The larger-caliber main battery required new ammunition contracts, exposing the importance of Italian shell-production quality control. Reboring existing weapons saved the cost of a wholly new gun system but made consistent 12.6-inch ammunition a fresh industrial dependency. Below the waterline, the reconstruction removed torpedo tubes and used the saved weight and internal volume for a Pugliese defense system. Its fluid-surrounded cylinder was intended to absorb and dissipate an underwater explosion before the force reached the inner hull.
Notable Point · 40:19-43:30
Reconstruction tradeoffs in ammunition and torpedo defense
Rebored guns created a new ammunition burden, while removal of the torpedo tubes freed space for the Pugliese underwater-protection system.