Smederevac94

USS Delaware (BB-28) was a dreadnought battleship of the United States Navy, the lead ship of her class. She was laid down at Newport News Shipbuilding in November 1907, launched in January 1909, and completed in April 1910. The sixth ship to be named for the First State, Delaware was armed with a main battery of ten 12 in (300 mm) guns all on the centerline, making her the most powerful battleship in the world at the time of her construction. She was also the first battleship of the US Navy to be capable of steaming for 24 continuous hours without suffering a breakdown. Delaware served in the Atlantic Fleet throughout her career. During World War I, she sailed to Great Britain to reinforce the British Grand Fleet, in the 6th Battle Squadron. She saw no action during the war, however, as both the British and Germans had abandoned direct confrontation with each other. After the end of the war, she returned to her peacetime duties of fleet maneuvers, midshipmen cruises, and good-will visits to foreign ports. Under the terms of the Washington Naval Treaty, Delaware was retained until the new battleship USS Colorado was completed in 1924, at which point she was broken up for scrap in accordance with the treaty. Design: elaware was 519 feet (158 m) long overall and had a beam of 85 ft 4 in (26.01 m) and a draft of 27 ft 3 in (8.31 m). She displaced 20,380 long tons (20,710 t) as designed and up to 22,060 long tons (22,410 t) at full combat load. The ship was powered by two-shaft vertical triple-expansion engines rated at 25,000 indicated horsepower (19,000 kW) and fourteen coal-fired Babcock & Wilcox boilers, generating a top speed of 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph). The ship had a cruising range of 6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at a speed of 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph). Delaware was the first American battleship capable of steaming for 24 hours straight without suffering a breakdown or needing repairs. She had a crew of 933 officers and men. The ship was armed with a main battery of ten 12 inch/45 Mark 5 guns in five twin gun turrets on the centerline, two of which were placed in a superfiring pair forward. The other three turrets were placed aft of the superstructure. The secondary battery consisted of twenty-one 5-inch /50 guns mounted in casemates along the side of the hull. As was standard for capital ships of the period, she carried a pair of 21 in (530 mm) torpedo tubes, submerged in her hull on the broadside. The main armored belt was 11 in (279 mm) thick, while the armored deck was 2 in (51 mm) thick. The gun turrets had 12 in (305 mm) thick faces and the conning tower had 11.5 in (292 mm) thick sides. At the time of her construction, Delaware was the largest and most powerful battleship then building in the world. Service history: Delaware was built by Newport News Shipbuilding; she was laid down on 11 November 1907, and launched on 6 January 1909. After completion of the fitting-out work, the ship was commissioned into the US Navy on 4 April 1910.[1] On 3 October, she steamed to Wilmington, Delaware, where she received a set of silver service from her namesake state. The battleship then returned to Hampton Roads on the 9th, and remained there until she left to join the First Division, Atlantic Fleet, on 1 November. She and the rest of the division visited England and France, and then conducted maneuvers off Cuba in January 1911. On 17 January, a boiler explosion aboard Delaware killed eight men and badly scalded another.On 31 January, the ship carried the remains of Anibal Cruz, the Chilean ambassador to the United States, back to Chile. She steamed by way of Rio de Janeiro, Brazil, around the tip of South America, to Punta Arenas, Chile. She returned to New York City on 5 May, and then left for Portsmouth on 4 June to participate in the coronation fleet review for King George V. Throughout the next five years, Delaware participated in the normal peacetime routine of fleet and squadron maneuvers, gunnery drills, and torpedo practice in the Atlantic Fleet. During the summer months, she conducted training cruises for midshipmen from the Naval Academy. She was present in the Naval Review of 14 October 1912, attended by President William Howard Taft and the Secretary of the Navy George von Lengerke Meyer. In 1913, she conducted a good-will visit to Villefranche, France, along with the battleships Wyoming and