WesWorld

Introducing the Indochinie class heavy cruiser. She was built to a requirement for high speed, long range, and good seakeeping and habitability, for operations in the Pacific. When she is completed, the Suffren class heavy cruisers presently operating there will be transferred to the Atlantic Fleet.

Indochinie class, French Heavy Cruiser laid down 1932

Displacement:
12,484 t light; 13,007 t standard; 15,316 t normal; 17,163 t full load

Dimensions: Length overall / water x beam x draught
685.11 ft / 672.57 ft x 59.06 ft (Bulges 70.54 ft) x 22.97 ft (normal load)
208.82 m / 205.00 m x 18.00 m (Bulges 21.50 m) x 7.00 m

Armament:
8 - 7.87" / 200 mm guns (4x2 guns), 286.60lbs / 130.00kg shells, 1932 Model
Breech loading guns in turrets (on barbettes)
on centreline ends, evenly spread, 2 raised mounts - superfiring
2 - 4.72" / 120 mm guns (1x2 guns), 61.73lbs / 28.00kg shells, 1932 Model
Dual purpose guns in a deck mount with hoist
on centreline aft, all raised guns - superfiring
8 - 4.72" / 120 mm guns (4x2 guns), 61.73lbs / 28.00kg shells, 1932 Model
Dual purpose guns in deck mounts with hoists
on side, evenly spread
24 - 1.57" / 40.0 mm guns (6x4 guns), 1.95lbs / 0.89kg shells, 1932 Model
Anti-aircraft guns in deck mounts with hoists
on side, evenly spread
6 - 0.50" / 12.7 mm guns in single mounts, 0.06lbs / 0.03kg shells, 1932 Model
Machine guns in deck mounts
on side, evenly spread
Weight of broadside 2,957 lbs / 1,341 kg
Shells per gun, main battery: 125
12 - 21.7" / 550 mm above water torpedoes

Armour:
- Belts: Width (max) Length (avg) Height (avg)
Main: 5.12" / 130 mm 390.12 ft / 118.91 m 9.19 ft / 2.80 m
Ends: 1.18" / 30 mm 282.45 ft / 86.09 m 9.19 ft / 2.80 m
Upper: 1.18" / 30 mm 65.62 ft / 20.00 m 9.84 ft / 3.00 m
Main Belt covers 89 % of normal length

- Gun armour: Face (max) Other gunhouse (avg) Barbette/hoist (max)
Main: 5.91" / 150 mm 3.54" / 90 mm 4.72" / 120 mm
2nd: 1.97" / 50 mm 0.20" / 5 mm -
3rd: 1.97" / 50 mm 0.20" / 5 mm -
4th: 0.98" / 25 mm 0.20" / 5 mm -

- Armour deck: 2.17" / 55 mm, Conning tower: 5.12" / 130 mm

Machinery:
Oil fired boilers, steam turbines,
Geared drive, 4 shafts, 115,502 shp / 86,165 Kw = 34.00 kts
Range 15,000nm at 15.00 kts
Bunker at max displacement = 4,156 tons

Complement:
687 - 894

Cost:
£5.362 million / $21.447 million

Distribution of weights at normal displacement:
Armament: 316 tons, 2.1 %
Armour: 2,672 tons, 17.4 %
- Belts: 933 tons, 6.1 %
- Torpedo bulkhead: 0 tons, 0.0 %
- Armament: 576 tons, 3.8 %
- Armour Deck: 1,094 tons, 7.1 %
- Conning Tower: 68 tons, 0.4 %
Machinery: 3,409 tons, 22.3 %
Hull, fittings & equipment: 6,012 tons, 39.3 %
Fuel, ammunition & stores: 2,832 tons, 18.5 %
Miscellaneous weights: 75 tons, 0.5 %

Overall survivability and seakeeping ability:
Survivability (Non-critical penetrating hits needed to sink ship):
19,141 lbs / 8,682 Kg = 78.4 x 7.9 " / 200 mm shells or 2.2 torpedoes
Stability (Unstable if below 1.00): 1.15
Metacentric height 3.0 ft / 0.9 m
Roll period: 17.2 seconds
Steadiness - As gun platform (Average = 50 %): 70 %
- Recoil effect (Restricted arc if above 1.00): 0.52
Seaboat quality (Average = 1.00): 1.20

Hull form characteristics:
Hull has rise forward of midbreak
and transom stern
Block coefficient: 0.492
Length to Beam Ratio: 9.53 : 1
'Natural speed' for length: 29.73 kts
Power going to wave formation at top speed: 56 %
Trim (Max stability = 0, Max steadiness = 100): 58
Bow angle (Positive = bow angles forward): 20.00 degrees
Stern overhang: 0.00 ft / 0.00 m
Freeboard (% = measuring location as a percentage of overall length):
- Stem: 34.45 ft / 10.50 m
- Forecastle (21 %): 26.25 ft / 8.00 m
- Mid (50 %): 26.25 ft / 8.00 m (16.40 ft / 5.00 m aft of break)
- Quarterdeck (21 %): 16.40 ft / 5.00 m
- Stern: 17.72 ft / 5.40 m
- Average freeboard: 22.15 ft / 6.75 m

Ship space, strength and comments:
Space - Hull below water (magazines/engines, low = better): 89.2 %
- Above water (accommodation/working, high = better): 125.8 %
Waterplane Area: 27,317 Square feet or 2,538 Square metres
Displacement factor (Displacement / loading): 127 %
Structure weight / hull surface area: 122 lbs/sq ft or 595 Kg/sq metre
Hull strength (Relative):
- Cross-sectional: 0.95
- Longitudinal: 1.46
- Overall: 1.00
Hull space for machinery, storage, compartmentation is adequate
Room for accommodation and workspaces is excellent
Ship has slow, easy roll, a good, steady gun platform
Good seaboat, rides out heavy weather easily

Aviation - 2 Seaplanes, 1 Catapult

Speed is excellent, range is ..... very large, stability and seaworthiness are good, armament is solid, armor is good. Perhaps a little narrow without the bulges, but then she does use twin turrets rather than triples.

