Build or No Build

[The Rock Doctor]

...Sorry, my better half has Howie Mandel on in the background.

Contemplating this as a follow-up to the Puerta Espana as a belted cruiser.  It represents what is currently the state of the art for cruisers in Gran Colombia.  Question is, is it worthwhile?

Enter ship name, Enter country Enter ship type laid down 1906 (Engine 1905)

Displacement:
   3,750 t light; 3,880 t standard; 4,491 t normal; 4,980 t full load

Dimensions: Length overall / water x beam x draught
   444.98 ft / 442.91 ft x 44.29 ft x 18.64 ft (normal load)
   135.63 m / 135.00 m x 13.50 m  x 5.68 m

Armament:
      3 - 5.51" / 140 mm guns in single mounts, 83.72lbs / 37.97kg shells, 1906 Model
     Breech loading guns in deck mounts with hoists
     on centreline ends, majority aft, 1 raised mount aft
      2 - 5.51" / 140 mm guns in single mounts, 83.72lbs / 37.97kg shells, 1906 Model
     Breech loading guns in deck mounts with hoists
     on side, all amidships
      6 - 1.85" / 47.0 mm guns in single mounts, 3.17lbs / 1.44kg shells, 1906 Model
     Quick firing guns in deck mounts
     on side, evenly spread
      4 - 0.31" / 8.0 mm guns in single mounts, 0.02lbs / 0.01kg shells, 1906 Model
     Machine guns in deck mounts
     on side, evenly spread
   Weight of broadside 438 lbs / 199 kg
   Shells per gun, main battery: 150
   4 - 18.0" / 457 mm above water torpedoes

Armour:
   - Belts:      Width (max)   Length (avg)      Height (avg)
   Main:   2.17" / 55 mm   344.49 ft / 105.00 m   7.97 ft / 2.43 m
   Ends:   1.10" / 28 mm     98.43 ft / 30.00 m   7.97 ft / 2.43 m
     Main Belt covers 120 % of normal length

   - Gun armour:   Face (max)   Other gunhouse (avg)   Barbette/hoist (max)
   Main:   2.17" / 55 mm   1.10" / 28 mm      2.17" / 55 mm
   2nd:   2.17" / 55 mm   1.10" / 28 mm      2.17" / 55 mm
   3rd:   1.10" / 28 mm         -               -
   4th:   0.47" / 12 mm         -               -

   - Armour deck: 1.18" / 30 mm, Conning tower: 2.17" / 55 mm

Machinery:
   Coal fired boilers, steam turbines,
   Direct drive, 4 shafts, 18,000 shp / 13,428 Kw = 24.01 kts
   Range 6,000nm at 10.00 kts (Bunkerage = 1,100 tons)

Complement:
   273 - 356

Cost:
   £0.387 million / $1.549 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
   Armament: 55 tons, 1.2 %
   Armour: 594 tons, 13.2 %
      - Belts: 272 tons, 6.1 %
      - Torpedo bulkhead: 0 tons, 0.0 %
      - Armament: 40 tons, 0.9 %
      - Armour Deck: 269 tons, 6.0 %
      - Conning Tower: 13 tons, 0.3 %
   Machinery: 1,500 tons, 33.4 %
   Hull, fittings & equipment: 1,534 tons, 34.2 %
   Fuel, ammunition & stores: 741 tons, 16.5 %
   Miscellaneous weights: 68 tons, 1.5 %

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
   Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
     3,917 lbs / 1,777 Kg = 46.8 x 5.5 " / 140 mm shells or 0.8 torpedoes
   Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1.40
   Metacentric height 2.7 ft / 0.8 m
   Roll period: 11.4 seconds
   Steadiness   - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 71 %
         - Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0.23
   Seaboat quality  (Average = 1.00): 1.77

Hull form characteristics:
   Hull has rise forward of midbreak
   Block coefficient: 0.430
   Length to Beam Ratio: 10.00 : 1
   'Natural speed' for length: 21.05 kts
   Power going to wave formation at top speed: 45 %
   Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 40
   Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): 5.00 degrees
   Stern overhang: -3.28 ft / -1.00 m
   Freeboard (% = measuring location as a percentage of overall length):
      - Stem:      23.62 ft / 7.20 m
      - Forecastle (20 %):   19.69 ft / 6.00 m
      - Mid (40 %):      19.69 ft / 6.00 m (11.81 ft / 3.60 m aft of break)
      - Quarterdeck (15 %):   11.81 ft / 3.60 m
      - Stern:      11.81 ft / 3.60 m
      - Average freeboard:   15.28 ft / 4.66 m

