5 cm PAK or 7.5 cm PAK ?

[cetautomatix]

hi.
I am trying to see the difference between a 5cm PAK/38 and the 7.5 cm PAk/40. I cant. T=in the end they all look teh same. basically, the PAK 7.5 is a new gun on the same undercarriage, but then there are different models, the barrel is longer, but... I do not seem to find that in my pictures., thanks for helping out. personally, i think the first is PAK 5cm /38, the second 7.5 cm PAK. But I totally not sure. Its loosely based on teh time date the pictures were supposedly taken.

[Jens Andersen]

Hi Cetautomatix,

I aggree with your identification of the guns on the pictures.
You are right that the guns looks very much the same, but the 7,5 cm PaK is not "a new gun on the same carriage" as the carriage off course had to be enlarged for the much bigger gun.
The most distinguishing detail, apart from the size, is the shape of the shield. On the 5 cm Pak 38 the shield is curved, whereas the shield of the 7,5 cm Pak 40 was angular.

Jens

[JKernwerk]

Jens and the muzzlebreak of the two is different. The one of the 5cm much smaller and less bulky when compared to the 7,5cm.
JK

[Manuferey]

If the shield is not visible, nor is the muzzle break, you can look at the sliding part between the barrel and the recoil module underneath. This part features 3 bolts on each side for the 5 cm Pak 38 and 2 bolts for the 7.5 cm Pak 40.

Emmanuel

[hannibal2]

Both photos show what is clearly a 7,5 cm Pak 40. The "40" signifies the year the gun was first introduced.

Gert

[Grzesio]

Both photos show what is clearly a 7,5 cm Pak 40.

There's a 5 cm Pak 38 in the first picture and 7,5 cm Pak 40 in the second one.

[Christian Ankerstjerne]

The "40" signifies the year the gun was first introduced.

In addition to Grzesio's comment, the 7,5 cm Pak 40 was no introduced until 1942, with the first guns logged by the Feldzeuginspektion in March of that year:
https://panzerworld.com/7-5-cm-pak-40