Obice da 105/14

Obice da 105/14 modello 18
Type	howitzer
Place of origin	Italy
Service history
In service	1918?-1945
Used by	Italy  Nazi Germany
Wars	World War II
Production history
Designer	Ansaldo
Manufacturer	Ansaldo
Specifications
Weight	1,400 kilograms (3,100 lb)
Barrel length	1.47 metres (4 ft 10 in) L/14
Shell	16.3 kilograms (36 lb)
Caliber	105 mm (4.134 in)
Carriage	box trail
Elevation	-5° to +70°
Traverse	5°
Rate of fire	4-6 rpm
Muzzle velocity	330 m/s (1,083 ft/s)
Maximum firing range	8,160 metres (8,920 yd)

The Obice da 105/14 modello 18 was a howitzer used by Italy during World War II. It appears to have been designed at the end of World War I, but that remains to be confirmed. It was originally designed to be towed by horses with wooden spoked wheels. Some weapons may have been modernized for tractor-towing with steel spoked wheels and pneumatic tires. For transport the box trail was supported by a small limber. Howitzers captured by the Germans after the Italian surrender in 1943 were given the designation of 10.5 cm leichte Feldhaubitze 326(i), although it's unknown to what extend they were actually used.

Both references listed below believe this gun to be developed in the 1930s, but this seems unlikely given the photographic evidence of the designation as modello 18. The box trail would also be very old-fashioned for a gun designed that late.

References

• Chamberlain, Peter & Gander, Terry. Light and Medium Field Artillery. New York: Arco, 1975
• Gander, Terry and Chamberlain, Peter. Weapons of the Third Reich: An Encyclopedic Survey of All Small Arms, Artillery and Special Weapons of the German Land Forces 1939-1945. New York: Doubleday, 1979 ISBN 0-385-15090-3

External links

• Photo essay on the Obice da 105/14 modello 18
• The current version is still sold by OtoMelara