- 3-inch M1918 gun
"For Naval 3-inch gun see
3"/50 caliber gun "The 3-inch M1917 was the US's first dedicated
anti-aircraft gun , entering service duringWorld War I . Only a few were built, as the similar 3-inch M1918 on a mobile mount was considered more useful and was produced in large numbers, only being replaced by the90 mm M3 gun just prior to the opening ofWorld War II . The M1918 was later adapated for theanti-tank role, serving as the main armament of theM10 Wolverine during WWII.History
Externalimage
align=right
width=210pxhttp://www.ftmac.org/images/3-inch1917.jpg3-inch M1917.] [http://www.ftmac.org/AntiAircraftBatterys.htm]
3-inch M1903 (76.2 mm L/55) coastal-defense gun on a new mount allowing it to be aimed to high elevations. A number were used during the war. In the immediate post-war era it was developed as the 3-inch M2, using a removable barrel liner. In 1928 it was further improved in the 3-inch M4 by using a thicker removable liner that eased manufacturing.For mobile use the original coastal gun was too heavy, so a smaller version was developed as the 3-inch M1918. For this role the barrel was cut down in length, to 50 calibers from 55, and a new breach was introduced to fire smaller rounds (76.2x585R, 212 cubic inches instead of 76.2x690R, 293 cubic inches). Like the adaptation that created the M2, the M1918 was also fitted with a removable liner in 1928, becoming the 3-inch M3. Another upgrade was started in 1931 as the T8, and then T9, but these projects were cancelled in 1938 when the
90 mm gun was selected in their place.In September 1940 a project started to adapt the 3-inch gun to the
anti-tank role, starting with the T9 experimental model but equipping it with the breech, recoil system and carriage borrowed from the 105mm M2 howitzer. The gun was accepted for service as the 3-inch M5.A similar derivative of the T9 - the 3-inch M6 - was intended to be mounted on the M5 self-propelled gun, which was eventually abandoned. A final adaptation was the 3-inch M7, which included minor modifications for mounting on the
M10 Wolverine . M7 saw wide use although it was supplanted to some extent by more powerful weapons such as the 90mm M3 and the BritishQF 17 pounder . 6,824 M7 guns were manufactured.Chamberlain, Gander - "Anti-Tank Weapons", p 49.]Variants
*
M1917 - Original fixed-place anti-aircraft gun introduced in 1917.
*M1918 - Mobile anti-aircraft gun using a cut-down version of the original M1917 gun and a new mount.
*M1 - Variant of the M1918 with a removable barrel liner.
*M2 - Variant of the M1917 with a removable barrel liner.
*M3 - Variant of the M1918 with a removable barrel liner.
*M4 - Version of the M2 with a thicker liner for easier manufacturing.
*M5 - Version of the T9 adapted for anti-tank use.
*M6 - Version of the T9 as mounted in the "3in Gun Motor Carriage M5".
*M7 - Version of the M5 for use on the 3in Gun Motor Carriage M10.elf-propelled mounts
*Heavy Tank M6 (M7 gun in mount T49). [Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Firepower: A History of the American Heavy Tank", p 193, 194, 213.]
*3in Antiaircraft Gun Carriage T1 (Garford 7 1/2 ton 6x4 truck chassis).Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Armored Car: A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles.", p 41.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T1 / M5 (high speed tractor M2 chassis, M6 gun).Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Stuart: A History of the American Light Tank", p 295-296.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T7 (Trackless Tank chassis).Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Armored Car: A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles.", p 71, 164.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T15 (Ford 4x4 / 6x6 truck chassis).Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Armored Car: A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles.", p 163, 164.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T20 (Light Tank M3 chassis).Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Stuart: A History of the American Light Tank", p 298-301.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T24 (Medium Tank M3 chassis, M3 gun).Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank", p 360-361.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T35 / M10 (M4 Sherman chassis, M7 gun in mount M5). [Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank", p 557.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T40 / M9 (Medium Tank M3 chassis, M1918 gun).
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T50.
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T55.Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Armored Car: A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles.", p 163, 164.]
*3in Gun Motor Carriage T56, T57 (Light Tank M3A3 chassis, M7 gun).ee also
*
List of artillery#Anti-aircraft guns Notes
References
*Chamberlain, Peter and Gander, Terry - "Anti-Tank Weapons", Arco Publishing Company, New York, 1974 (WWII Fact Files), ISBN 0-668-03505-6.
*Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Armored Car: A History of American Wheeled Combat Vehicles.", Presidio Press 2002, ISBN 0-89141-777-X.
*Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Stuart: A History of the American Light Tank", Presidio Press 1992, ISBN 0-89141-462-2.
*Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Sherman: A History of the American Medium Tank.", Presidio Press 1994, ISBN 0-89141-080-5.
*Hunnicutt, R. P. - "Firepower: A History of the American Heavy Tank.", Presidio Press 1988, ISBN 0-89141-304-9.External links
*United States. Army. Ordnance Dept, [http://www.archive.org/details/handbookofartill00unitrich "Handbook of artillery : including mobile, anti-aircraft and trench matériel", May 1920.] See "3-Inch Anti-Aircraft Gun, Model 1918" Pages 326-339
* [http://www.lemaire.happyhost.org/armes/artillerie/5416.html#116765 LemaireSoft encyclopedia]
* [http://gva.freeweb.hu/weapons/usa_guns5.html M5 & M7 armor penetration table]
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