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5.2 cm SK L/55 naval gun

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
5.2 cm SK L/55 gun
Krupp gun in Royal Australian Armoured Corps Tank Museum, Puckapunyal, Victoria, Australia.
TypeNaval gun
Place of origin German Empire
Service history
In service1906—1920?
Used byGerman Empire
WarsWorld War I
Production history
Designedaround 1905[1]
Specifications
Mass386 kg (851 lb)[2]
Barrel length2.87 m (9 ft 5 in) L/55[2]

ShellFixed QF 52 x 463 R[3]
Shell weight1.75 kg (3 lb 14 oz)[2]
Caliber5.2 cm (2 in)
ActionSemi-automatic
BreechHorizontal sliding wedge
RecoilHydro-pneumatic
CarriageCentral pivot
Elevation-5° to +20°[1]
Traverse360°
Rate of fire10 rpm[1]
Muzzle velocity850 m/s (2,800 ft/s)
Effective firing range7.1 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

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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

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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:

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

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References

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  1. ^ SK - Schnelladekanone (quick loading cannon); L - Länge (length); /55 - with a 55-caliber-long barrel
  1. ^ a b c d e f "5.2 cm/55 (2.05") SK L/55". Navweaps.com. Retrieved 27 August 2016.
  2. ^ a b c Friedman, N. (2011). Naval weapons of World War One. p. 147
  3. ^ "48-57 MM CALIBRE CARTRIDGES". www.quarryhs.co.uk. Archived from the original on 1 March 2021. Retrieved 7 November 2018.

Bibliography

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  • Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1848321007.
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