This DVD-ROM contains PDF copies of scans of four different military manuals on the 5"/38 caliber gun. Three of the manuals are from the Navy:
"The 5"/38 Gun" Navpers 10111, 540p, 1965. The 5"/38 caliber deck gun was mounted on most every Navy surface ship until well into the 1980's. When we talk about battleships, most people concentrate on the big 12" and 16" guns, but there were also 5-10 5"/38 guns on the Mark 30 mount.This manual is not real technical, but it has a great deal of very practical information about operation and maintenance of the gun. It is in a kind of cartoon format with four pictures down thethe left half of the page and text on the right half. Some of the illustrations are photographs, some are professional drawings, and some are cartoons (!) illustrating good practice. The Navy had a problem in WWII in how to turn inexperienced farm boys and city dwellers into sailors and experts in the use of very complex munitions systems. This manual is a great example of the step-by-step training covering every aspect of the gun. Although produced after the war (1965) the gun and the mount were used virtually unchanged from the late 30's through the 60's.
"5-Inch Gun Mounts - 38 Caliber - A.A. - Base Ring Type Mark 30 and Mark 30 Modifications Except Merchantmen Types" Ordnance Pamphlet No. 735, First Revision, 650p, May 1943. Note that the mount includes much more than just a turret - it really is the heart and soul of the gun. The "gun" itself refers just to the barrel and breech mechanism. Everything else is the mount - the aiming, positioning both elevation and azimuth are done by the turret. This manual is most remarkable in its detail - there are engineering drawings of every part of the mount and turret. There are 27 large 11x17" fold-out illustrations, 4 of them in color.
"5-Inch 38 Cal. Gun Students Guide in Maintenance Procedures" NAVPERS 16183 1945 164p This is a workbook with questions and illustrations.
"5-Inch 38 Cal. Loading Machine Mark XVI and Mark XVI Mods 1&2" OP 775 1941 30p. Short manual on the Army-type surface mounting.
I also offer printed copies of the two large Navy manuals. Be sure to see these and other companion offerings at my store.
Free shipping for CONUS. More for foreign. Direct download is available. After purchase, send me a note requesting download. For foreign, I will refund shipping charges.
As I have edited every page of every manual to remove blemishes and scanning problems, the images in these files differ from the original manuals. My changes are all copyright 2004-2022. Permission is given for personal, educational, and research use only.