5.2 cm SK L/55 naval gun
| 5.2 cm SK L/55 gun | |
|---|---|
 Krupp gun in Royal Australian Armoured Corps Tank Museum, Puckapunyal, Victoria, Australia. | |
| Type | Naval gun |
| Place of origin |  German Empire |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1906—1920? |
| Used by | German Empire |
| Wars | World War I |
| Production history | |
| Designed | around 1905[1] |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 386 kg (851 lb)[2] |
| Barrel length | 2.87 m (9 ft 5 in) L/55[2] |
| Shell | Fixed QF 52 x 463 R[3] |
| Shell weight | 1.75 kg (3 lb 14 oz)[2] |
| Caliber | 5.2 cm (2 in) |
| Action | Semi-automatic |
| Breech | Horizontal sliding wedge |
| Recoil | Hydro-pneumatic |
| Carriage | Central pivot |
| Elevation | -5° to +20°[1] |
| Traverse | 360° |
| Rate of fire | 10 rpm[1] |
| Muzzle velocity | 850 m/s (2,800 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | 7.1 km (4.4 mi) at +20°[1] |
The 5.28 cm SK L/55[Note 1] was a German naval gun that was used before and during World War I on a variety of mounts, in torpedo boats and cruisers.
Design and description[edit]
The 5.2 cm SK L/55 gun was designed around 1905, and used fixed ammunition. It had an overall length of about 2.86 m (9 ft 5 in).[1] The gun was of built-up steel construction with a central rifled tube, reinforcing hoops from the trunnions to the breech. The gun used a semi-automatic Krupp horizontal sliding-block breech and used fixed quick fire ammunition.
Service[edit]
This gun was installed in several torpedo boats and cruisers of the Imperial German Navy, as well as in some torpedo boats ordered by the Royal Netherlands Navy, among them:
- SMS V106 torpedo boat (ex-Dutch)
- A-class torpedo boat (coastal)
- S90-class torpedo boat (ocean-going)
- Dresden-class cruiser
- Kolberg-class cruiser
- Königsberg-class cruiser
- Pillau-class cruiser
- Wiesbaden-class cruiser
During World War I it was sometimes replaced with larger guns (as the 8.8 cm L/30, 8.8 cm L/35 or 8.8 cm L/45), while in turn replaced the less powerful 5 cm SK L/40 gun in some older torpedo boats.[1]
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ SK - Schnelladekanone (quick loading cannon); L - Länge (length); /55 - with a 55-caliber-long barrel
- ^ a b c Friedman, N. (2011). Naval weapons of World War One. p. 147
- ^ "48-57 MM CALIBRE CARTRIDGES". www.quarryhs.co.uk. Archived from the original on 1 March 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
Bibliography[edit]
- Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1848321007.
Further reading[edit]
- Reichs-Marine-Amt, ed. (1907). Bedienungsvorschrift für die 5,2 cm Schnellade-Kanone L/55 in Mittel-pivot-lazette C/1903 : LII. Berlin.
{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: location missing publisher (link)
External links[edit]
- 5.2 cm/55 (2.05") SK L/55 - History and specifications, at Naval Weapons of the World website (NavWeaps.com) (accessed 2016-08-27)