A pair of IJN vessels...

[Walter]

Having looked at Jane's, we have a fairly normal one, the Chikuma (though slightly different from how it looks in Jane's), and one that is a bit less normal (and hopefully someone knows how to properly sim that partucular vessel :) ).


Chikuma, Japan 2nd Class Cruiser laid down 1912

Displacement:
   4,597 t light; 4,792 t standard; 5,437 t normal; 5,952 t full load

Dimensions: Length overall / water x beam x draught
   473.46 ft / 465.00 ft x 46.50 ft x 16.00 ft (normal load)
   144.31 m / 141.73 m x 14.17 m  x 4.88 m

Armament:
      4 - 6.00" / 152 mm guns in single mounts, 108.00lbs / 48.99kg shells, 1912 Model
     Breech loading guns in deck mounts with hoists
     on centreline ends, evenly spread, 2 raised mounts - superfiring
      4 - 6.00" / 152 mm guns in single mounts, 108.00lbs / 48.99kg shells, 1912 Model
     Breech loading guns in deck mounts with hoists
     on side ends, evenly spread
      6 - 3.00" / 76.2 mm guns in single mounts, 13.50lbs / 6.12kg shells, 1912 Model
     Quick firing guns in deck mounts with hoists
     on side, all amidships
   Weight of broadside 945 lbs / 429 kg
   Shells per gun, main battery: 150
   4 - 17.7" / 449.58 mm above water torpedoes

Armour:
   - Belts:      Width (max)   Length (avg)      Height (avg)
   Main:   4.00" / 102 mm   300.00 ft / 91.44 m   8.50 ft / 2.59 m
   Ends:   2.00" / 51 mm   165.00 ft / 50.29 m   8.50 ft / 2.59 m
     Main Belt covers 99% of normal length

   - Gun armour:   Face (max)   Other gunhouse (avg)   Barbette/hoist (max)
   Main:   1.00" / 25 mm   0.50" / 13 mm      1.00" / 25 mm
   2nd:   1.00" / 25 mm   0.50" / 13 mm      1.00" / 25 mm
   3rd:   1.00" / 25 mm   0.50" / 13 mm      1.00" / 25 mm

   - Armour deck: 1.00" / 25 mm, Conning tower: 4.00" / 102 mm

Machinery:
   Coal and oil fired boilers, steam turbines,
   Geared drive, 2 shafts, 30,576 shp / 22,810 Kw = 26.50 kts
   Range 10,000nm at 10.00 kts
   Bunker at max displacement = 1,159 tons (50% coal)

Complement:
   316 - 411

Cost:
   £0.439 million / $1.756 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
   Armament: 118 tons, 2.2%
   Armour: 873 tons, 16.0%
      - Belts: 530 tons, 9.7%
      - Torpedo bulkhead: 0 tons, 0.0%
      - Armament: 37 tons, 0.7%
      - Armour Deck: 279 tons, 5.1%
      - Conning Tower: 27 tons, 0.5%
   Machinery: 1,277 tons, 23.5%
   Hull, fittings & equipment: 2,079 tons, 38.2%
   Fuel, ammunition & stores: 840 tons, 15.4%
   Miscellaneous weights: 250 tons, 4.6%

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
   Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
     7,249 lbs / 3,288 Kg = 67.1 x 6.0 " / 152 mm shells or 1.2 torpedoes
   Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1.18
   Metacentric height 2.2 ft / 0.7 m
   Roll period: 13.3 seconds
   Steadiness   - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 71 %
         - Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0.63
   Seaboat quality  (Average = 1.00): 1.50

Hull form characteristics:
   Hull has rise forward of midbreak
   Block coefficient: 0.550
   Length to Beam Ratio: 10.00 : 1
   'Natural speed' for length: 21.56 kts
   Power going to wave formation at top speed: 54 %
   Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 47
   Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): 20.00 degrees
   Stern overhang: 0.00 ft / 0.00 m
   Freeboard (% = measuring location as a percentage of overall length):
      - Stem:      23.25 ft / 7.09 m
      - Forecastle (15%):   21.75 ft / 6.63 m
      - Mid (50%):      21.75 ft / 6.63 m (14.00 ft / 4.27 m aft of break)
      - Quarterdeck (15%):   14.00 ft / 4.27 m
      - Stern:      14.00 ft / 4.27 m
      - Average freeboard:   17.97 ft / 5.48 m
   Ship tends to be wet forward

