From Surf Wiki (app.surf) — the open knowledge base

5 cm KwK 38

German tank weapon

Field	Value
name	5 cm KwK 38 (L/42)
image	PzKpfwIIIF.Saumur.000a1y8q.jpg
caption	Panzer III H with 5 cm KwK 38 L/42
origin	Germany
type	Kampfwagenkanone
is_ranged	YES
is_artillery	YES
used_by	Nazi Germany
wars	World War II
unit_cost	8,000 RM
weight	400 kg
cartridge	Fixed ammunition 50 × R
cartridge_weight	4.56 lb armor-piercing (APC-HE) Pzgr. 39
caliber	50 mm
velocity	685 m/s
elevation	-10° to +20°

210 cm bore (42 calibers)

The 5 cm KwK 38 L/42 (5 cm Kampfwagenkanone 38 L/42) was a German 50 mm 42 calibre cannon used as the main armament of variants of the German Panzer III medium tank during the Second World War. The towed anti-tank gun equivalent was the PaK.37 of which 2,600 were produced from 1937 until 1940.

History

The Panzer III was intended to fight other tanks; in the initial design stage a 50 mm gun was specified. However, the infantry at the time were being equipped with the 37 mm 3.7 cm PaK 36, and it was thought that, in the interest of standardization, the tanks should carry the same armament. As a compromise, the turret ring was made large enough to accommodate a 50 mm gun should a future upgrade be required. This single decision later assured the Panzer III a prolonged life in the German Army.

The early Panzer III Ausf. A to early Ausf. G were equipped with a 3.7 cm KwK 36 L/45, which proved adequate during the campaigns of 1939 and 1940. In response to increasingly better armed and armored opponents, the later Panzer III Ausf. F to Ausf. J were upgraded with the 5 cm KwK 38 L/42. And the later Panzer III Ausf. J¹ to M went with the longer 5 cm KwK 39 L/60 gun.

Ammunition

Average penetration performance established against rolled homogenous steel armour plate laid back at 30° from the vertical.

;PzGr (Armour Piercing)

Weight of projectile: 2.06 kg
Muzzle velocity: 685 m/s

Range	100 m	500 m	1000 m	1500 m	Penetration
53 mm	43 mm	32 mm	24 mm

;PzGr. 39 (Armour-piercing, capped, ballistic cap)

Weight of projectile: 2.06 kg
Muzzle velocity: 685 m/s

Range	100 m	500 m	1000 m	1500 m	Penetration
55 mm	47 mm	37 mm	28 mm

;PzGr. 40 (Armour-piercing, composite, rigid)

Weight of projectile: 0.925 kg
Muzzle velocity: 1050 m/s

Range	100 m	500 m	1000 m	1500 m	Penetration
94 mm	55 mm	—	—

Ammunition type	Muzzle velocity		colspan=10	Penetration	100 m	500 m	1000 m	1500 m	2000 m
AP	2247 ft/s	76 mm	58 mm	41 mm	29 mm	21 mm
Pzgr. 40 APCR	1,050 m/s	107 mm	74 mm	47 mm	30 mm	20 mm

Vehicles mounted on

Panzer III (Sd. Kfz. 141) - Ausf. F to J (serial production), several earlier models were re-equipped with this gun.
VK 20 series proposed replacement of the Panzer III and IV

References

Citations

Bibliography

References

Rottman, Gordon L.. (2008). "M3 Medium Tank Vs Panzer III: Kasserine Pass 1943". Osprey Publishing.
Perrett (1999), p. 4.
Perrett (1999), p. 6.
Perrett (1999), p. 7.
Perrett (1999), p. 8.
(13 August 2014). "5 cm Kw K".
(2001). "WWII Ballistics: Armor and Gunnery". Overmatch Press.
(1995). "Germany's Panther Tank". Schiffer Publishing, Ltd..

Info: Wikipedia Source

This article was imported from Wikipedia and is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Content has been adapted to SurfDoc format. Original contributors can be found on the article history page.

tank-guns-of-germany world-war-ii-artillery-of-germany 50-mm-artillery tank-guns-of-world-war-ii military-equipment-introduced-from-1940-to-1944

Want to explore this topic further?

Ask Mako anything about 5 cm KwK 38 — get instant answers, deeper analysis, and related topics.

Research with Mako

Free with your Surf account

Content sourced from Wikipedia, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.

This content may have been generated or modified by AI. CloudSurf Software LLC is not responsible for the accuracy, completeness, or reliability of AI-generated content. Always verify important information from primary sources.

Report