Naval Historywith Dr. Alex

Q&A · 9:31:58-9:32:59

How Dreadnought trained its turrets

Turret power leads into the importance of balance and the difficulty of early electric installations.

Electrical EngineeringGun TurretsHMS DreadnoughtHMS InvincibleHydraulics
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Question

Did Dreadnought use steam or electrical motors to turn its turrets?

Short answer

Steam-powered hydraulics, with hand operation mentioned as a fallback.

Notes

Dreadnought's turrets are described as using hydraulic training powered by a steam engine. Hand operation is also mentioned as a fallback. That prompts discussion of balance: a turret that can theoretically be hand-cranked still needs to be balanced properly. Invincible's early electric turret problems provide the comparison. The exchange connects the choice of power system with reliability and the demands of backup operation.