BM-13 multiple rocket launcher, M4 Sherman tank — these are just some of the replicas which Svekla has built.
This Katyusha BM-13 multiple rocket launcher is Svekla's latest creation.
Engineer Maxim Svekla drives a Katyusha BM-13 in the village of Bolshoi Oyesh in the Novosibirsk Region.
Maxim Svekla inside his workshop.
According to Svekla, he was inspired by the work of his father-in-law, Vyacheslav Verevochkin who built a large number of life-sized replicas of tanks and self-propelled guns, many of which are now museum exhibits and have been used as movie props.
US Sherman tank manufactured by engineer Maxim Svekla parked in front of his house in the village of Bolshoi Oyesh in the Novosibirsk Region.
Engineer Maxim Svekla demonstrates a Katyusha BM-13 in the village of Bolshoi Oyesh in the Novosibirsk Region.
Svekla started helping Verevochkin in the mid-2000s. According to him, the first tank replicas they built were actually made out of old fridges.
Engineer Maxim Svekla drives a Katyusha BM-13 in the village of Bolshoi Oyesh in the Novosibirsk Region.
Engineer Maxim Svekla demonstrates a Katyusha BM-13 in the village of Bolshoi Oyesh in the Novosibirsk Region.
Over seven years the enthusiast has built over 60 replica combat vehicles.
Engineer Maxim Svekla demonstrates a Katyusha BM-13 in the village of Bolshoi Oyesh in the Novosibirsk Region.
According to Svekla, while most replicas look just like the originals, their inner workings are a different matter, as many engines used by WWII combat vehicles are now virtually impossible to find.
