Difference between revisions of "QF 6 pounder Nordenfelt"

Latest revision as of 20:19, 2 July 2010

QF 6 pounder Nordenfelt
300px 48 calibres version at Gyltö, western archipelago of Finland, 1999. Photo by Ove Enqvist
Type	Naval gun Coast defence gun
Place of origin	United Kingdom
Service history
In service	1885 - 19??
Used by	Many countries
Production history
Designed	1885
Manufacturer	Nordenfelt Guns and Ammunition Company Maxim-Nordenfelt
Specifications
Weight	UK 42-cal version : 638 pounds (289 kg) barrel & breech[1]
Length	various, 42-50 calibres
Shell	Fixed QF 6 lb (2.7 kg)
Calibre	57-millimetre (2.244 in)
Breech	Vertical sliding block with locking wedge
Muzzle velocity	1,818 feet per second (554 m/s)[2]
Maximum range	4500-6000 yards[2]

The QF 6 pounder Nordenfelt was a light 57 mm naval gun and coast defence gun of the late 1800s used by many countries.

Note that this gun should not be confused with the short-barreled 57 mm Cockerill-Nordenfelt "Canon de caponnière" or fortification gun, which was used to arm the German A7V tank in World War I.

Nordenfelt guns can be visually differentiated from equivalent and similar Hotchkiss guns by having slimmer barrels than the Hotchkiss, hence the Nordenfelt was considerably lighter.

United Kingdom

The UK adopted a 42-calibres (i.e. 95 inch bore) version as Ordnance QF 6 pounder Nordenfelt Mk I, Mk II, Mk III.

United Kingdom Naval service

They were originally mounted from 1885 onwards for use against the new (steam-driven) torpedo boats which started to enter service in the late 1870s. The Nordenfelt gun was adopted at the same time as the very similar QF 6 pounder Hotchkiss, but the Navy was not satisfied with the special Nordenfelt ammunition and fuzes. Following the explosion in 1900 of an ammunition ship due to defective fuses, Britain replaced Nordenfelt fuzes with the Hotchkiss design. Nordenfelt guns were phased out in favour of the Hotchkiss and were declared obsolete by 1919.^[3]

Ammunition

Diagrams showing the proprietary Nordenfelt 1-inch (top left) and 6-pounder (all others, labelled "2.2 inch") ammunition designs :

Surviving examples

See also

• QF 6 pounder Hotchkiss : Hotchkiss equivalent
• List of naval guns

Notes

References

• Text Book of Gunnery, 1902. LONDON : PRINTED FOR HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE, BY HARRISON AND SONS, ST. MARTIN'S LANE
• I.V. Hogg and L.F. Thurston, British Artillery Weapons & Ammunition 1914-1918. London: Ian Allan, 1972.

External links

• Victorian Naval Forces manuals 1890 & 1895. Includes QF 6 pounder Nordenfelt details. From Friends of the Cerberus website
• Nordenfelt 6 pdr Quick Firer History, technical details, animations

1. ↑ Hogg & Thurston 1972, page 39
2. ↑ ^{2.0 2.1} Hogg & Thurston 1972, Page 39 quote 7,500 yards (6,900 m) with muzzle velocity 1,773 ft/s (540 m/s), for the British 42-calibres model in 1914 using 7.75 oz cordite Mk 1 propellant. The Victorian Navy manual of 1895 quotes a muzzle velocity of 1,818 ft/s (554 m/s) using a 1 lb 15 oz (0.88 kg) gunpowder charge, but maximum range of only 5,000 yards (4,600 m). Text Book of Gunnery 1902, Page 337 quotes m.v. of 1,818 ft/s (554 m/s) and maximum range 4,500 yards (4,100 m). 5600 metres is quoted for the 48 calibres model at Krepost Sveaborg, Helsinki.
3. ↑ Hogg & Thurston 1972, Page 36