Fokker-Leimberger
| Fokker-Leimberger | |
|---|---|
| Type | Multi-barelled Machine gun |
| Place of origin | German Empire |
| Service history | |
| In service | Trials only |
| Production history | |
| Designer | A.H.G. Fokker & ? Leimberger |
| Designed | 1916 |
| Specifications | |
| Cartridge | 8x57mm IS |
| Barrels | 12 |
| Rate of fire | (claimed) 7200+RPM |
| Feed system | Belt |
| Sights | Iron |
The Fokker-Leimberger was an externally powered, 12-barrel rifle-caliber rotary cannon developed in Germany during the First World War. The action of the Fokker-Leimberger differed from that of a Gatling in that it employed a rotary split-breech design, also known as a "nutcracker".
Fokker claimed the gun achieved over 7200 rpm, although this may be an exaggeration. Failures during the war were attributed to the poor quality of German wartime ammunition, although the type of breech employed had ruptured-case problems in a British 1950s experimental weapon. Fokker continued to experiment with this type of breech after his post-war move to the United States. A different Fokker prototype in a US museum attests to the failure of this line of development.
The Fokker-Leimberger used a rotary split-breech design known as the "nutcracker". In this design a temporary chamber is formed by joining the two cavities of touching, counter-rotating sprockets. The simplicity of the design was appealing, particularly because it contained no major parts using a reciprocating motion, like the breechblock used in many other automatic weapons. Ignoring the various material stresses, the maximum rate of fire was thus theoretically limited only by the time needed to complete the burning of the propellant from each cartridge. Anthony Williams commented on this design that: "Fokker claimed that 7,200 rpm was achieved, but knowing Fokker, there is some reason to assume that that may have been slightly exaggerated. Problems occurred, of course, with cases bursting on the seam between the two cylinders." Another "Fokker Split Breech Rotary Machine Gun, ca. 1930" was donated by Val Forgett to Kentucky Military Treasures in 1977; according to the museum record it "proved unsuccessful because of its inability to seal breech cylinders". The British also experimented with this type of breech for aircraft guns in the 1950s, but abandoned it. This type of breech has only been used successfully in low-pressure applications, such as the Mk 18 Mod 0 grenade launcher.
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