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The Sight Manual 1916

The Sight Manual 1916

1916

Repository
Document ID
Pages
Dimensions
Plates
ADM 186/216
121

20cm x 33cm
66

 

This manual appears quite valuable for studying the basics of gun sights in the Royal Navy.

PART I.

  Page
Development of sighting 3
Definitions of the various types of sights and sight fittings
5
Orders for care and preservation of sights
7
Sight testing
8
Orders for care and use of telescopes
15
Notes on periscopes
17
Testing clinometer planes of guns
18

PART II.

Descriptions and diagrams of sights, including means of adjusting for parallelism, taking up backlash, and method of allowing for drift.

Dimensions and tables for sight testing.

Note: this extensive section has the most complete details on each sight available.  Don't be distracted by its brief mention in the Index!  I outline some of the data on its many pages below.

PART III.

 
Page
Descriptions and diagrams of the Director Sight
102
Description of the Open Director Sight (O.O.Q's)
103
Notes upon adjustable pointers and method of setting M.V. and Temperature correctors
105
List of the number of lubricators on different sights
106
List of those sights which have removable limit stops
106
Table of the dimensions of sights lines of certain Sights, whose descriptions are not in the Manual
107
List of the possible elevation of sights
108
List of the plates
121

PART IV. -- Plates.

Description on page
Name
Number of Plate

20

 "Queen Elizabeth" Side
1
  
20
 "Queen Elizabeth" Centre
2
  
23
 "King George V." Side and Centre
3
  
23
 "King George V." Side and Centre
4
  
23
 "King George V." Details
5
  
27
 "Tiger" Horizontal Periscope
6
  
29
 "Orion" Side
7
  
29
 "Orion" Centre
8
  
29
 "Orion" Details
9
  
33
 "Hercules" Side and Centre
10
  
35
 "Neptune" Side
11
  
35
 "Neptune" Centre
12
  
35
 "Neptune" Details
13
  
37
 "Dreadnought" Centre & "Bellerophon" side
14
  
39
 "Bellerophon" Centre
15
  
42
 "Zealandia" Side and Centre
16
  
44
 "Africa" Side and Centre
17
  
49
 12-inch B. III.  Centre
18
  
50
 12-inch B. II. Centre
19
  
51
 Vertical Column Sights
20
  
53-60
 9.2-inch and 7.5-inch
21
  
61
 6-inch P. IX.
22
  
63
 6-inch P. VIII.
23
  
65,66
 6-inch P. VII. and P. VII.*
24
  
68
 6-inch P. VI.
25
  
69
 6-inch P. V.*
26
  
70
 6-inch P. V.
27
  
74
 6-inch P. II., III., and IV.
28
  
75
 6-inch P. II. (UD)
29
  
77
 6-inch T. II.
30
  
78
 6-inch T. I.
31
  
79
 4-inch P. X.
32
  
80
 4-inch P. IX. (F.P.)
33
  
80
 4-inch P. IX. (N.F.P.)
34
  
81
 4-inch P. VIII.
35
  
83
 4-inch P. VII.
36
  
84
 4-inch P. VI.
37
  
85
 4-inch P. V.
38
  
86, 89
 4-inch P. II.*, IV.*, IV.**
39
  
87
 4-inch P. IV.
40
  
88
 4-inch P. III.*
41
  
88
 4-inch P. III.
42
  
91
 4-inch P. I.*
43
  
92
 4-inch P. I.
44
  
93
 12-pdr. P. VI.
45
  
96
 12-pdr. P. V.
46
  
94
 12-pdr. P. IV.*
47
  
95
 12-pdr. P. IV.
48
  
97
 12-pdr. P. III. and S. II.
49
  
99
 12-pdr., 4-cwt.
50
  
101
 3-pdr., Vickers
51
  
--
 3-pdr., Mark I.*
52
  
102
 Director Sight (cam type), elevation
53
  
102
 Director Sight (cam type), plan
54
  
102
 Director Sight (gear type), elevation
55
  
102
 Director Sight (gear type), plan
56
  
103
 Open Director Sight (O.O.Q's.), Vickers
57
  
103
 Open Director Sight (O.O.Q's.), Coventry
58
  
--
 Muzzle cross lines
59
  
105
 R.C.D. adjustable pointer
60
  
105
 Elswick adjustable pointer
61
  
--
 Cross connections
62
  
--
 Anti-backlash arrangements
63
  
--
 Watson-Lester locking nut
64
  
--
 Spanners for setting eccentric bushes
65, 66
 

Notes

Sights on transferable mountings

In 1890, on the 6-in QF gun, were (non-telscopic?) sights that could move with the gun but differ in pitch and yaw.  A red and white light could illuminate the sight for night firing.

