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Nov 25 • 7 tweets • 4 min read
The Colorado class dreadnought USS Washington under construction. The details of her multi-layer torpedo defense system are easily seen.

The United States enjoyed somewhat of a significant advantage in warship development at this time.
Most major powers (such as Britain and Germany) were locked in the dreadnought race. In an effort to outproduce the competition, the implementation of new features was somewhat hamstrung by the rush to get ships into serve as quickly as possible.
The US Navy on the other hand, could take a more leisurely approach (Not to mention take advantage of data coming from foreign experiences).

Extensive testing of various components was conducted. This was especially true for tank testing of underwater protection schemes.
This led to the development of the highly effective defense systems.

The US was able to determine features such as optimal distance between bulkheads, the best material to fill them (Air vs liquid), the thickness of the bulkhead, organization of said bulkeads, etc.
Further aided by other things (such as the powerplant and tight subdivision), the final Standard Battleships were ahead of the competition as far as underwater protection went.

Even by the Second World War, they remained competitive with the newest designs.
It's not to say the US had superior workmanship. Merely, they had the freedom to design and incorporate new features at a generous pace.

The nature of the Standard Battleships to be incremental improvements over their predecessors was also a likely factor that drove development
Overall, I'm starting to gain an appreciation for the Standards. While not quite gaining the respect of their peers, they were technologically interesting designs that had an impact on US design through the Second World War.

#fridaymorning #Friday #UnitedStates #USA #History

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More from @thegeneralboard

Navy General Board Profile picture
Nov 23
Does the following United States ship design look familiar?

It should because it's HMS Hood!

Hood had a profound impact on the United States Navy. In many ways, the arrival of Hood served as the catalyst for the eventual break away from the Standard Battleship doctrine. Image
The US Navy saw that the combination of firepower, armor, and speed would set the groundwork for new "Fast Battleships" (Or "Battleship-cruisers" as they were known in the US at the time). This would provide greater flexibility over the current generation of 21 knot battleships. Image
This spurred a flurry of activity among designers in the US Navy. New designs such as faster battleships, traditional battlecruisers, and hybrid battleship-cruisers were created. The pros and cons of each vessel were then vigorously weighed among senior naval officials. Image
Read 5 tweets
Navy General Board Profile picture
Jul 14
The battleship Mustu at anchor. Her extensive bulges, the result of her 1930s modernization, are prominent.

A lot of people are surprised by just how large the Nagato class grew to be over their careers.
At the start of their careers, the Nagato class were 215m (708') long with a beam of 29m (95'3"). At a draught of 9m (29'), this gave them a displacement of 32,200 tons (38,498 tons at full load).
In 1927, Mutsu had a modified bow fitted that increased their length by 1.6 meters (about 5' 3") to make the forward deck more dry. Nagato received a similar modification in 1930.
Read 9 tweets
Navy General Board Profile picture
Jan 22
Alright! Everyone has been taking wild guesses about what I consider a simple, yet brilliant design feature on the Yamato class. However, everyone was thinking big!

So what could this mystery thing be? Well, before we get to it, we need to first talk guns and loading them!

1
As battleships evolved, they increasingly made use of larger, more powerful guns.

In turn, these guns required larger turrets to house them. However, other things also increased in size along with the guns, namely the propellants and loading mechanisms.

2
As naval guns got larger and the shells they fired got larger, the propellants needed to propel them down the barrel got proportionately larger as well.

Larger guns typically needed multiple bags of propellant. Even divided up, these individual bags could be quite heavy.

3
Read 22 tweets
Navy General Board Profile picture
Jan 19
The Yamato class are best remembered for their massive guns and thick armor. Speed is the last thing on anyone's mind when discussing these dreadnoughts.

However, Japanese designers put considerable thought into the speed of the class. Image
The most famous feature was the bulbous bow.

Contrary to popular belief, the bulbous bow was not a Japanese invention. However, they did introduce what was the most radical design yet, one that offered superior performance to her contemporaries. Image
The effect on performance was significant. At top speed, the bulbous bow reduced the amount of power needed by about 8% or 12,000 shp. Meaning that without the Bow, the Yamato class would need roughly 162,000shp to reach her maximum speed. Image
Read 10 tweets
Navy General Board Profile picture
Oct 6, 2021
Alright, the United States and its flight deck fantasies Part 1: The Flight Deck Cruisers

The Washington Naval Treaty, as well as the later London Naval treaties, were an incredible achievement for halting (temporarily) a growing naval arms race.
The German and Japanese navies are best known for their attempts to circumnavigate treaty restrictions. However, this does not mean other countries were playing by the rules.

The United States Navy was also looking for ways to circumnavigate treaty restrictions.
One of the more notable attempts to do this was through hybrid cruiser-carriers. Cruiser-sized warships with a large flight deck and a cruiser-level armament.

Such warships were desired for a variety of reasons.
Read 15 tweets
Navy General Board Profile picture
May 25, 2021
In an early post, we briefly touched upon high velocity, shallow arc and lower velocity, higher arc guns.

While discussions on muzzle velocity are typically examined from a range, accuracy, or penetration angle, one other factor existed that played an equal if not larger role.
This factor is barrel wear. Something that influenced naval design for several navies.

The forces required to force a heavy naval shell through a barrel are tremendous. The intense heat and pressure places a great deal of strain on the barrel
Each shell that is forced down the barrel strips a tiny bit of the barrel along with it. This damage is typically towards the breech of the gun, concentrated towards the start of the rifling. However, successive shots allow the damage to extend further down the barrel..
Read 15 tweets

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