7.5 cm FK 7M85
 | This article includes a list of references, related reading, or external links, but its sources remain unclear because it lacks inline citations. (September 2013) |
| 7.5 cm Feldkanone 7M85 | |
|---|---|
| Type | Field gun |
| Place of origin | Germany |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1945 |
| Used by | Nazi Germany |
| Wars | World War II |
| Production history | |
| Designed | 1944–45 |
| Produced | 1945 |
| No. built | 10 |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 1,788 kg (3,942 lbs) |
| Barrel length | 3.7 m (12 ft) |
| Shell | fixed |
| Shell weight | 5.4 kilograms (12 lb) (HE) 6.8 kilograms (15 lb) (AP) |
| Caliber | 75 mm (2.95 in) |
| Breech | semi-automatic horizontal sliding block |
| Carriage | split trail |
| Elevation | -5° to +42° |
| Traverse | 30° 30' |
| Rate of fire | 12–15 rpm |
| Muzzle velocity | 550 m/s (1,804 ft/s) |
| Maximum firing range | 10,275 m (11,237 yds) |
| Filling | TNT or amatol |
The 7.5 cm Feldkanone 7M85 (7.5 cm FK 7M85) was a field gun used by Germany in World War II.
Design
The FK 7M85 was designed to a requirement issued in 1944 for a dual-purpose anti-tank and artillery gun that could be produced quickly. The gun, cradle and recoil system from the 7.5 cm PaK 40 anti-tank gun was adapted to the 10.5 cm leFH 18/40 carriage. Interestingly the leFH 18/40 carriage had been itself adapted from the PaK 40 so this design essentially returned the gun to its original carriage, albeit modified with an extra 20° of elevation.
Nomenclature
In 1944–45 the Germans changed their system of artillery designations from the old "year" system. Each weapon was to have a number showing their caliber group, a letter denoting ammunition group, and the last two digits were from the weapon drawing number. In this case 7 denoted 75 mm caliber using the M group of ammunition. The shells were all to be designated as M with a 4-digit number, the first three were the drawing number and the last was the shell's category from the following list:
| No. | Shell type | No. | Shell type |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | high explosive | 5 | gas |
| 2 | hollow charge anti-tank | 7 | incendiary |
| 3 | armor-piercing | 8 | leaflet |
| 4 | high explosive, high capacity | 9 | practice |
| 5 | smoke | 10 | proof projectile |
References
- Engelmann, Joachim and Scheibert, Horst. Deutsche Artillerie 1934-1945: Eine Dokumentation in Text, Skizzen und Bildern: Ausrüstung, Gliederung, Ausbildung, Führung, Einsatz. Limburg/Lahn, Germany: C. A. Starke, 1974
- 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