Utah. She participated in the intervention in Mexico at Veracruz during the Mexican Revolution, to protect American citizens in the area. World War I: Following the American entrance into World War I on 6 April 1917, Delaware had recently returned to Hampton Roads from fleet maneuvers in the Caribbean Sea. There, she trained new armed guard crews and engine room personnel as the Atlantic Fleet prepared to go to war. On 25 November 1917, she sailed with the rest of Battleship Division 9, bound for Britain to reinforce the Grand Fleet in the North Sea. Once in Scapa Flow, the division joined the Grand Fleet as the 6th Battle Squadron. The 6th Battle Squadron was tasked with serving as the "fast wing" of the Grand Fleet. On 14 December, Delaware participated in joint Anglo-American maneuvers to practice coordination of the Allied fleet. Starting in late 1917, the Germans had begun to use surface raiders to attack the British convoys to Scandinavia; this forced the British to send squadrons from the Grand Fleet to escort the convoys. On 6 February 1918, the 6th Battle Squadron and eight British destroyers escorted a convoy of merchant ships to Norway. While steaming off Stavanger on the 8th, Delaware was attacked twice by a German U-boat, though evasive maneuvers allowed Delaware to escape undamaged. The squadron was back in Scapa Flow on 10 February; Delaware escorted two more such convoys in March and April. On 22–24 April, the German High Seas Fleet sortied to intercept one of the convoys in the hope of cutting off and destroying the escorting battleship squadron. Delaware and the rest of the Grand Fleet left Scapa Flow on 24 April in an attempt to intercept the Germans, but the High Seas Fleet had already broken off the operation and returned to port. Starting on 30 June, the 6th Battle Squadron and a division of British destroyers covered a group of American minelayers as they laid the North Sea mine barrage; the work lasted until 2 July. King George V inspected the Grand Fleet, including Delaware, at Rosyth. Thereafter, Delaware was relieved by the battleship Arkansas; Delaware then sailed across the Atlantic, arriving in Hampton Roads on 12 August. Post-war: Delaware remained at York River until 12 November 1918, the day after the Armistice with Germany was signed, effectively ending World War I. She then sailed to Boston Navy Yard for an overhaul. Delaware rejoined the fleet on 11 March 1919 for training maneuvers off Cuba. She returned to New York with her division on 14 April, where additional divisional, squadron, and fleet exercises were conducted. She was present for another Naval Review on 28 April 1921 in Hampton Roads. From 5 June to 31 August 1922, Delaware conducted a training cruise for midshipmen to various ports in the Caribbean along with to Halifax, Nova Scotia. She went on another cruise to Europe from 9 July to 29 August 1923, and visited Copenhagen, Greenock, Cádiz, and Gibraltar. Delaware being disarmed in January 1924 In the years immediately following the end of the war, the United States, Britain, and Japan all launched huge naval construction programs. All three countries decided that a new naval arms race would be ill-advised, and so convened the Washington Naval Conference to discuss arms limitations, which produced the Washington Naval Treaty, signed in February 1922. Under the terms of Article II of the treaty, Delaware and her sister North Dakota were to be scrapped as soon as the new battleships Colorado and West Virginia, then under construction, were ready to join the fleet. On 30 August 1923, Delaware accordingly entered dry dock in the Norfolk Navy Yard; her crew was transferred to the recently commissioned Colorado, and the process of disposal began. Delaware was transferred to the Boston Navy Yard, decommissioned on 10 November, and disarmed. She was then sold on 5 February 1924 and subsequently broken up for scrap. Displacement: 22,060 t (21,710 long tons; 24,320 short tons) Length: 519 ft (158 m) Beam: 85 ft 4 in (26.01 m) Draft: 27 ft 3 in (8.31 m) Installed power: 25,000 ihp (19,000 kW) Propulsion: 2 shaft VTE, 14 boilers Speed: 21 kn (39 km/h; 24 mph) Range: 6,000 nautical miles (11,000 km; 6,900 mi) at 10 kn (19 km/h; 12 mph) Crew: 933 officers and men Armament: 10 × 12 in (300 mm)/45 cal guns 14 × 5 in (130 mm)/50 cal guns 2 × 21 in (530 mm) torpedo tubes Armor: Belt: 11 in (279 mm) Turret face: 12 in (305 mm) Conning tower: 11.5 in (292 mm) Decks: 2 in (51 mm)

