Mark14 "better" than Mark10

[7Enigma]

Hello everyone. I've been strictly using the Mark10 torpedo due to the contact influence issue as well as dud rate after being recommended that the Mark10's don't suffer the high rate of failure. But after reading a separate thread where someone posted the specs of these 2 torps I'm wondering if the Mark14 when using contact is actually the "better" torp.

By better I mean more destructive.

Here's the specs from the other post:

Mark 10 WarHead: 226 Kg TNT

Mark 14 WarHead: 292 Kg Torpex

Now it doesn't take a genius to see the Mark10 is carrying more payload in Kg amount, and I would assume Torpex is a more damaging compound (please correct if I'm mistaken), so is a Mark14 torpedo in fact capable of more damage per shot?

I'd love to minimize the swiss cheese firing required to down some of these ships!

Thanks

[Sailor Steve]

The Mark 10 was more reliable. It was also a WW1-era weapon and was assigned (as far as I know) only to the S-class.

As for Torpex:

Torpex is a mixture of 37-41% TNT, 41-45% RDX (cyclonite, cyclomethylene trinitramine) and 18% aluminum. HBX and H-6 are also TNT based with additives to increase their explosive power or increase their stability.
Torpex is attractive because of the increased explosive energy and higher detonation velocity of RDX as compared to TNT and the prolongation of the pressure wave by the aluminum. On a weight basis, Torpex is conservatively estimated to be about 50% more effective than TNT as an underwater explosive against ships. However, Torpex is more sensitive than TNT and RDX is expensive and difficult to make safely.

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_Notes.htm

[mookiemookie]

Not sure where they got their info from. Mark 14's had 643 lbs of Torpex in the warhead.

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_WWII.htm

[Hans Schultz]

Originally Posted by mookiemookie

Not sure where they got their info from. Mark 14's had 643 lbs of Torpex in the warhead.

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_WWII.htm

643lbs ~ 292 Kg not everyone uses imperial

[mookiemookie]

Originally Posted by Hans Schultz

643lbs ~ 292 Kg not everyone uses imperial

Missed the "kg" part!

Hee hee hee....silly colonists, right? :rotfl:

[Steeltrap]

Well I'm a colonist as well, I guess!

We got all the criminals, you got the religious zealots. These days it's interesting to discuss who's better off!!!! :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl: :rotfl:

[Ostfriese]

Originally Posted by mookiemookie

Not sure where they got their info from. Mark 14's had 643 lbs of Torpex in the warhead.

http://www.navweaps.com/Weapons/WTUS_WWII.htm

1 lb is equal to 0.4536 kg, so the 643 lbs transfers to 643 * 0.4536 = 291,665 kg.

292kg is close enough, I'd say.

[Steeltrap]

LMAO.....only you USA lot persist with the absurd 'imperial' system although use decimal for your currency. Go figure.

Incidentally, AFAIK the mk14 initially didn't have Torpex. I believe that was introduced in 1943 (could be wrong, haven't looked it up).

[Ostfriese]

Originally Posted by Steeltrap

LMAO.....only you USA lot persist with the absurd 'imperial' system although use decimal for your currency. Go figure.

Incidentally, AFAIK the mk14 initially didn't have Torpex. I believe that was introduced in 1943 (could be wrong, haven't looked it up).

Hey, don't you call me US American!

The Mk 14 was introduced in 1931 and indeed used TOPREX. You probably mix it up with some other torpedo.

[OakGroove]

I'd love to minimize the swiss cheese firing required to down some of these ships!

Sometimes even 2044kg of torpex/ HBX isn't enough to bring down a large modern oiler.

LMAO.....only you USA lot persist with the absurd 'imperial' system although use decimal for your currency. Go figure.

Though it was the English Empire that gave the US the "imperial" system, which they then cunningly "tweaked" and claimed it as their own the sneeky little beggers. The same could be said for nappies (diapers), curtains (drapes), colour (color), lorries (trucks) and Aubergine (egg-plant?!!! who the hell thought that one up?!!).

That said, they were clever enough not to adopt the old "imperial" currency system of guinees, farthings, thrupenny bits and hapennys....which thankfully we dropped in the 1970s during a strange thing called "decimalisation".