Yeah. Government-owned companies producing shells that probably wouldn't pass QC in "the west", and paying employees a pittance in comparison. Also at least based on aerial photos, Russians seem to use contact fuzes a lot (you can see the difference from the "splash" patterns) which are a lot cheaper than airburst / multifunction fuzes, but admittedly those might well have been old Soviet stock and their new production could well be more modern.

Still, regardless of the fuze used it's no surprise that Russian production is cheaper.

[–] gnuhaut@lemmy.ml 13 points 3 months ago (8 children)

Reportedly the Russian factory workers are being paid quite well. And the lack of quality is just a myth I think. There's no indication that's actually true.

The real reason prices in the West are so high is that there's a shortage, and shells are supplied overwhelmingly by private contractors, and so the price has multiplied thanks to supply-and-demand market logic.

You may think the Efficient Free Market Knows Best™, so shouldn't they increase production? Think again. They're making record profits right now. Meaningfully increasing production involves building new factories for billions of dollars/euros, which might be ready in a year or two. By then the war will be over and they would have overcapacity, which would be inefficient and prices would plummet. Why would they do that to themselves?

So they're in a great negotiating position vis a vis desperate Western governments. They want guaranteed profits, of the same sort they're making right now, or else the shortage continues.

[–] hydroptic@sopuli.xyz 8 points 3 months ago (3 children)

Reportedly the Russian factory workers are being paid quite well.

Paid well for Russian factory workers

And the lack of quality is just a myth I think. There’s no indication that’s actually true.

Then you haven't been paying attention.

[–] Dreyns@lemmy.ml 7 points 3 months ago (1 children)

Yes lmao, let's just ignore the overall abysmal precision, the anti-air defense that strikes it's own cities, the exploding shells upon firing, etc. No lack of quality here.

[–] hydroptic@sopuli.xyz 3 points 3 months ago* (last edited 3 months ago)

Yeah, there's a reason why they suddenly have a lot of trouble selling their military hardware even to countries that haven't sanctioned them.

Well, other reasons in addition to the fact that the stuff they're fielding themselves in Ukraine keeps getting blown the fuck up and they have had to replace it with something that was initially being built for an outside customer. "Yeah you remember those tanks you ordered? Weeelll you're not going to be getting them quite on schedule, there's been some… uh… complications. The turrets… they, uh… experienced rapid unplanned disassembly caused by… uh… assembly workers smoking in the crew compartment. Definitely not caused by inferior westoid antitank missiles in Ukraine, our cope cages work against those 100% of the time and it's not like we'd use your tanks in combat, no siree Bob"

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