Tiger had two fire directors whose work could be coordinated for improved control, depending on the flag captain, admiral, and ship's captain. Just before Jutland, super-elevating prisms enabled the director-controlled turrets to use the guns' full elevation. The 13.5-inch guns fired 1,400-pound, or 635-kilogram, shells at 2,491 feet per second, or 759 metres per second, to a stated maximum range of about 23,740 yards. Their normal rate was roughly two rounds per minute. An unverified oral anecdote says one turret achieved five rounds in two minutes during a competition, an average of about 24 seconds per round. No archival confirmation has been found, and the account leaves open whether one gun began partially loaded.
Chapter · 46:50-49:59
Fire control and the 13.5-inch guns
Tiger's two fire directors, pre-Jutland elevation improvement, gun range, and firing rate show how gunnery performance depended on more than calibre.