 The calibre and weight of guns could only increase so far . The larger the gun , the slower it would be to load , the greater the stresses on the ship 's hull , and the less the stability of the ship . The size of the gun peaked in the 1880s , with some of the heaviest calibres of gun ever used at sea . HMS Benbow carried two 16 @.@ 25 @-@ inch ( 413 mm ) breech @-@ loading guns , each weighing 110 tons — no British battleship would ever carry guns as large . The Italian 450 mm ( 17 @.@ 72 inch ) guns would be larger than any gun fitted to a battleship until the 18 @.@ 1 @-@ inch ( 460 mm ) armament of the Japanese Yamato class of World War II . One consideration which became more acute was that even from the original Armstrong models , following the Crimean War , range and hitting power far exceeded simple accuracy , especially at sea where the slightest roll or pitch of the vessel as ' floating weapons @-@ platform ' could negate the advantage of rifling . American ordnance experts accordingly preferred smoothbore monsters whose round shot could at least ' skip ' along the surface of the water . Actual effective combat ranges , they had learned during the Civil War , were comparable to those in the Age of Sail — though a vessel could now be smashed to pieces in only a few rounds . Smoke and the general chaos of battle only added to the problem . As a result , many naval engagements in the ' Age of the Ironclad ' were still fought at ranges within easy eyesight of their targets , and well below the maximum reach of their ships ' guns . 
 The calibre and weight of guns could only increase so far . The larger the gun , the slower it would be to load , the greater the stresses on the ship <a href='null_genetive' title='1'><mark>'s</mark></a>hull , and the less the stability of the ship . The size of the gun peaked in the 1880s , with some of the heaviest calibres of gun ever used at sea . HMS Benbow carried two 16 @.@ 25 @-@ inch ( 413 mm ) breech @-@ loading guns , each weighing 110 tons — no British battleship would ever carry guns as large . The Italian 450 mm ( 17 @.@ 72 inch ) guns would be larger than any gun <a href='uninflect' title='2'><mark>fitted</mark></a> to a battleship until the 18 @.@ 1 @-@ inch ( 460 mm ) armament of the Japanese Yamato class of World War II . One consideration which became more acute was that even from the original Armstrong models , following the Crimean War , range and hitting power far exceeded simple accuracy , especially at sea where the slightest roll or pitch of the vessel as ' floating weapons @-@ platform ' could negate the advantage of rifling . American ordnance experts accordingly preferred smoothbore monsters whose round shot could at least ' skip ' along the surface of the water . Actual effective combat ranges , they <a href='been_done' title='3'><mark>had</mark></a> learned during the Civil War , <a href='uninflect' title='4'><mark>were</mark></a> comparable to those in the Age of Sail — though a vessel could now be smashed to pieces in only a few rounds . Smoke and the general chaos of battle only added to the problem . As a result , many naval engagements in the ' Age of the Ironclad ' <a href='uninflect' title='5'><mark>were</mark></a> still fought at ranges within easy eyesight of their targets , and well below the maximum reach of their ships <a href='null_genetive' title='6'><mark>'</mark></a>guns . 
The calibre and weight of guns could only increase soo far . The larger the gun , the slower it would be to load , the greater the stresses on the ship  hull , and da less the stability of tdaship . The size of thdaun peaked in theda80s , witt some of the daviest calibres of gun ever used at sea . HMS Benbow carried two 16 @.@ 25 @-@ inch ( 413 mm ) breech @-@ loading guns , each weighing 110 tons — no British battleship would eva carry guns as large . The Idaian 450 mm ( 17 @.@ 72 inch ) guns would be larger than any gun fit to a battleship til the 18 @.@ 1 @-@ inch ( 460 mm ) armament of the Japanese Yamato class of World War II . One consideration which became more acute was dat even from the original Armstrong models , following the Crimean War , range and hitting power far exceeded simple accuracy , especially at sea where the slightest roll or pitch of the vessel as ' floating weapons @-@ platform ' could negate the advantage of rifling . American ordnance experts accordingly preferred smoothbore monsters whose round shot could at least ' skip ' along the surface of the wada . Actual effective combat ranges , they done learned durin the Civil War , was comparable to those in the Ageda Sail — though a vessel could now be smashed to pieces in only a few rounds . Smoke and the geneda chaos of battle only added to the problem . As a result , many naval engagements in the ' Age of the Ironcda ' was still fought at ranges within easy eyesight of their targets , and well below the maximum reach of their ships  guns .