5 cm SK L/40 gun

The 5 cm SK L/40 gun was a German naval gun used in World War I and World War II.

5 cm SK L/40
A 5 cm SK L/40 gun on a center pivot mount.
Type	Naval gun
Place of origin	German Empire
Service history
In service	1892-1945
Used by	German Empire Nazi Germany Belgium The Netherlands
Wars	World War I World War II
Production history
Designed	1892
Produced	5 cm SK L/40 - 1892 5 cm Tbts KL/40 - 1913
Specifications
Mass	240 kg (530 lb)
Length	2 m (6 ft 7 in)
Barrel length	1.83 m (6 ft) L/40 caliber
Shell	Fixed QF 52 x 333R
Shell weight	1.75 kg (3.9 lb)
Caliber	50 mm (2 in)
Breech	Horizontal sliding-wedge
Elevation	-5° to +20°
Traverse	360°
Rate of fire	10 rpm
Muzzle velocity	656 m/s (2,150 ft/s)
Maximum firing range	6.2 km (3.9 mi) at +20°

Service

The 5 cm SK L/40 gun was primarily used as an anti-torpedo boat gun aboard avisos, corvettes, gunboats, protected cruisers, submarines, torpedo boats, and unprotected cruisers. It was used by the navies of the German Empire, Nazi Germany, Belgium, and The Netherlands.

Ship classes that carried the 5 cm SK L/40 include:

• A-class torpedo boats
• Type UB II submarines
• S7-class torpedo boats
• S66-class torpedo boats
• G88-class torpedo boats
• S90-class torpedo boats
• Irene-class cruisers

See also

• List of naval guns
• 5.2 cm SK L/55 naval gun

Bibliography

• Campbell, John (2002). Naval Weapons of World War Two. London: Conway Maritime Press. ISBN 0-87021-459-4.
• Reichs-Marine-Amt, ed. (1898). Die 5 cm Schnelllade-Kanone L/40 in Torpedoboots-Laffete C/92 und ihre Munition, nebst Vorschriften für die Behandlung und Bedienung. E. S. Mittler. OCLC 461072478.
• Friedman, Norman (2011). Naval Weapons of World War One: Guns, Torpedoes, Mines, and ASW Weapons of All Nations: An Illustrated Directory. Annapolis, MD: Naval Institute Press. ISBN 978-1848321007.

External links

• http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNGER_5cm-40_skc93.htm