Naval/Ship Question

[OldJoe]

What is the standard configuration for deck weapons, specifically, would higher caliber weapons be forward of the bridge?  Say a vessel with a 40 mm and 20mm the 40 would be the bow mount?

[kerick]

What size of vessel are you thinking of? That could be anything from PBR to a cruiser.

[OldJoe]

Have a project in early days, 110' Great War sub chaser

[kerick]

My impulse would be on the forward deck. American PT boats had 40mm towards the stern. The Vietnam PBRs had the heavier armament of the twin 50's in the bow. Larger ships seemed to have the guns split fore and aft so it could be either way I suppose. It's just an impulse to put the big guns forward for visual appeal to me. But then again, I was USAF so what do I know!
 I did get a tour of the USS Missouri at Pearl Harbor while she was still active and those gigantic turrets were two forward and one aft so there's that for you too.
I'm sure others here know much more about the technical reasons.

[Weaver]

In general there's a bias for having the majority of heavy guns forwards, since this is more "aggressive". However small, fast craft often have the heavier weapon aft for balance reasons: too much weight forwards and the boat won't get up "on plane" to travel at higher speeds.

I'd suggest that a sub-chaser would have some kind of heavy weapon forwards since an integral part of it's mission is finishing off surfaced submarines, for which it would need to sail towards them, and a sub-chaser didn't need to be particularly fast in those days.

[perttime]

Looks like small(ish) naval vessels tend to put the big gun in front. I suppose they are supposed to be attacking something, so want the heavy firepower to be towards the front.

[Old Wombat]

What is the standard configuration for deck weapons, specifically, would higher caliber weapons be forward of the bridge?  Say a vessel with a 40 mm and 20mm the 40 would be the bow mount?

Generally, heavy guns forward.

Sub Chasers are, primarily, an American WW2 ship class but the British did use them (Motor Launches).

British WW1 sub-chasers (MLs made in the USA) carried their heavier armament forward, usually a 3-pdr or 3" breach loaded gun without a gun shield, & one or two Lewis guns &, eventually, a few depth charges on the stern.

During WW2 Fairmile boats were used in the role & had similar armament but with the big gun aft of the superstructure.

US boats tended to be bigger & more heavily armed with the guns forward.

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Submarine_chaser

Photo:

[zenrat]

Unless you were planning for the vessel to be chasing submarines in reverse then I think you would want the big guns at the front.

[PR19_Kit]

Unless you were planning for the vessel to be chasing submarines in reverse then I think you would want the big guns at the front.

That would confuse them tactically for sure! 

[kerick]

What is the standard configuration for deck weapons, specifically, would higher caliber weapons be forward of the bridge?  Say a vessel with a 40 mm and 20mm the 40 would be the bow mount?

Generally, heavy guns forward.

Sub Chasers are, primarily, an American WW2 ship class but the British did use them (Motor Launches).

British WW1 sub-chasers (MLs made in the USA) carried their heavier armament forward, usually a 3-pdr or 3" breach loaded gun without a gun shield, & one or two Lewis guns &, eventually, a few depth charges on the stern.

During WW2 Fairmile boats were used in the role & had similar armament but with the big gun aft of the superstructure.

US boats tended to be bigger & more heavily armed with the guns forward.

Wikipedia: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Submarine_chaser

Photo:

I love the guy on the bow sitting in a chair. Is he watching out for cuties catching rays on the deck of a yacht?

[Rheged]

Unless you were planning for the vessel to be chasing submarines in reverse then I think you would want the big guns at the front.

That would confuse them tactically for sure! 

There is of course the "Kil"  class anti-submarine vessel from World War One.  Built with a symmetrical silhouette, so that you couldn't tell whether it was coming or going.

See   here   https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/HMS_Kilbride