Appendix I

GENERAL DATA

ORDNANCE DATA
 

The statements and data of this appended section of Ordnance Pamphlet 1180 are warnings and safety measures for operation of the turret.

The compilation is a recapitulation of the operating precautions of all chapters of the six volumes of the pamphlet, together with extracts from U.S. Navy Regulations.

This precautionary material is of first importance to the turret organization; every member of the crew should be thoroughly conversant with every warning and the significance or reason for each.

U.S. NAVY REGULATIONS, EXTRACTS

From Article 972

1. As familiarity with any work, no matter how dangerous, is apt to lead to carelessness, all persons who may supervise or perform work in connection with the inspection, care, preparation, or handling of ammunition-

  (1) Shall exercise the utmost care that all regulations and instructions are rigidly observed.

  (2) Shall carefully supervise those under them and frequently warn them of the necessity of using the utmost precaution in the performance of their work. No relaxation of vigilance shall ever be permitted.

2. In each part of the ship where ammunition is stored or handled or where gunnery appliances are operated, such safety orders as apply shall be posted in conspicuous places easy of access, and the personnel concerned shall be frequently and thoroughly instructed and drilled in them.

3. Conditions not covered by these safety orders may arise which, in the opinion of the commanding officer, may render firing unsafe.

4. The commanding officer shall at any time issue such additional safety orders as he may deem necessary, and a report thereof shall be made to his immediate superior and to the Bureau of Ordnance.

5. When in doubt as to the exact meaning of any safety order, an interpretation should be requested from the Bureau of Ordnance.

6. The Bureau of Ordnance shall be informed of any circumstances which conflict with these safety orders or which for any other reason require changes in or additions to them.

7. Helpful suggestions and constructive criticism of these orders are invited. They should be made to the Bureau of Ordnance through official channels.

8. Changes, modifications in, or additions to ordnance material, or other material used in connection therewith, shall not be made without explicit authority from the bureaus concerned.

9. Safety devices provided shall always be used to prevent possibility of accident, and shall be kept in good order and operative at all times.

10. No ammunition shall be used in any gun for which it is not designated.

11. Handling of ammunition shall be reduced to the minimum to prevent immediate accident and ..... damage to tanks and cartridge cases, loosened projectiles, ......

12. Service ammunition is supplied to ships for use in battle. It shall not be used for drill, for testing appliances, or for other similar purposes except upon the express authority of the Navy Department. It shall be regarded as a part of the vessel's outfit, shall be kept distinct from the ammunition used for gunnery exercises, and shall never be expended in gunnery exercises unless authorized in the orders for gunnery exercises or special instructions from the Bureau of Ordnance.

14. Only such of the ammunition issued for gunnery exercises as does not contain a primer, fuze, or detonator may (at the discretion of the commanding officer) be used for testing the fit in hoists, guns, and appliances

15. No other than drill ammunition shall be used for drill.

16. The unexpended portion of such ammunition as may have been issued for a specific gunnery exercise or experimental firing shall be turned in as soon as practicable, after such firing, to an ammunition depot, unless additional firings are immediately authorized by the Navy Department.

17. Since the safety in handling and the disposition of ammunition depend upon the correctness of reports and records, care shall be taken not to obliterate identification marks on ammunition or to put it into incorrectly marked containers. When ammunition in other than normal condition is returned to an ammunition depot in compliance with these safety precautions, it shall be marked to indicate its condition and the reason for its return. If smokeless powder is involved, the weight of the smokeless powder returned shall also be indicated.

18. Projectiles shall not be altered, nor shall fuzes or any other parts be removed or disassembled on board ship without explicit instructions from the Bureau of Ordnance. Projectiles shall not be allowed to rust or to become oversize through paint. Slings and grommets and other similar protective devices shall be removed before loading projectiles into guns. Since the slings are likely to jam the hoists, they shall be removed before sending up the projectile.

19. A fuzed projectile, or a cartridge case, whether in a container or not, if dropped from a height exceeding five feet, shall be set aside and turned in to a naval ammunition depot at the first opportunity. (See par. 17.) Such ammunition shall be handled with the greatest care.

22. Nose fuzes being sensitive, care shall be taken to prevent them from being struck as by the gun in recoil, by ejected cases, by dropping, etc.**

23. Time fuzes which have been set shall be reset on "safety" before sending them below.

26. Smokeless powder shall not be exposed to the direct rays of the sun. Powder ..... in tanks, cartridge cases, ..... or in any other containers shall be protected against abnormally high temperatures over 100°F.)

