Why a 42,000-ton limit need not force wholesale replacement

Would a 42,000-ton capital-ship limit force every signatory to replace its fleet too quickly?

No; the treaty could control replacement dates, construction rate, and total numbers, while states unable to afford the maximum need not build to it.

The question argues that a 42,000-ton allowance would make existing ships weak and force poorer powers into unaffordable replacement. France and Italy historically did not build to all their allowances, so a maximum is not a construction requirement. No existing capital ship naturally established 35,000 tons as the correct standard. Replacement ages, total ship numbers, and limits on how many hulls may be built in a period can control fleet renewal without imposing an artificial displacement figure.