Nice! +1

Nice!

Well done, nice post, thanks! :honoring:

Valdrec, on 14 May 2013 - 05:41 PM, said: I want it again ! Thx for the informations. You're welcome...

Jean Bart BB(AA) 1943: Anti Aircraft Batteship Project 1. and Project 2. Copied from NA forum! During 1944 in the United States, the Jean Bart was considered for a drastic modification. Since 1942 when the ship joined the FFNF after Operation Torch, the ship was sent to the United States for completion. The unfinished ship was considered for a study in the use of an Anti-Aircraft battleship. The purpose was to deliver maximum AA firepower by drastically increasing its firepower by removing on of its main turrets. The design was to keep all its armor. By the designs it would remove the 2nd main gun turret, and the first turret having 13.4 guns replacing the 15in guns. In the place of turret two, a battery of 5in/38 twin DP turrets with Mk37/Mk4 directors, quad 40mm Bofors, with Mk51 directors, and single 20mm mounts. The project was cancelled because of needed space in yards and lack of interests from other areas of the USN. The plan was to have the ship escort carrier groups in Pacific. Armanent: 4 13.39/45 Guns, 30 5in/38 DP twin gun mounts, 64 40mm Quad Mount Bofors, Unknown number of 20mm mounts. Aircraft: Version 1: 2 aircraft & catapults, Version 2: None Source: "French Battleships 1933-1970" by Wayne Scarpaci

sot159, on 14 May 2013 - 12:53 PM, said: It is realy cool One crazy design...

phoenixkimi, on 14 May 2013 - 12:12 PM, said: +1 from me. I guess 1 rudder was not really enough for such a ship. Thanks....I think it is.

Bloodhound79, on 14 May 2013 - 09:15 AM, said: nice find! Thanks

Entombet, on 12 May 2013 - 12:23 PM, said: Well first British battleship with compound armor was Inflexible, which was build as response to Italian Dulio class. Colossus, Ajax, Agamemnon, Edinburgh were smaller wersion of it, scaled down by financial reasons. Yeap...

Overview of HMS Colossus: HMS Colossus was laid down in Portsmouth on 6 June 1879, and launched on 21 May 1882 taking three years to build. The design was by Nathaniel Barnaby, the Director of Naval Construction at the time. She was 325 ft long, 68 ft wide and had a mean draught of 26 ft. Normal displacement was 9,150 tons, of which hull and armour accounted for 6,150 tons. Colossus represented a number of firsts in British naval shipbuilding: -open hearth steel used for the hull's construction -protected by compound rather than iron armor -a new design of breech loading main guns But Colossus also represented the end of some design concepts, being among the last of the ships protected by an armoured citadel. Colossus was launched in 1882 but was not completed until 31 Oct 1886. Most of the delay was waiting for new guns, which were manufactured at the Government’s Woolwich Arsenal using a combination of steel and wrought iron. The 12 inch Mk II guns initially fitted were not a success (one of the same design burst during trials in Collingwood), and the captain of Colossus was instructed on the first cruise not to fire the guns. BL 12-inch (304.8 mm) guns Colossus's Mk II guns were eventually replaced by four all-steel 12 inch Mk IV Rifled Breech-Loading (RBL) guns of 25 calibres in two turrets protected by a central armoured citadel. Each gun fired a shell weighing 714 pounds at a muzzle velocity of 1,914 ft/sec capable of piercing 20.4 inches of wrought iron at 1,000 yards. The full (battering) charge was 295 pounds of Prismatic Brown powder. 14 inch torpedo tube A pair of 14 inch torpedo tubes were mounted amidships, one on each side within the armoured citadel's protection BL 6-inch (152.4 mm) guns She carried a secondary battery of five 6 inch RBLs: two broadside in the forward superstructure, two in the aft superstructure and one at the stern in a rotating mount. History: Colossus took over seven years to complete, running speed trials in January 1884 and gun trials in July 1885. Commissioned at Portsmouth 13 April 1886 for Particular Service and in August joined the Channel fleet for tests. Detached for Special Duties in October and then being formally completed, she was sent to the Mediterranean in April 1887 where she remained for six and a half years, returning to take up duty as coastguard ship at Holyhead in November 1893. Eight years later, in 1901, Colossus was paid off and passed into Fleet Reserve at Portsmouth; she was transferred to Dockyard Reserve in 1902, but in January 1904 was given a fresh lease of life as tender to HMS Excellent with duty as guardship at Cowes in August 1904. She was finally ordered to be sold in September 1906 and was eventually towed away for breaking in 1908. Colossus's sister ship, HMS Edinburgh, was used as a target for experimental firing in 1908. She was fitted with modern armour plates fully supported for testing hits at oblique angles with filled armour piercing (A.P.) shell as were then being supplied for war use. As a result of these trials the Controller of the Navy (Jellicoe) instructed the Director of Naval Ordnance in October 1908 to produce designs for an A.P. 12-in shell and above that would pierce thick armour at oblique impact in a fit state for bursting. Jellicoe then hoisted his flag as C.O. of the Atlantic fleet, but due to technical blunders in his absence this instruction was not carried out. This was to have profound impact on the effectiveness of British shells at Jutland. Engineering: Colossus was powered by 2 sets of inverted direct compound engines by Maudsley. IHP [indicated horse power – a measure of power used of reciprocating steam engines] 7,488 giving 16.5 knots per hour.HP cylinder 58”, 2 x LP cylinders 74” dia, stroke 39”. The engines were fitted with surface condensers.The engines were supplied steam from 8 main and 2 auxiliary elliptical boilers working at a pressure of 64 pounds on the square inch.Propulsion was through twin screws, 4 bladed of 17’8” diameter . Displacement: 9,420 tons Length: 325 ft (99 m) pp Beam: 68 ft (21 m) Draught: 25 ft 9 in (7.85 m) Propulsion: 2-shaft Maudslay engine, 7,488 ihp Speed: 16.5 knots (30.6 km/h) Armament: 4 × BL 12-inch (304.8 mm) guns 5 × BL 6-inch (152.4 mm) guns 20 smaller guns 2 × 14 inch torpedo tubes Armour: Citadel: 14–18 inches Bulkheads: 13–16 inches Deck: 2.5–3 inches Conning Tower: 14 inches (356 mm) Turrets: 16 inch faces, 14 inch sides and rear

