7.62 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/16.5

The gun retained its extraordinary depression of -18.6°, which was a legacy of its original purpose to fire down into fortress ditches, although its limited elevation prevented it from ranging past 2.7 km without digging in the trail. It used captured Russian canister ammunition for short-range engagements, but Rheinmetall manufactured its HE shell. It proved to be popular with its crews, who appreciated its light weight, accuracy and good effect of the shell. However, the gun wore out quickly due to the poor-quality steel used by the Russians, and this degraded its accuracy significantly. In his desire to save weight, Krupp had lightened the carriage a bit too much and it proved to be rather fragile in normal use. The 7.7 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/20 was intended to rectify its shortcomings, but it remained in use for the remainder of the war.

• Name — 7.62 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/16.5 • Origin — German Empire • Type — Infantry gun • Is Artillery — yes • Service — 1916–1918 • Used By — German Empire • Wars — World War I • Designer — Krupp • Manufacturer — Krupp • Weight — 608 kg • Length — 2.31 m • Part Length — 1.257 m L/16.5 • Width — 1.15 m • Height — 94 cm • Cartridge — 6 kg • Caliber — 76.2 mm (3 in) • Velocity — 295 m/s (968 ft/s) • Range — 600 m (Canister) • Max Range — 4000 m (HE shell) • Breech — Interrupted screw • Carriage — Box trail • Elevation — -18.6° to +11.5° • Traverse — 9.5°

• Illustration — Greek general and politician Panagiotis Danglis designer of the M1909 mountain gun the predecessor of the M1910 fortress gun • Illustration — A 76 mm counter-assault gun M1910 at the Novodevichy Convent in Moscow Russia • Illustration — A 76 mm counter-assault gun M1910 with lightly built carriage • Illustration — A 7.62 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/16.5 in German service.