12.7 cm/50 Type 3 naval gun
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The 12.7 cm/50 Type 3 naval gun was a medium-caliber naval gun of the Imperial Japanese Navy used during World War II. It was the standard weapon for Japanese destroyers between 1928 and 1944 (except Akizuki and Matsu classes). It has been credited as a true dual-purpose gun, but this was more a nominal capability than real, as its bag propellant and need for hand ramming required the gun to be loaded at elevation angles of 5–10°. This dropped its rate of fire to a relatively slow 5–10 rounds per minute, and its training speed of only 6° per second meant that it had a great deal of difficulty engaging enemy aircraft with any chance of success.[1] After the end of World War II, the gun was exported via the two Japanese destroyers ceded as war reparations to the Soviet Union[2] and the Republic of China.[3]
12.7 cm/50 Type 3 naval gun | |
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Type | Naval gun |
Place of origin | Japan |
Service history | |
In service | 1928—1966 |
Used by | Imperial Japanese Navy Soviet Navy Republic of China Navy |
Wars | World War II |
Production history | |
Designed | 1926—1927 |
No. built | approximately 700 |
Specifications | |
Mass | 4,205 kilograms (9,270 lb) |
Length | 6.483 metres (21.27 ft) |
Barrel length | 6.265 metres (20.55 ft) (length of bore) |
Shell | separate-loading, bagged charge |
Shell weight | 23 kilograms (51 lb) |
Caliber | 127 millimetres (5.0 in) |
Breech | Welin interrupted screw |
Elevation | depended on mount |
Rate of fire | 5–10 rpm |
Muzzle velocity | 910–915 m/s (2,986–3,002 ft/s) |
Maximum firing range | 18,400 metres (20,100 yd) |