28. If any smokeless powder be exposed to temperature higher than 100°F., a special report shall be made to the Bureau of Ordnance immediately, explaining the circumstances in detail and stating the temperature and length of time the powder was so exposed.

29. Smokeless powder which has been wet from any cause whatever must be regarded as dangerous for dry storage. Such powder shall be completely immersed in fresh water and kept immersed and landed at an ammunition depot at the first opportunity. (See par. 17.)

30. Smokeless powder in leaky containers shall be transferred to airtight containers, and these must be marked "Transferred from leaky containers." If airtight containers are not available or if the container in use cannot be repaired properly, the powder shall be forwarded to an ammunition depot at the first opportunity, the container being marked "Leaky container." (See par. 17.)

32. Naked lights, matches, or other flame-producing apparatus shall never be taken into magazines or other spaces used primarily as

33. Before performing any work which may cause either an abnormally high temperature or an intense local heat in a magazine or other compartment used primarily as a magazine, all explosives shall be removed to safe storage until normal conditions have been restored.

34. Magazines shall be kept scrupulously clean and dry at all times. Particular attention shall be paid that no oily rags, waste, or other materials susceptible to spontaneous combustion are stored in them.

36. Nothing shall be stored in magazines except explosives, containers, and authorized magazine equipment.

37. During firing no other ammunition than that immediately required shall be permitted to remain outside of the magazines.

38. During action and during target practice magazine blowers shall be shut down and Covers of both supply and exhaust branches to magazines shall be closed.

42. When cartridges are outside the magazines, wherever practicable, each flameproof compartment or space which forms a stage of the ammunition train, including the magazines and gun compartments (in or out of turrets), shall be closed from all other compartments or spaces, except when the actual passage of ammunition requires it to be open. Where practicable, no flameproof stage of the ammunition train shall be open to both the preceding and the following stages at the same time.**

44. If flame seals be damaged during firing, except in action, so that they cannot fulfill their purpose, the gun or guns concerned shall cease firing until the flame seals are again effective. 51. Except when using a power rammer, no force greater than that which can be applied by the hand alone shall be used in loading a live cartridge into a gun. Any cartridge which does not freely and fully enter the chamber of the gun shall be carefully extracted and put aside, and in peace time no further attempt shall be made to fire such a cartridge.

55. A firing lock into which a live primer has been inserted shall never be opened, either independently or by operation of the breech mechanism, unless the firing circuit is broken externally at the lock or breech mechanism (for example, at local pointer's key or gun captain's ready switch), except when it is known that the loaded gun has fired. This applies to the firing of primers at drill, to the operation of loaded guns, and the examination of primers referred to in paragraph 67.

57. Effective measures shall be taken to guard against prematurely opening the breech of a loaded gun, whether or not the gun is filled with a salvo latch.

63. The utmost care shall be taken to insure that the firing pin and other parts of the firing mechanism of a case gun are in good condition and properly assembled in order to prevent premature discharge.

66. If a gun is loaded at the order "Cease firing."

  (1) The gun shall remain loaded and shall be pointed and trained in a safe direction;

  (2) The breech mechanism shall be kept fully closed;

  (3) The firing key shall be opened and the firing circuit broken elsewhere;

The crew shall never leave a loaded gun until these precautions have been carried out.***

67. The possibility of a serious accident due to opening the breech of a gun too soon after a misfire demands the constant exercise of the utmost prudence and caution. After an unsuccessful attempt to fire a gun, it shall be assumed that a hangfire is under way; and the procedure outlined below shall be followed:

  (1) Keep the gun pointed and trained in a safe direction.

  (2) Continue attempts to fire, if desired, provided such efforts do not involve any movement tending to open the breech.

  (3) Do not open the breech for 30 minutes ..... after the last attempt to fire. This, at the discretion of the commanding officer, is not obligatory in time of action.

The cartridge shall be turned in to an ammunition depot at the first opportunity if-

  (1) The gun was warm when loaded;

  (2) An attempt was made to fire the gun;

  (3) After careful examination the cartridge is found injured or out of alignment.

Crimped cartridges shall not be broken down before being turned in. Uncrimped cartridges shall be broken down and the powder immersed in fresh water before being turned in.

70. When a gun is being unloaded, all personnel not required for the unloading operation shall be kept at a safe distance from the gun. The division officer shall supervise the unloading.

72. Marks or indicators shall be provided to indicate whether or not the gun returns to battery ..... The service of the gun shall be stopped should the gun fail to return to battery.*

73. On guns equipped with hydropneumatic counterrecoil systems, the safety link, locking the gun to the slide, shall be connected up at. all times except when firing, or when testing and overhauling the counterrecoil systems, or when the battery is in a condition of readiness for action. These safety links shall be disconnected after checking the pressure on counterrecoil system and prior to firing.

