The 15 cm SK C/25[Note 1] was a German medium-caliber naval gun used during the Second World War. It served as the primary armament for the Konigsberg and Leipzig-class cruisers. No surplus weapons of this type appear to have been used as coast-defense guns.
| 15 cm SK C/25 | |
|---|---|
 15 cm SK C/25 in Drh LC/35 turret on Nürnberg | |
| Type | Naval gun |
| Place of origin | Weimar Republic |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1929–45 |
| Used by | Weimar Republic Nazi Germany |
| Wars | Second World War |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 11,970 kilograms (26,390 lb) |
| Length | 9.08 metres (29.8 ft) |
| Barrel length | 8.57 metres (28.1 ft) |
| Shell | separate-loading, cased charge |
| Caliber | 149.1 millimetres (5.87 in) |
| Breech | semi-automatic, vertical sliding-block |
| Elevation | -10° to +40° |
| Traverse | 360° |
| Rate of fire | 8 rpm (maximum) |
| Muzzle velocity | 960 metres per second (3,100 ft/s) |
| Maximum firing range | 25,700 metres (28,100 yd) at 40° |
Description
editThis gun was the most powerful of the Kriegsmarine's 15 centimetres (5.9 in) guns and was designed with a loose barrel, jacket and breech-piece with a vertical sliding breech block.[1]
Mount
editThe Drh. LC/25 triple-gun mount was the only mount used for this gun in the Kriegsmarine. The mount weighed between 136.91–147.15 tonnes (134.75–144.83 long tons; 150.92–162.21 short tons), depending on its armor thickness; the Nürnberg's mounts had between 20–80 mm (0.79–3.15 in) of armor while the other ships had 20–30 mm (0.79–1.18 in). Each mount was designed for full 360° of traverse, but was limited to much less than that by the ship's superstructure. The electrically powered hydraulic pumps had a maximum elevating speed of 8° per second, while train was a maximum of 6-8° per second. The maximum firing cycle was 7.5 seconds, or 8 rounds per minute, despite being hand-loaded and rammed. Ammunition was supplied by three hoists, one between the left and center guns and the other two between center and right guns at the rear of the mount.[1][2]
Ammunition
editThe SK C/25 had a number of different shells available.[2]
| Shell name | Weight | Filling Weight | Muzzle velocity |
|---|---|---|---|
| base-fused HE shell with ballistic cap (Sprenggranate L/4.5 m Bdz m. Hb) | 45.5 kg (100 lb) | 3.058 kg (6.74 lb) | 960 m/s (3,100 ft/s) |
| nose-fused HE shell with ballistic cap (15 cm Spgr. L/4.4 Kz m. Hb) | 45.5 kg (100 lb) | 3.892 kg (8.58 lb) | 960 m/s (3,100 ft/s) |
| base-fused armor-piercing shell with ballistic cap (Panzer-Sprenggranate) L/3.7 m Bdz. m Hb) | 45.5 kg (100 lb) | .885 kg (1.95 lb) | 960 m/s (3,100 ft/s) |
| illumination shell | 41 kg (90 lb) | Unknown | 650 m/s (2,100 ft/s) |
Footnotes
edit- Notes
- ^ SK - Schnelladekanone (quick loading cannon); C - Construktionsjahr (year of design)
- Citations
References
edit- Campbell, John (2002). Naval Weapons of World War Two. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-87021-459-4.
- Gander, Terry; Chamberlain, Peter (1979). Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939–1945. New York: Doubleday. ISBN 0-385-15090-3.
- Hogg, Ian V. (1997). German Artillery of World War Two (2nd corrected ed.). Mechanicsville, PA: Stackpole Books. ISBN 1-85367-480-X.
- Rolf, Rudi (1998). Der Atlantikwall: Bauten der deutschen Küstenbefestigungen 1940-1945. Osnabrück: Biblio. ISBN 3-7648-2469-7.
- Rolf, Rudi (2004). A Dictionary on Modern Fortification: An Illustrated Lexicon on European Fortification in the Period 1800-1945. Middleburg, Netherlands: PRAK.
External links
edit