Ship space, strength and comments:
   Space   - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 98.5%
      - Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 147.9%
   Waterplane Area: 15,090 Square feet or 1,402 Square metres
   Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 118%
   Structure weight / hull surface area: 79 lbs/sq ft or 385 Kg/sq metre
   Hull strength (Relative):
      - Cross-sectional: 0.94
      - Longitudinal: 1.82
      - Overall: 1.00
   Hull space for machinery, storage, compartmentation is adequate
   Room for accommodation and workspaces is excellent
   Ship has slow, easy roll, a good, steady gun platform
   Excellent seaboat, comfortable, can fire her guns in the heaviest weather



Faa di Bruno clone, Japan Mobile battery laid down 1912
(note: it is more likely though that this vessel will be laid down in 1913 or perhaps even 1914, depending on when the gun research is finished)

Displacement:
   2,709 t light; 2,927 t standard; 2,971 t normal; 3,007 t full load

Dimensions: Length overall / water x beam x draught
   200.00 ft / 200.00 ft x 65.00 ft x 8.00 ft (normal load)
   60.96 m / 60.96 m x 19.81 m  x 2.44 m

Armament:
      2 - 15.00" / 381 mm guns (1x2 guns), 1,750.00lbs / 793.79kg shells, 1912 Model
     Breech loading guns in a deck mount with hoist
     on centreline amidships, all raised guns - superfiring
      4 - 3.00" / 76.2 mm guns in single mounts, 13.50lbs / 6.12kg shells, 1912 Model
     Quick firing guns in deck mounts with hoists
     on side, evenly spread
      2 - 1.57" / 40.0 mm guns in single mounts, 1.95lbs / 0.89kg shells, 1912 Model
     Quick firing guns in deck mounts
     on side, all amidships
   Weight of broadside 3,558 lbs / 1,614 kg
   Shells per gun, main battery: 80

Armour:
   - Gun armour:   Face (max)   Other gunhouse (avg)   Barbette/hoist (max)
   Main:   1.00" / 25 mm   0.50" / 13 mm            -

Machinery:
   Oil fired boilers, steam turbines,
   Geared drive, 1 shaft, 100 shp / 74 Kw = 5.18 kts
   Range 5,000nm at 4.00 kts
   Bunker at max displacement = 80 tons

Complement:
   200 - 261

Cost:
   £0.456 million / $1.823 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
   Armament: 429 tons, 14.4%
   Armour: 17 tons, 0.6%
      - Belts: 0 tons, 0.0%
      - Torpedo bulkhead: 0 tons, 0.0%
      - Armament: 17 tons, 0.6%
      - Armour Deck: 0 tons, 0.0%
      - Conning Tower: 0 tons, 0.0%
   Machinery: 4 tons, 0.1%
   Hull, fittings & equipment: 2,259 tons, 76.0%
   Fuel, ammunition & stores: 263 tons, 8.8%
   Miscellaneous weights: 0 tons, 0.0%

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
   Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
     2,690 lbs / 1,220 Kg = 1.6 x 15.0 " / 381 mm shells or 1.0 torpedoes
   Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1.30
   Metacentric height 4.2 ft / 1.3 m
   Roll period: 13.3 seconds
   Steadiness   - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 50 %
         - Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0.34
   Seaboat quality  (Average = 1.00): 0.72

