The 9.2- and 9.4-inch pre-dreadnought sweet spot

How did 9.2- and 9.4-inch guns compare with 10-inch weapons in rate of fire, shell effect, and battleship use?

The panel favors 9.2 inches for cruisers and Germany's 240 mm 9.4-inch caliber for battleships, combining faster fire than a 10-inch gun with a useful shell and strong secondary batteries.

The speakers identify 9.2 inches as a cruiser sweet spot and 240 mm as a convenient metric caliber with enough extra shell weight for German battleships. Germany's experience with slow 11-inch weapons on the Brandenburg class and its preference for powerful six-inch secondary batteries made the smaller main caliber a coherent choice. The ships' shelf life was no worse than comparable foreign pre-dreadnoughts because all were designed for much shorter battle ranges than the dreadnought era imposed.