SP 25 Pounder Yeramba

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History
The Yeramba is an Australian self propelled howitzer developed during the late 1940s and seeing service from 1950-1957. Everyone calls it the Yeramba because nobody has the time to say it’s full name, “Ordnance, Quick Firing, 25 pdr Mark 2/1, on Mounting Self propelled 25 pdr (AUST) Mark 1, on Carrier, Grant, Self Propelled 25 pdr (AUST) Mark 1”.
In 1947 the Australian army, drawing from lessons learned in WW2, recognized the need for a armoured artillery unit having the same mobility as the tanks they were supporting, and so a program was undertaken to acquire self propelled gun. Modern vehicles from overseas were not available at the time so a decision was made to adapt some of Australia’s existing M3 Grant tanks to the role. Design queues were taken from a Canadian Sexton however it’s important to note the Yeramba was not a direct copy but an all new design. A welded open top super structure of 38mm armour was placed on the M3 Grant chassis, centrally mounting a QF 25 Pounder Mk 2/1 gun with a 20in recoil system and a muzzle break. And as with M3 Grants in Australia, an additional cast armour plate of up to 44mm thickness was mounted on the transmission tunnel on the front of the vehicle. The gun had a horizontal traverse of 40 degrees, and vertical of +40 degrees to -9.5 degrees, while storage was provided for 104 rounds of HE, Smoke and AP ammunition. Stronger M4 Sherman suspension units replaced the original M3 suspension. And secondary armament consisted of two 0.303 Bren light machine guns. The sights were the same units as the field gun.
14 total units were produced, serving with the 22nd Field Regiment, Royal Australian Artillery. By 1957 it was declared obsolete and retired, having never served in active combat.

Specifications

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Mass: 29 tonnes
Length: 5.77m
Width: 2.72m
Height: 2.4m
Crew: 6 (Commander, Driver, 4 gun crew)
Armour: 38mm super structure, hull same as M3 Grant with additional plate of up to 44mm over the transmission tunnel
Main Armament: QF 25 Pounder (87.6mm) Mk 2/1
Secondary Armament: Two 0.303 Bren Light Machine Guns
Engine: Twin GM 6-71 diesel 375 horsepower
Top Speed: 40km/hr
Max Rate of Fire: 8 rounds per minute (7.5sec reload)

Additional Photos

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Sources

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https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Yeramba
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ordnance_QF_25-pounder
http://anzacsteel.hobbyvista.com/Armoured%20Vehicles/m3ph_2.htm

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+1

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I have struggled to find exact armour penetration statistics of the 25pdr gun. Everything I have read though suggests it can pen just a bit less than a 6pdr. I would imagine it’s over 100mm pen, and given the size of the shell it may do more post pen damage than a 6pdr. It’s definitely more than the 2pdr. In fact Australia was planning to fit A.C.IIIs with 25pdr guns as an upgrade over the 2pdr from the A.C.I.
The HE shell is a bit easier to determine, at 900g TNT. New Zealand troops reported being able to pop turrets on Panzer IIIs with their 25pdr field gun HE ammunition. I’m not sure if it could do that in War Thunder but it’s interesting.
My guess would be the Yeramba would be around BR 2.7-3.0 making it a nice addition to run alongside either the Matilda Hedgehog, or the A.C.I and Boomerang currently in game. It’s also the only self propelled gun Australia ever designed/used until recently with the AS9 Huntsman. Unless you count Portees and stuff.

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The 25 pounder is a little bit more potent than say the US 75mm, there is some data on it around on the internet, but it’s easy to remember as by a happy coincidence the 20 pound AP shot fired using super charge will penetrate 1 calibre at 30 degrees at the muzzle, or approximately 87mm.

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Sounds in line with everything I read suggesting flat pen at point blank would be somewhere between 100mm-120mm. Probably not as high as 120mm but you get an idea of the range of performance of the gun. I’d really love to see some 25pdr vehicles added, especially since the gun itself was so famous and prolific as a field gun.

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Australian Armor Museum just posted a walkaround video of their Yeramba.
https://youtu.be/ztnrtgmpzNc?si=ecwqufn_IhpZA9dG

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Check out here, it penetrates ~85mm LoS at 500m with the “super” charge
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2000ft/sec is Super Plus Increment, which the Yeramba did not carry. Super on its own is the next one down at 1850ft/sec, so 74mm at 500.

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