The following U.S. military report on German tapered-bore antitank guns was originally published in Tactical and Technical Trends, No. 7, Sept. 10, 1942. [DISCLAIMER: The following text is taken from the U.S. War Department publication Tactical and Technical Trends. As with all wartime intelligence information, data may be incomplete or inaccurate. No attempt has been made to update or correct the text. Any views or opinions expressed do not necessarily represent those of the website.]

NEW GUERLICH-PRINCIPLE GERMAN ANTITANK GUN A captured document dated January 1942 refers to the introduction of a new antitank gun, the 42-mm Pak 41. Examination of ammunition recently captured in the Middle East shows that this is a tapered-bore gun, the barrel tapering from 42 mm. at the breech to 28 mm. at the muzzle. Both HE and AP are fired, as in the case of the earlier 28/20-mm antitank gun, Model 41. In this new weapon, it is interesting to note that the Germans are persevering with the Guerlich principle of a tapered bore.

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