The Portland daily press. [volume] (Portland, Me.) 1862-1921, 1893-08-05
THE NAvVs GREATEST GUN.
Interesting Ordnance Work-Armor Plates
of the Maine and the Puritan.

ed at Indian Head. Twelve of these
guns are needed for vessels now under
construction, four each going to the
battle, ships Indiana, Massachusetts and
Oregon. But the Iowa, which is still
larger, is to carry 12-inch rifles as her
heaviest calibre. Our Naval Bureau of
Ordnance has asked to build a 16-inch
gun, but since no ship is under construc-
ton or incontemplatlon which is designed
for such weapon, it is not likely to be
built. The various mishaps which have
attended the firing of 110-ton guns in
the British naval service, and the crown
ing disaster to the Victoria, which was
armed with them, will not give them
much further favor here or there, al
though Italy uses them on her vessels.
But the decision of the British Admiral
ty in favor of smaller maximum cali
bres, was based on the consideration of
handling guns to advantage, 1t being
considered not to be wholly dependent
for operating them on machinery, which
might be disabled at a critical moment.
The same views have prevailed in our
own service, and accordingly the Iowa's
largest guns were reduced to the 12-lnch
calibre, although some experts consid-
cred this to be mistake.
Certainly the interest in the 13-inch
guns will not be diminished by the
knowledge that no more of them are to
be ordered for the present. The greater
part are in various stages of construc-
zion, two being practically completed
Their carriages are not yet ready, and it
is said that their armor- piercing project
lies are also yet to be furnished. But
Important conclusions in regard to the
ffTff, Of hp non 1,op onh nA
ordinary shells and temporary mounts.
The 13-inch gun is nearly feet long,
and has diameter of little over 4 feet
at the breech and of 81 inches at the
muzzle 1t is constructed on the built up
principle adopted both by the navy and
the army, in which central tube has
shr y upon It bands Of Jackets thai
use will weigh 1, 100 pounds, and will be
powder These figures striking as they
are, are outdone by those of the 110-ton
Armstrong;, which are nearly a feet
long, have diameter of 51-2 feet at the
breech, and throw an 1,800-pound steel
projectile with 900 pounds or more of
gun are sufficiently Imposing.
The coming armor tests are also very
interesting. One of them will be that of
a 13-inch Harveyized plate, present.
ing part of the armor of the Maine.
This will be subjected to the fire of
a 10-inch rifle, and it is believed that by
the famous surface hardening process will
achieye new triumph. These plates
are the thickest that have ever been
Harveyized. Another test will be that
Of Harveyized nickel-steel plate, rep
resenting portion of the armor of the
Puritan. Here a particularly interest
Ing comparison is possible, inasmuch as
a portion of the armor of this vessel has
been made of nickel steel without surface
hardening and a portion of the same
armor Harveyized, SO that the compare
son of the resisting qualities will be very
instructive. Reference has already been
made to the inclination tests, with an
S-inch rifle against a 9-lnch curved
plate. as being of high degree of practi-
cal Importance Mention may also be
made of recent attack upon a 66-inch-
NOR of the New York. by 6-pounder
Driggs-Schroeder rapid fire gun. The
object was to test the quality of GER
tain steel shells which, propelled by 1915
feet of initial velocity, penetrated little
more than half way through the plate
and rebounded without breaking.
Later in the autumn at Sandy Hook
the long competitive test of small calibre
rapid-fire guns will take place. The
entries thus far are the Hotchkiss,
briggs Schroeder, Seabury, Nordenfeldt
and Sponsol six-pounders. The trial will
be a most thorough one covering perhaps
from 100 to 200 rounds with each gun,
and determining both it's rapidity and
it's accuracy. There will also be test
another trial, carried on by the authority
of the board of ordinance, and fortifca-
tions at Sandy Hook, will be that of
the Hocthkiss, Canet, and Armstrong
T. finch rapid-fire guns Specimens of all
three types have been purchased expressly
for this competitive test, which must
greatly interest England and France as
well as our own country.
The progressive trials of the Brown
segmental gun and also of the smokeless
powders increase in interest as they are
subjected to more and more advanced
tests. The Brown gun has shown re-
markable ability to stand heavy charges
producing high ve1ocities, and to fesist
great pressures. The Leonard smokeless
powder, an American invention, has
given some excellent results. A charge
of only ga pounds of it in the g. 20-inch
steel field gun secured the great initial
velocity of 2, 43S feet per second. The
projcetile weighed 13 1-2 pounds, so that
it developed remarkable energy for that
calibre of gun. The pressure, which was
35, $50 pounds, was sustained by the gun
wi tn entire satisfaction.
The trials of disappearing gun car
riages are also doubtless to be continued,
since not all the patterns proposed have
been thoroughly tested, and the matter
is one of prime Importance in coast de-
fence. An interesting experiment is also
to be made in the assem- bling of the new
nickel-steel gun. 1t is confidently ex-
pceted that the construction of ordnance
of steel, having a nickel alloy, will be
as noteworthy in its way as has been it's
introduction into the manufacture of
arms. But, in addition, the Sellers
plan constructs the gun of fewer pieces
and puts them together in horizontal
as well as in a vertical position. Thus
a new system of gun construction, as
we'll as a new material, is involved in
this method.