Krupp 75mm mountain gun M. 1904

 

 

 

 

Bulgarian designation :

75-мм скорострелно планинско оръдие “Круп”

Krupp denomination :

7,5 cm Gebirgs-kanone M. 05

Calibre :

75mm L/14

Weight of the barrel :

105 kg

Weight of the breech-block :

19.5 kg

Weight of the carriage :

342 kg

Weight in action :

446 kg

Barrel length :

1.050 m

Rifling

length :

0.762 m – 10.2 calibres

twist :

increasing, from 1 in 45 to 1 in 25 calibres

Barrel grooves

number :

28

depth :

0.5 mm

width :

5.92 mm

Height of the line of fire :

675 mm

Shield

thickness :

4 mm

weight :

26 kg

Cartridge

weight :

586 g

shelled :

6.016 kg

charge :

165 g of Rottweil smokeless powder

Shell

weight :

5.1 kg – charge : 106 g Picric acid

max. range :

5000 m

Shrapnel

weight :

5.1 kg – charge : 100 g of black powder

200 bullets x 10 g x 13 mm

fuze :

time and percussion

max. range :

4500 m

Muzzle velocity :

330 m/s (shrapnel)

Remaining velocity :

206 m/s at 4500 m with shrapnel

199 m/s at 5000 m with H.E. shell

Angle of descent :

at 100 m – 0° 18’

at 500 m – 1° 31’

at 1000 m – 3° 12’

at 1500 m – 5° 11’

at 2000 m – 7° 32’

at 2500 m – 10° 09’

at 3000 m – 13° 09’

at 3500 m – 16° 38’

at 4000 m – 20° 42’

at 5000 m – 32° 42’

Elevation :

+ 15° / - 10°

Traversing angle :

4°

Height of wheels :

810 mm

Track :

740 mm

Transport :

4 loads: 1 – barrel and elevating gears; 1 - shield and fore-carriage; 1 – cradle, sledge and recoil gears; 1 – trail, wheels and shaft (110 – 120 kg alone, 159 – 172 kg with pack saddles)

Ammunition :

128 shells (16 boxes, with 8 rounds each, each ammunition pack animal carrying 2 boxes - each ammunition box with 8 rounds weights 52.3 kg).

Remarks :

Quick firing mountain gun with hydro-spring recoil system, single-motion wedge breech mechanism, traverse on pivot. It was equipped with the Krupp mountain sight, but it had not the independent line of sight. It could fire the same ammunition as the Schneider mountain gun, but it had to employ different firing table, since the ballistic features were different.

In 1904 Bulgarian Army bought 9 six-guns batteries armed with Krupp mountain gun M. 1905 with 512 shells per gun. The delivery ended in October 1905. In 1911 2 more guns were bought in order to transform the existing 9 six-guns batteries into 14 four-guns batteries.