Something a bit different 
http://www.nation.com.pk/daily/Sep-2003/11/EDITOR/op4.asp
EAS Bokhari
Iranian clerical rulers are much less militaristic than it is generally projected in the press. They have only reluctantly been pressed into this business of defence production after being mauled by Saddam Hussein during the Iraq-Iran War and due to other asymmetrical military environments in the region especially the Israeli militarism and threat.
The Iranians were badly jolted as the Iraqi armour made incursion into Iran and it was perhaps the strategic depth of Iran which saved the country. It appears that Iran is now fast catching up with its neighbours in defence production. Some of the more important facets of this are a discernible progress both in the fabrication of conventional arms and even weapons of mass destruction in Iran. There are reports that Iran is working on uranium enrichment and a uranium factory is working near Yezd where uranium has been found in abundance.
In the weapon sector, an SP (Self-Propelled) artillery piece Thunder 2 has received prominent coverage in the Janes Defence Weekly and of course the latest Iranian ‘Shahab’ series of ballistic missiles have shown how eager Iran is to reach out to Israel and beyond.
If what the Iranian military leadership says is correct then the ‘Shahab’ series of missiles is a real threat in the region. According to Gen Mohammad Bagher Qalibaf, head of the Islamic Revolutionary Guard’s Air Wing, the ‘Shahab - 3’ is 53 feet long ballistic missile that can travel at 43 miles per hour and carry a one tonne war-head at an altitude of nearly 82,000 feet. He claimed that the weapon was guided by an Iranian-made guidance system which gives it great accuracy. “The final test of every weapon is in real war situation but, given its war head and size, the ‘Shahab-3’ is a very accurate weapon.”
From the scanty and scattered information on the sites where the missiles are manufactured and tested it appears that the factories are almost scattered all over the country. Perhaps the largest and the North Korean built outfit is near Isfahan (although this factory uses Chinese equipment and technology). A rocket design centre is located at the Defence Technology and Science Research Centre which is a branch of Iran’s Defence Industry’s Organisation and located outside Karaj near Tehran. Some writers believe that this centre has the services of Russian and Chinese scientists.
Yet another facility exists near Bandar Abbas which helps the naval arm of the Guards. Chinese participation is indicated in this outfit. And still there are reports of missile fabrication in such diverse places as Pairzan, Seman, Shiraz, Maghdad and Islaker. Some of the more important companies and groups involved include, Defence Industries, Shahid, Bagheri Industrial Group, and Shahid Hemat Industrial Group.
“Iran’s main missile test range is said to be further east, near Sahroud along the Tehran-Mashahad railway. A telemetry station is supposed to be 350 kilometres south at Taba along the Mashahad-Isfahan road. All of these facilities are reportedly under the control of the Islamic Revolutionary Guards Corps.” It is generally opined that the Iranian missile programme is derivative of the North Korean No-Dong-I missile.
Iran has recently fielded two SP, full tracked artillery systems. These are 122mm Thunder-I and 155 mm Thunder-II. Be it known, that Iran had received some 440 M-109 (Pakistan too has this equipment) and M109 AI guns which of course were not self-propelled and therefore could not be integrated with armour units.
The new 155mm/39 calibre ordnance is manufactured by the Hadid facility of the Iranian Defence Industries Organisation. “The establishment also builds a wide range of other tank and artillery barrels as well as towed artillery systems, rocket launchers and ground-based mortar systems…” In appearance, the Thunder-2 ordnance which is known in Iran as 155 mm Cannon HM44 looks identical to that of the 155mm/39 calibre M185 ordinance used in US Mo9AI.
The Iranian gun is fitted with a double baffle muzzle brake, fume extractor, screw breech mechanism, hydropneumatic recuperator and a hydraulic recoil brake. A range of some 18.1 km can be achieved when firing standard 155mm HE (High Explosive) shell. The top stated rate of fire is 4 rounds per minute. The elevation range of the weapon is -3 degree to +75 degree. Two spades are provided for stable firing position for the equipment.
Although largely a derived equipment, it has a general layout like the US MI09AI but it features a new turret and chassis. The suspension is probably a new design of torsion bar type with six dual rubber-tyred road wheels on each side. The rubber wheels appear to be of the Russian T-72 tank and possibly manufactured under license in Iran.
Incidentally the Hadid (Iron) Factory also makes a wide range of other barrels for armoured vehicles and artillery applications including the 122 mm for Thunder-I and the 125 mm barrels for the T-72 series (HM 50).
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