QF 6-inch naval gun

QF 6-inch 40 calibre naval gun
15 cm/40 (6") 41st Year Type
Typical naval deck mounting. An early long cartridge case for gunpowder propellant is upended at bottom left, a shell stands next to the cartridge.
TypeNaval gun
Coast defence gun
Place of originUnited Kingdom
licence-produced in Japan
Service history
In service1892–1945
Used byRoyal Navy
Imperial Japanese Navy
Chilean Navy
Italian Navy
Argentine Navy
United States
Romanian Navy
Royal Canadian Navy
WarsRusso-Japanese War
World War I
World War II
Production history
ManufacturerElswick Ordnance Company
Royal Arsenal, Woolwich
Specifications
Mass6.6 tons
Barrel length240 inches (6.096 m) bore

ShellQF, separate cartridge and shell
Shell weight100 pounds (45 kg)
Calibre6-inch (152mm)
Elevation-5 / +20 degrees
Traverse+150 / -150 degrees
Rate of fire5–7 rounds per minute
Muzzle velocity2,154 feet per second (657 m/s)[1]
820 feet per second (250 m/s) for anti-submarine shells
Effective firing range10,000 yards (9,140 m) at 20°elevation; 15,000 yards (13,700 m) at 28°elevation

The QF 6-inch 40 calibre naval gun (Quick-Firing) was used by many United Kingdom-built warships around the end of the 19th century and the start of the 20th century. In British service it was known as the QF 6-inch Mk I, II, III guns.[note 1] As the 15 cm/40 (6") 41st Year Type naval gun it was used for pre-dreadnought battleships, armoured cruisers and protected cruisers of the early Imperial Japanese Navy built in UK and European shipyards. It was also the heaviest gun ever carried by a pre-Cold War destroyer.

  1. ^ 2154 ft/second in British service firing 100 lb (45 kg) projectile, using 13 lb 4 oz (6.0 kg) Cordite size 30 propellant, at 60 °F (16 °C). 1,882 ft/s (574 m/s) using 27 lb 12 oz (12.6 kg) gunpowder propellant. From Text Book of Gunnery, 1902.


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