Original German WWII Light Infantry 7.5cm le.IG 18 Artillery Shell Set in Crate- 7.5 cm leichtes Infanteriegeschutz 18 Original Items

Original Items: Only One Set Available. The 7.5 cm leichtes Infanteriegeschütz 18 (7,5 cm le.IG 18) was an infantry support gun of the German Wehrmacht used during World War II.

Development of the gun began in 1927, by Rheinmetall. The crew was protected by an armoured shield. There was a mountain gun variant, the 7.5 cm le.GebIG 18. For transport, the mountain variant could be broken down into six to ten packs, the heaviest weighing 74.9 kg. These were typically assigned at two to each mountain battalion. Six 7.5 cm le.IG 18F were manufactured in 1939. These were airborne guns, capable of being broken down into four 140 kg loads. The airborne variant had smaller wheels and no shield. There was also an infantry support gun, known as the 7.5 cm Infanteriegeschütz L/13 and designed as a replacement for the le.IG 18, which could be broken into four to six loads. However, though prototypes were tested, the German army felt that it did not improve on the existing design sufficiently to merit introduction and the army stayed with the earlier gun.

This set includes the following pieces:
– Original wood transit chest with white stenciling to the top that reads Mun.le.I.G. 18. The interior of the box bears an original paper label dated April 17, 1944. (17.4.44). The interior also has newly made pieces of wood added to complete the box as the support frame for the brass shells was gone.

– Three inert original 75mm cased-cartridge type projectile complete with inert Percussion detonators. All are German WW2 marked.

– Three original German brass base shells.

While no longer a major component of today’s infantry units, the infantry support gun was a battlefield staple since the advent of the cast barrel. The infantry support gun proved a major player in the fighting of World War 2 and, in 1932, the expanding German Army adopted the 7.5cm leichtes Infanteriegeschutz 18 (7.5cm le.IG 18) (“Light Infantry Gun”) infantry support gun system. Design work on the type began in 1927 and manufacture was headed by the storied concern of Rheinmetall. Production spanned from 1932 into 1945, the last year of the war, with manufacture allowing for some 12,000 units to be delivered.

Weighing some 880lbs, the IG 18 was not a light artillery piece. It required a
crew of five for general operation and relied on a mover vehicle for towing. It could be moved about by the crew when short distances were covered in battle – of course the terrain would play a major role. The weapon, as a complete, system, consisted of a short barrel and gun mount, a small angled shield for basic ballistics protection and a heavily-spoked solid wheel pairing. The mounting carriage was of a split trail type to which the legs opened and added recoil support when firing. The barrel measured three feet long and was 75mm in caliber.

The IG 18 fired a 75mm cased-cartridge type projectile weighing 13lbs with loading by the crew through a shotgun-style block breech mechanism. The gun mounting allowed for an elevation span of -10 to +73 degrees with traversal to either side of 12-degrees. An experiences, well-trained crew could reach a rate-of-fire of eight to twelve rounds per minute. Muzzle velocity was rated at 690 feet per second while maximum range was out to nearly 4,000 yards.

One notable variant of the IG 18 line was the 7.5cm le.GebIG 18 “mountain gun” which was the same artillery piece though designed to be broken down into six pieces for ease of travel. In this way, the weapon could be taken through the awkward mountain passes and fired from uneven ground. They proved valuable to lightly-armed forces such as German paratroopers as well.

The IG 18 series managed an active existence through all of World War 2 across countless campaigns where its short-/medium-ranged, relative light weight design and heavy hitting firepower were used alongside infantry maneuvers. The weapons could also be dug in and utilized in the defensive role.

Statistics of the 7.5 cm le.IG 18 and 7.5 cm le.GebIG 18
Calibre: 75 mm (2.95 in)
Elevation: -10° to 73°
Muzzle Velocity (w/HE shell): 210 m/s (689 ft/s)
Range: 3,550 m (3,882 yd)
Traverse: 12°
Weight: 400 kg (882 lb)
Weight of the 7.5 cm le.GebIG 18: 440 kg (970 lb)
Weight of HE Shell: 6 kg (13.22 lb)
Weight of HC Shell: 3 kg (6.6 lb)