SIG 33
Encyclopedia
The 15 cm sIG 33 was the standard German heavy infantry gun used in the Second World War. It was the largest weapon ever classified as an infantry gun by any nation. Sources differ on the development history, but the gun itself was of conventional design. Early production models were horse-drawn, with wooden wheels. Later production models had pressed steel wheels, with solid rubber tires and air brakes for motor towing. The sIG 33 was rather heavy for its mission and it was redesigned in the late 1930s to incorporate light alloys in an effort to save weight. This saved about 150 kilograms (330.7 lb), but the outbreak of war forced the reversion back to the original design as the Luftwaffe
had a higher priority for light alloys before more than a few hundred were made. A new carriage, made entirely of light alloys, was tested around 1939, but was not accepted for service.
n, this version was not intended for anti-tank use, but rather for the demolition of strongpoints and clearing barbed-wire obstacles and minefields by blast effect.
Luftwaffe
Luftwaffe is a generic German term for an air force. It is also the official name for two of the four historic German air forces, the Wehrmacht air arm founded in 1935 and disbanded in 1946; and the current Bundeswehr air arm founded in 1956....
had a higher priority for light alloys before more than a few hundred were made. A new carriage, made entirely of light alloys, was tested around 1939, but was not accepted for service.
Ammunition
Most of the shells used by the sIG 33 were unexceptional in design, but the Stielgranate 42 was different in fundamental ways from ordinary shells. The driving rod was loaded into the muzzle so that the finned projectile remained in front of, and outside, the barrel entirely. A special charge was loaded and would propel the projectile about a 1000 metres (1,093.6 yd) downrange. At about 150 metres (164 yd) distance the driving rod would separate from the projectile. Unlike other StielgranateStielgranate 41
The Stielgranate 41 stick grenade was a German shaped charge, fin-stabilized shell, used with the 3.7 cm Pak 36 anti-tank gun to give it better anti-tank performance....
n, this version was not intended for anti-tank use, but rather for the demolition of strongpoints and clearing barbed-wire obstacles and minefields by blast effect.
| Shell | Type | Weight | Filler |
| I Gr 33 | HE | 38 kilograms (83.8 lb) | 8.3 kilograms (18.3 lb) amatol Amatol Amatol is a highly explosive material made from a mixture of TNT and ammonium nitrate. Its name originates from the words ammonium and toluene... |
| I Gr 38 Nb | Smoke | 40 kilograms (88.2 lb) | oleum/pumice |
| I Gr 39 Hl/A | Hollow-charge Shaped charge A shaped charge is an explosive charge shaped to focus the effect of the explosive's energy. Various types are used to cut and form metal, to initiate nuclear weapons, to penetrate armor, and in the oil and gas industry... |
25.5 kilograms (56.2 lb) | cyclonite RDX RDX, an initialism for Research Department Explosive, is an explosive nitroamine widely used in military and industrial applications. It was developed as an explosive which was more powerful than TNT, and it saw wide use in WWII. RDX is also known as cyclonite, hexogen , and T4... /TNT |
| Stielgranate 42 | demolition | 90 kilograms (198.4 lb) | 27 kilograms (59.5 lb) amatol |