Gas Mask and Respirator Wiki
Register
Advertisement
The thinker
This article is about a concept, not a mask.
This article has been written about something that is not a specific model of mask, but a concept relating to CBRN warfare or the engineering behind gas masks.

The RSh-4 was a Soviet gas mask kit, the successor of the BN kit. It was put in service in 1958 and remained in use until the collapse of the Soviet Union and even sees use with Russia but it was mainly phased out by the PMG kit in the 70s. The RSh-4 (РШ-4 Развернутая шихта тип) means Expanded Filter type 4 (this was because of the filter’s design).

The RSH-4 kit contains the following items:[]

  • ShM-41mu/ShMS/MM-1 facepieces
  • IPP-8/IPP-51/ decontamination kits
  • Bag designated Type A (Тип-А)
  • Filter EO-16, EO-14, EO-12
  • Filter PAF (it is disputed if PAF is actually is a part of the kit)
  • Filter DP-1 (it wasn't always included in the kit)
  • Insulating lenses for ShM-41mu
  • Anti-fog inserts (59mm diameter)
  • Spare membranes type MM-1 and Type ShMS (membranes made for these two masks are the same in size but designated differently)
  • Simple Soviet hose covered by cloth.
  • ShM Winterization attachment (rarely)

ShM-41mu[]

The ShM-41mu (see article for ShM-41) is an upgrade from ShM-41m, it features thicker valve assembly and a ridge around it.

Decontamination kits[]

IPP-8 or IPP-51 was issued.

Type A bag[]

Type A bag is a cheaply made Soviet gas mask bag, as usual, it comes with a waist strap, a side pocket for IPP-8/IPP-51. Inside of the bag you have two main compartments, for the mask, the filter compartment which features two wooden sticks on the bottom to keep a good airflow for the filter and a special string to pull so it tightens up the compartment of the filter so it doesn't jump around, Some were meant for EO-14 filters which have a loop instead of a string that goes around the Female thread of the hose when in use It also has a compartment for the hose and a small inner pocket for antifog inserts (or soap) and membranes.

Filter EO-16/PAF/DP-1[]

Filter designated EO-16 is a big dimensions filter that is obviously used with hoses, it has a 40mm port on the bottom to attach PAF filter which is for added particle protection. Dimensions of the EO-16 17.5 × 10.7 cm. The filter, of course, features typical bumps/rings for protection against physical damage. The rubber plug like on most of the other Soviet big dimension filters have a small rope attached to the plug so it won't get lost. Filter DP-1 is a Carbon monoxide filter (hopcalite is present in the filter which is a mixture of copper and manganese oxides and is a catalyst to converting CO to CO2 all this when exposed to oxygen) filter has a marking which is a number like 757 (always in 700s) which tells the user how many grams of hopcalite are in the filter.

== ==

Advertisement