20pdr OQF Mk.I (84 mm)

Description

The 20pdr OQF Mk.I is a 84 mm British tank cannon, developed after the end of WWII to combat the Soviet IS-3. It fires a variety of conventional shells, but introduces a new subcalibre APDS round paired with a two-plane stabilizer on all but one of its implementations.

Vehicles equipped with this weapon

• Caernarvon
• Centurion Action X
• Centurion Mk 3
• Centurion Mk.5/1
• Charioteer Mk VII
• FV4202

General info

The 20pdr is first seen on the Charioteer without a stabilizer, but it isn't until it is mounted on the many Centurion variants that it truly shines. Its APCBC round has penetration comparable to the Tiger II's , but as usual for British tanks it lacks explosive filler. The unlockable APDS Mk.3 round, however, can reliably penetrate most tanks frontally with 285 mm of penetration at point blank, with a very high velocity that can allow one to land shots at long range with a punctual consistency. Unfortunately, the great penetration and good ballistics comes at a cost as the APDS round has very poor post-penetration damage, with a narrow cone of damage and no explosive filler. One must have a very extensive knowledge of enemy crew placement or ammo rack locations to reliably eliminate enemy tanks with one shot. For a player less familiar with enemy vehicles at the battle rating, it is advised to try to incapacitate the gunner or knock out the cannon to ensure the tank will not fire back.

Available ammunition

Penetration statistics
Ammunition	Type of warhead	Penetration @ 0° Angle of Attack (mm)
		10 m	100 m	500 m	1,000 m	1,500 m	2,000 m
Shot Mk.1	APCBC	232	229	216	201	187	173
Shot Mk.3	APDS	285	283	262	239	218	198
Shell Mk.1	HE	15	15	15	15	15	15

Comparison with analogues

With the APDS rounds, the 20pdr has a penetration level similar to that of 3BM4 found on the T-62. The APCBC round's closest analogue is the PzGr. 39/43 found on the late-war German tanks such as the Tiger II and Ferdinand.

Usage in battles

Describe the cannon/machine gun in the game - its distinctive features, tactics of usage against notable opponents. Please don't write a "guide" - do not impose a single point of view, but give the reader food for thought.

Pros and cons

Pros:

• Impressive penetration, negates most armour
• High velocity and low drop, easy to hit moving and distant targets
• Usually stabilized on both axis

Cons:

• Poor post-penetration damage with all rounds

History

Examine the history of the creation and combat usage of the weapon in more detail than in the introduction. If the historical reference turns out to be too long, take it to a separate article, taking a link to the article about the weapon and adding a block "/History" (example: https://wiki.warthunder.com/(Weapon-name)/History) and add a link to it here using the main template. Be sure to reference text and sources by using <ref></ref>, as well as adding them at the end of the article with <references />.

Media

Excellent additions to the article would be video guides, screenshots from the game, and photos.

See also

• Kan Strv 81 (84 mm) - Swedish variant

External links

• [Wikipedia] Ordnance QF 20-pounder

Britain tank cannons
30 mm	L21A1
40 mm	QF 2-pounder
47 mm	Ordnance QF 3-pounder
57 mm	6pdr OQF Mk.III · 6pdr OQF Mk.V
75 mm	OQF Mk.V
76 mm	OQF 3-inch Howitzer Mk I · OQF 3in 20cwt · QF 17-pounder
77 mm	OQF Mk.II
84 mm	20pdr OQF Mk.I
94 mm	28pdr OQF · 32pdr OQF · OQF Mk.II
95 mm	Howitzer, Tank No.1, Mk.I
105 mm	LRF · Royal Ordnance L7A1
120 mm	Ordnance QF Tk. L1A2 · Ordnance BL Tk. L11 · L11A5 · L30A1
165 mm	ORD BL 6.5in L9A1
183 mm	QF L4A1
	Foreign:
25 mm	M242 (USA)
37 mm	M5 (USA) · M6 (USA)
75 mm	M2 (USA) · M3 (USA)
84 mm	kan Strv 81 (Sweden)
105 mm	Sharir (Israel)
120 mm	Rh120 L/55 A1 (Germany)
125 mm	2A46M-5 (Russia)
155 mm	M185 (USA)
	South Africa
20 mm	GI-2
76 mm	GT-4
90 mm	GT-2
105 mm	GT-3 · GT-7 · GT-8
155 mm	G6 L/45