Telescopes were fitted ca.  1900 and soon had illuminated crosswires for night use.  The separate role of training the gun, being positioned to the right of the weapon, was introduced.

Around 1904, 6-in P. II., III., and IV. had cross-connected sights.  1905's 6-in P. V. improved upon this.

Adjustable Pointer In order to help calibrate sights to the different guns, each gun had a number of range dials graduated for different M.V.'s differing by 25 fps.  This system was soon superseded by the use of the Adustable Pointer.

Cam pointers were also for adjusting for different M.Vs.of +/- 50 fps.  The "Elswick" cam pointer allowed +/- 75 fps by reversing the cam, and a double cam pointer eventually allowed the signum of the adjustment to be effected without turning over the cam plate.

The last sight mentioned also had a Temperature Corrector to factor in cordite temperature relative to the nominal temperature.  It is fitted to all 12in and 7.5in sights (they not being cam sights) and to the 4in P. III.

Since 1907, sights were designed to commutate range to elevation not by racks and pinions but by cams.  These are called cam sights.

The 4-in P. II. had the original cam sight, and had a device called a "C" Corrector, in addition to M.V. and temperature correctors.

In 1908, the 4in P. IV. in the light cruisers introduced the "Follow-the-Pointer" system, "now" (1916, presumably) used in all 4in and 6in sights.

Rocking Telescope Holder in the 6in P. V.* and some later sights, the trainer's scope can pivot in elevation for use when the ship has much motion and might roll the target out of the trainer's field.  A retrofit kit was created for use in older sights per Gunnery Order 37 of 1916.

Open Sights were fitted to some sighting kits to augment the use of the telescopes in rough weather.  Older sights often had improvised versions fitted to help.  G.O. 151 of 1915 has more on this.

Turret Sights

Vertical Column Sights -- used previous to 1903

Trunnion Sights Used in all modern turrets:  7.5in, 0.2in Mk V and later, Lord Nelson and all later large ships

 

p. 15 (paraphrasing)

  1. Scopes are to be used on the same sight on all occasions, and on the same slue (meaning, roll angle). The user of each scope is to be the person to mount it, always tightening screws to the same degree.
  2. Telescopes are to be kept in their boxes unless the crew is closed up at the gun or the ship is prepared for night defence.
  3. Scopes which have lockers provided are only to be at their quarters on a ship prepared for war.
  4. Moisture renders high power scopes useless.  Scopes require overhaul on board depending on their use, always by the designated officer.
  5. an armorer is to lubricate the working parts occasionally
  6. Gunlayer's scope is 5-15 power, 7-2 degree field, the trainer's 3-9 power, field 10-3 degrees.  There is another trainer's scope 2.5 power with 20 degree field
  7. Scopes can be tested for parallax and collimation.  Parallax means that moving your eye behing the scope should not cause the crosshairs to appear to move, and collimation is detected if rotating the scope reveals that the crosshairs describe a circle rather than remaining perfectly in center.  Errors to these faults are avoided by keeping adjusted scopes always in the same slue position (rolled so same part faces skyward in holder).
  8. Every scope has a sun cap (0.2 inch aperture) and spray cap (0.5 inch aperture)
  9. 3 different caps can be slipped over the eyepiece:  neutral tint for bright sunlight or wavetop reflection, red for thick weather or fog, and yellow for hazy weather.  (ed:  I own a sighting telescope which still has these tinted filters in the box)
  10. Heed notes on focus, power and field in Gunnery Drill Book.  Note:  trials at Shoeburyness reveal that heated cordite gases do not appreciably affect the laying of the gun if the line of sight passes through it

p. 17 (paraphrasing) Method of Focusing a telescope

Poorly focused telescopes cause eye strain, and it is easy to fall into this trap as the eye accommodates for bad focus.  Closing the unused eye actually causes greater fatigue in it than in the active eye, so it should be kept open.  It is a good idea to fit a secondrubber eyepiece, blanked out or other eye shade for this eye.

New scopes are marked in diopters, and each gunlayer should have his eyes tested at Gunnery school and the number of diopters he should use (plus or minus) noted. 

Avoid jamming your eye into the eyepiece, as the heat mists the lens. 

