14"/45 caliber gun

The 14"/45 caliber gun, known initially as the Mark 1, 2, 3, and 5, and later as the Mark 8, 9, 10, and 12, were the first 14 inch guns to be employed with the United States Navy. They were installed aboard the United States Navy's "New York", "Nevada", and "Pennsylvania"-class battleships as the primary armament for each battleship in the class.

The design of the 14"/45 caliber dates to about 1910, and they entered service in 1914 aboard USS|New York|BB-34. At the time of their introduction they were intended to fire 1400 lb projectiles with up to four bags of Explosive D, each of which weighed between 31 and 105 lb. At a 15 degree angle, the guns could fire a out to 23,000 yards. Each individual gun weighed 140,670 lbs without the breach and measured 642.5 in in length.cite web | last = DiGiulian | first = Tony | title = 14"/45 (35.6 cm) Marks 1, 2, 3 and 5 | url = http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_14-45_mk1.htm | publisher = Navweaps.com | date = 2008-03-27 | accessdate = 2008-10-09 ]

Each of the original Mark 1 guns consisted of a tube without liner, jacket, eight hoops and a screw box liner. To compensate for the problem of gun drooping, four hoop-locking rings were added to the guns. The Mark 3 added three hoop locking rings and contained a longer slide, while the Mark 5 had five hoops total. Owing to the interchangeability of the guns, the battleships fitted with the 14"/45 caliber guns often had guns of various Marks installed on each turret.

In the 1930s, the Mark 1, 2, 3, and 5 were upgraded to allow for increased charges and muzzle velocities, resulting in the Mark 8, 9, 10, and 12, respectively. All guns employed a welin breech block and used a Smith-Asbury mechanism, and in the case of the Mark 12 a chromium plating was introduce to prolong barrel life. These improvements enabled the guns to fire heavier 1500 lb shells while simultaneously increasing the range of the guns to 36,000 yards.cite web | last = DiGiulian | first = Tony | title = 14"/45 (35.6 cm) Marks 8, 9, 10 and 12 | url = http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WNUS_14-45_mk10.htm | publisher = Navweaps.com | date = 2008-03-27 | accessdate = 2008-10-09 ]

The guns were used heavily by ships of the "New York", "Nevada" and "Pennsylvania"-classes in World War II. Salvaged 14"/45 caliber guns from the #2 turret aboard the battleship USS|Arizona|BB-39 were removed and installed aboard the battleship USS|Nevada|BB-36 in the fall of 1944, later to be fired in anger against the Japanese by "Nevada" in 1945.

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