Description

Originally used as secondary weapons on ships of the late 19th century. In the 1930s guns removed from scrapped warships were reused on auxiliary ships.

Construction was built-up with a screw breech.

Gun Characteristics

Designation 138.6 mm/45 (5.46") Models 1884, 1888, 1891 and 1893
Ship Class Used On Charles Martel, Carnot, Jauréguiberry, Masséna, Bouvet and Charlemagne classes
Date Of Design 1888 / 1891 / 1893
Date In Service about 1890 / 1895 / 1897
Gun Weight about 4 tons (4.1 mt)
Gun Length oa N/A
Bore Length about 272.7 in (6.927 m)
Rifling Length N/A
Grooves N/A
Lands N/A
Twist N/A
Chamber Volume N/A
Rate Of Fire about 4 rounds per minute

Ammunition

Type Separate
Projectile Types and Weights AP: 80.5 lbs. (36.5 kg)
HE: 69.4 lbs. (31.5 kg)
Bursting Charge N/A
Projectile Length N/A
Propellant Charge N/A
Muzzle Velocity AP: 2,379 fps (725 mps)
HE: 2,510 fps (765 mps)
Working Pressure N/A
Approximate Barrel Life N/A
Ammunition stowage per gun N/A

Range

Range with 80.5 lbs. (36.5 kg) AP
Elevation Distance
25 degrees about 16,400 yards (15,000 m)

Mount/Turret Data

Designation Single Mounts
Weight N/A
Elevation about -10 / +25 degrees
Elevation Rate Manually operated, only
Train about +150 / -150 degrees
Train Rate Manually operated, only
Gun recoil N/A
Loading Angle Any

Sources

Data from:

  • "Navy and Army Illustrated Annuals, Volume VI - 1898"
  • "Naval Weapons of World War Two" by John Campbell

Page History

06 April 2006
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28 March 2012
Updated to latest template