Sustaining the Des Moines class's rapid eight-inch fire

Could a Des Moines-class cruiser sustain twelve eight-inch rounds per gun per minute?

For a while, yes, but sustained fire tended to fall toward about ten rounds per minute and depended heavily on maintenance.

The automatic eight-inch gun could maintain roughly twelve rounds per gun per minute for a meaningful period. Over longer firing, the practical rate tended to settle closer to ten as heat, wear, and the demands of continuous operation accumulated. Maintenance condition was decisive because a well-kept mount could sustain performance that a neglected one could not. The peak figure described a genuine capability, though it could not continue indefinitely.