Post by hardlec on Jul 13, 2017 18:43:47 GMT
Various guns show up in turrets, and I'm not so sure much attention is paid to matching the size of the gun to the size of the turret.
My question came to me as I was considering re-arming a MkIV with a 6-inch main gun and putting 90 mm AT guns in the sponsons.
Likewise I am contemplating making a landship of my own design. I looked into whether one man in a 4-foot diameter turret could operate an AT gun.
Some of my wisdom (or is is sophistry?) says that the number of men in the turret is more the determining factor than the actual gun.
The twin 12-inch turrets of the HMS Dreadnaught were about 27 feet in crude diameter. There is a fairly large crew of men in a main battery turret, and they need room to move. (There is also several inches of armor and the machinery to move 750+tons of turret)
The crowded turret of the Char1-bis was a severe limitation on how well (or poorly) it performed in combat.
The three-man turret of the Sherman Tank was about 8 feet in crude diameter. A Sherman could mount a 105mm howitzer in the Jumbo version. Three men, a Gunner, a Loader and the Tank Commander could operate in the Turret. Small men were recruited for tank crews.
The 1/2 inch diameter turrets on many AQMF models are, in scale, about 4 feet in diameter. This seems big enough for one man, cramped for two men. A single gunner-loader (one man) could work for guns up to 4 inches in diameter, with shells weighing up to 50 pounds. A 5-inch gun has a shell that weighs about 75 pounds (including propellant and brass) This is a bit too much for one man to deal with. (Yes, friends, when I was in peak shape I could dead-lift 200 lb and curl 50 lb with each arm. To expect even a strong man to work a 5-inch gun alone without blowing his own a$$ off is a bit too much. Humans are just human.)
My suggestion: in scale measurements
1/2 to 3/4 inch turrets can have a single man and up to a 4-inch gun.
1 inch to 1 1/2 inch turrets can accommodate up to a 7 inch gun;
3 or 4 inch guns in a larger turret might get a higher rate of fire in a turret this size.
2 inch turrets can accept a gun up to 12 inches.
Part of this is to be a guideline for turrets/emplacements on the battlefield.
A 12 inch gun fires a projectile that weighs over 700 pounds. The propellent is in separate bags. To load a 12 inch shell, the projectile is lined up with the breech and placed with a hydraulic ram. Several bags of propellent are then rammed into the breech and the breech-block closed. The gun is then guided into firing position. 2-3 rounds per minute is a good rate of fire for a 12-inch gun. A WWI era AP projectile from a 12-inch gun can penetrate 16 inches of steel armor at 1000 yards. That, to me, is awesome.
To Martin, I expect the reaction would be unprintable.
My question came to me as I was considering re-arming a MkIV with a 6-inch main gun and putting 90 mm AT guns in the sponsons.
Likewise I am contemplating making a landship of my own design. I looked into whether one man in a 4-foot diameter turret could operate an AT gun.
Some of my wisdom (or is is sophistry?) says that the number of men in the turret is more the determining factor than the actual gun.
The twin 12-inch turrets of the HMS Dreadnaught were about 27 feet in crude diameter. There is a fairly large crew of men in a main battery turret, and they need room to move. (There is also several inches of armor and the machinery to move 750+tons of turret)
The crowded turret of the Char1-bis was a severe limitation on how well (or poorly) it performed in combat.
The three-man turret of the Sherman Tank was about 8 feet in crude diameter. A Sherman could mount a 105mm howitzer in the Jumbo version. Three men, a Gunner, a Loader and the Tank Commander could operate in the Turret. Small men were recruited for tank crews.
The 1/2 inch diameter turrets on many AQMF models are, in scale, about 4 feet in diameter. This seems big enough for one man, cramped for two men. A single gunner-loader (one man) could work for guns up to 4 inches in diameter, with shells weighing up to 50 pounds. A 5-inch gun has a shell that weighs about 75 pounds (including propellant and brass) This is a bit too much for one man to deal with. (Yes, friends, when I was in peak shape I could dead-lift 200 lb and curl 50 lb with each arm. To expect even a strong man to work a 5-inch gun alone without blowing his own a$$ off is a bit too much. Humans are just human.)
My suggestion: in scale measurements
1/2 to 3/4 inch turrets can have a single man and up to a 4-inch gun.
1 inch to 1 1/2 inch turrets can accommodate up to a 7 inch gun;
3 or 4 inch guns in a larger turret might get a higher rate of fire in a turret this size.
2 inch turrets can accept a gun up to 12 inches.
Part of this is to be a guideline for turrets/emplacements on the battlefield.
A 12 inch gun fires a projectile that weighs over 700 pounds. The propellent is in separate bags. To load a 12 inch shell, the projectile is lined up with the breech and placed with a hydraulic ram. Several bags of propellent are then rammed into the breech and the breech-block closed. The gun is then guided into firing position. 2-3 rounds per minute is a good rate of fire for a 12-inch gun. A WWI era AP projectile from a 12-inch gun can penetrate 16 inches of steel armor at 1000 yards. That, to me, is awesome.
To Martin, I expect the reaction would be unprintable.
