butterfly
HONOURED MEMBER RIP
Ok, here is something a little different...
.... an optical sight that was designed for use with the 8,8cm SKC/35u and the 10,5cm SKC/32u U-boat deck guns.
Both of these deck guns were 'dual control', by that I mean, there were identical controls on either side of the gun for both traverse and elevation and as such there were also two sights, identical in nature but not interchangeable - in fact they were a 'mirror image' of each other; one was marked L and the other R for left and right respectively. The sight has two viewing points, one for the aimer who takes a position 'in line' with the gun and is responsible for the traverse of the weapon, the other is for the layer, who took a position at the aimers shoulder and looked through the sight at 90 degrees to the gun, he was responsible for the elevation of the weapon and in so doing the range. A third member of the gun crew acted as loader and gunner. Three other members of the crew were required to bring up the ammunition - this completed the 'gun crew'. Having dual controls the aimer and layer could take positions on the side which wouldnt obstruct the supply of ammuniton to the gun, there being limited space on deck. There as a locker which contained 'ready use' ammunition in waterproof cannisters which would keep the gun supplied until further ammunition could be brought up from below. The sight is waterproof as would be expected, however not only is it waterproof but also pressure proof to 15atm (atmospheres) which equates to an approximate depth of 140 meters. That being said although pressure proof these sights were normally removed before the U-boat submersed as they were prone to damage by depth charge. However in an emergency such as a crash dive, they could remain in place.
The sight has in built filters 'Sonne' and 'Scheinw' for bright sunlight or searchlight, the third setting being 'Klar' or clear. The optics are 5x14 and are marked 'T' to indicate that the optics are coated. They also include built in illumination for use at night, the battery compartment can be seen with the fixing clamp. Manufacturer code blc for Carl Zeiss.
Although primarily designed for use on the U-boats the same guns/optics can be seen in photographs mounted on small surface vessels, it is presumed that more guns were built than U-Boats and what was good enough for a Submarine was certainly good enough for a surface vessel.
As the war progressed Merchant ships were fitted with guns, making confrontation more dangerous and although the merchant men were no match for a well trained U-Boat gun crew, one lucky shot could spell disaster for the Submarine making it impossible to dive. As allied air cover increased and inventions such as Radar became available the use of the deck gun became almost non-existant. By 1943 most of the guns were removed from the U-Boats replaced to some degree by AA guns. No doubt guns removed from the decks were used elsewhere; quite possibly those found in use on the Atlantic wall defences? (there is certainly no need to have pressure proof optics on dry land, yet examples of the sights can be seen in period photos used as part of the Atlantic wall defences!!)
My research is ongoing regarding finding out more about the sights, such as how they were stored when not in use? etc... but that is all part of the fun of collecting.
I know this isnt ordnance, but it is connected in some way.......I hope that members enjoy the thread
kind regards Kev
.... an optical sight that was designed for use with the 8,8cm SKC/35u and the 10,5cm SKC/32u U-boat deck guns.
Both of these deck guns were 'dual control', by that I mean, there were identical controls on either side of the gun for both traverse and elevation and as such there were also two sights, identical in nature but not interchangeable - in fact they were a 'mirror image' of each other; one was marked L and the other R for left and right respectively. The sight has two viewing points, one for the aimer who takes a position 'in line' with the gun and is responsible for the traverse of the weapon, the other is for the layer, who took a position at the aimers shoulder and looked through the sight at 90 degrees to the gun, he was responsible for the elevation of the weapon and in so doing the range. A third member of the gun crew acted as loader and gunner. Three other members of the crew were required to bring up the ammunition - this completed the 'gun crew'. Having dual controls the aimer and layer could take positions on the side which wouldnt obstruct the supply of ammuniton to the gun, there being limited space on deck. There as a locker which contained 'ready use' ammunition in waterproof cannisters which would keep the gun supplied until further ammunition could be brought up from below. The sight is waterproof as would be expected, however not only is it waterproof but also pressure proof to 15atm (atmospheres) which equates to an approximate depth of 140 meters. That being said although pressure proof these sights were normally removed before the U-boat submersed as they were prone to damage by depth charge. However in an emergency such as a crash dive, they could remain in place.
The sight has in built filters 'Sonne' and 'Scheinw' for bright sunlight or searchlight, the third setting being 'Klar' or clear. The optics are 5x14 and are marked 'T' to indicate that the optics are coated. They also include built in illumination for use at night, the battery compartment can be seen with the fixing clamp. Manufacturer code blc for Carl Zeiss.
Although primarily designed for use on the U-boats the same guns/optics can be seen in photographs mounted on small surface vessels, it is presumed that more guns were built than U-Boats and what was good enough for a Submarine was certainly good enough for a surface vessel.
As the war progressed Merchant ships were fitted with guns, making confrontation more dangerous and although the merchant men were no match for a well trained U-Boat gun crew, one lucky shot could spell disaster for the Submarine making it impossible to dive. As allied air cover increased and inventions such as Radar became available the use of the deck gun became almost non-existant. By 1943 most of the guns were removed from the U-Boats replaced to some degree by AA guns. No doubt guns removed from the decks were used elsewhere; quite possibly those found in use on the Atlantic wall defences? (there is certainly no need to have pressure proof optics on dry land, yet examples of the sights can be seen in period photos used as part of the Atlantic wall defences!!)
My research is ongoing regarding finding out more about the sights, such as how they were stored when not in use? etc... but that is all part of the fun of collecting.
I know this isnt ordnance, but it is connected in some way.......I hope that members enjoy the thread
kind regards Kev