Ship space, strength and comments:
   Space   - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 119.6 %
      - Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 109.7 %
   Waterplane Area: 12,319 Square feet or 1,144 Square metres
   Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 110 %
   Structure weight / hull surface area: 70 lbs/sq ft or 344 Kg/sq metre
   Hull strength (Relative):
      - Cross-sectional: 0.94
      - Longitudinal: 1.64
      - Overall: 1.00
   Hull space for machinery, storage, compartmentation is cramped
   Room for accommodation and workspaces is adequate
   Ship has slow, easy roll, a good, steady gun platform
   Excellent seaboat, comfortable, can fire her guns in the heaviest weather

[Ithekro]

What were you planning on doing with it?  Aside from race Swiss destroyers.

Basically three guns forward (two on the wings) and two aft, one superfiring.  Very light belt and rather light deck armor.  She'll be immune to most period destroyers with 6 pounders and maybe against 12 pounders...at least with belt and tower hits.  Against another cruiser, she'll probably need to outrun them, or hit hard quickly...but then on the otherhand, most cruisers of this period (that aren't armored cruisers) have only thick deck armor.  So you might have an edge on other South America nations and maybe Iberian cruiser and some Eurropean Cruisers (perhaps Confederate and UK cruisers).  You'll have an edge on any Rohirrim destroyer or protected cruiser I imagine, but my own belted cruisers will probably over penetrate the weak belts with their 7.5 inch main guns.  The 4.5 inch guns will work nicely against that armor.  However your 140 mm should be able to penetrate the reletively weak 5 inch armor on those newer belted cruisers.

[Desertfox]

Depends on who you are going against. My Adventure class ( http://www.navalism.org/index.php?topic=607.0 ) will make mince meat out of it, being designed especifically for that purpose.

[Borys]

Ahoj!
Please decrease mount armour to 1 inch.
As to the NS - GC clash ...

Bigger range favours the South America ship. At about 7k yard the NS 5 inchers should bounce off the belt. The two 8 inchers, with their 3 or 4 shots a minute, will hit if they get lucky.

The GC ship would be firing 4 of 5,5' guns - 20-30 shots a minute - at same 7k yards they won't penetrate, but will demolish the superstructure, at much faster rate than the 5 inchers.

However, as designed the NS ship should win. With comparable rate of fire of the 5 inch and 5,5' guns, and thin belt of the GC ship, the advantage is clear.
The Colombian ship needs a 3 inch belt.

Borys

[Borys]

Ahoj!
There could be a point at which the 5 inchers no longer penetrate. And the Colombian ship could pound the NS ship's soft parts. Of course, an 8 inch shell could stop the fun with a single hit.

Anyway, IMO advantage Adventure.
With a 3 inch belt things start looking much better for the Colombian ships though ...

Borys

[The Rock Doctor]

The unfortunate truth is that Gran Colombia seems to be about the least advanced overall so far as player-nation naval tech is concerned.  Even nations that have been through civil wars can boast more advanced tech.  So I'm left playing to what strengths I do have, one of which is the ability to concentrate my large core of (somewhat dated) capital ships in one location.  These capital ships need screening elements to scout and protect them from torpedo-boats, which is the primarily purpose of this design as well as the Puerta Espana I describe in the 1905 thread.  The question is whether this design is better or worse than Puerta Espana in this role.

Adventure is significantly larger, and benefits from more advanced engine technology, so it would not surprise me that she'd be considered the better design.  The two big guns on Adventure are deck mounts, as I recall, so will be neither quick-firing or well-protected.  It would be an interesting contest, but unless the Swiss decide to resume messing around in the immediate vicinity of Gran Colombia, we aren't likely to see this encounter play out. 

[Desertfox]

Well for fleet screening roles I would reduce speed and increase armor, she might be facing heavy secondaries. I would also consider heavier main guns and some Anti-TB secondaries. Check out my own Launceston class designed for the same role. She has 4x8" and 10x4" guns.  http://z4.invisionfree.com/Navalism/index.php?showtopic=1323&hl= (note not the final design)

We arent likely to see an Adventure vs Puerta Espana battle even if we went to war. Adventure is a solitary hunter, Puerta Esapan is a fleet unit.