Very nice.

I think you should extend the main belt a lot else the magazines will be covered only by the 30mm portion. I don't think 120m is enough for 5 centreline turrets and a 115000shp powerplant. Probably 140m+

Quoted

I think you should extend the main belt a lot else the magazines will be covered only by the 30mm portion. I don't think 120m is enough for 5 centreline turrets and a 115000shp powerplant. Probably 140m+

That is a good point, but her main competition in the Pacific, Miyazawa Yukino and her 5 sisters, gets 6 twin 203mm turrets, with barbettes, and 102kshp behind a 128m belt.

What I put on is what SS says I need.

I was simming what SS said I needed for Navalism until I started messuring how my drawing came out verses what "100%" was. I found "100%" was closer to what by ship's layout was verses what SS thought I needed (92%). The SS arrangement left the rear or forward most turrets uncovered by the belt, which would not do in a predreadnought engagement.

But that was for battleships and the heavier armored cruisers. The lighter ships can get away with less as most heavy shells will go through their armor anyway.

Is France building one or two?

One thing I'm wondering about is, how is it advantageous to build the ship as "skinny plus bulge" versus simply making the overall beam 21.5m?

Bulges reduce the amount of deck armour needed but also reduce space for mounting guns and torpedoes.

Quoted

What I put on is what SS says I need

I don't really think it's enough, and more is definitely better. Could go the other way and have 130mm over the magazines with reduced thickness over machinery. 40m of 130mm and 100m of 70mm-100mm

Quoted

That is a good point, but her main competition in the Pacific, Miyazawa Yukino and her 5 sisters, gets 6 twin 203mm turrets, with barbettes, and 102kshp behind a 128m belt.

What I put on is what SS says I need.

I have been using that approach ever since Darth HoOmAn told me to do that.
:-)
On one of my ships, I asked him if I should stick to what SS gave me or what the picture told me.

I guess I'll have to check the picture...

Well, I knew Swamphen had the picture for the purpose of the SATSUMA exercise report posted on the Warships1/Navweaps board. I used his link to post it here on the board but it took me a while to find it.

(Scale => 1.27887 pixels = 1 foot)
Looking at the picture, the minimum length required is about 438 feet (133.5 meters) and SS gave me a bit less than 419 feet (127.71 meters).

;-)

Yeah, I know. It's a truly ugly copy of those awesome-looking funnels on the Takao cruisers.

I dunno, I like her, funnels and all.

We need more of these pics Walter!

Swamphen, I think you mean something like this for the ugly ship group.

(A strange fussion of two French-like predreadnoughts into a lengthened and structurally weak semi-dreadnought. The original predreadnoughts were of my design for a Fictional "No Britian" France...the fission concept was from our moderator at Navalism, Maddox.)

*thud*

Looks like the Scourge of the Pacific couldn't handle that picture. :-).
In my opinion that is one of my better pictures Wes, thought looking at it now, I am not all too fond of the AA placement. I'll have to make a top view of this ship to sort that out.

(Success)
Actually the new French cruiser of this thread I believe is longer than this battleship, though not quite as heavy nor armed. six 13.4 inch centerlined and eight 12 inch in wings is quite a lot of firepower for any frame. The cruiser does have about 14 knots of speed advantage, and 30+ years of technology.

That ship is a white elephant, but a very scarry one.

Quoted

Originally posted by Rooijen10
In my opinion that is one of my better pictures Wes, thought looking at it now, I am not all too fond of the AA placement. I'll have to make a top view of this ship to sort that out.

I like the Takao class ships, they look very powerfull and the Yakino class embody that look as well. I agree on the AA placement, theres lots of room to stack upwards which was something the Japanese loved doing.
She also needs searchlights.

Like the Takao class she has plenty of room to ass future armaments.

Quoted

I like the Takao class ships, they look very powerfull and the Yakino class embody that look as well.

Well, yeah. It should as it is just a heavier Takao with an additional 8 inch twin turret. I do like the bridge a lot, not only the actual look, but also the way it turned out on the picture.

Quoted

I agree on the AA placement, theres lots of room to stack upwards which was something the Japanese loved doing.

True, but like I said, I need to make a top view of the ship (showing off the neat deck).

Quoted

She also needs searchlights.

Searchlights? Searchlights?! We don't need no stinking Searchlights!
*Crashes into the Dover cliffs*
:-)
Actually, I never got to that, but for the moment it gives an idea how she looks and also in regards of the armament layout and the belt length actually needed to protect the ship.

Quoted

Like the Takao class she has plenty of room to ass future armaments.

Yes, the Professor and his R&D Bureau are working hard on developping the ass future armaments.
:-)