12"/50 Caliber Mark 8 Gun - Initial Designs

Initial Designs

The gun was designed in 1939, and a prototype was tested in 1942. Unlike previous guns, such as the 16"/45 caliber guns used on the North Carolina class, which were completely made and assembled at the Naval Gun Factory in Washington D.C., the forgings for the Mark 8 were manufactured at the Midvale and Bethlehem Steel Corporation. They were then sent to the Naval Gun Factory for processing, which was followed by a trip to Watervliet Arsenal until they were 65% complete. Finally, the built-up guns were sent back to the Factory to be finished. The gun was first deployed in 1944 on the first member of the Alaska class, USS Alaska (CB-1). The two Alaska class ships each had nine Mark 8 guns mounted in three triple (3-gun) turrets, with two turrets forward and one aft, a configuration known as "2-A-1".