I am putting the finishing touches on my Richelieu and wanted to know how close to the bend I can cut my A turret barrels on an Indiana cannon. I really don't have a lot of give room, and would prefer to keep the profile as close as possible to prototype. Also, would it be ok to cut the tubes rising out of the breech? All of this is assuming 1/8" of plastic tubing for elevation.
I'll tackle your questions in reverse order. 2) YES, you can cut the barrel risers down. Just make sure you leave some riser there, and have some way to secure the plastic hose. 1) Cut those barrels down as far as you need to go. If you need to, you can even cut partway into the bend itself. All it means is a tighter, sharper turn for the ball bearings, and a bit more wear on the barrels there. I cut partway into the bend on my VU's "A" turret. It was annoying, but I did what I had to in order to get my guns down to legal height. They still sink other ships just fine.
ok, I cut my barrels too short on my A turret (I know!! "better to cut too little than too much") How bad is it going to hurt to have1/4" or a bit more of tubing rather then the 1/8"?
Oh no! Actually, it's not too bad. You'll lose a little air efficiency as gas slips past the ball while it goes through the gap, but that's about it. I've seen photos of one ship with probably an inch of gap or more between riser and barrel, specifically to reduce the strain on the depression servo for a quad turret.
