Re: [FT] Scale in Full Thrust

At 10:48 PM +0200 6/7/01, Oerjan Ohlson wrote:
>
>Which do you think is the heaviest: a modern MBT (60-70 metric 
>tons), or a block of solid balsa wood with the same external 
>dimensions (width, length, height)?

Umm, I question that...Simply on the basis that an Abrams won't ever 
float unless you magnify its dimensions such that it weighs less than 
an equivalent volume of water does.

Less simply, we can look at the numbers (some one have better 
numbers, please use them..)

Balsa wood is about 8lbs per cubic foot.

That abrams is 70 tons 180,000lbs
ok, some basic facts...
Outside dimensions. This is the perfect cube size of an abrams. I 
don't know the presice cubic footage. Any MAC loadmasters know?

93" x 387" x 144"
Convert to Feet
7.75' x 32' x 12' Thats 2976 cubic feet....divide that by the weight 
and you get 60 lbs / square foot. Thats not even close, as again, I 
don't know the outside perfect cubic size, so I'd wonder if given the 
overall size, that an abrams is closer to 100lbs/square foot.

>...and I'm prepared to bet that the MBT has a far lower ratio of 
>internal empty space (accessways, cabins, fighting compartment etc.) 
>to total hull volume than the starship does.

Umm, well, we could look at something that's a fair approximation, 
ballistic submarines are able to float and are thus by nature less 
dense than water, so you're probably right about that. Though I 
suspect that NSL ships are probably more dense than average.

>

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