The first South Dakota class was a class of six battleships, laid down in 1920 but never completed. They would have been the last dreadnoughts in the United States's Naval Act of 1916 to be commissioned had the Washington Naval Treaty not caused their cancellation one-third of the way through their construction. They would have been the largest, most heavily armed and armored battleships in the U.S. Navy and, designed to achieve 23 knots, represented an attempt to abandon its 21 knot standardized fleet speed and catch up with the increasing fleet speeds of its main rivals, the British Royal Navy and Imperial Japanese Navy. In this, size and secondary armament, they represented a break from the Standard-type battleship that had dominated American capital ship design for the last few ship classes, while their use of standardized bridges, lattice masts and other features was a continuation of this practice and the increase in the number of main guns from the preceding Colorado class had long been standard U.S. naval policy. The main restriction to which they had to adhere was the ability to pass through the Panama Canal. The South Dakotas were authorized 4 March 1917, but work was postponed so that the U.S. Navy could incorporate information gained from the Battle of Jutland, fought in 1916, in this class's final design. Work was further postponed to give destroyers and other small fighting vessels priority as they were needed urgently to fight German U-boats in the North Atlantic. Construction started only in 1920. As the Washington Naval Treaty restricted both the total allowable battleship tonnage allowed the U.S. Navy, and limited individual ship size to 35000 tons, construction was halted 8 February 1922. While the unfinished hulls (most over 30% completed) were scrapped in 1923, the armor plates already prepared were left unused in the shipyards until World War II. The 40- and 50-ton plates intended for Montana, for instance, were sent in 1941 or 42 to the Panama Canal to reinforce the defenses and locks there. The 16" guns were transferred to the U.S. Army for use in coast artillery. Design: The design characteristics of the South Dakotas closely followed those of the Tennessee and Colorado classes. The increase in the number of main guns was a continuation of U.S. Navy practice from the beginning of the dreadnought era. Like the Tennessees and Colorados, they would have been fitted with standard bridges and lattice masts. Although Norman Friedman describes the South Dakotas as the ultimate development of the series of U.S. battleships that began with the Nevada class, they were also a departure in size, speed and intermediate armament from the "Standard Type" that characterized the Nevada through Colorado classes. The main restriction imposed on them by the Navy was the ability to pass through the Panama Canal. This was a policy to which capital ship designs were to strictly adhere due to the savings in time when ships needed to travel from the Pacific Ocean to the Atlantic or vice versa. Propulsion: Turbo-electric propulsion, which the U.S. Navy had adopted for capital ships with the New Mexico-class battleships, was continued in this class. This circumvented one potential bottleneck since American companies struggled to produce the very large reduction gears necessary for such big ships. The separate turbine normally needed to steam astern could be eliminated since the direction of rotation could simply be reversed by means of the commutators, which ensured rapid changeover. The turbines could run at their optimum speed, without regard to propeller speed, which was economical on fuel. The machinery could also be subdivided more tightly, which could increase the ships' ability to withstand torpedo hits. On the down side, the machinery was heavier and bulkier than geared turbines. There was the danger of high voltage to the crew. Also, despite elaborate attempts at insulation, protection against moisture damage or flooding (from battle damage and other causes) remained inadequate. In the South Dakotas, two turbo generators (General Electric for Indiana and Montana, Westinghouse for the others) would have been coupled to two AC alternators of 28,000 KVA and 5000 volts. These would feed four electric motors, one per propeller shaft, each rated at 11,200 kilowatts (15,000 hp) of direct current (DC). Sixteen water-tube boilers, each in their own individual compartment, would have lined the turbine rooms to provide steam for the generators. With a total of 60000 electrical horsepower (EHP), top speed was expected to be 23 knots. Armament: Main guns The South Dakotas were slated to carry carried twelve 16-inch 50 caliber Mark 2 guns in four triple turrets. These fired the same 2,100-pound (950 kg) shell as the Mark 1 of the Colorado class with a muzzle velocity of 2,650 feet per second (810 m/s) to an effective range of 44,600 yards (40,800 m). at a maximum elevation of 46 degrees. The Mark 2 was not fitted on any ship; the 16"/50s used later on the Iowa-class battleships were of a lighter design, the Mark 7. With the cancellation of the South Dakotas and Lexingtons, the existing guns were transferred to the Army and installed in coastal defense batteries in place of the Army's more massive and much more expensive M1919 16-inch Coast Gun. 16"/50 caliber Mark 2 Gun Secondary guns Secondary armament would have been sixteen 6-inch (150 mm) 53 caliber guns. Twelve of these were to be on Mark 13 mountings in unarmored casemates; the rest would have been placed open on the superstructure deck. This was a departure from the 5-inch (130 mm) 51 caliber guns used in U.S. battleships since the Florida class of 1908. The 6"/53 fired a 105-pound (47.6 kg) projectile a velocity of 3,000 feet per second (900 m/s) to a maximum range of 21,000 yd (19,000 m) at a maximum elevation of 20 degrees. They were installed in Omaha-class cruisers when the South Dakotas were canceled under the Washington Naval Treaty and would become a mainstay of U.S. Navy light cruisers and submarine cruisers built during the 1920s. 6"/53 caliber naval gun Armor: According to Siegfreid Breyer, the protective system of the South Dakotas was designed to be 50 percent stronger than that of HMS Hood. Belt armor was a consistent 13.5 inches (340 mm), not tapered. The upper armored deck, 2.5–3.5 inches (64–89 mm) thick, rested on the top edge of the belt armor. One deck below this was a second armored belt, 1.5–2.5 inches (38–64 mm). Fore and aft transverse armored bulkheads of 13.5 inches (340 mm) sealed off the machinery and magazines. Past these, the lower armored deck continued at a thickness of 6 inches (150 mm) to the ends of the ship. Forward, above this, the upper armored deck continued at a thickness of 3.5 inches (89 mm). Flue gas exits were armored for one deck upwards from the upper armored deck at a thickness of 13.5 inches (340 mm). Protection for the main guns was also considerable. Barbettes were 13.5 inches (340 mm) above the upper armored deck and 5.5 inches (140 mm) from there to the lower armored deck. Turret rings were also armored to a thickness of 13.5 inches (340 mm). Turret faces were 18 in (457 mm), sides 9–10 inches (230–250 mm), top 5 inches (130 mm) and rear 9 inches (230 mm). Conning tower armor was 16 in (406 mm) on the front and sides, 8 inches (200 mm) on top. Underwater protection was more subdivided longitudinally than in the Colorados but was otherwise similar, with three armored bulkheads .75 inches (19 mm) thick from the lower armored deck to the ship's bottom to the armored transverse bulkheads near the ends. For more images go here: http://www.navsource...hives/01/49.htm Displacement: 43,200 tons standard / 47,000 tons full Length: 684 ft (208 m) Beam: 105 ft (32 m) Draft: 33 ft (10 m) Speed: 23 knots (43 km/h) Armament: 12 × 16-inch/50 caliber guns (4×3) 16 × 6-inch/53 caliber guns 4 × 3-inch/50 caliber guns 2 × 21-inch torpedo tubes Armor: Belt: 8–13.5 in (203–343 mm) Barbettes: 13 in (330 mm) Turret face: 18 in (457 mm) Turret sides: 9–10 in (229–254 mm) Turret top: 5 in (127 mm) Turret rear: 9 in (229 mm) Conning tower: 11.5 in (292 mm) Decks: 3.5 in (89 mm)

