RML 12-inch 35-ton gun
{{Use dmy dates|date=March 2020}}
{{Infobox weapon
| name = Ordnance RML 12-inch 35-ton gun
| image = HMS Devastation (1871) 12-inch gun turret interior.jpg
| image_size = 300
| caption = An interior view of one of the two main battery turrets aboard the British battleship {{HMS|Devastation|1871|6}}, showing a rear view of the turret{{'}}s two {{convert|12|in|mm|0|adj=on}} 35-ton rifled muzzle-loaders. These guns were replaced in 1891 by BL 10-inch Mk I – IV naval gun.
| type = Naval gun
| is_ranged = YES
| is_bladed =
| is_explosive =
| is_artillery = YES
| is_vehicle =
| is_UK = YES
| service = 1873–1909
| used_by = Royal Navy
| wars =
| designer =
| design_date = 1871
| manufacturer = Royal Arsenal
| production_date =
| number = 15Treatise on Construction of Service Ordnance, 1879, p. 284
| unit_cost = £2,154Unit cost of £2,153 13 shillings 9 pence is quoted in "The British Navy" Volume II, 1882, by Sir Thomas Brassey. p. 38
| variants =
| weight = {{convert|35|long ton|kg}}
| length =
| part_length = {{convert|162.5|in|m}} (bore + chamber)Treatise on Construction of Service Ordnance 1877, p. 292
| width =
| height =
| crew =
| cartridge = {{convert|706|lb|12|oz|kg|sigfig=4}} (Palliser)
{{convert|613|lb|kg|sigfig=4}} (Common & Shrapnel)
| caliber = {{convert|12|in|mm|adj=on|sigfig=4}}
| action =
| rate =
| velocity = {{convert|1390|ft/s|m/s}}MV of 1,390 feet/second firing 706-pound 12-oz projectile with "Battering charge" of 110 pounds "P2" (gunpowder) is quoted in "Text Book of Gunnery 1887" Table XVI. 110 pounds "P" "Battering charge" is quoted in Treatise on Ammunition 1877, p. 220
| range =
| max_range =
| feed =
| sights =
| breech =
| recoil =
| carriage =
| elevation =
| traverse =
}}
RML 12-inch 35-ton guns were large rifled muzzle-loading guns used as primary armament on British battleships of the 1870s. They were the longer and more powerful of the two 12-inch British RML guns, the other being the 25-ton gun.
Design
{{stack|File:RML 12-inch 35-ton gun diagram.jpg}}
This gun design originated in 1871 as an {{convert|11.6|inch|mm|adj=on|0}} gun firing a {{convert|700|lb|kg|adj=on|1}} projectile. Results were unsatisfactory, leading to the gun being bored out to {{convert|12|inch|mm|0}} and firing a {{convert|706|lb|12|oz|kg|adj=on|1}} shell.
Naval service
Guns were mounted on:
- {{sclass|Devastation|battleship|1}}s of 1873
Note: The two 12-inch guns installed in {{HMS|Thunderer|1872|6}}'s forward turret were 12.5-inch 38-ton guns bored instead to 12 inches, and designated "12-inch 38-ton", as the necessary 12-inch 35-ton guns were not available. These 2 guns used the same charges and projectiles as the standard 12-inch 35-ton guns installed in Thunderer{{'}}s aft turret which simplified the supply of ammunition.Brassey 1882, pp. 81–85 It was one of these "12-inch 38-ton" guns that was accidentally double-loaded and exploded on 2 January 1879.
Ammunition
RML 12-inch 35-ton gun studded projectiles diagrams.jpg|Studded Palliser, Common and Shrapnel projectiles
RML 12-inch 35-ton gun studless projectiles diagrams.jpg|Studless Palliser, Common and Shrapnel projectiles
When the gun was first introduced projectiles had several rows of "studs" which engaged with the gun's rifling to impart spin. Sometime after 1878, "attached gas-checks" were fitted to the bases of the studded shells, reducing wear on the guns and improving their range and accuracy. Subsequently, "automatic gas-checks" were developed which could rotate shells, allowing the deployment of a new range of studless ammunition. Thus, any particular gun potentially operated with a mix of studded and studless ammunition.
The gun's primary projectile was {{convert|706|lb|kg|abbr=on}} "Palliser" armour-piercing shot, which were fired with a "battering charge" of {{convert|110|lb|kg|abbr=on}} of "P" (gunpowder) for maximum velocity and hence penetrating power. Shrapnel and common (exploding) shells weighed {{convert|613|lb|kg|abbr=on}} and were fired with a "full charge" of {{convert|85|lb|kg|abbr=on}} "P" or {{convert|67|lb|kg|abbr=on}} "R.L.G.".Treatise on Ammunition 1877, pp. 191, 194, 220
See also
References
{{reflist}}
Bibliography
- [https://archive.org/details/treatiseonconst00offigoog Treatise on the Construction and Manufacture of Ordnance in the British service. War Office, UK, 1877]
- [https://archive.org/details/treatiseonconst00owengoog Treatise on the Construction and Manufacture of Ordnance in the British Service. War Office, UK, 1879]
- [http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/u?/p4013coll11,222 Text Book of Gunnery, 1887. LONDON : PRINTED FOR HIS MAJESTY'S STATIONERY OFFICE, BY HARRISON AND SONS, ST. MARTIN'S LANE] {{Webarchive|url=https://archive.today/20121204140418/http://cgsc.cdmhost.com/u?/p4013coll11,222 |date=4 December 2012 }}
- Sir Thomas Brassey, [https://archive.org/details/britishnavyitss04brasgoog The British Navy, Volume II. London: Longmans, Green and Co. 1882]
- [http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/103347 "Handbook for the 12-in. R.M.L. Gun of 35-tons (Mark I.) Land Service", 1884, London. Published by Her Majesty's Stationery Office]
External links
{{Commons category|RML 12 inch 35 ton gun}}
- [http://handle.slv.vic.gov.au/10381/103347 Handbook for the 12 in. R.M.L. gun of 35-tons (mark I) mounted on sliding carriage and platform. Land service. 1884] at State Library of Victoria
{{VictorianEraBritishNavalWeapons}}