26-inch thick armor from Japanese Yamato class battleship, pierced by a US Navy 16-inch gun.
Armor on display at U.S. Navy Museum
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fried1765
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According to several reports I’ve read…the Yamato was not sunk or hit by 16” guns….but was sunk by torpedos and bombs. Having sunk…no artifacts would be available….
Yamato stayed home most of her life but finally did come out and play. When she did, the U.S. Navy either sent her back home injured…(torpedo hit) …. or sunk.
There were only two Yamato class battleships, the other being Musashi…also sunk by torpedos and bombs from Hellcats….not hit with 16” guns.
There was only one other Yamato class ship planned..but it was completed as a carrier….the Shinano., which was sunk by a single torpedo….(thanks to USS Archerfish.)
What specific ship did the display say this was from?
Yamato stayed home most of her life but finally did come out and play. When she did, the U.S. Navy either sent her back home injured…(torpedo hit) …. or sunk.
There were only two Yamato class battleships, the other being Musashi…also sunk by torpedos and bombs from Hellcats….not hit with 16” guns.
There was only one other Yamato class ship planned..but it was completed as a carrier….the Shinano., which was sunk by a single torpedo….(thanks to USS Archerfish.)
What specific ship did the display say this was from?
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It's from the shipyard used to build the class. USN used it as target practice in the DC area. I probably shouldn't say where. I can say that this is a display piece at the Navy Yard in DC. It is not from the hull, rather a forward facing plate on the gun turret.
Lil Foot
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As a guy that worked with steel for a good portion of his life my first impression is: HOLY CRAP!
And to think that 16'" guns destructive capacity pales in comparison to what is available today.
From Wiki (emphasis added):
"Enright ordered his torpedoes set for a depth of 10 feet (3.0 m) in case they ran deeper than set; he also intended to increase the chances of capsizing the ship by punching holes higher up in the hull. A few minutes later, Shinano turned south, exposing her entire side to Archerfish—a nearly ideal firing situation for a submarine. The escorting destroyer on that side passed right over Archerfish without detecting her. At 03:15 Archerfish fired six torpedoes before diving to 400 feet (120 m) to escape a depth charge attack from the escorts.[30]
Four torpedoes struck Shinano, at an average depth of 4.27 meters (14 ft 0 in).[26] The first hit towards the stern, flooding refrigerated storage compartments and one of the empty aviation gasoline storage tanks and killing many of the sleeping engineering personnel in the compartments above. The second hit the compartment where the starboard outboard propeller shaft entered the hull and flooded the outboard engine room. The third hit further forward, flooding the No. 3 boiler room and killing every man on watch. Structural failures caused the two adjacent boiler rooms to flood as well. The fourth flooded the starboard air compressor room, adjacent anti-aircraft gun magazines, and the No. 2 damage control station and ruptured the adjacent oil tank.[31]"
Yes…. I failed to proof my previous post… which I think…. (i’ve slept since then)…was meant to have described “a single submarine attack by torpedo”… my bad. Thanks for correcting me.