Bloodhound79, on 11 May 2013 - 03:46 PM, said: yes nice post but for me also the second and foruth pictures are broken links There is something wrong with the forum.

Bloodhound79, on 11 May 2013 - 12:55 PM, said: awesome job again Smederevac Thanks bro!

PrinceZuko, on 10 May 2013 - 02:14 PM, said: :medal: :medal: :medal: Thanks

USS Monitor, designed by the Swedish-born engineer and inventor John Ericsson, was the first ironclad warship commissioned by the United States Navy during the American Civil War.[a] She is most famous for her participation in the Battle of Hampton Roads on 9 March 1862, where the Monitor fought with the Confederate casemate ironclad CSS Virginia (the former steam frigate USS Merrimack). This was the first-ever battle fought between two ironclads. After the Confederates were forced to destroy the Virginia in early May, Monitor sailed up the James River to support the Army during the Peninsula Campaign. The ship participated in the Battle of Drewry's Bluff later that month and remained in the area until she was ordered to join the blockaders off North Carolina in December. She foundered while under tow during a storm off the coast of Cape Hatteras on the last day of the year. Her wreck was discovered in 1973 and has been partially salvaged. Monitor's armament, gun turret, engine and other relics are on display at the Mariners' Museum in Newport News, Virginia. Development: After the United States received word of the construction of the Virginia, Congress appropriated $1.5 million on 3 August to build one or more armored steamships. It also ordered the creation of a board to inquire into armored ships. The U.S. Navy advertised for proposals for "iron-clad steam vessels of war" on 7 August and Gideon Welles, the Secretary of the Navy, appointed the three members of the Ironclad Board the following day. Their task was to "examine plans for the completion of iron-clad vessels". Ericsson originally made no submission to the board, but became involved when Cornelius Bushnell, the sponsor of the proposal that became the armored sloop USS Galena, needed to have his design reviewed by a naval constructor. The board required a guarantee from Bushnell that his ship would float despite the weight of its armor and Cornelius H. DeLamater recommended that Bushnell consult with his friend John Ericsson. The two first met on 9 September and again on the following day, after Ericsson had time to evaluate Galena's design. During this second meeting Ericsson showed Bushnell his own design, the future Monitor. Bushnell got Ericsson's permission to show the model of his design to Welles and the latter told Bushnell to show it to the board. Despite a preliminary rejection, the board accepted Ericsson's proposal after he explained his design in person on 15 September.The Ironclad Board evaluated 17 different designs, but recommended only three on 16 September. The name "Monitor" was proposed by Ericsson and approved by Assistant Secretary of the Navy Gustavus Fox. The three ironclad ships differed substantially in design and degree of risk. The Monitor was the most innovative design by virtue of its low freeboard, shallow-draft iron hull, and total dependence on steam power. The riskiest element of its design was its rotating gun turret,something that had not previously been built or tested by any navy. Ericsson's guarantee of delivery in 100 days proved to be decisive in choosing his design despite the risk involved. The wooden-hulled Galena's most novel feature was her armor of interlocking iron rails. The armored frigate USS New Ironsides was much influenced by the French ironclad Gloire and was the most conservative design of the three, which copied many of the features of the French ship. Design and description: Described by critics as a "cheesebox on a raft," as the Monitor's most prominent feature was a large cylindrical gun turret mounted amidships above the low-freeboard upper hull, also called the "raft". This extended well past the sides of the lower, more traditionally shaped hull. A small, armored pilot house, was fitted on the upper deck towards the bow. One of Ericsson's prime goals in designing the ship was to present the smallest possible target to enemy gunfire. The ship was 179 feet (54.6 m) long overall, had a beam of 41 feet 6 inches (12.6 m) and had a maximum draft of 10 feet 6 inches (3.2 m). The Monitor had a tonnage of 776 tons burthen and displaced 987 long tons (1,003 t). Her crew consisted of 49 officers and enlisted men. The Monitor was powered by a single-cylinder horizontal vibrating-lever steam engine, which drove a 9-foot (2.7 m) propeller. The engine used steam generated by two horizontal fire-tube boilers at a maximum pressure of 40 psi (276 kPa; 3 kgf/cm2).The 320-indicated-horsepower (240 kW) engine was