79. Fired cartridge cases shall, before storing below, he stood on their bases in the open air for ten minutes in order to avoid danger from inflammable gases. 81. In testing primers outside of closed firing locks, no magneto or other device which can possibly supply current sufficient to fire the primer shall be used.

82. Whenever any motion of a power-driven unit is capable of inflicting in jury on personnel or material not continuously visible to the person controlling such motion, the officer or petty

83. In turrets ..... a warning signal shall be installed outside the turret ..... and whenever power train is used, except at general quarters, the officer or petty officer in charge of the turret ..... shall cause warning signals to be sounded before using power and at intervals during its use.

84. When using director train while firing at gunnery exercises, an observer from the firing vessel for each gun or turret shall cause the firing circuit to be broken whenever the gun or turret is trained dangerously near any object other than the designated target.

86. Except in action, whenever a circuit breaker becomes so sensitive as to function due to the shock of firing, the circuit breaker shall be either overhauled or replaced and shall not be tied or fixed in position so as to be inoperative for the purpose for which designed.

87. The covers of switches, circuit breakers, etc., shall be kept securely closed while powder is exposed in the vicinity.

88. Whenever the guns of a vessel are fired, the fire hose shall be connected and pressure shall be maintained on the fire main. This does not require water to be running through the hose. ***

89. Turret and handling room sprinkling systems shall be tested and all tanks of these systems filled before firing.

  (b) Whenever there is a possibility of action, the commanding officer shall require all recoil and counterrecoil systems to be kept ready for immediate use and inspected as frequently as safety demands.

93. Before firing primers, the division officer will see that the gun tompions are removed ..... In preparing the battery for firing he shall, in addition, see that the gas-ejector system, and the turret-blower system are working satisfactorily and that the bore of the gun is in satisfactory condition.

94. Steel constrictions of the bore, usually caused by the gun liner overriding the retaining shoulders in the tube, are a source of possible danger in firing. It is not always possible to distinguish copper constrictions from steel constrictions. Therefore no gun shall be fired in target practice unless the bore gage will pass through the entire bore without undue forcing. After target practice the gage shall be tried in each gun and the bore enlarged, if necessary, until the gage will pass.

TURRET GENERAL PRECAUTIONS

DANGER. Live 440-volt leads are exposed whenever covers of the bus transfer panel, equipment panels, controllers, motor terminal boxes, and many of the control panels and connection boxes are open.

DANGER. Never enter the cable trunk at the foot of the central column or the wiring recess at the top until the 440-volt supply switches are open at NORMAL and EMERGENCY supply switchboards.

Always open the 440-volt supply switch at the equipment panel as well as the controller concerned when preparing to work on any power driven assembly.

Never close the supply switches of the automatic control circuits of guns, elevating drives,

DANGER. Never fire the guns with personnel on or in the truss girders or in the gun pits.

DANGER. Always close and secure the pan plate hatches, the projectile flat hatches, and the turret circular foundation doors before firing the gun.

DANGER. Always start the ventilating systems and open the gas-ejector system valves before firing the guns.

ORDNANCE EQUIPMENT PRECAUTIONS

Personnel danger

Always be sure that all operating ways of the gun, slide, and ammunition handling equipment are clear of personnel before operating the gun. When starting operations, never shift gun and hoists control supply switches A, B and C from their stowed OFF positions, nor shift the hoist function control selector levers from their stowed positions at STOP, until all hoist loading stations report CLEAR and personnel are out of gun pits.

Never fire the guns without first checking the recuperator air pressure and differential fluid.

Man the gun captains' control panels at all times; never tie down the rammer controls.

Never put hands, feet or head into a hoist way or path of a cradle, transfer tray, slide, or housing when power is ON.

DANGER. Never climb through the archways of the projectile flats when the projectile ring power drives are operating; always stop the electric motor of the inner drive ring.

Never attempt to parbuckle projectiles through the gates of the inner ring; always man-handle projectiles through the gates and then only when the power drive is stopped.

Always use the steady arm mechanism to load the projectile hoist; it is safer than manhandling.

Never start the elevating gear until the gun pits are cleared of all personnel.

DANGER. Never perform gun sliding-out exercise without setting the securing pin in its 20° elevation socket.

Never enter the gun pits except when the slide securing device is engaged.

Always lash all projectiles carefully, inspecting all toggle links, before going to sea.

Never return H.C. projectiles from the cradle to the hoist without first moving switch BW to SAFE for an elapsed time of at least 30 seconds.

