Finnish 'Tampella' 160-mm Mortar: Calibre:   160-mm (6.3-in) Length of barrel:   3066 cm (121 inches) Weight in action:   1700 kg (3740 lbs) Weight of bomb:   (HE) 40 kg (88 lbs) Range:   9600 m (10500 yards) Rate of fire:   5-8 rpm Elevation:   43-70° Traverse:   360° Detachment:  7

Figure 37: Finnish 'Tampella' 160-mm mortar.

A smoothbore muzzle loading mortar incorporating a number of novel features, the equipment is mounted on a wheeled carriage with a removable base plate. When travelling the latter is loaded into the towing vehicle.

In action wheels swing inwards at a tangent to the base plate, thus enabling the mortar to be traversed through 360° without any lifting by the detachment. For fine adjustment in laying, a traversing gear operated by a handwheel is fitted to the left wheel.

For loading, a semi-automatic lowering device and a counterbalance mechanism is employed in conjunction with a firing mechanism in the breech.

The mortar is manufactured under licence in Israel where a number have been mounted on modified tank chassis.

Although no figures on comparative accuracies are available, this mortar appears to have a more efficient weight to range ratio than its Russian equivalent (previous page).

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