As eye strain can reduce performance and creep up on you, spare gunlayers should be ready.

p. 17-18 (paraphrase) Notes on Periscopes

  1. Sighting hoods in turrets are too small for scopes, allowing the user to be under the armor.  Angled scopes are therefore used.
  2. they can be used in periscope mode or in telescope mode.  "Periscope" implies no magnification, I suppose -- this mode has 35 degree field and magnification 1.  In Telescope mode, the field is 5.6 degrees magnification 6.5, and can vary to 1.7 degrees, magnification 21.  
  3. A lever was moved to a "TEL" position to enable the telescope, and once in telescope mode, a milled sleeve on the eyepiece adjusted the power. A sleeve nearest the eye focused the scope.
  4. wipers are fitted to remove spray, but it doesn't clean the glass properly.  You can clean the glass by hand from inside the turret by removing the blast excluder and tilting up the rain hood.  The excluder can be removed entirely from superimposed turrets to facilitate access.  Two nozzles are fitted on the periscope hoods to introduce compressed air and to spray water on the object glass.  "This arrangement readily cleans the surface of the glass."  The air line must be kept free from grit.
  5. a pinhole cap is used for sight testing and ones with green and smoked glass are used for bright light, sun or searchlight.
  6. periscopes are to be kept shipped
  7. periscopes tend to have collimation, and therefore are never interchanged and new ones require the sight to be tested.
  8. silk bags and waterproof covers supplied should be kept on periscope ends when not in use
  9. blast excluder should not be kept shipped except in action
  10. side sights should be tested at high power, as large field and low power is really just for use as a finder.  One of the center sights should be testetd and used in lower power for the trainer when the ship has motion on, and not used in high power as the parallelism may be different from low.
  11. Drill periscopes for Turret Deflection teacher should be removed before replacing the sighting hood cover.
  12. Vickers made the original periscopes, and Ross now makes them too.  There are sketches in the Gunnery Manual that show differences.

p. 108 has a table of great value showing The Possible Elevation of Certain Sights, listing for each of some 40+ types:  max range in yards, max elevation angle, maximum travel of sight, and limits of the mounting in elevation and depression,

pp. 109-112 has an Index List of Sights, showing which ships each was on and what page within the manual the sight is described.  Much of its data can be found below.

pp. 113-120 has a List of Ships in alphabetical order by ship or class name and lists for each the Mark of all mountings.  For instance, HMS Achilles lists a 9.2-in. Mk. V. S. and 7.5-in. Mk. II.  This is a great resource, as I have never seen such detailed mounting data put in one easy reference like this.

TABLE OF SIGHTS

This is largely drawn from the table on pp 109-112 of this Manual.

I have cross-linked gun data to www.NavWeaps.com

Data on this table not obtained fromthe Sight Manual is shown in red

Gun
Mark
Mounting
Page
Ships Carrying
15-in.
20
Courageous, Glorious, Ramillies, Renown, Repulse, Resolution, Revenge, Royal Oak
20
Barham, Malaya, Queen Elizabeth, Royal Sovereign, Valiant, Warspite
14-in.
28
Canada
13.5-in.
V.(H)
II.
23
Ajax, Benbow, Centurion, Emperor of India, Iron Duke, King George V., Marlborough, Tiger, Queen Mary
V.(L)
II. & II.*
29
Conqueror, Lion, Monarch, Orion, Princess Royal, Thunderer
32
Erin
12-in.
XI.
B. XII.
33
Colossus, Hercules
XI.
B. XI.
35
Collingwood, Neptune, St. Vincent, Vanguard
X.
B. VIII.*
34
Australia, New Zealand, Indefatigable
39
Bellerophon, Superb, Temeraire
X.
B. VIII.
37
Dreadnought
38
Agamemnon, Lord Nelson
40
Indomitable, Inflexible, Invincible
-
Special
41
Agincourt
IX.
B. VII. S.
42
Commonwealth, Dominion, Hindustan, Zealandia
44
Africa, Britannia, Hibernia
IX.
B. VII.
46
Albemarle, Exmouth, Prince of Wales, Venerable
IX.
B. VI.
47
Corwallis, Duncan, Implacable, London, Queen
VIII.
B. V.
48
Vengeance
VIII.
B. IV.
49
Albion, Glory
VIII.
B. III.
49
Caesar, Canopus, Illustrious
VIII.
B. II.
50
Jupiter, Prince George, and8 monitors
IX.
-
51
(Vertical column sights)