Hull form characteristics:
   Hull has a flush deck
     and transom stern
   Block coefficient: 1.000
   Length to Beam Ratio: 3.08 : 1
   'Natural speed' for length: 17.14 kts
   Power going to wave formation at top speed: 14 %
   Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 70
   Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): 0.00 degrees
   Stern overhang: 0.00 ft / 0.00 m
   Freeboard (% = measuring location as a percentage of overall length):
      - Stem:      6.00 ft / 1.83 m
      - Forecastle (20%):   6.00 ft / 1.83 m
      - Mid (50%):      6.00 ft / 1.83 m
      - Quarterdeck (15%):   6.00 ft / 1.83 m
      - Stern:      6.00 ft / 1.83 m
      - Average freeboard:   6.00 ft / 1.83 m
   Ship tends to be wet forward

Ship space, strength and comments:
   Space   - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 106.5%
      - Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 79.6%
   Waterplane Area: 13,932 Square feet or 1,294 Square metres
   Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 86%
   Structure weight / hull surface area: 158 lbs/sq ft or 771 Kg/sq metre
   Hull strength (Relative):
      - Cross-sectional: 0.91
      - Longitudinal: 2.38
      - Overall: 1.00
   Hull space for machinery, storage, compartmentation is adequate
   Room for accommodation and workspaces is cramped
   Poor seaboat, wet and uncomfortable, reduced performance in heavy weather

[Carthaginian]

Personally, I think that the mobile battery is a waste of a good destroyer squadron.
If I'm going to put big guns to sea, they will be on something that is at least moderately protected. This little gun barge would be done in by only 1 torpedo or equally-sized shell, and suddenly, you've lost enough resources to have built 5 coastal destroyers.

[Ithekro]

Something to engage R.R. batteries (Middle Kingdom) with perhaps?

[Walter]

Personally, I think that the mobile battery is a waste of a good destroyer squadron.

Quite true, but I like the idea of building something that a normal idiot sane person would not be building. :)

[Carthaginian]

Personally, I think that the mobile battery is a waste of a good destroyer squadron.

Quite true, but I like the idea of building something that a normal idiot sane person would not be building. :)

Well, given that she only draws 8 feet of water, she could serve as a heck of a river gunboat. ;)

[Ithekro]

Needs canister rounds!

[The Rock Doctor]

Could be a useful vessel to have around in the event of land campaigns along a coast. 

[maddox]

The MK has her own river monitors, and they can't take a 15" shell, but they will make mince meat from the FdB Clone.

[Walter]

Exactly. That would mean that it is a perfect vessel for the French to use on their rivers. ;D

How many of you would build a ship like the Faa Di Bruno? My guess would be no one and that is the reason I build this useless very useful vessel. :)

If you guys don't like it that I will be building such a useless useful vessel, then I can always go for something a bit bigger...

... or the Wesworld Japan version (*) which was built in one day (**). :D

(*) Slightly bigger than the Roberts class Monitor
(**) As part of a silly story.

[The Rock Doctor]

If I had hostile relations with either Peru or Iberia, there'd already be one on the Amazon.  However, Pescador is as far as I went down that road.

[Korpen]

Having looked at Jane's, we have a fairly normal one, the Chikuma (though slightly different from how it looks in Jane's), and one that is a bit less normal (and hopefully someone knows how to properly sim that partucular vessel :) ).


Chikuma, Japan 2nd Class Cruiser laid down 1912

How much of those 250 ton misc weight is for payload (read: mines)? :)
Otherwise a decent cruiser, personally I think she is a bit big the the capacity she offers, but that is more a matter of taste then anything else.

[Desertfox]

How many of you would build a ship like the Faa Di Bruno? My guess would be no one and that is the reason I build this useless very useful vessel.

*raises hand* I would! ;D and I know Swampy would too. He did build a few similar ships, which now rest with the fishes, courtesy of the NSN...

[Walter]

How much of those 250 ton misc weight is for payload (read: mines)?

Actually the ship itself is the mine. ;D

*raises hand* I would! ;D and I know Swampy would too. He did build a few similar ships, which now rest with the fishes, courtesy of the NSN...

Oh yeah. I forgot that the two of you are as crazy sane as I am. :D

[Ithekro]

Swamphen would have used them more his Rift Fleet out in Africa, or a Lake Fleet maybe.  Or tried to sell it to Firanji for use against Swiss Lake towns.