Always operate the elevating gear separately in HAND control, slowly, when setting the slide securing and steady rest pins at secured position.

Always latch the transfer trays in firing position before working in the slide loading-tray area.

Never perform maintenance work on gun equipment with valve T open.

After any dismantling or repair work involving the cradle control switches, perform a thorough continuity check of the circuits. This is extremely important; the connections can be reversed so that the cradles can operate without the pawl functioning to hold ammunition.

Do not unscrew hydraulic adjustments excessively. There is danger of injury to personnel and equipment because of the hydraulic pressure.

If a cradle is raised to the slide to facilitate repair work in the gun pit, secure it with timber or lashing before proceeding with the work.

Never adjust the gas-ejector pilot valve to cause air ejection for less than 2.5 seconds.

WARNING. Always observe all cautions listed under "Turret general precautions," page 149.

Equipment casualty

Gun equipment precautions

PREPARATION PRECAUTIONS

Check recuperator air pressure and differential fluid.

Check recoil cylinder fluid level.

Check the fluid level of all slide equipment buffers.

Check firing circuit interlock switches in transfer trays.

Unship the tompions.

Unlatch the case ejector cover and tighten the securing bolts to their stowed positions.

Disengage and stow the gun locking device.

Retract the slide securing and steady rest pins.

Make certain that all operating ways of breech and slide are clear.

Prove the gun control action by operating breech, rammer, and trays through two power cycles.

Observe the hoist operating precautions, under "Ammunition handling equipment precautions," page 151, before serving ammunition.

FIRING PRECAUTIONS

Man the gun control panel at all times, never tie down the rammer control. Observe the continuity of the control ready light system for every round; shift the ready switch to SAFE immediately if the action stops.

MISFIRE PRECAUTIONS

Shift the READY switch to UNLOAD position at once. Unload or fire the gun, observing Navy Regulations. See pages 147-148.

Never attempt to remove a jammed empty cartridge case from the case-ejector rear compartment by operating the transfer trays to FIRE; always extract through the portable cover at the rear end of the case ejector.

STOWING PRECAUTIONS

Secure the gun locking device immediately after "Cease fire."

Always seat the securing pin and run-out the steady rest pin.

Always stow with valve T closed.

Always install tompions or canvas covers on gun muzzles.

Always close and secure the empty-case tube covers.

MISCELLANEOUS PRECAUTIONS

Do not attempt power operation of the breech with the manual mechanism clutch engaged.

Use utmost care to avoid damaging the breech mechanism when removing a drill or live projectile from the gun chamber by means of the backing-out rammer. If practicable, have guns trained fore or aft to minimize the effect of the roll of the ship.

Use clean, soft cloth only to wipe the recuperator plunger. Scratches will cause loss of air charge. No rust-protection oil film is required.

Never use an organic or heavy oil or grease to coat the gun bore, chamber, or gun and slide

Never use abrasives or detergent or caustic solutions to remove discoloration or smoke rings from the gun bore; use an oil-soaked cloth.

Always adjust the manual drive breech mechanism handwheel release to slip at a maximum of 30 pounds pressure on the handwheel grip. This is a safety release which is less effective if set higher.

Ammunition handling equipment precautions

Before raising ammunition into the cradles, verify that the ram retractor is at SAFE. Complete ejection into the transfer trays cannot be obtained with the retractor lug in the path of the ram.

Never depress a hoist trigger with the hands, always use the trigger handle to actuate the cycle.

Always retract the fuze setter when hoisting A.P. projectiles.

Always secure the fuze setter in retracted position when stowing the hoist or when preparing to lower projectiles.

When handling powder between the magazines and hoist scuttles, avoid rough treatment that may cause the primer bridge to break.

Always stow the cradles in their lowered positions.

If a cradle is raised to the slide to facilitate repair work in the gun pit, secure it with timber or lashing before proceeding with the work.

Never feed ammunition units into a hoist with the shutters detented open.

At "Cease fire," after ammunition has been returned to the conveyor, restore the ram retractor to SAFE position before securing.

Never use the steady arm mechanism to unload projectile hoist. Loop the snubbing rope over the projectile to withdraw.

Never loop snubbing rope above the copper rotating band on a projectile when parbuckling (without the steady arm); always loop the rope below the rotating band.

Never loop a snubbing rope more than three turns around a gypsy head; two turns are usually sufficient.

Never attempt to unload a hoist without latching the shutters open; always use the

The preferred safe direction for operating the projectile rings to load center and right projectile hoists is clockwise; for loading left hoist, counterclockwise. These directions of rotations give more clear working area for the projectile men and do not move loaded areas of the projectile rings toward the steady arm operators.

