Drag Ropes: How are they used??

[Mike Cecil]

Rob Beale,

Trewin's Early British QF Artillery page 386 states:

'Drag Ropes. There were two classes: heavy and light. Both classes had similar terminal fittings; at one end was a black painted iron hook, the other end was a leather lined eye-splice.These were of two classes, heavy and light. The heavy drag rope hook had a slot to take a tie attached to the shank. The drag rope was 3 inch white rope, thirty feet in length. It was issued to all siege guns and howitzers.

The light drag rope was a two inch white rope, fifteen feet in length. It was issued to BL 12 pdr and BL 15 pdr guns and BL 5 inch howitzers.'

The 1952 Australian 25pdr QF user handbook simply states 'Ropes, Drag, No.1 or No.5' in the tool/stores list, and on para 297 states 'these are 30 feet of white rope with two thimbles hook and chain'.

Regards

Mike