Description

The Schneider-Armstrong Model 1917 was virtually a copy of the British 4"/45 (10.2 cm) Mark V, one of which (No. 974) was supplied to Italy during World War I to be used as a pattern. Model 1919 was an unsuccessful use of this weapon in a twin mounting which was replaced by single mountings during the war. Some guns used vertical rather than the standard horizontal sliding breech block.

The Schneider-Canet Model 1917 was a very similar design but in a different single mounting.

Some of these guns were remounted on AA mountings during the interwar period.

A variation of this gun was made by Odero-Terni for the Argentine cruisers of the Veinticinco de Mayo class. The performance of these guns was similar to the Schneider-Armstrong guns. One mounting still survives, see photographs below.

Unless otherwise specified, the data in the tables below are for the Schneider-Armstrong guns but the other guns would have similar characteristics.

Gun Characteristics

Designation 102 mm/45 (4") Schneider-Armstrong Model 1917 and 1919
102 mm/45 (4") Schneider-Canet Model 1917
102 mm/45 (4") Odero-Terni Model 1929
Ship Class Used On S-A Model 1917: "Generali," Palestro, La Masa and Sirtori classes plus small auxiliaries
S-A Model 1919: Curtalone class
S-C Model 1917: Mirabello class
O.T. Model 1929: Veinticinco de Mayo class
Date Of Design British: About 1913
Italian: 1917
Argentine: About 1928
Date In Service Italian: 1917
Argentine: 1931
Gun Weight 2.364 tons (2.327 mt)
Gun Length oa 187.8 in (4.770 m)
Bore Length 180.0 in (4.572 m)
Rifling Length 149.7 in (3.803 m)
Grooves (32) 0.037 in deep x 0.27 in (0.94 mm x 6.86 mm)
Lands 0.1227 in (3.117 mm)
Twist Uniform RH 1 in 30
Chamber Volume N/A
Rate Of Fire 7 rounds per minute 1
  • ^The ROF figure comes from "Italian Warships of World War II." However, the British version of this weapon is generally credited with a ROF of 10 - 12 rounds per minute.

Ammunition

Type Fixed
Weight of Complete Round AP - N/A
HE - N/A
Projectile Types and Weights AP - 35.3 lbs. (16.0 kg)
HE - 30.3 lbs. (13.74 kg)
Bursting Charge N/A
Projectile Length N/A
Propellant Charge N/A
Muzzle Velocity 2,789 fps (850 mps) 1a
Working Pressure N/A
Approximate Barrel Life N/A
Ammunition stowage per gun N/A
  • ^These Italian guns had a higher muzzle velocity than did the British ones, suggesting that a greater working pressure was permitted.

Range

Range with 30.3 lbs. (13.74 kg) HE
Elevation Range
35 degrees 16,400 yards (15,000 m)

Mount/Turret Data

Designation S-A Model 1917: Single open mount
S-A Model 1919: Twin mount
S-C Model 1917: Single open mount
Model 1936: AA mounting
Odero-Terni Model 1929: Twin mounting 1b
Weight S-A Model 1917: 4.53 tons (4.6 mt)
S-A Model 1919: 9.84 tons (10 mt)
S-C Model 1917: N/A
Model 1936 AA mounting: N/A
OT Model 1929: N/A
Elevation S-A Model 1917: -5 / +35 degrees
S-A Model 1919: -5 / +35 degrees
S-C Model 1917: -5 / +30 degrees
Model 1936 AA mounting: -5 / +85 degrees
OT Model 1929: -5 / +80 degrees
Elevation Rate Manually operated, only
Train 360 degrees
Train Rate Manually operated, only
Gun recoil N/A
  • ^The OT twin mountings used a rotating loading tray, similar in appearance and operation to those used on the British 4.7"/45 (12 cm) QF Mark XII twin mounting. As the trunnion axis was high to allow elevations for AA fire, the mounting was equipped with platforms for the loaders.

Additional Pictures

External Pictures

More photographs of the 102 mm Odero-Terni Model 1929 mounting from Almirante Brown at Museo Naval de la Nación, Buenos Aires, Argentina

Sources

"Naval Weapons of World War Two" by John Campbell
"Italian Warships of World War II" by Aldo Fraccaroli
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"Mystery of the South Seas. Argentine cruisers Almirante Brown and Veinticinco de Mayo"

Page History

31 January 2008 - Benchmark
25 January 2010 - Updated picture
23 September 2012 - Added picture of museum gun
26 December 2013 - Added picture of Giovanni Acerbi
23 January 2023 - Converted to HTML 5 format, added information and photographs for Odero-Terni guns