38 cm SK L/45 "Max"
The 38 cm SK L/45 "Max", also called Langer Max (literal translation "Long Max") was a German long-range, heavy siege and coast-defense gun used during World War I. Originally a naval gun, it was also adapted for land service when it became clear that some of the ships for which it was intended would be delayed and that it would be very useful on the Western Front.
| 38 cm SK L/45 "Max" | |
|---|---|
"Max" mounted on its combined railroad and firing platform | |
| Type | Naval gun Railroad gun |
| Place of origin | German Empire |
| Service history | |
| In service | 1915–18 |
| Used by | German Empire |
| Wars | World War I |
| Production history | |
| Designer | Krupp |
| Designed | 1912–14 |
| Manufacturer | Krupp |
| Produced | 1914–18 |
| No. built | 8 |
| Variants | B, E, E.u.B. |
| Specifications | |
| Mass | 267.9 tonnes (263.7 long tons; 295.3 short tons) |
| Length | 31.61 metres (103 ft 8 in) |
| Barrel length | 16.13 metres (52 ft 11 in) L/45 |
| Shell | separate-loading, cased charge |
| Calibre | 38 centimetres (15 in) |
| Breech | horizontal sliding-block |
| Recoil | hydro-pneumatic |
| Carriage | 2 × 5-axle and 2 × 4-axle bogies |
| Elevation | +0° to +18.5° (+55° if emplaced) |
| Traverse | 2° (up to 360° if emplaced) |
| Muzzle velocity | 800 to 1,040 m/s (2,600 to 3,400 ft/s) |
| Effective firing range | 22,200 metres (24,300 yd) (from rails) |
| Maximum firing range | 47,500 metres (51,900 yd) (if emplaced) |
The first guns saw service in fixed positions (for example at Verdun in February 1916), but the lengthy preparation time required for the concrete emplacements was a severe drawback and a railroad mount was designed to increase the gun's mobility. The latter variants participated in the 1918 German spring offensives and the Second Battle of the Marne.
One gun, Batterie Pommern, was captured in Koekelare (16 October 1918) by the Belgians at the end of the war and the seven surviving cannons were destroyed in 1921 and 1922.