When unloading the powder hoist, use the powder can tool to unload the powder cases from the scuttles.

Always stow projectile rings with both centering pins of each securely seated.

Always lash all projectiles carefully, inspecting all toggle links, before going to sea.

Always secure the steady arm mechanisms before going to sea.

Never attempt to load or unload a projectile ring when it is in motion.

Always check the correct functional arrangement of circuit RP for the outer projectile ring warning system before starting operations.

Always inspect the projectile ring for loose tools or other obstructions before starting operations.

When reversing the direction of projectile ring rotation, permit the ring to come to a full stop before reversing handwheel rotation.

Keep projectiles secured on the projectile ring until rotation stops; then unclamp only the projectiles which are to be parbuckled. In rough weather, unclamp the projectiles one by one as needed for parbuckling.

Always latch the transfer trays when manually loading the cradles to return ammunition units to the hoist.

Always stow the pawl handle for the projectile hoist upper loading level pawls in nonoperating position; assemble in its operating position only when projectiles are to be lowered to the lower projectile flats. When the pawl handle is used, secure it; do not let it hang free.

Never return H.C. projectiles from the cradle to the hoist without first moving switch BW to SAFE for an elapsed time of at least 30 seconds.

Always stow switch BW at OFF position.

Never adjust a gypsy head slip clutch to release at a snubbing rope pull in excess of 650 pounds.

Gun laying equipment precautions

Always man the pointer's station whenever any elevating gear is operating.

Never attempt to start any elevating gear drive with the control selector switch in any position other than HAND. When shifting the elevating gear controls from HAND to LOCAL, match the pointer's handwheel dial to gun position before shifting the selector switch to LOCAL.

Always synchronize gun position with gun order before shifting to AUTO control.

Always shift the control selector switch of each elevating gear drive to HAND position before stopping the drive.

Protect each elevating drive from backlash vibration and seaway stresses by setting the securing and steady rest pins at 0° secured position when the drive is not operating.

Never attempt to adjust the elevating gear limit stop without first disengaging the regulator response-plus-tilt and elevating inputs.

WARNING. After servicing an elevating gear, do not operate it with the inputs coupled until the fire control instruments have been synchronized with turret and gun laying movements.

Never attempt to improve the operation of an elevation indicator-regulator if the performance is satisfactory.

Training gear equipment precautions

Always man the trainer's station whenever the drive is operating.

Always retract both centering pins before starting the training gear drive.

Always place the control selector lever at HAND before starting the drive.

When shifting from HAND to LOCAL and then to AUTO control, synchronize turret

Always shift the control selector to HAND before stopping the drive.

Operate the drive slowly in HAND when locating center pin positions.

Protect the train drive from backlash and the roller path from deformation by setting both centering pins tight whenever the drive is not operating.

Never attempt to improve the operation of the train receiver-regulator if the performance is satisfactory.

Fire control equipment precautions

Never attempt to set the sights when any appreciable effort is required to turn the sight setter's hand cranks. Stop and investigate. Find and remove the cause of the abnormal load before resuming operation.

Exercise the sights and gun attachments periodically and frequently through full range of movements.

Dry out and ventilate sight hoods daily. Clean and dry telescope objectives. Always keep the sight hood shutters closed when the sights are not in use. Never make internal adjustments or open any fire control instrument without cause.

When securing fire control equipment after operations, open all transmission, communication, and lighting circuits at the instrument controls as well as the turret officer's transfer switchboard.

Never adjust sights and gun attachments without cause, and then only in the prescribed order. Adjustments made out of order will upset other adjustments. Never attempt to improve the operation of fire control equipment if performance is satisfactory.

Whenever trouble occurs, test the equipment in all types of control, to isolate the cause, before resorting to disassembly or adjustment.

DISTRIBUTION

Requests for additional copies of OP 1180 (Vol. 1) should be submitted to the Chief of the Bureau of Ordnance, Washington 25, D. C.

Standard Navy Distribution List No. 46 (Part 1) and Edition No. 4 (Part 2) to Catalog of Activities of the Navy.

DISTRIBUTION:

1 copy unless otherwise indicated.

1.A,D,H,K; 3.(10 copies), H-AG 128 only, U-CA 134, 139, 148 only; 6.A; 7.K; 7.(2 copies) ,N,P,R; 7.(15 copies) ,L,V; 7.(6 copies) ,D; 8.(2 copies), T34,T36,T40,T42,T43; 8. (50 copies) ,T35; 11. BuShips,CNO,BuPers,BuOrd*)

*Applicable Addressees.

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