VIII.
-
52
(Vertical column sights)
9.2-in.
XI.
Mk. VIII.
53
Agamemnon, Lord Nelson
XI.
Mk. VII.
54
Agamemnon, Lord Nelson, Minotaur, Shannon
X.
Mk. VI.
55
Bacchante, Euryalis, King Alfred, Sutlej
X.
Mk. V. S.
55
Achilles, Africa, Brtitannia, Cochrane, Commonwealth, Dominion, Duke of Edinborough, Hibernia, Hindustan, Zealandia
X.
Mk. V.
57
Drake, Leviathan
7.5-in.
II.
Mk. II.
58
Achilles, Cochrane, Minotaur, Shannon
I.
Mk. I.
60
Antrim, Carnarvon, Devonshire, Roxburgh
6-in.
XII.
P. IX.
61
Barham, Malaya, Queen Elizabeth, Valiant, Warspite
61
Ramillies, Resolution, Revenge, Royal Oak, Royal Sovereign
VII.
P.VIII.
63
Benbow, Emperor of India, Iron Duke, Marlborough, Tiger
XII.
P. VII.*
65
Cambrian, Canterbury, Castor, Constance
65
Aurora, Calliope, Caroline, Carysfort, Champion, Cleopatra, Comus, Conquest, Cordelia, Galatea, Inconstant, Penelope, Phaeton, Royalist, Undaunted
65
Centaur, Concord
XII.
P. VII.
66
Birmingham, Lowestoft
XI.
P. VI.
68
Brisbane, Chatham, Dartmouth, Dublin, Melbourne, Southampton, Sydney, Weymouth, Yarmouth
XI.
P. V.*
69
 Bristol, Glasgow, Gloucester, Liverpool, Newcastle
XI.
P. V.
70
 Africa, Britannia, Duke of Edinborough, Hibernia
VII.

P. III.

P. III.*

P. IV.

72
 Antrim, Carnarvon, Commonwealth, Devonshire, Dominion, Hindustan, Roxburgh, Zealandia
VII.

P. III.

P. IV.

73
 (Second series)
VII.

P. III.

P. IV.

74
 (First series)
6-in. Q.F.
I.-III.
P. II. U.D.
75
  
I.-III.
P. II. B.D.
76
  
6-in.

VII.

VIII.
T. II.
77
 Berwick, Cumberland, Donegal, Lancaster

VII.

VIII.
T. I.
78
 Cornwall, Essex, Kent, Suffolk
4-in. Q.F.
V.
P. X.
79
 Aurora, Calliope, Cambrian, Canterbury, Caroline, Carysfort, Castor, Champion, Cleopatra, Comus, Conquest, Constance, Cordelia, Galatea, Inconstant, Penelope, Phaeton, Royalist, Undaunted
IV.
P. IX.
80

(F.P.) Adventure, Attentive, Foresight, Forward, Patrol, Sentinel, Skirmisher

(N.F.P.) Gabriel, Ithuriel, Kempenfelt, Marksman, Nimrod, Parker, Talisman, Termagant, Trident, Destroyers of K, L, and M Classes.

4-in. B.L.
VII.
P. VIII.
81
 Fearless
VIII.
P. VII.
83
 Destroyers of K Class
VII.
P. VI.
84
 Ajax, Centurion, King George V.
VIII.
P. V.
85
 Destroyers of I Class (23 ships)
VII.
P. IV.**
86
 Active (direct evidence indicates HMS Amphion had the same mounting)
VII.
P. IV. *
86

(F.P.) Bellona, Glasgow, Liverpool, Newcastle, Blanche, Blonde, Bristol

(N.F.P.) Colossus, Gloucester, Hercules, Lion, Orion
VII.
P. IV.
87
 Boadicea
VIII.

P. III.*

P. III.

88
 Swift and Destroyers of F, G, and H Classes (12+ 16 + 20 ships)
VII.
P. II.*
89

(F.P.) Australia, Conqueror, Monarch, New Zealand, Princess Royal, Thunderer, Indefatigable

(N.F.P.) Collingwood, Neptune, St. Vincent, Vanguard

VII.
P. II.
89
 Bellerophon, Superb, Temeraire
4-in. Q.F.
III.
P. I.*
91
 Indomitable, Inflexible , Invincible
III.
P. I.
92
 Amethyst, Diamond, Sapphire, Topaze
12-pdr.
12 cwt.
P. VI.
93
 Destroyers of I Class (23 ships)
18 cwt.
P. IV.*
94
 Africa, Agamemnon, Britannia, Dreadnought, Hibernia, Lord Nelson, Minotaur, Shannon
18 cwt.
P. IV.
95
  
12 cwt.
P. V.
96
 Destroyers of G and H Classes (16 + 20 ships)
12 cwt.

S. II.

P. III.
97
  
12 cwt.
P. I.
98
  
8 cwt.
G. I.*
99
  
4 cwt.
Field
99
  
6-pdr.
Mk. I.
100
  
3-pdr.
Vickers.
101
  

Notes: 

  1. I inferred the type of sight for Queen Mary's main battery as she fired the heavy as opposed to the light 13.5" shell.
  2. I infer that Invincible and Indefatigable had the same sights as their sisters for all guns