7.5 cm KwK 42
| 7,5 cm KwK 42 (L/70) 7,5 cm Pak 42 | |
|---|---|
 The 7.5 cm KwK 42 L/70 on a Panther Ausf. A tank | |
| Type | tank gun |
| Place of origin | Germany |
| Service history | |
| Used by |  Nazi Germany |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Rheinmetall-Borsig AG |
| Manufacturer | Rheinmetall-Borsig AG |
| Unit cost | 12,000 Reichsmark |
| Produced | 1942-45 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 1,000 kg (2,204.6 lb) |
| Barrel length | 525 cm (17 ft 3 in) bore (70 calibres) |
| Shell | Fixed QF 75 × 640mm R |
| Shell weight | 7.2 kg (16 lb) armour-piercing (APCBC-HE) Pzgr 39/42 |
| Calibre | 75 mm (2.95 in) |
| Elevation | -8° to +20° |
| Rate of fire | 6 rounds per minute |
| Muzzle velocity | 935 m/s (3,070 ft/s) |
| Maximum firing range | 9,850 m (32,316 ft) |
The 7.5 cm KwK 42 L/70 (from 7.5 cm Kampfwagenkanone 42 L/70) was a 7.5 cm calibre German tank gun used on German armoured fighting vehicles in the Second World War. The gun was the armament of the Panther medium tank and two variants of the Jagdpanzer IV self-propelled anti-tank gun. On the latter it was designated as the "7.5 cm Panzerabwehrkanone 42" (7.5 cm Pak 42) anti-tank gun.
Design
The increased muzzle velocity and operating pressure of the new gun required a new armour-piercing projectile to be designed. The PzGr. 39/42 was the result, and apart from the addition of wider driving bands it was otherwise identical to the older 7.5 cm PzGr. 39. The wider driving bands added a little extra weight, from 6.8 kg for the old PzGr.39, to 7.2 kg for the new PzGr.39/42.[1]
The gun was fired electrically, the primer being initiated using an electric current rather than a firing pin. The breech operated semi-automatically so that after the gun had fired, the empty shell casing was automatically ejected, and the falling wedge type breech block remained down so that the next round could be loaded. Once the round was loaded the breech closed automatically and the weapon was ready to be fired again. Three different types of ammunition were used: APCBC-HE, APCR and HE.
Data for KwK 42 and Pak 42
- Type: Tank gun (KwK 42), Anti-tank gun (Pak 42)
- Caliber: 7.5 cm (2.95 in)
- Shell: 75×640 mm R
- Barrel length in calibres: 70
- Barrel length: 5.250 m (17 ft 2.7 in)
- Breech: semiautomatic, falling wedge
- Weight with muzzle brake and breech: 1,000 kg (2,200 lb)
- Recoil length: 400 mm (normal), 430 mm (maximum)
- Maximum range: 10 km (6.2 mi) indirect
- Sight: TZF 12 or 12a (Panther), Sfl.ZF 1a (Jagdpanzer IV/70 (A) and (V))
Ammunition
- Type: Armour Piercing Capped Ballistic Cap, High Explosive
- Projectile weight: 6.8 kg (15 lb)
- Explosive filler: 18 g of phlegmatized RDX
- Round weight: 14.3 kg (32 lb)
- Round length: 893.2 mm (2 ft 11.17 in)
- Cartridge case length: 640 mm (2 ft 1 in)
- Muzzle velocity: 935 m/s (3,070 ft/s)
| Range | 100 m | 500 m | 1000 m | 1500 m | 2000 m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penetration (mm) | 138 | 124 | 112 | 99 | 89 |
- Panzergranate 40 (Hk) (Pzgr. 40/42)
- Type: Armour Piercing, Composite Rigid
- Projectile weight: 4.75 kg (10.5 lb)
- Round weight: 11.55 kg (25.5 lb)
- Round length: 875.2 mm (2 ft 10.46 in)
- Cartridge case length: 640 mm (2 ft 1 in)
- Muzzle velocity: 1,130 m/s (3,700 ft/s)
| Range | 100 m | 500 m | 1000 m | 1500 m | 2000 m |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Penetration (mm) | 194 | 174 | 149 | 127 | 106 |
- Sprenggranate 42 (Sprgr. 42)
- Type: High explosive
- Projectile weight: 5.74 kg (12.7 lb)
- Explosive weight: 0.650 kg (1.66 lb) (2,720 Kilojoules)
- Round weight: 11.14 kg (24.6 lb)
- Round length: 929.2 mm (3 ft 0.58 in)
- Cartridge case length: 640 mm (2 ft 1 in)
- Muzzle velocity: 700 m/s (2,300 ft/s)
Penetration comparison
| Ammunition type | Muzzle velocity (m/s) |
Penetration (mm) | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100 m | 250 m | 500 m | 750 m | 1000 m | 1250 m | 1500 m | 2000 m | 2500 m | 3000 m | |||
| Pzgr. 39/42 (APCBC) | 935 m/s (3,070 ft/s) | 185 | 179 | 168 | 158 | 149 | 140 | 132 | 116 | 103 | 91 | |
| Pzgr. 40/42 (APCR) | 1,130 m/s (3,700 ft/s) | 265 | 253 | 234 | 216 | 199 | 184 | 170 | 145 | 124 | 105 | |
See also
Weapons of comparable role, performance and era
- British Ordnance QF 17 pounder
- US 76 mm gun M1
- USSR D-10 tank gun
- Japan Type 5 75 mm tank gun
Notes
- ^ US Army Technical Manual TM9-1985-3, United States Government Printing Office Washington, 1953
- ^ a b Jentz, Thomas L. (1997), Germanys Panther Tank: The Quest for Combat Supremacy (Hardcover ed.), Schiffer Military History, p. 125
- ^ Bird, Lorrin Rexford; Livingston, Robert D. (2001). WWII Ballistics: Armor and Gunnery. Overmatch Press. p. 61.
References
- Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979 ISBN 0-385-15090-3
- Hogg, Ian V. German Artillery of World War Two. 2nd corrected edition. Mechanicsville, PA: Stackpole Books, 1997 ISBN 1-85367-480-X
- Penetration data extracted from a French DoD publication "Le Panther" Ministere de la Guerre, Section Technique de l'Armee, Groupement Auto-Chars, 1947.