The Rise of the Empire

Chapter 639: Super Dreadnought Construction Plan II



The three thoroughbred battlecruisers can be regarded as power-enhanced versions of the Helgeland-class fast battleships. The same firepower configuration has slightly weakened defenses. The armor belt height has dropped to 3.8 meters, and the upper armor belt has also been slightly weakened. The main horizontal armor is 75MM, and the fore and aft armor belts have also been adjusted appropriately. The hull has been slightly elongated, reaching a length of 210 meters and a width of 29 meters.

The power system is 18 small water tube boilers and 4 steam engines. The maximum output power is expected to exceed 80,000 horsepower, and the standard displacement is about 28,500 tons. It is expected that the speed in the deep water area can reach 28 knots or more! From the appearance point of view, apart from being slightly longer, this class of battleship is not very different from the Helgeland-class battleship. If it is a little further away, then there is really no difference between the two classes of battleship... ... On the whole, this batch of 7 battleships built should actually be regarded as a standardized battleship!

For these warships, Rupresit is still quite satisfied. It can be called anti-sky-level defense, good speed, strong firepower, moderate displacement and construction period, and stable design. If the prince wants to be top It is also possible to design a theoretically better battleship, but if you consider time and funding, the current Helgeland-class battleship is undoubtedly the best choice for Germany at present, similar to the historical Americans equipped with 12 14-inch guns. Standardized battleships are not impossible to build, but the risks are too high and the cost is too high. If you still require high speed, the cost and tonnage are simply astronomical! What Germany needs is cost-effective mass-produced warships, not for satellites.

"Prince, the Admiralty also wants to know how the 15-inch artillery and turrets developed by the Kingdom of Bavaria are progressing now? If possible, the Secretary of State of the Navy hopes to start building 15-inch artillery ships by the end of 1907." The representative said respectfully.

"He is in a hurry." He smiled, and motioned to Earl Schelling to introduce the development progress of the 15-inch artillery system. The prince had just returned, and he had not had time to listen to the report from Skoda.

"Skoda has two sets of plans. Both plans are 380MML45 artillery, but the shells used are different. The first plan uses a heavy 750KG light shell. The muzzle velocity is more than 800 meters per second, and the gun weight At around 82 tons. This artillery has basically been designed. If you are lucky, a sample cannon can be produced by the end of this year. This artillery is characterized by a high muzzle velocity and performs very well at a distance of about 10KM."

"The other type of artillery uses a heavy-duty shell of 870KG with a muzzle velocity of about 780 meters. The gun weight is expected to be about 95 tons. The trajectory of this artillery is more curved, and it has a better impact on horizontal armor. It is not much different from the former, but the performance at long distances is better than the former. It is said that the storage speed of heavier shells is better. However, the design of this artillery may be more complicated. The design can be completed in the second half of this year, and the design can be completed as early as next year. A sample cannon is produced in China," Earl Schelling replied.

"So how are the turrets and servo equipment?" asked.

"Most of the subsystems of the twin turret have been designed. As long as the artillery is not a problem, it can be mass-produced by the end of 1907. But the weight of the triple turret is too large, and the weight is almost 50% larger than the twin turret! The weight of our double-mounted turret is close to 900 tons, while the weight of the triple-mounted turret is at least about 1,300 tons. The design and construction and outfitting pressure are very high. According to the analysis of the technicians, if we want to complete the triple-mounted turret, the earliest In the middle of 1909."

"Hehe, this is really a difficult question to choose." The prince said helplessly. The choice of artillery is not a problem, because both artillery models have historical prototypes. The former is the German 380MMSKL45 artillery. It is closer to the 15-inch L42 family heirloom of the British in history. To say that this artillery is quite famous. A large-caliber artillery produced more than 100 pieces. Although this is not necessarily a record, it is definitely NB. Even after it was used in the second battle, it was equipped with new artillery shells. The power is still terrifying. Good accuracy, good lifespan, good performance, what else are you dissatisfied with? Although for various reasons, the 15-inch running in Germany failed to give out splendor, but based on the principle of learning from history and minimizing risks as much as possible, the prince preferred this product similar to the British 15-inch L42MK1 artillery.

What really embarrassed the prince was the choice of the turret. As a traverser, the 3*3 main gun layout of the prince’s way of nature is the future development direction and the representative of advanced productivity, but the future does not equal the present, and the future NB does not represent the present It's easy to use. Shipbuilding needs to be considered comprehensively, not only the theoretical performance, but also the possible risks and economic and time pressures. Finally make the appropriate choice.

What are the benefits of   3*3 turret layout? The most direct benefit is that one more artillery... Then there is one missing turret, which may reduce the length of the armor belt. But there are also many problems. First of all, the triple-mounted turret is larger and heavier, and the construction difficulty is increased a lot. And because the circle of the gun becomes larger, the lower part also becomes larger, which causes the underwater defense of the gun turret. The depth of the system will not be enough.

Of course~www.novelhall.com~ If you move the turret position to the back, you can also. The second issue is the fire control problem. The artillery interval of the triple-mounted turret is small, which will cause disturbances when firing. Of course, if you fire a half salvo or install an artillery delay launch device, you can stagger a few tenths of a second, but the problem is , There is no such device yet....... Moreover, the stability of the triple-mounted turret has also become a question mark. I don't know much about this, and I dare not draw conclusions.

Of course, these problems can be solved, otherwise, future generations will not have so many 3*3 battleships, but there is a problem that cannot be ignored is the impact of the turret change on the entire fleet's construction plan! The new generation of 15-inch artillery ships can actually be an enlarged version of the Helgeland-class battleship. To put it bluntly, it can be understood that the tonnage has been expanded to a certain extent, and the power has been slightly increased, so that the gun ring can accommodate dual 15-inch artillery. , Defense may increase. Then the tonnage of the battleship is about 30,000 tons. Because of the mother base, the design and renovation work is actually not too much, and can be completed soon. This is why the 15-inch artillery ship can be started in 1907 by the Secretary of the Navy.

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