The Navy Department - Testing Armor Plating.

[Robert Gray]

THE LESSON OF THE IRONCLAD - SOME OF THE FIRST TESTS AT THE NAVY-YARD

Here in the Washington Navy-yard are the evidences of what the American Civil War had taught not only the United States navy but the world's designers of warships. In four short years of experimentation in the throes of an internecine struggle, the Navy Department had not only evolved the most powerful fighting fleet on the seas of the world, but had stamped it with distinctively American ideas. In the picture can be seen how the navy had begun to improve the experience it had gained. The wooden hulls of the early monitors rotted away, and as they did so steel construction was gradually evolved. The monitor principle was finally abandoned in its entirety but the turret still remained. Likewise the turtleback construction of the decks of these same vessels remains in the swift and powerful torpedo-boat destroyers.

Edited from The Photographic History Of The Civil War
Frances T. Miller - Editor in Chief - The Review of Reviews Co. - 1911

Image: Heritage Auctions

 

[14NYSM]

this reminds me - I am reading a bookabout the history of ships. Written in 1988 by an Englishman, it generally follows the British perspective. Regarding the battle between the ironclads Virginia and Monitor, he wrote that what really shook up the Naval tacticians was that no one had ammunition that could deal with such armor. They all knew that they could make wood-backed iron armor. It was the notion that no one could defeat armor that was so upsetting! All the ammo they had in stock would have to be replaced.

 

[Lincoln56]

Curious what caliber of cannon, powder charge, and distance from the plates this test was performed.

Does each shot represent a difference in variables, e.g. caliber, charge or distance?

The farthest right shot damage shows significant cracking to the plate - is this due to the location being nearest the edge of the test plate? Is this a through and through crack or just a surface crack?

 

[UCVRelics]

THE LESSON OF THE IRONCLAD - SOME OF THE FIRST TESTS AT THE NAVY-YARD

Here in the Washington Navy-yard are the evidences of what the American Civil War had taught not only the United States navy but the world's designers of warships. In four short years of experimentation in the throes of an internecine struggle, the Navy Department had not only evolved the most powerful fighting fleet on the seas of the world, but had stamped it with distinctively American ideas. In the picture can be seen how the navy had begun to improve the experience it had gained. The wooden hulls of the early monitors rotted away, and as they did so steel construction was gradually evolved. The monitor principle was finally abandoned in its entirety but the turret still remained. Likewise the turtleback construction of the decks of these same vessels remains in the swift and powerful torpedo-boat destroyers.

Edited from The Photographic History Of The Civil War
Frances T. Miller - Editor in Chief - The Review of Reviews Co. - 1911

Image: Heritage Auctions

View attachment 427476

Great image. I can tell you from being stationed at the US Army's Aberdeen Proving Ground for 6 years and saw the testing done to armor during the transition to the M1 from the M60 tanks, Its not what the outside looks like, its the inside. The M1 guns would not go thru the other side of an M60 test turret but the amount of steel that was knocked out of the interior was amazing. Even with timber backs, the spalling on the inside from the impact where the sailors were would have been enough to kill them.

 

[JOHN42768]

Ouch!

 

[Lincoln56]

Great image. I can tell you from being stationed at the US Army's Aberdeen Proving Ground for 6 years and saw the testing done to armor during the transition to the M1 from the M60 tanks, Its not what the outside looks like, its the inside. The M1 guns would not go thru the other side of an M60 test turret but the amount of steel that was knocked out of the interior was amazing. Even with timber backs, the spalling on the inside from the impact where the sailors were would have been enough to kill them.

You make a great point. That concussive force had to be extraordinary. IIRC, think it was the U.S.S. Monitor or some other vessel where they described the heads of bolts or nuts flying off and zinging around the interior when shots struck the outside of the turret (better is your term spalling). Only having their hearing impaired and severe headaches would probably be considered a good outcome.

 

[Mark F. Jenkins]

I don't know if the term "spalling" was used at the time, but I know there was a lot of ink spilled in debates over 'penetration' versus 'wracking', with Dahlgren seemingly in strong support of 'wracking'-- basically, battering a ship to pieces instead of piercing its vitals. In hindsight it sounds a bit ridiculous, but we know lots more about ballistics and armor today than they did then...

 

[redbob]

You read more accounts of sailors being injured inside of Confederate Ironclads by flying wooden splinters from the wooden backing for the armor than from the iron armor itself.

 

[USS ALASKA]

Curious what caliber of cannon, powder charge, and distance from the plates this test was performed.

Does each shot represent a difference in variables, e.g. caliber, charge or distance?

The farthest right shot damage shows significant cracking to the plate - is this due to the location being nearest the edge of the test plate? Is this a through and through crack or just a surface crack?

Indeed sir, it would be nice to read any associated reports from this testing if they still exist.

Cheers,
USS ALASKA

 

[USS ALASKA]

Great image. I can tell you from being stationed at the US Army's Aberdeen Proving Ground for 6 years and saw the testing done to armor during the transition to the M1 from the M60 tanks, Its not what the outside looks like, its the inside. The M1 guns would not go thru the other side of an M60 test turret but the amount of steel that was knocked out of the interior was amazing. Even with timber backs, the spalling on the inside from the impact where the sailors were would have been enough to kill them.

Wow sir, those must have been...interesting...times. I read a book in the late 80s called 'King of the Killing Zone' by Orr Kelly that covered some of the M1 Abrams development and testing that went on at APG. The author explained the differences and effects between APDS, APFSDS, HEAT and HESH rounds that even I could understand. That was the first time I heard of spalling.

Cheers,
USS ALASKA

 

[Tony Z]

THE LESSON OF THE IRONCLAD - SOME OF THE FIRST TESTS AT THE NAVY-YARD

Here in the Washington Navy-yard are the evidences of what the American Civil War had taught not only the United States navy but the world's designers of warships. In four short years of experimentation in the throes of an internecine struggle, the Navy Department had not only evolved the most powerful fighting fleet on the seas of the world, but had stamped it with distinctively American ideas. In the picture can be seen how the navy had begun to improve the experience it had gained. The wooden hulls of the early monitors rotted away, and as they did so steel construction was gradually evolved. The monitor principle was finally abandoned in its entirety but the turret still remained. Likewise the turtleback construction of the decks of these same vessels remains in the swift and powerful torpedo-boat destroyers.

Edited from The Photographic History Of The Civil War
Frances T. Miller - Editor in Chief - The Review of Reviews Co. - 1911

Image: Heritage Auctions

View attachment 427476

What was the "monitor principle"?

Thanks!

 

[UCVRelics]

Wow sir, those must have been...interesting...times. I read a book in the late 80s called 'King of the Killing Zone' by Orr Kelly that covered some of the M1 Abrams development and testing that went on at APG. The author explained the differences and effects between APDS, APFSDS, HEAT and HESH rounds that even I could understand. That was the first time I heard of spalling.

Cheers,
USS ALASKA

It was and that was just with the 105mm. When we got the 120mm smoothbore that shot the kinetic energy sabot round, I watched a video that had a camera inside the M60 turret and the rd went all the way thru and sucked the cloth seat covers off the TC's seat and out the hole. There was all kinds of neat stuff going on behind the fence as we called it.