Evening times-Republican. [volume] (Marshalltown, Iowa) 1890-1923, 1915-03-18
UNITED STATES NAVY PLANS A
NEW TYPE or NAVY
ARMAMENT.
EXPERIMENTS PROVE s.
QUITE SATISFACTORY
New Armamsnts to Excel Those Of Any
Other Navy -of Different Design
and sixteen Inch Shell
to Be Used If Present Plans Arc Fol.
Iowsd-Hsaviest Ever Designed.

Washington, March 1S-The two bat
tleships provided for in the current
naval bill may be armed with 16inch
rifles, the heaviest naval guns ever de-
signed.
While tentative plans for the new
ships contem plate vessels similar in
design to the $4,000 tons giants Of the
California class now building details
of armament and engine equipment are
being given unusual attention by navy
designers and the results obtained
from the 15-inch main batteries of the
newest British and German battleships
are being closely watched.
Already the new 16-inch navy gun
has been subjected to tests at the In
dian Head proving ground and while
details of its construction and per-
Torrance are closely guarded, it is
known that the gigantic weapon has
given proof Of its efficiency which de-
lighted navy ordnance experts. The
gun was built at the American naval
gun factory and has been undergoing
tests for several months.
Some idea of the probable size Of the
new American gun may be gathered
from the fact that each of the eight
15-inch guns of the British battleship
Queen Elizabeth weighs ninety-six
tons, while similar rifles designed in
the Krupp works for German battle
ships laid down this year each weigh
more than eigllty-two tons. The H.
inch rifles OF the battleships New York
and Texas for the five new American
dreadnaughts now under construction,
weigh 63.3 tons each and it is certain
that the new 16-inch weapon weighs
more than 100 tons without it's mount
ing.
Unlike All Others.
Krupp engineers have designed 16-
inch gun which fires a projectile
weighing 2,02S pounds against the 1,675
pound mass of steel hurled by the 10
inch rifles adopted for the German
navy and the 1920 pound projectiles
poured into Turkish fortresses of the
Dardanelles by the British battleship
Queen Elizabeth. None of the German
or British vessels of the first line carry
any weapon exactly similar. to the
American 14-inch gun, jump having
been made last year from the standard
12-inch rifle to the 15-inch type.
The New York, Texas, Nevada and
7 Oklahoma each carry ten-14-inch guns
| while the Pennsylvania, California, Id
aho and Mississippi each will carry
twelve, placed three to a turret. These
weapons throw projectiles weighing L.
400 pounds as is the case with the IA
inch guns designed for the four Japan
csc battleships estimated for in 1914.
With the increase in size, the life
of the gun is shortened by erosion,
due to the heat generated by the. ex-
plosion Of the huge charge of powder
| necessary to hurl nearly ton of metal
fifteen miles that is said to be the
range of the American 16-inch weapon.
The rifing of the gun burns out under
the blast. Drops of melted steel are
visible in the bore after each shot and
Fit is said that the life of the Queen
Elizabeth's 15-inch weapons is less
| than 100 shots each. After that the
gun is so inaccurate as to be virtually
useless.
Navy gun designers have overcome
that obstacle somewhat, it is said, with
the new American 15-inch gun, but the
life Of the gun is still far below that of
| the 14-inch.
| The Krupp works, before the OUT
| break of the present war; announced
that a process of steel and powder
! manufacture had been evolved that de-
! creased erosion: but the factory is UNI
derstood to have refused to contract to
supply large number of great guns
under guarantee of 250 rounds accur-
acX-fire life.
In placing aboard the Queen Eliza
zeth the fifteen-inch weapon designed
for her class, British navy officials are
| understood to have depended upon a
! cheap process for refining, perfected by
| their engineers, to offset the short life
Of the gun. If that be true it is prob
able the Queen Elizabeth soon may be
compelled to return to England and
have new guns placed aboard If the
steady pounding at the Dardanelles
forts exhaust her main battery.
Change Would Be Costly.
| It has been suggested that sixteen
| inch guns could be substituted for the
| fourteen-inch batteries of the Ameri-
can battleships now under construc-
tion, placing them two to turret in
| stead of three and giving the ships
eight guns each instead of twelvel
Navy officers say, however, that the
cost OF Sucn an aICerdClOn WOulu Ue
very great if it could be made at all.
They also hold that the American four
ten-inch gun is the equal Of the Brit
ish or German fifteen-inch for all prac-
tical purposes.
With any target in plain view, 1t is
said, the American gun has equal
range and nearly equal penetration
! the difference being more than coun-
ter balanced by the larger number OF
| guns carried. Thus. in action against
such ship as the Queen Elizabeth
the Pennsylvania would have twelve
fourteen Inch guns against eight fif-
teen inch gun is the equal Of the Brit.
1 greater opportunity for scoring hits
! For indirect fire, such as the work In
/ which the Queen Elizabeth shared In
the Dardanelles. the fffteen-inch guns
| greater range would be important; but
1T is not believed 1t would be factor
1 in purely naval battle.
/ During the present war, big CUR
naval engagements have been fought
at a range Of from seven to ten miles
| effective distance for either twelve Of
fourteen inch guns.
! As matter of fact 1t has beer
pointed out that the German eight-incf
guns outranged larger British guns be.
cause Of the higher gun elevation pro-
= 49,. We