WW2.design

Registry of exhibits

WW2 machines and instruments, rebuilt in 3D

Each exhibit is an interactive model that is meticulously reconstructed from manuals, drawings, and a vast collection of reference materials.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Cipher machine

Enigma machine

An electromechanical cipher machine used to encrypt German military communications. Its rotors and plugboard changed the electrical path for each letter.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Fighter planes

Mitsubishi A6M2 Zero

A lightweight, carrier-based fighter built for the Imperial Japanese Navy. The Zero combined long range and maneuverability in a compact airframe.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Heavy bomber

Boeing B-17 Flying Fortress

A four-engine American bomber used for long-range daylight bombing. Its crew operated the aircraft, navigated to targets and defended it with machine guns.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Gyro-stabilized bombsight

Norden bombsight

An optical bombsight used in American bombers to calculate when to release their bombs. Gyroscopes stabilized the sight while a mechanical computer accounted for altitude, speed and drift.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Military utility vehicle

U.S. Army jeep

A compact four-wheel-drive vehicle used for transport, reconnaissance and light towing. Bantam’s prototype helped establish the design that became the wartime jeep.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Gear hobbing machine

Pfauter gear hobbing machine

A machine tool that cuts gear teeth by turning a toothed cutter and a gear blank together. Machines like the Pfauter No. 00 made the gears used in vehicles and industrial equipment.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Crawler tractors

Caterpillar tractors

Diesel tractors that run on continuous tracks for traction on rough ground. They cleared land, built roads and airfields, and towed heavy equipment during the war.

Use arrow keys to rotate the model, Home to reset, or Enter to open the exhibit. On touch screens, drag sideways to rotate or tap to open.

Codebreaking machine

The British Bombe

An electromechanical machine that tested possible Enigma settings. Used at Bletchley Park, it helped codebreakers recover the keys needed to read German messages.