Elswick guns built in Britain and used on South American cruisers.
Wire-wound construction. Pattern "P" had an actual bore length of 40.3 calibers while Pattern "T" had an actual bore length of 40.4 calibers.
Another 40 caliber gun, Pattern Type unknown but similar to Pattern "T", was used on the Argentine armored cruiser San Martin.
| Designation | 8"/40 (20.3 cm) EOC Pattern "P"
8"/40 (20.3 cm) EOC Pattern "T" 8"/40 (20.3 cm) EOC Pattern Type Unknown 1 |
|---|---|
| Ship Class Used On | Pattern "P": Chile - Blanco Encalada and Esmeralda
Pattern "T": Chile - Almirante O'Higgins Pattern "T1": Portugal - Vasco da Gama as rearmed in 1902 Pattern Unknown: Argentina - San Martin |
| Date Of Design | about 1893 |
| Date In Service | 1895 |
| Gun Weight | Pattern "P": 15.39 tons (15.64 mt) including BM
Pattern "T" and "T1": 16.54 tons (16.81 mt) including BM Pattern Unknown: 16.50 tons (16.77 mt) |
| Gun Length oa | Pattern "P": 383 in (9.728 m)
Pattern "T" and Pattern Unknown: 333.52 in (8.471 m) Others: N/A |
| Bore Length | Pattern "P": 322.7 in (8.197 m)
Pattern "T": 323.0 in (8.204 m) Pattern Unknown: 320.0 in (8.127 m) |
| Rifling Length | Pattern Unknown: 269.0 in (6.831 m)
Others: N/A |
| Grooves | Pattern Unknown: (32)
Others: N/A |
| Lands | N/A |
| Twist | Pattern Unknown: 1 in 13.7 increasing to 1 in 30
Others: N/A |
| Chamber Volume | Pattern "P": 1,984 in3 (32.5 dm3)
Pattern "T1": 3,248 in3 (53.2 dm3) Others: N/A |
| Rate Of Fire | about 2 rounds per minute |
- ^The Pattern Unknown guns were Armstrong Serial No. 11414, 11415, 11416 and 11417.
| Type | Bag |
|---|---|
| Projectile Types and Weights | Common 210 lbs. (95.3 kg)
Common 250 lbs. (113.4 kg) |
| Bursting Charge | N/A |
| Projectile Length | N/A |
| Propellant Charge | Pattern "P" only: 32 lbs. (14.5 kg) Cordite 0.35
All Patterns: 44 lbs. (20.0 kg) Cordite 0.4 |
| Muzzle Velocity | Pattern "P" w/32 lbs. (14.5 kg) Cordite 0.35
Common 210 lbs. (95.3 kg): 2,250 fps (686 mps) Common 250 lbs. (113.4 kg): 2,008 fps (612 mps) Pattern "P" w/44 lbs. (20.0 kg) Cordite 0.4
Pattern "T", "T1" and Pattern Unknown w/44 lbs. (20.0 kg) Cordite 0.4
|
| Working Pressure | N/A |
| Approximate Barrel Life | N/A |
| Ammunition stowage per gun | N/A |
| Designation | Single Guns
Blanco Encalada (2) and Esmeralda (2) Almirante Higgins (4) Twin Turrets
|
|---|---|
| Weight | N/A |
| Elevation | -5 / +15 degrees (?) |
| Elevation Rate | N/A |
| Train | about +150 / -150 degrees |
| Train Rate | N/A |
| Gun recoil | N/A |
| Loading Angle | N/A |
"Naval Weapons of World War Two" by John Campbell
"Naval Weapons of World War One" by Norman Friedman
---
Special help by Iván Dubaniewicz who provided information from the following sources:
"Memorandum sobre Artillería" by B.P. Quiroga, 1899
"Estudios de Armamento" by Domecq García, 1923
"Catálogo de Granadas y Proyectiles" by Departamento Munición y Química de Guerra, 1958, p. 17-20
05 January 2008 - Benchmark
29 October 2024 - Converted to HTML 5 format and added information on guns used on San Martin