10.5 cm SK C/32 naval gun
| 10.5 cm SK C/32 | |
|---|---|
|
U-123 SK C/32 deck gun. | |
| Type |
Naval gun Coastal defence |
| Place of origin | Nazi Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1936—1945 |
| Used by |
.svg.png){kind=small} Nazi Germany |
| Wars | World War II |
| Specifications | |
| Weight | 1,585–1,785 kilograms (3,494–3,935 lb)[1] |
| Length | 4.74–4.86 meters (15 ft 7 in–15 ft 11 in)[1] |
| Barrel length | 4.4 meters (14 ft 5 in)[1] (bore length) |
|
| |
| Shell | Fixed |
| Caliber | 105 millimeters (4.1 in)[1] |
| Muzzle velocity | 785 m/s (2,580 ft/s)[1] |
| Maximum firing range | 15 kilometers (16,000 yd) at 44.4° elevation[1] |
The 10.5 cm SK C/32 (SK - Schnelladekanone (quick loading cannon) C - Construktionsjahr (year of design) was a German naval gun used in World War II. This was the standard unshielded low-angle deck gun mounted forward of the conning tower in type I, type IX and type X U-boats. The guns were also used in shielded high-angle mountings aboard type 35 and type 43 minesweepers, Elbing class torpedo boats, cruiser Emden, and old battleships Schlesien and Schleswig-Holstein.[1]
Description
The built-up gun with a barrel, jacket and breech end piece weighed about 1.8 tons. The gun fired a 15.1 kg (33 lb) projectile 105 mm in diameter, and the barrel is sometimes described as 45 caliber. Fixed ammunition (case and projectile handled as a single assembled unit) containing a 4.08-kilogram (9.0 lb) propellant charge was 105-centimetre (41 in) long. Ceiling was 10,300-metre (33,800 ft) at 80° elevation. Useful life expectancy was 4100 effective full charges (EFC) per barrel.[1]
U-boat history
The Ubts LC/32 mounting used in type I and early type IX U-boats weighed about 5 tonnes and could be elevated from -10° to +35° . Later type IX and type XB U-boats used the Ubts LC/36 mounting reducing weight by 10 percent by restricting elevation from -10° to +30° .[1] During the early war years, these guns were used to encourage surrender of independently routed merchant ships or to sink ships damaged by torpedoes.[2] Some of these guns were later removed from U-boats for mounting aboard type 40 minesweepers after unshielded deck guns proved impractical in action against Defensively Equipped Merchant Ships and escorted trade convoys.[3]
Coastal defence gun
Norway used this gun in coastal defence batteries until 2002.
See also
Weapons of comparable role, performance and era
- QF 4 inch Mk XII & Mk XXII guns : Slightly less powerful British equivalent submarine guns
Notes
References
 |
Wikimedia Commons has media related to 10.5cm SK C32. |
- Blair, Clay (1996). Hitler's U-Boat War: The Hunters 1939-1942. New York: Random House. ISBN 0-394-58839-8.
- Campbell, John (2002). Naval Weapons of World War Two. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-87021-459-4.
- Lenton, H.T. (1976). German Warships of the Second World War. New York: Arco. ISBN 0-668-04037-8.
External links
- Tony DiGiulian, Germany 10.5 cm/45 (4.1") SK C/32