Help to Id. US artillery

[Sturm78]

Hi all,

Not exactly an artillery piece, but..... :roll: Any idea about this naval artillery shells?

Image from Ebay
Sturm78

[Carl Schwamberger]

I'm guessing 14"/35cm caliber.

[ROLAND1369]

Due to the shape and the attachment of as well as the blunt windscreen I would say these are 16 inch Mark 3 projectiles. Source "US Navy Projectiles and Fuzes 1945"

[Sturm78]

Thank you for your replies, Carl and ROLAND1369.

Here an image of an 356mm 14in M1920 US railgun. According to photocaption, Panama, 1939

Image from EBay
Sturm78

[ROLAND1369]

You are correct. This is a 14 inch M 1920 railroad gun on emplacement no 2 of Culebra Island, Fort Grant. Harbor Defenses of Colon, Panama Canal Zone. It has been removed from its trucks and set up on a 360 degree concrete platform for use in coastal defense. There were two of these platforms on the Pacific side and two more at Fort Randolph on the Atlantic end of the canal at Colon. Between the wars the coast artillery moved the two 14 inch railway guns across panama via the Panama Canal Railroad and fired them from the Fort Randolph platforms.

[ROLAND1369]

Incidently i have always been fond of the 14 inch m1920, so fond in fact that I have my own. It is however in HO 1/72 scale and sits on my desk.

[Sturm78]

Thank you for your confirmation, ROLAND1369

Regards Sturm78

[Sturm78]

Hi all,

20mm Oerlikon naval gun, but.... Does somebody know which is the mount and sight used with the gun of this image?

Image from EBay
Sturm78

[ROLAND1369]

This appears to be a 20 mm mark 10 mount equipped with a Mark 14 sight.

[ROLAND1369]

The reason the sight is so massive is that it is a computing sight. It contains two gyroscopes which sense the rate and direction of movement as the gunner tracks the moving aircraft and displaces a n electronicly generated pip on the sight to automaticly compensate for lead of the gunfire The sight was later mounted on what was a dummy 20 mm mount to create the Mark 51 director which was used as a remote director for first the 40 mm and later the 5 inch
DP batteries as well.

[Sturm78]

Thank you for your help, ROLAND1369.

Do you have information and/or images of the different mounts used by the U.S. Navy for Oerlikon cannons during the Second World War?

I have found the following information from this link: http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_2cm-70_mk234.htm

USA
Single Mounts
Marks 2, 4, 5, 6, 10 and 16

Twin Mounts
Marks 20 and 24

Triple Mount
Mark 23 (not in service)

Quad Mounts
Mark 15

Regards Sturm78

[Sturm78]

Nobody for the different Oerlikon naval mounts??

Well, here a curious image via EBay. Not exactly a artillery piece but...........

An 12.7cm M2 machinegun on a rare mount. Any idea about this? Field modification??

Sturm78

[Carl Schwamberger]

I remember this last as a experimental or 'T' carriage. As a pre 1941 AT weapon IIRC. Been quite a while.

It does look like it can elevate at least to 25 degrees (440 mil) so it could in theory be used to fire from defilade at masked targets. Tho the same can be done from a tripod mount.

[Penn44]

What pistol holster is the T/5 behind the .50 cal HMG wearing?

Penn44

.

[Carl Schwamberger]

Dont recognize that item at all. Might be a tool holder & not a pistol holster.