designed to give the ship a top speed of 8 knots (15 km/h; 9.2 mph), but the Monitor was 1–2 knots (1.9–3.7 km/h; 1.2–2.3 mph) slower in service.The engine had a bore of 36 inches (914 mm) and a stroke of 22 inches (559 mm). The ship carried 100 long tons (100 t) of coal. Ventilation in the Monitor was supplied by two centrifugal blowers near the stern, each of which was powered by 6-horsepower (4.5 kW) steam engine. One fan circulated air throughout the ship, but the other one forced air through the boilers, which depended on this forced draught. Leather belts connected the blowers to their engines and they would stretch when wet, often disabling the fans and boilers. The ship's pumps were steam operated and water would accumulate in the ship if the pumps could not get enough steam to work. The top of the armored deck was only about 18 inches (460 mm) above the waterline. It was protected by two layers of 1⁄2-inch (13 mm) wrought iron armor. The sides of the "raft" consisted of three to five layers of 1-inch (25 mm) iron plates, backed by about 30 inches (762 mm) of pine and oak. Three of the plates extended the full 60 inches (1,524 mm) height of the side, but the two innermost plates did not extend all the way down. Ericsson originally intended to use either six 1-inch plates or a single outer 4-inch (100 mm) plate backed by three 3⁄4-inch (19 mm) plates, but the thicker plate required too much time to roll.Glass portholes in the deck provided natural light for the interior of the ship; in action these were covered by iron plates. Battle of Hampton Roads: On 8 March 1862, CSS Virginia attacked the Union blockading squadron in Hampton Roads, Virginia, destroying the sail frigates Cumberland and Congress. Early in the battle, the steam frigate Minnesota ran aground while attempting to engage the Virginia, and remained stranded throughout the battle. Virginia, however, was unable to attack the Minnesota before daylight faded. That night, Monitor — under command of Lieutenant John L. Worden — arrived from Brooklyn after a harrowing trip under tow. When Virginia returned the next day to finish off Minnesota and the rest of the blockaders, Monitor moved out to stop her. The ironclads fought at close range for about four hours, neither one sinking or seriously damaging the other. At one point, Virginia attempted to ram, but she only struck Monitor with a glancing blow that did no damage. It did, however, aggravate the damage done to Virginia's bow from when she had previously rammed the Cumberland. Monitor was also unable to do significant damage to Virginia, possibly due to the fact that her guns were firing with reduced charges as ordered by Commander John Dahlgren, the gun's designer. Towards the end of the engagement, Virginia was able to hit Monitor's pilothouse. Lt. Worden, blinded by shell fragments and gunpowder residue from the explosion, ordered Monitor to sheer off into shallow water. Command passed to the executive officer, Samuel Greene, who assessed the damage and ordered Monitor to turn around back into the battle. Virginia, seeing Monitor turn away, had turned her attention back to Minnesota. The falling tide, however, prevented her from getting close to the stranded warship. After an informal war council with his officers, Virginia's captain decided to return to Norfolk for repairs. Monitor arrived back on the scene as Virginia was leaving. Greene, under orders to protect Minnesota, did not pursue. Tactically, the battle between these two ships was a draw, though it could be argued that Virginia did slightly more damage to Monitor than Monitor to Virginia. Monitor did successfully defend Minnesota and the rest of the U.S. blockading force, while Virginia was unable to complete the destruction she started the previous day. Strategically, nothing had immediately changed: the Federals still controlled Hampton Roads and the Confederates still held several rivers and Norfolk,making it a strategic victory for the North.

Hugly, on 10 May 2013 - 06:05 PM, said: Nice work indeed... even if we will never see this ingame it's always nice to see the history behind it. Thanks

And last but not the last for all those who read this topic a little surprise from me which I found: ENJOY!!! :honoring: http://www.victorian...ssus/index.html

tight_carr0t, on 08 May 2013 - 02:34 PM, said: Thanks You're welcome bro, keep up the good work!

Wery nice!

Koerner, on 08 May 2013 - 06:34 AM, said: Thx for the pics,but the last colour one you´ve posted is the sister ship Chikuma. ;) The pic was made for a 1/700 scale model for Fujimi 20 years ago. Cheers You're welcome.

Well done, here are some more pictures :honoring:

mr3awsome, on 07 May 2013 - 05:44 PM, said: Cheers. Added New Mexico to tier 6 USN, as shown in one of the screenies released recently Nice!