16 inches is the maximum diameter of the shell. They’re about as big around as a man’s chest. There’s video on Youtube of a man squeezing down the barrel of one of these guns.
“Caliber” in naval guns actually refers to the length of the barrel in multiples of its bore. USS North Carolina’s main guns are 16 inch, 45 caliber. Which means they’re 45*16 inches =720 inches / 12 inches to a foot = 60 feet long. The Iowa class’ guns are 16 inch 50 caliber, they’re about 7 feet longer.
![[OC] Projectile ring for ammunition inside the 16 inch main gun of the USS North Carolina](https://lemmy.world/pictrs/image/b54e0d3c-047a-4cd3-b73f-aaaff9c09feb.jpeg){kind=link}
16 inches is the caliber, or the diameter of the shells.
The propellant is not shown here, and would be loaded separately in canvas bags behind these shells.
Is 16inches referring to the top point of the “bullet”? I’ve always wondered this as well.
16 inches is the maximum diameter of the shell. They’re about as big around as a man’s chest. There’s video on Youtube of a man squeezing down the barrel of one of these guns.
“Caliber” in naval guns actually refers to the length of the barrel in multiples of its bore. USS North Carolina’s main guns are 16 inch, 45 caliber. Which means they’re 45*16 inches =720 inches / 12 inches to a foot = 60 feet long. The Iowa class’ guns are 16 inch 50 caliber, they’re about 7 feet longer.