Difference between revisions of "Colossus Class Battleship (1910)"
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===Dreyer Table=== | ===Dreyer Table=== | ||
| − | ''Hercules'' was equipped with the [[Original Dreyer Table]] for some period between 1911 and 1913, brought along with [[Frederic_Charles_Dreyer|Captain Dreyer]] when he left [[H.M.S. Prince of Wales ( | + | ''Hercules'' was equipped with the [[Original Dreyer Table]] for some period between 1911 and 1913, brought along with [[Frederic_Charles_Dreyer|Captain Dreyer]] when he left [[H.M.S. Prince of Wales (1899)|''Prince of Wales'']].<ref>''Pollen Aim Corrector System, Part I. Technical History and Technical Comparison with Commander F. C. Dreyer's Fire Control System'', p. 12.</ref> |
The ships eventually each received a [[Mark I Dreyer Table]],<ref>''Handbook of Capt. F.C. Dreyer's Fire Control Tables'', p. 3.</ref> but was never given [[Dreyer Turret Control Table]]s.<ref>absent from list in ''Handbook of Capt. F.C. Dreyer's Fire Control Tables'', p. 3.</ref> | The ships eventually each received a [[Mark I Dreyer Table]],<ref>''Handbook of Capt. F.C. Dreyer's Fire Control Tables'', p. 3.</ref> but was never given [[Dreyer Turret Control Table]]s.<ref>absent from list in ''Handbook of Capt. F.C. Dreyer's Fire Control Tables'', p. 3.</ref> | ||
Revision as of 11:32, 12 December 2010
Fire Control
Rangefinders
Evershed Bearing Indicators
The two units were fitted with this equipment before late 1914, albeit in a slightly different manner.[1]
Colossus's transmitting positions were
- Conning Tower
- Fore control platform (transmitters to port and starboard with C.O.S. to select one in use)
- 'A' turret
- 'X' turret
Hercules's transmitting positions were
- Conning Tower
- Fore bridge (transmitters to port and starboard with C.O.S. to select one in use)
- 'A' turret
- 'X' turret
The protocols for handling wooding of the turrets is outlined in the Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914.[2]
Mechanical Aid-to-Spotter
At some point, both ships were equipped with two Mark I Mechanical Aid-to-Spotters, one on each side of the foretop, keyed off the Evershed rack on the director. As the need for such gear was apparently first identified in early 1916, it seems likely that these installations were effected well after Jutland.[3]
Gunnery Control
The control arrangements were as follows.[4]
Control Positions
- Fore top
- Gunnery control tower
- 'A' turret
- 'X' turret
Some ships had C.O.S.s within the control positions so they could be connected to either TS.[5]
Control Groups
The five 12-in turrets were each a separate group with a local C.O.S.[Inference] so that it could be connected to
- Forward TS
- After TS
- Local control from officer's position within turret
Directors
Main Battery
The ships were fitted with a cam-type tripod-type director in a light aloft tower on the foremast along with a directing gun (in 'Y' turret?).[6] The battery was not divisible into groups for split director firing.[7]
Secondary Battery
The 4-in guns never had directors installed.[8]
Torpedo Control
Transmitting Stations
Like nearly all large British ships of the era prior to King George V and Queen Mary,[9] these ships likely had 2 TSes.
Dreyer Table
Hercules was equipped with the Original Dreyer Table for some period between 1911 and 1913, brought along with Captain Dreyer when he left Prince of Wales.[10]
The ships eventually each received a Mark I Dreyer Table,[11] but was never given Dreyer Turret Control Tables.[12]
Fire Control Instruments
Breaking a pattern of acquisition dating back to the Bellerophon class, this class used Vickers F.T.P. Mark III range and deflection instruments when sending data to gun sights, retaining Barr and Stroud (probably Mark II*[Inference]) instruments for other destinations.[13]
The ships also had Target Visible and Gun Ready signals to indicate which turrets could see the target and which guns were ready mounted in the TSes and control positions.[14]
See Also
Footnotes
- ↑ Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914, p. 36.
- ↑ Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914, p. 36.
- ↑ The Technical History and Index: Fire Control in HM Ships, 1919, pp. 25-6.
- ↑ Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914, p. 7.
- ↑ Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914, p. 7.
- ↑ The Director Firing Handbook, 1917. pp. 88, 142.
- ↑ The Director Firing Handbook, 1917. p. 88.
- ↑ absent from list in The Director Firing Handbook, 1917. pp. 143.
- ↑ Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914, pp. 6-7.
- ↑ Pollen Aim Corrector System, Part I. Technical History and Technical Comparison with Commander F. C. Dreyer's Fire Control System, p. 12.
- ↑ Handbook of Capt. F.C. Dreyer's Fire Control Tables, p. 3.
- ↑ absent from list in Handbook of Capt. F.C. Dreyer's Fire Control Tables, p. 3.
- ↑ Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914, pp. 72.
- ↑ Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914, p. 11.
Bibliography
- Template:BibUKFireControlInHMShips1919
- Admiralty, Gunnery Branch (1914). Handbook for Fire Control Instruments, 1914. G. 01627/14. C.B. 1030. Copy 1235 at The National Archives. ADM 186/191.
- Template:BibUKDirectorFiringHandbook1917
- Template:BibUKDreyerTableHandbook1918
- Template:BibUKTechnicalHistoryComparisonArgoAndDreyer
