Tank Gun Systems
The First Thirty Years, 1916–1945: A Technical Examination
William Andrews
- Much
- has
- been
- written
- about
- the
- use
- of
- tanks
- in
- battle.
- Little,
- however,
- has
- appeared
- about
- the
- gunnery
- systems
- that
- are
- at
- their
- core.
- This
- book
- describes
- and
- examines
- the
- main
- gun
- systems
- of
- medium
- and
- heavy
- tanks
- from
- first
- use
- in
- 1916
- in
- World
- War
- I
- to
- those
- fielded
- in
- numbers
- to
- the
- end
- of
- World
- War
- II
- in
- 1945,
- including
- tanks
- of
- the
- interwar
- period.
- Specifically
- considered
- are
- guns
- of
- a
- caliber
- greater
- than
- 35
- mm,
- which
- have
- been
- deployed
- in
- numbers
- greater
- than
- 100.
- The
- emphasis
- is
- on
- guns
- mounted
- in
- turrets
- on
- heavier
- tracked
- armored
- fighting
- vehicles
- (greater
- than
- 15
- tonnes)
- which
- were
- considered
- tanks.
- There
- are,
- though,
- exceptions,
- in
- that
- the
- naval
- 6
- pounder
- guns
- in
- First
- World
- War
- British
- tanks,
- as
- well
- as
- the
- 75
- mm
- guns
- in
- French
- medium
- tanks
- of
- the
- same
- period
- (all
- turretless)
- are
- included.
- The
- treatment
- of
- gun
- systems
- includes
- sighting
- and
- fire
- control
- equipment,
- gun
- laying
- equipment,
- mounts
- and
- the
- array
- of
- munitions
- fired,
- as
- well
- as
- the
- actual
- gun,
- including
- its,
- barrel,
- cradle,
- breech,
- firing
- mechanism,
- sights
- and
- recoil
- system.
- Related
- to
- this
- are
- issues
- of
- gun
- handling
- (loading
- and
- unloading),
- ammunition
- design
- and
- rates
- of
- fire.
- Also
- examined
- are
- the
- maximum
- impulse
- and
- energy
- generated
- by
- firing
- some
- of
- the
- munitions
- available
- that
- must
- be
- absorbed
- by
- the
- gun
- recoil system.
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