Bausch and Lomb Rangefinders
From The Dreadnought Project
The United States Navy made extensive use of Bausch and Lomb Rangefinders.
Types Used
The American battleships mounted long base B&L rangefinders in turrets.
Frederic Dreyer noted that the American rangefinders, as used, were much preferable to British, and their ships used:[1]
- 20 foot models in two gun turrets
- 25 foot models in three gun turrets, e.g., Pennsylvania
- 30 foot models in three gun turrets, e.g., New Mexico
- 38 foot models in three gun 16-in turrets
and wanted to inquire whether the British might obtain a 25 foot specimen for testing.
Comparison to Barr and Stroud
The Americans vastly preferred their equipment, and the British appeared to envy it. The Americans considered the optical portions of the Barr and Stroud equipment to be high quality, but found their "internal adjuster" poor and had stored their seventy B&S instruments as spares, as there was no reason to employ one when a B&L were available.[2]
See Also
Footnotes
- ↑ United States Navy: Proposed visit of British Naval Technical Experts. p. 28.
- ↑ United States Navy: Proposed visit of British Naval Technical Experts. p. 38.
Bibliography
- Commander Richard Thornton Down. "United States Navy: Proposed visit of British Naval Technical Experts", 11 October, 1917. The National Archives. ADM 137/1621.
