The 3.7 cm KwK 36 L/45 ''(3.7 cm

Kampfwagenkanone (KwK) (German, 'fighting vehicle cannon') was the designation to any type of tank gun mounted in an armoured fighting vehicle or infantry fighting vehicle of the German-Wehrmacht until 1945. The wording was derived from the German nouns ''Kampfw ...

36 L/45)'' was a German 3.7 cm cannon used primarily as the main armament of earlier variants of the German Sd.Kfz. 141 Panzerkampfwagen III

medium tank A medium tank is a classification of tanks, particularly prevalent during World War II which represented a compromise between the mobility oriented light tanks and the armour and armament oriented heavy tanks. A medium tank's classification is ...

. It was used during the

Second World War World War II or the Second World War, often abbreviated as WWII or WW2, was a world war that lasted from 1939 to 1945. It involved the vast majority of the world's countries—including all of the great powers—forming two opposi ...

. It was essentially the 3.7 cm Pak 36 used as a tank gun.

Ammunition

The 3.7 cm KwK 36 used the 37 x 249 mm. R cartridge. Average penetration performance established against rolled homogeneous steel armor plate laid back at 30° from the vertical. ;PzGr.18 (

Armour-piercing Armour-piercing ammunition (AP) is a type of projectile designed to penetrate either body armour or vehicle armour. From the 1860s to 1950s, a major application of armour-piercing projectiles was to defeat the thick armour carried on many wars ...

) * Weight of projectile: * Muzzle velocity: ;PzGr.40 ( Armour-piercing composite rigid) * Weight of projectile: * Muzzle velocity: ''PzGr.39'' -

''Sprgr.Patr.34'' -

High-explosive An explosive (or explosive material) is a reactive substance that contains a great amount of potential energy that can produce an explosion if released suddenly, usually accompanied by the production of light, heat, sound, and pressure. An expl ...

Vehicles mounted on

Leichttraktor The ''Leichttraktor'' (Vs.Kfz.31) was a German experimental tank designed during the Interwar Period. History After the end of World War I, Germany was restricted in military development by the Treaty of Versailles. However, a secret prog ...

Neubaufahrzeug The German Panzerkampfwagen Neubaufahrzeug ("new construction vehicle"—a cover name), abbreviated as PzKpfw Nb.Fz, series of tank prototypes were a first attempt to create a medium tank for the Wehrmacht after Adolf Hitler had come to power. ...

* Sd.Kfz. 141 Panzerkampfwagen III versions A until E (de: Ausfertigung A bis E) * Sd.Kfz. 141 Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. F (the last 100 ''Ausf. F'' mounted the 5 cm KwK 38 L/42 gun) * Sd.Kfz. 141 Panzerkampfwagen III Ausf. G (the first 50 ''Ausf. G'')

Notes

2. http://www.wehrmacht-history.com/heer/panzer-armaments/3.7-cm-kwk-36.htm {{DEFAULTSORT:3.7 cm Kwk 36 Tank guns of Germany World War II artillery of Germany 37 mm artillery World War II tank guns Military equipment introduced in the 1930s