is gonna be free when you need it? Oh, you can just order it from Cummins and have it in here in a week? How's that gonna help you if you're on the side of the road, or stuck in a parking lot somewhere, or god forbid, in the middle of the desert or on a mountain in winter? Spend money up front to save hassle down the road ;)
.
Well said @TechnoWeenie !

Nothing like spare parts ON HAND when you need them.
A tow on most MV's are gonna be more than a few hundred bucks for sure!.
 
Top
AdBlock Detected

We get it, advertisements are annoying!

Sure, ad-blocking software does a great job at blocking ads, but it also blocks useful features of our website like our supporting vendors. Their ads help keep Steel Soldiers going. Please consider disabling your ad blockers for the site. Thanks!

I've Disabled AdBlock
No Thanks