Let's start with the question: what can be considered a "commercial tool"? And here's what: a weapon produced specifically for another country and sold to it. This is not licensed production in our own factories. These are commercial products, and very often differ in details from the original. Take the Skoda 15 cm M14 and M14/16 150mm field howitzer. These howitzers are very similar in appearance, but they are by no means the same.
First, we will look at the 15 cm M-1913 commercial field howitzer of the German company Krupp. It should be noted that this gun should not be confused with the 15 cm gun of the German army (actual caliber 149, 7 mm) - a howitzer that entered service in the summer of 1913 and was one of the standard heavy field howitzers during the First World War. This weapon was exported to Ottoman Turkey and Switzerland. And do you know what is their main difference? In caliber! In commercial 15 cm M-1913, the actual caliber was 149, 1 mm, that is, it was impossible to shoot from them with standard shells of the German army. And this despite the fact that in the documents they were also marked as 15-cm. Prior to this, a commercial field howitzer of the same caliber was produced, which was exported to Japan (M / 06), Argentina (M-1904), Bulgaria (M-1906) and Turkey, where it was designated as "Howitzer L / 14". A very similar gun was exported to Japan as a 150mm (Type 38 - Model 1905) field howitzer. M-1906 was a derivative of the design of the German army 15 cm field howitzer model 1902. That barrel was 1796 mm long, or L / 12. It weighed two tons, had a maximum barrel elevation angle of + 42 °, an initial projectile speed of 325 m / s and a maximum range of 7.45 kilometers. It is noted that the same Japanese liked this weapon for its compactness, but it was his shells that hit the Germans on the head when Japan sided with the Entente!
Howitzers of the M-1906 series differed from the standard German ones in longer barrels (L / 14), but in a smaller volume of the charging chamber, so their initial projectile speed was lower - 300 m / s and the range was only 6, 8 kilometers. M-1906 were sold to Japan without shields, while Bulgarian and Turkish ones were equipped with shields. The Japanese Type 38 150mm (actual caliber 149, 1mm) field howitzer was almost identical to the M-1906, except for its reduced dimensions. In particular, the table was shortened even more - to L / 11, due to which the maximum range was lowered to 5, 9 kilometers. In addition, the ammunition of the Japanese howitzer was different from the European one, and the bolt was piston, "Schneider's" and had a Bungee obturator. Why the Japanese abandoned the wedge breechblock characteristic of most German and Austrian guns is unclear. In addition to supplies from the German firm "Krupp", the Japanese built an arsenal plant in Osaka, where they began to produce the same howitzers already under license, but ironically, the first thirty howitzers were made of French steel. Argentina also received a number of 150 mm (149, 1 mm) howitzers, and then the same guns were supplied to Bulgaria.
In Tsarist Russia, Krupp proposed 152-mm (actually 152, 4-mm) howitzers of the 1909 and 1910 models, which were largely based on the M-1906 design. The differences between them were as follows: barrel length - L / 16 and L / 15, respectively; for the M-1909, the maximum elevation angle is + 60 °, the initial speed is about 381 m / s and the range is more than 9 kilometers, for the M-1910 - 350 m / s, the elevation angle is + 45 °, and the range is 8, 2 km. The M-1909 was significantly heavier than most of the Krupp guns - 3.8 tons versus 2.2 tons for the M-1910. This is in stark contrast to 2.1 tons for the M-1906 and 2.3 tons for the M-1913. But on the other hand, this gun jumped less when firing. Outwardly, they were distinguished by a curved shield, which could cover the entire crew almost completely. In the end, Russia bought a hundred or even fewer guns of one of these models, but in the end they were standardized like the Schneider guns of the 1910 model. Krupp in Russia had something to do with this caliber!
As for the commercial howitzers, M-1913, they are outwardly easily recognizable, as they have a stepped barrel. The front part of the cradle is closed by a hinged cover plate that protects its mechanism. In fact, this is an update of the previously released model M-1906, except that they were designed from the very beginning to be towed with a tractor. Bulgaria also became one of the main consumers of this model, and then Italy began to buy it. Italy adopted this howitzer into service in 1914, on the eve of World War I, and designated it as the 149-mm Obice da-149 / 12A. Italy received 112 howitzers from Krupp before entering the war against Germany on the side of the Entente. Designation 149/12 indicates a gun with a barrel length L / 12 instead of the actual length L / 14; but maybe the Italians just measured from the front of the breech instead of measuring from its end? Firms "Ansaldo" and "Vickers-Terni" received a license to manufacture guns in Italy. But since Italy entered the war on the side of the Allies, this led to a curious situation for the German and Austro-Hungarian troops opposing the Italian troops: they were essentially bombarded by German artillery fire! From late 1915 to 1919, Ansaldo and Vickers-Terni produced nearly 1,500 howitzers, with the bulk of this produced in 1917 and 1918. "Modello 1918" received a curved shield located in front of the wheel axle, and a couple of seats for members of the crew. Modello 1914 and Modello 1918 continued to serve during World War II. Italy supplied some of these howitzers to Albania and twelve howitzers to Poland in 1919.
Skoda M14 howitzers were also sold to various countries, but they were a whole ton heavier than similar Krupp guns and the external ones were very different from them. Outwardly, they look larger, heavier and stronger, the wheels have a wider base than their German competitors.
M. 14 and M. 14/16 were able to "lift the trunk" at + 70º, much better than + 43º for Krupp. But … Krupp still bypassed the Skoda, although the Skoda gave a maximum range of almost nine kilometers (compare this with the maximum range of the commercial Krupp howitzer, which was less than seven); that is, “the brand was already a brand,” or when shopping for whom it was necessary they “greased” very well!
The barrel of the Skoda howitzer was 1836 mm long versus 1806 mm for the Krupp howitzers, although this is not critical, but still. Their breech is also more massive than that of the Germans, but this is already a purely psychological advantage. In reality, these are extra pounds that you need to carry.
In total, the Skoda company produced about 1000 of these guns, which were exported during the First World War to Turkey and served there side by side with the Krupps. After the war, they were included in the arsenals of such new countries as Austria, Hungary, Czechoslovakia, Poland and Yugoslavia. Greece received several such howitzers, undoubtedly captured from Austria-Hungary and from the Turks, in particular, in 1920-1921. during the Greco-Turkish War. In the mid-1930s, they all received stamped steel rims and solid rubber tires to improve towing speeds. Some even had muzzle brakes added.
In conclusion, it should be noted that "Schneider", "Krupp" and "Skoda" in the years leading up to the First World War were the best-selling brands of guns not only in Europe but throughout the world. Well, and they fought from Qingdao in the east to the Gran Chaco region in South America, went through the entire First World War, and then the Second … Moreover, the deliveries were carried out on the principle of "who pays, he gets", and the political and military consequences Firms, as a rule, did not pay attention to their supplies. Nothing personal, just business!
