Russian Obuchov 152mm m/04 Cannon
This gun is a prime example of a design obsolete
from its very inception. The technisque was decidely 1880-ish, with no
on-carriage recoil system, just an old-style “napoleonic” type two-wheeled
carriage. Like its forerunners, like the old 152mm m/1877, (and also like its
french equivalent, the 120mm mle1878) it was best used on a wooden ground platform and
equipped with a ground anchor to which a hydraulic cylinder was attached. The
piston rod of the cylinder was attached to the gun carriage and as the gun
recoiled backwards when the gun was fired, it dragged the piston through the
oil-filled cylinder and retarded the movement back. In addition to this, two large wooden wedges were almost invariably placed
behind the wheels, in a standard WW1 arrangement: when the gun was discharged it
ran up these wedges, and then back into the firing position – helped by the
recoil cylinder, if present. Without wedges or recoil cylinder it was pretty
uncontrollable on discharge. It was not to heavy for its calibre, 5.43
tons, and was moved in one piece, the trail end being hoisted up on a
twowheeled
limber, and towed either by one tractor, or by double teams of horse. While the
overall design was obsolete, the gun itself was actually pretty good: the long
cannon was capable of throwing a 40.1kg grenade to a maximum of 14.2kms, and it
was very accurate – so it was not just a rediculous antique.
The big problem for the Russian Artillery at the outset of the war, was not so much the design of the guns (although it of course was troublesome, as this piece really proves) but rather the fact that the Russian Army had far too small stocks of Artillery Ammunition, and this goes for the 152mm m/04. Although many very lost during the hasty to-and-fro movement of the Eastern Front during the first years of the war, it was used all up to 1918. And as some at that year were taken over by the Finns, it was actually used in WW2 as well, during the Winter War of 1939-40.
The gun below can be seen on display in the excellent Army Museum in Brussels. (Don't miss it if you are nearby!) I have examined the exotic paintwork, and I am sorry to say that I am not sure if it is the original. It could be, but I have my doubts.
