Torpedoes and Torpedo Warfare: Containing a Complete and Concise Account of the Rise and Progress of Submarine WarfareSleeman, Charles William
History
Torpedoes and Torpedo Warfare: Containing a Complete and Concise Account of the Rise and Progress of Submarine Warfare
Sleeman, Charles William
Torpedoes
The effect on the target was as follows, above the 2nd longitudinal
frame, where strengthened by the wing passage bulkhead:--Outer bottom
blown away from the 4th to the 6th frames for a length of 8 feet and a
height of 4-1/2 feet, and bent in 6-1/2 feet. Inner bottom bent in and
broken through between the 4th and 5th frames, with an irregular hole
8' square, and between the 5th and 6th frames, a similar sized hole.
Wing passage bulkhead was bent in 2" to 3", and riven for a length of
29'; in the water-tight middle bulkhead athwartships the rivets in two
vertical joints were completely torn away.
Between the 2nd and 3rd longitudinal frames, and below the wing passage
bulkhead, both the inner and outer bottoms were completely blown away
for a length of 12 feet and a height of 4 feet. The vertical and
horizontal frames between the two bottoms had kept their position
unchanged, and excepting that the bracket plate by frame No. 6 was
bent, cracked, and torn away, the damage they had sustained was limited
to some comparatively slight bending. The open hole formed in the
target measured 76 square feet in outer bottom, and 60 square feet in
inner bottom.
Comparing the effect of this torpedo with the 7th, 33 lbs. of dynamite;
with the latter charge the breach was made at the cost of the bottom
plates as well as the vertical and longitudinal frames, which were
completely torn asunder and strained; with the gunpowder charge,
only the bottom plates were broken through, whilst the plates whose
directions were nearly parallel to the lines of explosive effect were
but little affected.
_Experiments at Portsmouth, England, 1874-75._--The object of these
experiments was to ascertain the effect of 500 lbs. gun-cotton
torpedoes exploded at various distances from a target representing the
double bottom of H.M.S. _Hercules_.
They were carried out in Stokes Bay, under the supervision of officers
belonging to the torpedo department of the Royal Engineers, and a
torpedo committee, composed of naval and military officers.
The _Oberon_, the vessel chosen for these experiments, was fitted
with a double bottom, representing as nearly as possible that of the
_Hercules_ without the armour; also with a surface condenser, and its
connections; a donkey Kingston feed-valve; and athwartship water-tight
bulkheads, which divided the ship into seven water-tight compartments.
The outer skin was composed of 3/16" and 7/8" iron plates. In her
starboard side at different points were fixed forty-four crusher
gauges, and over each side were suspended six shots, each fitted with a
crusher gauge.
Displacement of the _Oberon_ about 1100 tons.
The ship was anchored head and stern. Her mean draught of water during
the experiments was 11 feet.
1ST EXPERIMENT.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
Reviews
Reviews
No reviews yet
Be the first to share your thoughts on this work.
Elsewhere in the archive
Join the Discussion
Join the discussion
Sign in to leave a comment or review.
Sign InorCreate an account